[jeron]

Hey guys. I am new to printing and so far all i have printed with is QCM XOLB inks. I have done up to 3 colors on my 6C4S press, but have flashed between each color.

I'm wanting to try wet on wet but would like some advise... I'll try and ask everything i have questions about... but any info you throw at me that will help me out is greatly appreciated.

1- When should WOW be used vs flashing between colors.
2- Are there any art setup tips i need to know to print WOW.
3- if an entire design is done WOW would a 4 station press be useless considering your loading a shirt printing all the colors then unloading..
4- how much transfer to the back of other screens should i expect??
5- so far i have never printed on a white shirt. i have mostly done black, purple and grey shirts... mostly dark garments... So not sure how to do the under base with WOW..

6- as i mentioned i don't currently have any dedicated WOW inks.. The suppliers close to me i have the options of these ink brands; Union, Wilflex, Nazdar, QCM, Excalibur, Rutland, and Damn good ink. What would be a good brand of WOW ink that will hopefully get me going without problems.

any other tips would be awesome!!! thanks

Jeron

 

[bluemoon]

XOLB will NOT work for WOW! I just wanted to make sure you know that.

As far as the rest, you will still have to flash the underbase. The top colors go on WOW, so yes, you will still need all the stations.

There will be a thin film of ink on the bottom of the screen; pretty thin, you can almost see through it.
We print WOW only and vary rarely flash top colors (one in few hundred orders), but we are on an auto and that makes a difference. Running WOW on a manual will save you time though so it's worth learning.
Everything stays the same with the art as it was before (assuming you were underbasing. If you were not, you'll have to learn.)
we use Union inks exclusively, but there are many other choices. Pick something that's available from your local supplier and establish a good relationship with them. This can be more important than your ink choice.

pierre

 

[jeron]

Yes I knew xolb wasn't for wet on wet.. that's why I was asking about what other WOW inks are good so I can try some

As far as the art I do know how to under base... but right now I have been building in a small trap to each color to make registration easier... (my press is old) with flashing it didn't matter, but with WOW I would think it might.. does everything need to be butt registration with WOW. if so what about a final black outline or something that I may trap slightly just to make sure it covers everything... I'm assuming I would flash before?

Thanks

 

[bluemoon]

I would butt register all your top colors and choke the underbase. This is good for the start. Later on, you'll want to leave the underbase the as is and trap the outside edge of the top colors.

As far as the inks, Union sells a sample kit of just about anything. It is a cheap way to get into a mixing system or an assortment of colors for very little money. Their Unimach is a good mixing system, but will require an underbase for everything, even medium colors. On a plus side, few hundred bucks will buy you the ability to mix almost any color under the sun. Ultrasoft is probably going to be your best bet. It prints well WOW and it has a little bit of opacity so it's easier to work with. You will not be able to mix it to make new colors, but if just starting this is probably not very high on your list. MIXO and MAXO are not suitable for WOW.

pierre

 

[jeron]

Ok thanks you so much for your replies.. and sorry for all the questions lol...

What is the difference of choking the under base vs trapping the top colors? It seem like it is doing the same thing just in a different way...

Also it sounds like WOW is easier to print even with an under base... what situations would I need to use an opaque ink and not do WOW?

Do you know if union sells stuff in quart sizes... thats how I'm doing it with QCM. I'm just doing it as a hobby right now so a gallon may go bad I feel like considering I have some quarts that I haven't even used yet and I got them about a year and a half ago...

 

[bluemoon]

choking is removing a thin line around it, trapping is adding a thin line. If you choke a letter "I" there will be nothing left, so the proper way to do it is to make the top color bigger than the underbase (think wrap around the underbase).

You can order Union inks or sample kits in quarts.

WOW is easier than flashing in between, but it does take some practice.

pierre

 

[jeron]

Oh ok I see

So for you, would you print WOW always?

When is it necessary to flash in between colors?

Thanks again for helping me out!!

Sent from my SGH-M919 using T-Shirt Forums

 

[binkspot]

Its tough to follow up behind Pierre but.

We print WOW both manual and auto when ever possible, saves a bunch of time especially on the manual.

If you have QCM inks they should work fine, I have a few and never had trouble. QCM is a Rutland product now along with Union. We run mainly Wilflex but use some others.

Depending on the art work sometimes its best to lay down the outline first then the under base and last the top colors. This only applies if the outline is not under based.

I have found some colors do not like each other and will need a flash between them. Our most troublesome combo is purple and yellow.

 

[bluemoon]

almost everything we print is WOW, but just like with anything else, it depends on the garment material, art, mesh, ink used and other variables. We use 7 different types of ink and three different types of mesh (different thread thickness as well as different thread counts).

You can chose to print everything WOW or flash between every color. As time goes by, you'll figure out what works and what does not. Get some WOW inks and get started, it's not that hard!

pierre

 

[jeron]

ok thanks guys, i'll have to get some qcm, rutland, and union and give them all a try... i would try wilflex but i'm under the impression that they only sell in gallons and not quarts.

 

[ptown]

good info, thx everyone.

are wow inks thinner than regular ink and always require an underbase? or can i print all colors wow and then flash and repeat for opacity?

 

[sben763]

good info, thx everyone.

are wow inks thinner than regular ink and always require an underbase? or can i print all colors wow and then flash and repeat for opacity?

Not always, Unions maxopake are considered WOW inks but I find some detackifer, base extender or curable reducer is required to print these Wow. If printing halftones with these a base is needed. Spot colors depends.

 

[ptown]

ah gotcha, thank you.

underbasing halftones? sounds like some balls-on registration there.

 

[bluemoon]

Not always, Unions maxopake are considered WOW inks but I find some detackifer, base extender or curable reducer is required to print these Wow. If printing halftones with these a base is needed. Spot colors depends.

MAXO is not WOW compatible. Union does make additives that will make it stick less, but overall it is not a good choice for WOW. Even with additives, it can be a struggle. . .

pierre

 

[gatorGRAFIX]

One Stroke makes a pretty good product also.

 

[sben763]

MAXO is not WOW compatible. Union does make additives that will make it stick less, but overall it is not a good choice for WOW. Even with additives, it can be a struggle. . .

pierre

Maybe someone should tell Union then. I find adding a little curable reducer, and a little base extenders make them a excellent choice in wet on wet inks. Higher opacity then standard WOW inks which are generally standard opacity inks.

 

[bluemoon]

Maybe someone should tell Union then. I find adding a little curable reducer, and a little base extenders make them a excellent choice in wet on wet inks. Higher opacity then standard WOW inks which are generally standard opacity inks.

that's AWESOME!!! few years back they were definitely not WOW friendly, but the formulation must have changed without me catching it. Thanx for the correction!

pierre