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Starting Screen Printing Business.
Hi there everybody, I'd recently started a T shirt company based solely on my designing ability, it went well on my part, but the only thing I was doing was designing them, everything else i was paying to be done.
I have had very bad experience with all local screenprinters. So I'm looking to start myself.
I have the space in my Garage to set up but basically wanted an estimated setup cost. I want a decent carousel machine, various inks, the ability to produce screens, screens and the abiliity to do CMYK printing. I am a complete novice, so please your help is massively appreciated.
If you could I'd appreciate a maximum cost and the benefits of that, and a minimum cost and what i'd be losing by going cheap.
I can source the garment myself!
Thanks for all of everyone's help!!
I have had very bad experience with all local screenprinters. So I'm looking to start myself.
I have the space in my Garage to set up but basically wanted an estimated setup cost. I want a decent carousel machine, various inks, the ability to produce screens, screens and the abiliity to do CMYK printing. I am a complete novice, so please your help is massively appreciated.
If you could I'd appreciate a maximum cost and the benefits of that, and a minimum cost and what i'd be losing by going cheap.
I can source the garment myself!
Thanks for all of everyone's help!!
1 - 20 of 30 Posts
Any chance you could tell me exactly all the items im looking for?
Annie, for a quick answer, just go to Ryonet's web site and take a look at one of their Starter Packages ... they pretty much outline and include everything you would need to get started. Their link is in the left hand boarder of this forum (silkscreensupplies.com).Any chance you could tell me exactly all the items im looking for?
Do you know of a UK solution? Or does anyone know of a similar site for the UK? also, for cmyk printing what kind of setup would i need, also how do i produce the screens?
OoooK....
You are complete novice and you want to start cheap and do CMYK right off the bat and probably on dark colored shirts, right? I do not want to burst your bubble but it is not that easy.
The first thing is forget cheap starter presses and packages. Forget cheap exposure units.
The cheaper those two items are them more they are going to fight you and being a total newbie at it you will spend more time asking people to help you figure out the problems then you will be printing shirts.
If you really want to do this spend the money for some good equipment and then find someone who is versed in 4 color process from start to finish and see if they will mentor you.
You also need to know that printing CMYK on a manual and make each print look the same takes years of practice.
For a manual press I would recommend an Antex Legend or a Anatol Thunder over anything out there. Better yet save your nickels and get an Anatol Titan.
If you where close to me I would take you under my wing and show you how to print CMYK to where you could hit the ground running.
You are complete novice and you want to start cheap and do CMYK right off the bat and probably on dark colored shirts, right? I do not want to burst your bubble but it is not that easy.
The first thing is forget cheap starter presses and packages. Forget cheap exposure units.
The cheaper those two items are them more they are going to fight you and being a total newbie at it you will spend more time asking people to help you figure out the problems then you will be printing shirts.
If you really want to do this spend the money for some good equipment and then find someone who is versed in 4 color process from start to finish and see if they will mentor you.
You also need to know that printing CMYK on a manual and make each print look the same takes years of practice.
For a manual press I would recommend an Antex Legend or a Anatol Thunder over anything out there. Better yet save your nickels and get an Anatol Titan.
If you where close to me I would take you under my wing and show you how to print CMYK to where you could hit the ground running.
A good used manual press will cost $ 2500 - $ 4000
A good used conveyor dryer will cost $ 1500 - $ 3000
A good used exposure unit will cost $ 500 - $ 2500
Screens are ~ $ 30 each
Inks are ~ $ 60/ gallon or $ 25/ qt
Chemicals to reclaim are $ 30 - $ 40 / gallon (emulsion remover, ink degradient)
Emulsion is ~ $ 60 / gallon
A good used flash unit is $ 100 - $ 300
A good used automatic press is $ 7500 - $ 15000
You can go with cheaper options, but if you're in it to make a profit... you need to be able to turn over a bunch of pieces per hour.
A good used conveyor dryer will cost $ 1500 - $ 3000
A good used exposure unit will cost $ 500 - $ 2500
Screens are ~ $ 30 each
Inks are ~ $ 60/ gallon or $ 25/ qt
Chemicals to reclaim are $ 30 - $ 40 / gallon (emulsion remover, ink degradient)
Emulsion is ~ $ 60 / gallon
A good used flash unit is $ 100 - $ 300
A good used automatic press is $ 7500 - $ 15000
You can go with cheaper options, but if you're in it to make a profit... you need to be able to turn over a bunch of pieces per hour.
Being a complete novice I would be sure you have exhausted all avenues with a local screen printer before spending a lot of money. Why do you think you can do a better job since you have no experience? What have been your issues?
SPHO Screen Printing Package w/ 4 Color 2 Station Press
How did you cost setting up at over $20,000 when this alleged started kit isn't even $2,000?
