[wrapparel]

Hi,

I am starting my own clothing line and am trying to spend as little as possible . But I still want to produce a quality and premium garment at the same time

I am planning on just using a heat gun for curing my water based inks . Will it do the job ?

And would it be a waste of money as I am just starting to my a flash dryer or second hand cheap tunnel dryer ?

Thanks anyway help is greatly appreciated

 

[splathead]

It's easier to cure waterbased inks with a heat gun than it is to cure plastisol with a heat gun. But it's time consuming. You really have to blow air at least 2 minutes for a complete cure.

 

[buckeye nut]

For heat setting water based ink, I've always used a very hot dry iron for 3-4 minutes, with a lightweight fabric or piece of white paper between the print and the iron. That works great for a small batch of shirts, however, just recently I did about 70 shirts and didn't want to spend all that time heat setting them with an iron. I purchased some Versatex fixer and added it to the paint, and did not heat set them with an iron at all (although you can't wash them for a week or so). So far, so good. The print did not wash out after the initial wash, so I will use the Versatex fixer again, but for small batches I'll use the iron. Seems like a heat gun might give inconsistent results, but I really don't know.

 

[DNeeld]

Hi,

I am starting my own clothing line and am trying to spend as little as possible.

Those two lines together usually don't lead to success.

I am planning on just using a heat gun for curing my water based inks . Will it do the job ?

Yes, it will. The results will be, however, substandard.

And would it be a waste of money as I am just starting to my a flash dryer or second hand cheap tunnel dryer ?

No, it wouldn't be a waste of money. I virtually guarantee your competition will have the right equipment to do the job properly.

 

[wrapparel]

I had a feeling people might say that , its a tricky one dont want to spend £250 on a flash dryer then find out I hardly get any orders ? Just unsure

 

[splathead]

You'll be fine just starting out by using a heat gun. Here's a video on how it's done: youtube.com/watch?v=HnTV0-3QsVo

 

[wrapparel]

Thanks I will have a look , worth a try

 

[wfredette]

Agreed. I have a flash dryer, and I still prefer to use a heat gun for water based prints - especially discharge. Granted, it would be a pain to use a heat gun on 200 shirts, but for small runs (I've done 50-100 this way, but I don't do it professionally) it's been fine for me. If you start doing large orders, then I think you'll want to invest in a conveyer dryer that can force air across the shirts.

 

[PigeonBodega]

Agreed. I have a flash dryer, and I still prefer to use a heat gun for water based prints - especially discharge. Granted, it would be a pain to use a heat gun on 200 shirts, but for small runs (I've done 50-100 this way, but I don't do it professionally) it's been fine for me. If you start doing large orders, then I think you'll want to invest in a conveyer dryer that can force air across the shirts.

This may be super late but can you tell me your process? Like how much time? Heat? Etc