[Cartierusm]

Hi, first time printer, sort of, but for this discussion lets say I'm new. I'm getting more ink in the center of the design and less at the top and bottom where there is text. Attached a photo, of course you can't see the difference, but its there to show the design.

Black Cotton Shirts, Gold Plastisol Ink, 110 Mesh Screen PROFESSIONALLY Coated and Burned, 70 Squeegee

I started off with .15" off contact, then lowered it to about .1" and it got a little better, but being a newbie I have no idea what's going on.

I tried stroking from me forward and then toward me, different angles and different pressures. Nothing seems to make a difference. I mean it'll definitely need two passes and i"m flashing inbetween, but the ink at the top and bottom is way less than in the center.

The screen looks like it was washed out well, no clogging.

Any help would be appreciated, Thanks.

 

[Cartierusm]

Forgot to mention, if it matters, but the screen is 20" x 24" and the image is 12" x 15".

 

[PatWibble]

Has the platen bowed under the flash drier?
Sometimes happens with wood platens, specially if using a one or two station press.
Hold a clean squeegee to the platen to see if it is still square.

The image is as big as you would want to go on that size screen, but as long as you are keeping even pressure throughout the stroke then it should be ok.
Have you tried back-flooding?

 

[GoodInk]

My guess would be that the platen has bowed too. Throw a level on it and see if it gaps on the sides. I have had that issue in the past, makes it very difficult to get a smooth even print.

Good luck

 

[Cartierusm]

I wish it were that, I just put a straight edge against it and it's flat as can be.

I just remeasured the image is actually 12" x 16" so 1" bigger than i originally mentioned.

Yes I'm flooding each time.

 

[20vK]

Do you have a clear screen top and bottom, after a stroke, or is there ink left behind?

 

[Cartierusm]

Ah good question, didn't look, i'll try again and report back.

 

[20vK]

If you do, just do a second dry harder stroke to make sure all the ink in the screen is deposited on the shirt.

 

[Cartierusm]

Ok I'm sure it's something simple especially since I'm a noob. Tried printing again. First stroke ink seems even across the shirt, I stoke 3 times BTW to make sure to clear the screen. Looked at the screen it seems clear no ink. Then I flash for about 10-15 seconds, flood and stroke 3 times to clear the screen. This is where it gets weird. When I lift up the screen for the seconds time it seems as though the screen is clear, but no ink got deposited on the shirt. I puts a little in randomly in the center part of the image. It's as though the ink is not sticking to the ink layer I've already flashed.

Now I've never used plastisol before and this ink seems pretty runny from what plastisol looks like on youtube videos. And yes I'm mixing the ink well. It's runny enough that when I lift the screen up and let it sit while flashing the ink runs to the bottom of the screen pooling up again the aluminum frame. Maybe the ink is wrong or bad.

 

[Cartierusm]

Ok resolution. I posted an ad on craigslist for some help and training. It was definitely my technique. Mainly pushing way too hard. Basically I was doing a lot of little things wrong that made the shirts not come out correct.

Also the guy said the ink doesn't look right either. Way too watery. I mean if you turn over the container it'll pour right out instantly. With regular black plastisol the ink stays put. SO since the company I bought it from repackages it in their own containers I'm sure they either gave me the wrong stuff or put the wrong ink in the container, maybe poster ink.

But never the less they are still looking pretty good. I'm going to wash some to see how they come out.

Thanks for all the help.

 

[tonkatruck]

Is your flash big enough to cover the top and bottom of the print?

 

[Cartierusm]

Yeah, I have a big flash heater, 18 x 18

 

[20vK]

Really pleased to hear you are now making tracks!

 

[miktoxic]

i would have thought one of two things

1) an uneven pressure with your squeegee pulls (right handed people tend to go one way, left handed etc.)

2) your press is not adjusted correctly. the bracket which is attached to the arm of your machine that holds the screen has to be perfectly horizontal/vertical adjusted to your platen. meaning the screen can't be 1/4" above the platen at the bottom left side and 1/8" on the bottom right side. it has to be level with same height (once put down to print) all around, not askew.

 

[miktoxic]

Now I've never used plastisol before and this ink seems pretty runny from what plastisol looks like on youtube videos. And yes I'm mixing the ink well. It's runny enough that when I lift the screen up and let it sit while flashing the ink runs to the bottom of the screen pooling up again the aluminum frame. Maybe the ink is wrong or bad.

black plastisol doesn't have to be that thick because it is the most opaque color on the chart. one pass should suffice when doing any print with a black colored ink. water base or plastisol.

 

[Cartierusm]

Thanks. The black plastisol was just given as an example of how thick the ink is in comparison to the gold ink I'm trying to use, the gold is very runny. I think they gave me the wrong ink.

 

[Cartierusm]

Ok my skill is getting much better, but I'm still having problems on the text at the top of the shirt. My printing starts out fine, but then gets thinner, but I think I've figured out what the problem is. The ink. As I mentioned the ink I'm using is supposed to be thin and watery, I double checks with the store. Well I didn't think that is right. So I went to one of my old distributors that sells professional screen printing equipment. Found a Union Ink that is almost identicle to the one I'm using. It's like regular plastisol very thick. So the liquidy ink i was using is just too hard to work with. Just for other information if you're using a very liquidy ink off contact accuracy is very critical. i'm at over 1/8".

 

[miktoxic]

Ok my skill is getting much better, but I'm still having problems on the text at the top of the shirt. My printing starts out fine, but then gets thinner, but I think I've figured out what the problem is. The ink. As I mentioned the ink I'm using is supposed to be thin and watery, I double checks with the store. Well I didn't think that is right. So I went to one of my old distributors that sells professional screen printing equipment. Found a Union Ink that is almost identicle to the one I'm using. It's like regular plastisol very thick. So the liquidy ink i was using is just too hard to work with. Just for other information if you're using a very liquidy ink off contact accuracy is very critical. i'm at over 1/8".

that's what i tried to tell you earlier. the off contact has to be level at every corner (top left, top right, bottom left and bottom right and 1/8 might be even generous. i've heard people tell me it should almost sit on the shirt.

also using plastisol you don't want to lay it too thick. you might want to pull towards you while holding the screen down with yours hands above the screen and below the pallet (making the contact tight) and then once your pull is up near you push the ink back over the design. then lift the screen and see what you have.

you might want to think about doing a print/flash then print again. plastisol is supposed to lay on top of the garment not go through it (like water-base) so if it's too thin, you'd want to lay off the pressure a little, do a quick pull, then flash, then print again.

-good luck!

 

[Cartierusm]

Thanks. I'm already doing print flash print. But now I've got the correct ink. So I'm going to try again today.

 

[porkchopharry]

If the off contact is set correctly, try concentrating on making sure you are doing a consistent stroke from the top of the design through the bottom if you are pushing, or bottom of the design to the top if you're pulling.

Sometimes on taller designs we might tend to kind of not give it the same consistent stroke all the way through the stencil. Maybe it's a mental thing.

After that, other things to possibly check would be...making sure the stencil is even and little things like enough adhesive on the platen. Is the shirt pulling up in that area? Is the stencil positioned correctly on the platen? If the top of the stencil is wayyy at the top/bottom of your platen, it can be hard to get a consistent stroke. Sometime I tend to try and use as much platen area as I can fit for larger designs and can run into that issue.