I know that this will be a learning curve, but I can't understand why it'd take years of practise, I don't intend to be making more than 50 a week and local screen printer who keep messing up my order, and is very overpriced on a national scale, can do 50 in about 2 hours, he is 20 years old, and started the business last year, I can't imagine he has years of practise...
Im not doubting you and i really appreciate all the help, I just have my heart set on this, on designing and printing the t shirts. My website is — Home - please check it out, CYMK isn't essential but i want to work up to that quite quickly. Surely the only really different feature of doing CYMK is that the garments needs to have not moved at all so the alignment is perfect?
Thanks again for the help so far
How did you cost setting up at over $20,000 when this alleged started kit isn't even $2,000?
I know that this will be a learning curve, but I can't understand why it'd take years of practise, I don't intend to be making more than 50 a week and local screen printer who keep messing up my order, and is very overpriced on a national scale, can do 50 in about 2 hours, he is 20 years old, and started the business last year, I can't imagine he has years of practise...
Im not doubting you and i really appreciate all the help, I just have my heart set on this, on designing and printing the t shirts. My website is — Home - please check it out, CYMK isn't essential but i want to work up to that quite quickly. Surely the only really different feature of doing CYMK is that the garments needs to have not moved at all so the alignment is perfect?
Thanks again for the help so far
Maybe because he is 20 years old and has only been open since last year is why he "keeps messing up your order". Experience means alot. Like Preston says, it takes years of practice to do 4 color process, and you won't do it with "starter" quality equipment. Find a local printer who knows what he/she is doing, or get into it properly yourself, and prepare yourself to "pay some dues" to learn. It is not as easy as people think.SPHO Screen Printing Package w/ 4 Color 2 Station Press
How did you cost setting up at over $20,000 when this alleged started kit isn't even $2,000?
I know that this will be a learning curve, but I can't understand why it'd take years of practise, I don't intend to be making more than 50 a week and local screen printer who keep messing up my order, and is very overpriced on a national scale, can do 50 in about 2 hours, he is 20 years old, and started the business last year, I can't imagine he has years of practise...
Im not doubting you and i really appreciate all the help, I just have my heart set on this, on designing and printing the t shirts. My website is — Home - please check it out, CYMK isn't essential but i want to work up to that quite quickly. Surely the only really different feature of doing CYMK is that the garments needs to have not moved at all so the alignment is perfect?
Thanks again for the help so far
My point is he can do a mediocre job at his age, perhaps without the years of experience, but he is also coping with a heavy demand being the only local screen printer. It sounds as though you are implying one colour would be much easier? If you glanced at the website (daydelux.com) you'd know that at present the designs are all one colour, it'd only be with growth that I'd want to master the CMYK process, could you elabourate why it is so much more difficult to do?Maybe because he is 20 years old and has only been open since last year is why he "keeps messing up your order". Experience means alot. Like Preston says, it takes years of practice to do 4 color process, and you won't do it with "starter" quality equipment. Find a local printer who knows what he/she is doing, or get into it properly yourself, and prepare yourself to "pay some dues" to learn. It is not as easy as people think.
Thank you again.
If I were you, my first choice would be to find the least annoying of these screenprinters in the area, and try to do artwork for them for a year or two, and help out in the screen and production departments. I'm of the persuasion that if you are a quick learn, and are interested, you will be able to understand how much of a novice you are and how much work is ahead of you to become an experienced professional in a year or two. 
The other thing you can do inexpensively, right now, is look into books, or for a little more coin, some education. Many colleges in the US have screen and printmaking classes that are so underpopulated, the professors encourage 'survey' students, and there may be a tech school, or shop nearby that offers beginner classes.
As to the difficulty of CMYK, or producing screens--stop talking, start doing. By doing you learn, understand, and (hopefully) improve.
The other thing you can do inexpensively, right now, is look into books, or for a little more coin, some education. Many colleges in the US have screen and printmaking classes that are so underpopulated, the professors encourage 'survey' students, and there may be a tech school, or shop nearby that offers beginner classes.
As to the difficulty of CMYK, or producing screens--stop talking, start doing. By doing you learn, understand, and (hopefully) improve.
Thank you for that, a much more positive outlook than a few others, I'm quick to learn most things, I think this is something I could do, I'm looking into classes as we speak.
Does anyone know if these Ryonet starter packs are any good?
Does anyone know if these Ryonet starter packs are any good?
I bought the semi-pro starter package from Ryonet. Yes it is good. I don't understand how your printer could be messing up one color prints. I did look at your website and didn't see anything complicated there. You could do those prints with a box of junk shirts to practice on and about a weeks worth of practice time. They are simple, uncomplicated designs. I didn't see any halftones. The hardest one would be the black tee with the white ink, only because white ink is harder to work with.
