[Elliott4170]

hi all, i am fairly new to screen printing, i bought a 4 colour carousel and have been print a fair few shirts, however lately i have had an issue when printing white on black. also the white ink i have been using sinks into the shirt, and you can not feel the ink onto of the shirt, along with the other colours i am using. they all soak into the shirt and you can not feel them on top. i am after a ink that will set onto of the shirt, i am printing with 100% cotton shirts.

any help will be appreciated a lot.
Elliott.

 

[selanac]

Elliott, What ink are you using?

Who makes it, is it Water base or Plastisol? What kind of t-shirts, Cotton, 50/50?

 

[Elliott4170]

hey paul, i am printing on 100% cotton shirts, the inks i am using at the moment are called permaset aqua, they are a water based ink.

i am after an ink that i can cure with an iron or a heat gun. as these are my only ways of curing inks at this time.

Thank you, Elliott.

 

[selanac]

Elliott, you can cure Plastisol with a Heat Gun too.

Water based ink is thinner, however White is thicker in all cases. White Plastisol is thicker then White Waterbased.

Try this, Print, Heat for 20 seconds, then print again. If that fixes it, cure it for 30 to 40 seconds. If not, print again, and cure. That should work.

Even with Plastisol, we have to Print Flash Print then cure on black t-shirts with white ink.

 

[Elliott4170]

thanks mate, however i have tried printing twice, i just can see to line it up all the time, does that have to do with registration? any threads you can recommend i have a read of about registration, if that is the case.

Also where can i buy pastisol inks? I'm in australia, i don't mind buying online if you can direct me anywhere, would be greatly helpful.

Thanks.

 

[selanac]

Did you say you have a 4 color? Did you buy it or make? If bought, you should have a Registration Gate.

This will allow the screen to come down in the same place.

 

[Elliott4170]

i bought a 4 colour one, yes i think it does have a registration gate, is that the rollers it comes with, and allows the screen to move up and down? when i put my screen all the way down it can still be moved side to side about 2-3cm each way.
also i think i may be flooding the screen when i push the ink through.

thanks elliott.

 

[selanac]

Elliott, You need to make sure the Registration Gate is screwed down. Some times they have two bolts on each side to keep it from moving.

Will you take a picture and post it to this Post? This was we can see it. Take a picture of what you think is the Registration Gate.

 

[Elliott4170]

okay sorry about the late reply, took me a while to get all the pictures and a video of what i mean is happening, so i have uploaded the video to youtube and here is the link:

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eN2Oiu9km-Y[/media]

you can see the the movement between the registration gate, not sure if it is me of something wrong, there are magnets i can use to hold the gate down, but the magnets won't always be in the exact place, because the screen can still move side to side while it is down, any help will be good.
i have also taken photos of prints i have tried to line up but it is almost impossible, if i can just line them up it will be a whole lot better, cause you can see if my prints that after 3-4 prints the white looks a lot better.

here is the link for the photos:
Flickr: ElliottB2012's Photostream

All the help is really appreciated, thanks a lot. Elliott

 

[selanac]

The Registration Gate is the Two Inline Skate looking wheels. When the print arm comes down the wheels should hold it in place so it holds registration.

 

[Elliott4170]

okay, how ever there is still room for the screen to move left to right, do i have to set the registration befor i print? and adjust the rollers down so that the screen sits in the same place each time?

 

[Smalzstein]

exactly what you've said, that how it's done

 

[Elliott4170]

I'll give it a go, and get back to you, what is the best way to do it? line pull the arm down line the screen up on the shirt, the magnet will hold it down, and while that is down, adjust the rollers to fit where the arm is?

also is there anyway to hold the shirt down? when i do a few prints the shirt might move a tad, making the next time i print the shirt is out of line.
i was thinking just a few clips on either side of the shirt and clip it on to the sprinting station pallet.

can you give me any help with that? i have drawn a grid on the station so i can line the shirt up that way.

your a huge help, thanks heaps!
Elliott.

 

[Inkognito]

also is there anyway to hold the shirt down? when i do a few prints the shirt might move a tad, making the next time i print the shirt is out of line.
i was thinking just a few clips on either side of the shirt and clip it on to the sprinting station pallet.

Elliot, do you use adhesive spray on your pallets? Adhesive sprays are designed to hold the shirt in place while you print, i think they also make a water-based adhesive that can be applied with a brush if you don't like using aerosol products.

 

[Elliott4170]

^ i have seen this in videos people spraying something, this helps me a lot, thank you!
is this available online anywhere, Ebay?

Thank you a lot!

 

[selanac]

Yes, you can buy it on eBay or any screen printing supply. You can also use Temporary Tact Spray from a Hardware Store or Arts and Craft.
Make sure it's Temporary Tact.

Did you Receive a manual when you bought the press? Call them if not.

You normally set the Roller Registration gate the first time.

 

[Elliott4170]

okay thanks, yes i did receive a manual it was a cd, i have gone through it and it doesn't go into detail with it i think i may have work it out, i set the rollers just have to do a print, that spray will help a lot i think, cause some times the ink gets stuck to the shirt and when pulling the screen up the shirt moves.
i am also trying off contact printing, would that work a lot better?

 

[selanac]

You need both, Off Contact and the Spray Tack. As feel the t-shirts pulling up when you lift up the screen you'll need to spray more tack. I spray a little after every 10 to 20 t-shirts.

Screen Printing Suppliers sell a paste type Tack that works much better. Never used it, but many SP's love it.