Heat Applied Vinyl and or Ink Questions?

[edge 67]

I watched a few of the videos on these processes. None of them used a teflon sheet. Why and where would I use the teflon sheet that I see so many people selling? If I jump into heat applied, would a 100% preshrunk cotton or a 50/50 blend T shirt be better?

I also see some selling 'Goose Juice'. Is it necessary for some materials or just another gimmic for them to make $$?

I've been looking at auctions for heat presses. Seems like I could pick up a used dry mount press (Seal Impress 110C)  intended for photography for a lot less than a new imported shirt press. Aside from the used press probably not having a padded surface and slightly lower temps....I guess the question is has anyone here ever used one of these with success?

This is still just a hobby for me, so if something works but with drawbacks that may be acceptable.

[Guest fivestar]

I use teflon sheets when I apply more then one color to a design.  I press the first color then lay the second color down and put a teflon sheet down if any of the first color is exposed.  As far as the goose juice, I've never heard of nor used it as it is definitely not needed for heat applied vinyl.

Whatever you do.........DON'T BUY SPECTRA CUT II FROM IMPRINTABLES WHAREHOUSE.  Their vinyl sucks, I don't care what kind of BS Josh tries to feed you over at t-shirtforums.  I use multicut from www.jotopaper.com or thermoflex plus from my local distributor.

[go10go4 0]

The teflon sheet can be very critical in pressing, depending upon the method. In dye sublimation - where the "ink" actually permeates the fibers of the material (has to have some polyester content) - the teflon is often placed between the upper platen and the transfer (which is on top of the shirt) to prevent any ink on the platen from being transferred to the shirt.

In sub laser toner and inkjet transfers the teflon is often placed between the platen and shirt to keep the shirt from scorching, and to also facilitate the transfer from paper to shirt by dispersing the temperature over a wide area. It also tends to help keep the "nap" of the material flat and prevent it from being raised. This would also hold true for vinyl-applied transfers. The teflon helps keep the shirt from yellowing, and helps also disperse the heat over a large area in a more systematic way. The teflon gets very hot in a press. This can work to your advantage when used properly.

The question of 50/50 vs. all-cotton also depends upon the type of transfer. For vinyl it may not make much difference. For other methods, the adhering of inks/toners varies according to shirt composition and type of paper being used. Paper has a lot to do with quality of transfers. However, this problem is largely eliminated if you are doing vinyl. Five raises a good issue, however. Quality of the vinyl itself has a lot to do with the finished product, and you will probably have to experiment to find what works best for you. There's lot of brands and lot of type available - glossy, flocked, holographic, etc.

As far as the joy juice, I've never heard of it. Sounds like a gimmick to me. Be careful on heat presses, however. There are lots of cheap ones on EBay, but if something goes wrong, there's virtually no support.

[edge 67]

Thank you both.

I would have guessed if anything the teflon might be used to prevent sublimation ink from passing thru the fabric to another layer.

For example from the front side of a T shirt thru to the back. Is this something that one need worry about?

I gather you are saying if I use ink, I need go with 50/50 fabric. With better vinyls 100% cotton is ok?

I'm still looking for a good source of multicut in the Chicago area if anyone has any suggestions.

I hear what you are saying about support on a heat press.

This being more of a hobby and learning experience for me, it's difficult to justify spending xtra to buy the best sometimes.

I took a risk on the Copam and believe I got my monies worth and then some. Hopefully with a press it'll be the same.

I purchased an import press last evening at auction. Only time will tell how it turns out.

Thanks again.

[go10go4 0]

Edge,

I didn't get into all the details on sublimation. I didn't know if you were considering that. Yes, the teflon sheet can be critical below the shirt also. For example if you attempt to print a shirt with the back of the shirt immediately below the front, you need to place teflon between so that the ink doesn't go through the front and impregnate itself in the shirt back. I usually find it best to place the back layer below the bottom platen so this doesn't happen. However, that being said, you'll still need the teflon between the shirt front and platen so that the ink doesn't get transferred to the bottom platen. Hope this makes sense. It's best to have 2 sheets - one above the shirt and one below - to keep ink off the platens or other parts of the shirt. It's a mess if the ink gets on the platens, because it transfers the next time to the garment you try in succeeding prints.