Also with the starter package comes an instructional CD that goes into detail on how to print from start to finish. If you watch that video and study it you will not have any issues. In fact you can buy it alone without the kit and just study it. There is a lot involved in screen printing but it isn't impossible to learn and your designs are simple enough that a novice can print them in no time. I don't know if they're available over in the UK but if they are you could also get a yudu for simple one color prints.
CMYK printing is very complicated. It also requires special software, printers, rip software, special ink, at least a 6 color press (you will only need 5 but no one makes a 5 color press that I know of), and a very tight registration system. Not to mention a lot of experience to get it done correctly. I've been screen printing for 2 years now and I'm just now learning halftones and gathering all the software needed to do it.
Also with the starter package comes an instructional CD that goes into detail on how to print from start to finish. If you watch that video and study it you will not have any issues. In fact you can buy it alone without the kit and just study it. There is a lot involved in screen printing but it isn't impossible to learn and your designs are simple enough that a novice can print them in no time. I don't know if they're available over in the UK but if they are you could also get a yudu for simple one color prints.
CMYK printing is very complicated. It also requires special software, printers, rip software, special ink, at least a 6 color press (you will only need 5 but no one makes a 5 color press that I know of), and a very tight registration system. Not to mention a lot of experience to get it done correctly. I've been screen printing for 2 years now and I'm just now learning halftones and gathering all the software needed to do it.
My point is he can do a mediocre job at his age, perhaps without the years of experience, but he is also coping with a heavy demand being the only local screen printer. It sounds as though you are implying one colour would be much easier? If you glanced at the website (daydelux.com) you'd know that at present the designs are all one colour, it'd only be with growth that I'd want to master the CMYK process, could you elabourate why it is so much more difficult to do?
Thank you again.
I wonder. How many shirts of each design do you get this local printer to print at one time? All the work setting up, printing, tearing down and cleaning make some printers not be so gun-ho to to move quickly on small orders. If he is busy then he is going to knock out the more profitable jobs before he messes with some of the smaller ones. This is even more true if he is a manual printer.
As for the equipment, it seems you have already made up your mind to go cheap. That will be fine for the one color on white shirts and may be ok for the one color on dark shirts if the press is tight.
As for how kirkmansigns came up with around 20k for equipment. Easy. For example my exposure unit alone cost more than 2 1/2 times the $2000 starter kit you are looking at. But it is worth every penny when making screens for CMYK.
In my opinion there are three classes of equipment. Professional, Hobby and Junk. A good professional manual press will cost you at least twice as much new as the starter kit you are looking at. Does that not tell you something. If your doing this for a hobby then get the 2 grand kit and you will be able to print some shirts here and there but nothing on the level that you can with professional equipment.
There is a reason professional equipment cost so much more. It is built to high tolerances and is strong enough to endure years of printing without you having to fight it.
When you are first starting out every deficiency in your press, exposure unit and film output device will fight you every step of the way and you will spend hours upon hours trying to figure out what is going wrong. You will not know what is going wrong because you do not have the experience.
Looking at the "Simi-Pro" starter kit. Yea, right.. That is nothing more than a hobby setup with a lot of stuff thrown in to make it look like a big kit. The only thing I see in that kit that may be worth anything is the flash. There is no way you are going to make consistent screens for CMYK with that exposure unit.
I know I may sound harsh but I am trying to convey a reality check here.
The Anatol factory is darn near right in your backyard (going by the funky money sign on your website). So is M&R. Call them, find out what they have to offer and then save up and get it.
I bought the semi-pro starter package from Ryonet. Yes it is good. I don't understand how your printer could be messing up one color prints. I did look at your website and didn't see anything complicated there. You could do those prints with a box of junk shirts to practice on and about a weeks worth of practice time. They are simple, uncomplicated designs. I didn't see any halftones. The hardest one would be the black tee with the white ink, only because white ink is harder to work with.
Also with the starter package comes an instructional CD that goes into detail on how to print from start to finish. If you watch that video and study it you will not have any issues. In fact you can buy it alone without the kit and just study it. There is a lot involved in screen printing but it isn't impossible to learn and your designs are simple enough that a novice can print them in no time. I don't know if they're available over in the UK but if they are you could also get a yudu for simple one color prints.
Hi thank you that has been the most helpful thing I've read today, please could you elabourate on why it is difficult working with white, and perhaps if you knew why, could you tell me what it is the most difficult feature of working with CYMK? Is it not just as simple as squeegeeing four different colours with four different screens over the same t shirt.
