Plastiol Ink

I don't know about the age of the ink but your problem might have been under-curing your ink. How did you cure them?

Not sure what you mean about curing the ink. I guess thats why I'm a newbie to this. Should of read more information on that topic.

Curing is what you do after you print a shirt. You take the shirt off the platen and put it under a flash dryer, heat gun, heat press, or conveyor dryer. It's how you dry the ink. Otherwise it won't dry. So, how did you dry (cure) your ink before you tossed it into the washer?

Sorry, I have a conveyor dryer. I was just reading some old posts on here and I dont think I had enough heat in the dryer. I have a temp gun but I think it was only around 240 at the exit of the dryer. the ink seemed really dry when I took it off the dryer but I guess maybe it didnt cure enough. Would that wash the ink out a little bit when I washed it? thanks for all your help.

I didn't see your reply scott, but one more question.. what happens if you over cure a shirt?

Not real sure. I'm just starting out and been testing with my dryer. I did have it to hot and on a white shirt it actually looked like a marshmellow. As they say TEST, TEST, TEST.

You want the final ink temp to be around 325 F. It shouldn't scorch the fabric. I use a an infrared flash dryer about 3 inches above the fabric for 35 seconds. Comes out perfect every time.

Union inks cure at 300*. Most inks ~320*. Stretch test is pretty widely used. Infared temp guns are kinda expensive, so if you using a flash you could just wait till it starts to smoke. It's kind of a bad practice, but works decently. Also, it's important to make sure the entire image is cured, on a large design, the center cures first. On a conveyor, you can buy cure-test strips which will show you what temp you are curing at.

If you over cure the ink you will get "rebleed". The
Print will look great. And feel 100% cured. But the pigment will evaporate after a few hrs and print color will darken.

scott8801 said:

Have a question. Does anyone think the age of the ink is the problem? Thanks

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When you bought the existing shop, did the owner offer any training? If not I suggest you stop and do a whole lot of reading and study. Sure you have to learn as you go to a certain degree, but the process can be much more effective and less frustrating by having a more comprehensive understanding of all the basic elements of screenprinting.

"How to print t-shirts for fun and profit" is a good place to start. Get the book (or digital version), read it through a couple times. It will help eliminate some problems before you have them and answer a lot of questions before you ask them.

The most valuable tool you can have at your disposal is knowledge.

Cschuck14 said:

I didn't see your reply scott, but one more question.. what happens if you over cure a shirt?

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Depends on what kind of ink you're printing. Generally "overcuring" means the ink has gone waaay beyond the temperature required for full cure. There is wiggle room. Regular plastisols can remelt, become brittle and lose their pigment becoming to a degree transparent. Puffs will expand then fall almost like a souffle and further will become brittle. Measuring temperature is absolutely critical. Temp guns don't do the job that they are thought to do when it comes to accurately measuring ink deposit temperatures.

Arizona said:

Union inks cure at 300*. Most inks ~320*. Stretch test is pretty widely used. Infared temp guns are kinda expensive, so if you using a flash you could just wait till it starts to smoke. It's kind of a bad practice, but works decently. Also, it's important to make sure the entire image is cured, on a large design, the center cures first. On a conveyor, you can buy cure-test strips which will show you what temp you are curing at.

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Some Union inks cure at 300. There are tons of different formulations each with their own characteristics and properties. Aside from accurate temp measuing, stretch test, abrasion test and washing is more definitive. Temps guns are not accurate with ink. Yes, waiting 'til it "smokes" is a bad BAD practice (LOL) for multiple reasons. The substate can scorch before the ink fully cures. With higher moisture content materials (like cottons), the "smoke" is moisture evaporating which precludes the actual ink curing process.

I would suggest going to Ryonet and getting the training series "Screen Printing 101". It is an excellent learning guide and takes you through the steps one at a time. It also goes over the mistakes and how to avoid them.

lben said:

I would suggest going to Ryonet and getting the training series "Screen Printing 101". It is an excellent learning guide and takes you through the steps one at a time. It also goes over the mistakes and how to avoid them.

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Yes to Loretta (Hoosier by association...LOL!)

Don't remember the cost but I see it on E-bay peridically too.

And there are Ryonet videos on Youtube

Roger Jennings' Youtube and website is an incredible start

Catspit (Ewwww) Productions also.

I think I paid around $50 for it. It was the best investment I ever made. I watched it, took notes, and did exactly as it said to do and I have never experienced any of the problems a lot of folks on here ask about. My first exposure was perfect, my first print was perfect, my first gel cure and my first full cure were perfect. No problems at all.

Depends... is the ink cured?

TYGERON said:

I just printed 100 of these. What can I get for them?

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I think you should sell them to Ryan for him to give away at his training classes or at the trade shows. I'd say they're worth at least $10 each. You could even do them in different colors. Ah, the possibilities are endless...