# Looking to purchase sublimation printer



## Personalized4You (Dec 8, 2017)

Hello! I currently do vinyl on shirts but I am looking to get into sublimation printing so I can print on other things besides shirts. My Heat press can press on virtually any material, tile, wood etc. 

What Printer do you have and why do you love it? I have been researching them for about 7 months and I still don't know which one I want. 

I buy triblend shirts so I wont be using the printer for that since they have to be 100%poly or cotton (depending on your machine). 

Thanks so much, I am a newbie to the forum.


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## splathead (Dec 4, 2005)

What max size prints do you need to make?

Triblends are sublimatable-image will look faded. 100% cotton is not.


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## Personalized4You (Dec 8, 2017)

splathead said:


> What max size prints do you need to make?
> 
> Triblends are sublimatable-image will look faded. 100% cotton is not.


My Heat press is a 9X12 so I guess I would not be able to go past that.


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## Dekzion (May 18, 2015)

As luck would have it I've just uploaded an attachment on to a thread we've been chewing here; http://www.t-shirtforums.com/dye-sublimation/t826297-2.html#post4241105 ignore the freindly banter and on there you can see the result of a Ricoh using powerdriver and sawgrass ink on a ceramic tile. That might answer the bit about a decent printer for sublimation


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## splathead (Dec 4, 2005)

Most of us use Epson's for desktop sublimation printers. Browse cobraink.com for both printers and ink (including cartridges/ or continuous ink systems (CIS))

You don't have to buy the printer from them to buy their ink or cartridges. You can find the printers cheaper either at Epson, or Staples, etc. 

Another supplier of sublimation packages is conde.com, but they are more expensive. I think they sell the Ricoh.


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## Dekzion (May 18, 2015)

The Ricoh is more expensive than others and I'm not going to say the usual.
I like the fact that I can export as a jpg and hit print after letting the powerdriver know what it's going to be used on and it gets it right.


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## bwmccall (Jan 19, 2011)

With the small press, think about the Sawgrass SG400. It is expensive, and uses expensive inks, but until you decide if you will be doing a bunch of sublimation, getting into a bulk ink printer is probably not a good idea.


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## MistyDawn (Dec 9, 2017)

I am also doing research for a sub printer. There seems to be so much info out there that it is hard to decide. Looks like the CIS will be more economical in the long run. Do you think this is true? 
My heat press is 15 x 15 and I have some big orders coming up so I am thinking that the printer will pretty much pay for itself. You guys gave several different options. Like Personalized4You, I am interested in the reasons you have chosen the printers that you have.


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## bwmccall (Jan 19, 2011)

I started with the sawgrass as a plug and play starting point for small prints. Now that we *know* what we are doing, have gotten a larger format CIS to allow us to do larger items and cut down on ink costs.

Lots of people make equipment choices based on pie in the sky dreams of all the things that they will print. The better question is what can you sell, and how fast can you get your money back? We tend to go after large volume low margin work to pay off equipment, and then become more selective once we have our capital back in our pocket. Quick cash over overblown dreams.


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## splathead (Dec 4, 2005)

MistyDawn said:


> I am also doing research for a sub printer. There seems to be so much info out there that it is hard to decide. Looks like the CIS will be more economical in the long run. Do you think this is true?
> My heat press is 15 x 15 and I have some big orders coming up so I am thinking that the printer will pretty much pay for itself. You guys gave several different options. Like Personalized4You, I am interested in the reasons you have chosen the printers that you have.


CIS is not necessarily more economical, ink costs are the same whether using CIS or cartridges. It is more convenient. 

More to go wrong on CIS. The ink has a lot farther distance to travel to get to the print heads. I opted for cartridges because I figured sublimation was going to be hard enough, why bring in another headache with clogged tubes. 

How large are your upcoming orders? That will help dictate what system to buy.


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## bwmccall (Jan 19, 2011)

Ink cost is the same with REFILLABLE cartridges.


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## Pradeep silva (Dec 9, 2017)

Hello all. 

Someone please help me to understand which laser printer to buy for t shirt transfer 

Thanks 
Ps


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## splathead (Dec 4, 2005)

Pradeep silva said:


> Hello all.
> 
> Someone please help me to understand which laser printer to buy for t shirt transfer
> 
> ...


This thread is about sublimation printers. 

For lasers browse here: Printers and Inks for Inkjet and Laser Transfers - T-Shirt Forums

If you still can't find your answer, create a post there and ask.


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## Pradeep silva (Dec 9, 2017)

Thank you sir 
Im new to this and looking for help.


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## RucaTrading (Oct 16, 2017)

We are in the same boat.. but will be doing triblend and poly/cotton shirts with the understanding that images will not be bright a vivid which is the look we are after "vintage washed look" our biggest decision at the moment is starting with small 8.5x11 epson printer and see how everything works then grabbing a 13x19 preferable the epson WF7110 because of cost for printer ect. Cobra inks will be what we base the printer we get from the get go. My question is what small epson printers has everyone been successful with? There are so many options out there it is mind boggling lol.