I think the presumption is that I'd be working to a time scale, but the advantage of having my own gear and only supporting my own store would be that I only make what I want when i want, (which would be a bout 100 t shirts a week)
Thank you again so much, was very helpful, Ryonet do deliver internationally I belive and they seem to be a good price (not like the $20k setup someone above quoted?!)
The problem with white ink is that it is thicker and cures differently than the colored inks do. It takes longer to cure and sometimes the fibers of the material pull upwards. I have read that the best way to press white is by pushing rather than by pulling. You can also water down the ink with reducers so that it presses easier.
As far as the kit goes, it is not a hobby kit as someone else pointed out. There are some folks who think quality comes with an enormous price tag, the bigger the tag the better the quality. Sometimes all you're paying extra for is a name. Anyhow with the kit in question I would upgrade the exposure unit to the 20" x 24" UV exposure unit. I would also add the micro-registration to it. And if I had the room (which I didn't) I would have gotten the 2 station / 6 color press. I had to get the 1 station / 4 color press due to space. The 2 station requires 9 feet diameter to turn. My whole room is only 9 feet wide so I couldn't do it. But to do CMYK you will need the 6 color press (CMYK+W for an underbase on dark shirts). I also got their storage rack. You will need to have a sturdy bench to put the press on. I built my own benches.
They also have an instructional video on CMYK printing that you should get. The hardest part will be making the screens and lining them up so that they are exactly where needed. It isn't as easy as you think, but it's not impossible. You will need special software though.
So you can spend a fortune and get the top of the line (at least in price) or you can save your money for other things and get some good quality merchandise. When you can afford to get the better equipment then go that route, but it isn't necessary to start off with. A flash dryer works fine for curing ink, but a conveyor dryer will work faster so that you can produce more.
As far as the kit goes, it is not a hobby kit as someone else pointed out. There are some folks who think quality comes with an enormous price tag, the bigger the tag the better the quality. Sometimes all you're paying extra for is a name. Anyhow with the kit in question I would upgrade the exposure unit to the 20" x 24" UV exposure unit. I would also add the micro-registration to it. And if I had the room (which I didn't) I would have gotten the 2 station / 6 color press. I had to get the 1 station / 4 color press due to space. The 2 station requires 9 feet diameter to turn. My whole room is only 9 feet wide so I couldn't do it. But to do CMYK you will need the 6 color press (CMYK+W for an underbase on dark shirts). I also got their storage rack. You will need to have a sturdy bench to put the press on. I built my own benches.
They also have an instructional video on CMYK printing that you should get. The hardest part will be making the screens and lining them up so that they are exactly where needed. It isn't as easy as you think, but it's not impossible. You will need special software though.
So you can spend a fortune and get the top of the line (at least in price) or you can save your money for other things and get some good quality merchandise. When you can afford to get the better equipment then go that route, but it isn't necessary to start off with. A flash dryer works fine for curing ink, but a conveyor dryer will work faster so that you can produce more.
For what you want to do now, you could get someone handy to make you a one color press for what it costs in materials, and maybe some beer. Lorettas right on--the designs you are doing shouldn't be too difficult for you to get up to speed on, and you could be up and running with catalyzed water base inks for a couple hundred bucks.
CMYK is just squeegeeing four different colors on the same shirt, but it can be difficult, depending on the art, because you need good pre-press gear to get fine dots on a good screen, it's very easy to shift colors, your technique has to be very consistent on a manual, that manual has to hold registration and calibration well, etc. It's much easier to observe than describe most of this process. It can be relatively easy, if you design properly for it.
As far as buying stuff, I'd learn how before I bought the means to do so.
Would you spend 2K *or* 20K on a car you didn't know how to drive?
Seriously--start doing it.
CMYK is just squeegeeing four different colors on the same shirt, but it can be difficult, depending on the art, because you need good pre-press gear to get fine dots on a good screen, it's very easy to shift colors, your technique has to be very consistent on a manual, that manual has to hold registration and calibration well, etc. It's much easier to observe than describe most of this process. It can be relatively easy, if you design properly for it.
As far as buying stuff, I'd learn how before I bought the means to do so.
Would you spend 2K *or* 20K on a car you didn't know how to drive?
Seriously--start doing it.
Completely agree with you here Roy.In my opinion there are three classes of equipment. Professional, Hobby and Junk.
The basic Ryonet kits are OK, but they DO have limitations. In other words, if you're serious about building a screen printing business, you'll quickly outgrow the stuff that comes in the kits.
On a scale of 1-5 ... (5 being Professional, 1 being Junk):
5 = M&R
4 = Anatol
3 = Vastex, Riley Hopkins
2 = Ryonet Silver Press
1 = Yudu ... i have a hard time even calling this a press
As you can tell, I'm a huge fan of M&R equipment!
1 - 20 of 30 Posts
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