[VeesTees]

Hello,

Ive been reading the forum for a couple of days and finally registered.

I have a little bit of money coming my way and wanted to start a business from home that I can work around my family and Uni. And decided on Tshirt printing.
I have a very arty friend who has agreed to do a few designs for me and was hoping to target the Geek/Science market with the Tshirts and Special occasions with the Sublimation set up.

I have found a Sublimation set up with heat press, printer (A4 with CISS), mug/plate/hat attachments. I would like to print on 100% cotton, so have been trying to find a printer for that (A3). The printers that Ive read about on here are not available in the UK. Epson have said the closest to the 1430 is the 1500w. Does anyone have any experience with this model??

Thank you

Victoria

 

[Dynamic Colour]

Hi Victoria

First off it's good that you're entrepreneurial side is coming out, and the t-shirt industry is a fun way to make money if you can do it properly.

However, I'm afraid you can't sublimate onto 100% cotton (this method only works with polyester). You can use poly/cotton blends but you'll get the most vibrant results on 100% polyester. Polyester fibres "open up" and absorb the ink (which has turned to gas at this stage) under heat and pressure, but cotton fibres don't have that property. If you have a 70% polyester and 30% cotton t-shirt, 70% of your image will transfer and hold but the other 30% won't transfer properly and will wash off after the first wash.

Jamie

 

[VeesTees]

Thank you for your reply,
I will get the Sublimation set up for the Mugs/Plates/Poly fabrics, and Im looking at in addition getting the 1500w to convert to CISS with Pigment ink for the 100% cotton Tshirts, sorry for not being clearer.
Is this over kill on set up? Its just getting the Sub set up was only a little bit more than a heat press by itself, so thought I'd keep my options open whilst I have the cash.

Thank you,

Victoria

 

[VeesTees]

Arg the 1500w doesnt have great reviews?? Could really do with some feedback on models please!

 

[Dynamic Colour]

If I were you I would start off with a Roland GX24 cutter/plotter, a heat press, some vinyl and tee's if you can afford them and leave the other bits. Dye sub inks are expensive (so are mugs if you buy low-volume - although the returns can be healthy if you have the right audience) and I would steer clear of the converted 1500w. I'm not sure how that would all work to be honest, but years ago I did something similar with a converted Epson for dye-sub printing (with a bulk feed system). It was actually how I started off, but it was so messy and the maintenance was a nightmare and very expensive! I quickly bought myself a GX24 and the bits mentioned above and I started making more money with less hassle and downtime. We now have dye-sub, DTG, vinyl and print and cut capabilities with our VersaCamm. So things are really good now but I made some mistakes along the way!

You need to be aware that this isn't necessarily an easy way to make money. There are LOTS of people doing it and the learning curve is steep. Make sure you invest in the right kit and learn. I don't want to write a dissertation on here, but I am happy to help you via PM if you require more information. Our company is based in Edinburgh, so the contacts I have would be relevant to you too by the sounds of it.

All the best

Jamie

 

[charles95405]

For a printer pick one that is sold in your country that has sublimation AND the proper ICC profile for both the ink and printer. If you don't know about ICC profiles, just Google it for information.