If you're dye subbing, the best material by far is 100% polyester. That's really what dye sub was intended to imprint. The 50/50 is a possibility, but the washability is not as great, and the vibrancy is much less. Nothing compares to a all-poly shirt. However, the Hanes SoftL'ink does a great job on shirts, and that's what I have used. It's really a 50/50 in that half the shirt is considered cotton, half is considered poly. But the poly in the shirt is a "shell" that's on the outside, and the cotton is the interior "shell." By makeup it's 50% poly, but the dye sub inks basically on the all-poly outer shell.

In terms of vinyl heat applied, you will probably choose what works best for your individually. I don't think you'll find a lot of difference between all cotton and 50/50 in heat applied vinyl. There are lots of sources for vinyls on the net. Locally, I don't have any knowledge of Chicago suppliers. Hope this helps.

[edge 67]

I think I'm somewhat confused on the terminology and process. I was in an office supply store and picked up a small package of Avery Ink Jet T-Shirt Transfers. This used my regular ink as opposed to speciality ink and appears to print on a thin membrane of vinyl? to be applied to the fabric. In a true sense would this be considered dye sublimation? Or does the dye (ink) process need to happen without this vinyl membrane transfering also to be called dye sublimation?

Yea I know the Avery process I used was expensive and of lower quality...but my press came in Friday and I just had to have something to melt over the weekend. Besides these are just T-shirts I wear under my uniform at work. Unfortunately it appears that in the end I fryed the heating element(s) in the platen, so I'm currently waiting on an exchange. Wish I had known Ken had a couple of example presses to sell last week, I may have made a different purchase decision.

[go10go4 0]

Edge,

"I think I'm somewhat confused on the terminology and process. I was in an office supply store and picked up a small package of Avery Ink Jet T-Shirt Transfers. This used my regular ink as opposed to speciality ink and appears to print on a thin membrane of vinyl? to be applied to the fabric. In a true sense would this be considered dye sublimation? Or does the dye (ink) process need to happen without this vinyl membrane transfering also to be called dye sublimation?"

Ink jet transfers are completely different from dye sub transfers. Dye sublimation uses special inks that dye the fabric. The word "sublimation" comes from the fact that the ink on the transfer paper (a solid) is transferred by heat to the shirt as a gas. There's no intermediate stage where the solid becomes a liquid before becoming a gas; hence, the term "sublimation," which is a process in which matter changes states but skips the in-between phase. In dye sub there is absolutely no residue left on the garment. The transfer paper actually falls off the shirt and doesn't have to be peeled, like most heat transfer papers.

The ink jet transfers are as you described. You are not actually printing directly on fabric with the inks. A layer of material that is receptive to inks is actually laid on the garment in the heat transfer. The ink is actually bonding not to the cotton or polyester fibers; rather, it is sitting on top in the layer of material deposited onto the garment. This is why the paper needs to be peeled (some are cold peels, some are hot, depending upon the paper used). The standard ink jet transfer is not very good. Most of the time you can see a distinct line where the transfer paper was applied to the garment (a giant square or rectangle effect). However, the good news. Modern papers, such as ImageClip or DuraCottonHT (both of which I use with laser toner), leave very little residue on the garment. In some instances (on white or very light colors) it's almost invisible. There are papers made for ink jet transfers also (IronAll) which are considered very good. The standard store-bought papers should be cut around the printed area so that no obvious transfer material remains on the shirt (the dreaded rectangle). However, the fade factor on the store-bought papers is usually very high compared to the good papers purchased from transfer suppliers.

Hope this helps.