Mommysrule 7 Posted January 10, 2014 Having a major problem with heat transfer vinyl peeling from t-shirts. Fortunately they were made for my own business, and not for clients or anything. Using Siser Easy Weed white on black 100% pre-shrunk cotton, heat pressing for recommended 13-15 sec at 305, hot peel. Looks beautiful when first done, but after a single wash inside out as recommended, the vinyl peels right off without even tearing. It just seems to let go of the shirt. Could this be due to further shrinkage of the shirt? Or do I need to press it longer despite Siser recommendations? Please, there must be something I am doing wrong, or I have the wrong shirts for SEW or hell, I just don't know....Makes me want to cry when I see it just peel right off like it was a temporary sticker. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Monkey 252 Posted January 10, 2014 how long are you waiting to wash? If Im not mistaken 24 hours is recommended What press? Check heat plate with temp gun in different spots to make sure you actually getting to that temp. Are you using a teflon sheet? I do the 15 sec then hot peel then put teflon sheet back on and press again for 8 sec 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mommysrule 7 Posted January 10, 2014 I just have the US Cutter $299 Clamshell 15x15 press. As far as teflon sheet? I have no idea what you are talking about there, lol I know these shirts were first washed well over 24 hours after I pressed them. I will, though, check the temp! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dakotagrafx 7,297 Posted January 10, 2014 make sure you pre press for 5 seconds to remove any moisture - beyond that the first thing I would look at is checking the platen all over with a temp gun to see if it is accurate. I never prewash shirts and buy from good supplier so they aren't sprayed with anything to make them display good in a store. after all that try adding 10 degrees and more pressure. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jaybyrd 3,770 Posted January 10, 2014 I do my siser at 350' which is high and at a fairly high pressure for 20 seconds. 1 press start to finish, no prepress or post press and they hold up extremely well. I have applied siser all the way up to 400' but at that temp you risk melting the material but same applies to sublimation more heat and/or pressure solve most problems. For anyone who thinks I'm crazy at that temp I do at least 100 shirts a month like that and haven't had a bad 1 in at least a year so it does work. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
211 Grafix 24 Posted January 10, 2014 I do the same as jaybird pretty much... 320-350 no prepress... 15 seconds then peel backing off and repress for 15.. med- heavy pressure.. NO probs... 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mommysrule 7 Posted January 10, 2014 Ok, so sounds like my first step is to check to make sure my press is actually accurate in its temperature settings. Then start going higher temp with more pressure and testing the shirts over 24 hours later to see how they hold up. The worst that can happen is that I end up with a bunch of black t-shirts that used to have vinyl on them but finally get it all figured out and start making good t-shirts! Sounds like a plan! Thanks for everything! I will let you know in a few days how it goes. And maybe I need to find out more about this teflon sheet thing and how to use it exactly. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mommysrule 7 Posted January 10, 2014 I do the same as jaybird pretty much... 320-350 no prepress... 15 seconds then peel backing off and repress for 15.. med- heavy pressure.. NO probs... So you pull the backing off and press again bare on the vinyl??? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dakotagrafx 7,297 Posted January 10, 2014 So you pull the backing off and press again bare on the vinyl??? cover with butcher paper, teflon sheet or even old vinyl backing paper then repress. always pre press to remove moisture, sooner or later that will bite ya 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dakotagrafx 7,297 Posted January 10, 2014 http://siserna.com/heat-transfer-vinyl/easyweed Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jay2703 704 Posted January 10, 2014 I have done some and not used enough pressure where they came off like that. Maybe up the pressure a little. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mommysrule 7 Posted January 10, 2014 Thank you! thank you! Have learned a lot! Appreciate everyone's time!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jaybyrd 3,770 Posted January 10, 2014 The way I tell if they are going to be ok is to loo at the siser and if I can see the texture of the fabric in the siser they are good to go but if they still look smooth w/o any indication of the fabric weave I up the pressure. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wildgoose 4,200 Posted January 10, 2014 The way I tell if they are going to be ok is to loo at the siser and if I can see the texture of the fabric in the siser they are good to go but if they still look smooth w/o any indication of the fabric weave I up the pressure. That is a great rule of thumb. If you can see the texture you better hope you have it in the right place because it's not coming off. I bought a decent quality infra-red thermometer gun and was surprised to find the heat was off on my USCutter press. It's not in C or F it's somewhere in the middle. Once I got corresponding temps figured out I have had no more real issues. Also take note if you have a seam or collar in the near vicinity. Anything that is very thick at all can cause pressure issues nearby. I have had problems with small kids shirts that have the collar too close. I ended up buying a couple press pillows from Stahl's that work perfect. Also bought a press pad for front crest prints on shirts with buttons or zippers. I also press a little hot rather than the 305*. You can go WAY over the heat on Siser without any bad effects like glue seepage. Finally, if your design is still intact you can re-press it and it will be fine (been there and done that) 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
xpfguy 39 Posted January 12, 2014 340 @ 20 sec peel hot for years… never a problem. personally I favor Stahls Cad cut if you don't need the extra soft hand. they apply at 330 @ 7 sec. saving 13 seconds per shirt when your pushing out a 50… 100… or more really saves time. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skarekrow 1,842 Posted January 12, 2014 I read recently that with the Siser in particular, extra hot and a heavy pressure press yields a softer hand 'cause of pushing the vinyl further into the fabric. (pretty much what Jaybird recommended... yeah, what he said.) 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OWJones 1,981 Posted January 13, 2014 So you pull the backing off and press again bare on the vinyl??? That's a mistake you'll only make once... did with a 3G Opaque design... once... 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dakotagrafx 7,297 Posted January 13, 2014 That's a mistake you'll only make once... did with a 3G Opaque design... once... what he said Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jaybyrd 3,770 Posted January 13, 2014 You can press repress siser w/o having it covered. I do it quite a bit when I have a job that is a mix of siser and transfer paper so I don't have to worry about the siser backer getting in the way of the transfer. That being said like OW said NEVER press a shirt transfer without parchment or other protective sheet or you will be cleaning a gooey burnt mess off your press. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dakotagrafx 7,297 Posted January 13, 2014 I put a teflon sheet held with magnets on top platen of my press before i got the fitted hotronix one - keeps from messing up the top platen 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jaybyrd 3,770 Posted January 14, 2014 I use the teflon held on with magnets after reading it on here a while back. Works great and you can't forget it that way. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
security802 686 Posted January 14, 2014 I heard teflon with give the vinyl a slight shine, and parchment paper gives it a more matte look, is this correct? 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dakotagrafx 7,297 Posted January 14, 2014 true that 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skarekrow 1,842 Posted January 14, 2014 I wasn't seeing much difference between the two methods until recently... I upped the heat and increased the pressure and now believe I'm seeing less shine. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
xpfguy 39 Posted January 14, 2014 Teflon slip-ons are worth the money. Magnet idea is good to. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