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## mgparrish (Jul 9, 2005)

RucaTrading said:


> We are in the same boat.. but will be doing triblend and poly/cotton shirts with the understanding that images will not be bright a vivid which is the look we are after "vintage washed look" our biggest decision at the moment is starting with small 8.5x11 epson printer and see how everything works then grabbing a 13x19 preferable the epson WF7110 because of cost for printer ect. Cobra inks will be what we base the printer we get from the get go. My question is what small epson printers has everyone been successful with? There are so many options out there it is mind boggling lol.


Where are you located? The WF7110 and WF7610 are often on sale in the US for $150 with free shipping.

If you do t-shirts the letter/legal size transfer of the 8.5 x 11 printer are really too small for the larger size t-shirts.

The smaller Epsons sometimes are on sale sometimes for $60, so the 90$ difference in my opinion is not much.


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## RucaTrading (Oct 16, 2017)

mgparrish said:


> Where are you located? The WF7110 and WF7610 are often on sale in the US for $150 with free shipping.
> 
> If you do t-shirts the letter/legal size transfer of the 8.5 x 11 printer are really too small for the larger size t-shirts.
> 
> The smaller Epsons sometimes are on sale sometimes for $60, so the 90$ difference in my opinion is not much.



Mgparrish I will have to agree with you Im in the US, got to looking and found the WF7110 is on sale for $150.00 bones and for the Price difference and being able to print on 13x19 will allow plenty of room to gang up smaller images ect.


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## jdmarti1 (Sep 10, 2015)

I went with an Epson from Cobra, and then it sat for about a month. It never recovered. I bought an SG400 (Wish I would have bought the SG800), it has sat - and then immediately printed. The ink is expensive and so is the printer - but it works out of the box, no monkeying with anything. The Cobra inks looked nice, but when it clogged - there was no fixing it. I would say get the Sawgrass, and don't look back.


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## sublial (Mar 24, 2011)

I would suggest to all of you looking for a good inexpensive sublimation ink jet printer to buy a Epson 7210 for $150.00 from B & H photo and the USA sublimation ink from INKJETCARTS.us and you can,t go wrong.


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## beerrubio (Dec 20, 2016)

jdmarti1 said:


> I went with an Epson from Cobra, and then it sat for about a month. It never recovered. I bought an SG400 (Wish I would have bought the SG800), it has sat - and then immediately printed. The ink is expensive and so is the printer - but it works out of the box, no monkeying with anything. The Cobra inks looked nice, but when it clogged - there was no fixing it. I would say get the Sawgrass, and don't look back.


My printer from Cobra arrived broken and I could never get it to work. They were no help. Lost all my money.


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## ciskokid80 (May 14, 2020)

what do you recommend for shirts, mugs ect?


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## PatWibble (Mar 7, 2014)

ciskokid80 said:


> what do you recommend for shirts, mugs ect?


 What is your budget?
For t-shirts then you really need a minimum of A3/ 11x17. A3+/super B/13x19" would be better.


If your budget is tighter then the Epson 7700 series are popular, but you will need to use a ciss or refilable carts.


If you can stretch to it then it makes sense to get any of the Epson eco tanks in A3/A3+.


Avoid the Epson XP15000.


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## jdmarti1 (Sep 10, 2015)

jdmarti1 said:


> I went with an Epson from Cobra, and then it sat for about a month. It never recovered. I bought an SG400 (Wish I would have bought the SG800), it has sat - and then immediately printed. The ink is expensive and so is the printer - but it works out of the box, no monkeying with anything. The Cobra inks looked nice, but when it clogged - there was no fixing it. I would say get the Sawgrass, and don't look back.


After dealing with the latest Sawgrass update, dealing with customer support, and paying for the exorbitant ink - I can no longer say I am a Sawgrass fan. I now want the Epson F570. LOL


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## PatWibble (Mar 7, 2014)

jdmarti1 said:


> I now want the Epson F570. LOL


 Do you need 24" print width? If not then you can get four 13" printers for the same money. Yield and print quality will probably be as good, and the page size will be more usable for t-shirt transfers.
You might save pennies per print on using roll paper.


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## jdmarti1 (Sep 10, 2015)

PatWibble said:


> Do you need 24" print width? If not then you can get four 13" printers for the same money. Yield and print quality will probably be as good, and the page size will be more usable for t-shirt transfers.
> You might save pennies per print on using roll paper.



I can gang enough images to use the 24" print. Saving pennies per sheet will add up fast! I will probably snag a ET-15000 in the meantime, but I really like the way the F570 is looking.


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## Werbe Druck (Jun 23, 2020)

I have bought one epson A3 from nanodiy, (we live in EU), purchased start box, came with rip, and it have good quality print. Max print size is A3+. We do some tshirts and mugs usually.


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## jason836 (Sep 8, 2020)

Honestly, you are not going to wake up one day and settle on the first sublimation printer that comes your way. You must choose the best sublimation printer for your needs. To go about this effectively, you will have to understand the basics of sublimation printing. Even more, one needs to grasp the finer details of actual use to be able to settle on the ideal pick. Therefore, to get the most out of the printer you are about to purchase, it is important that we walk through the most important features to consider.

Cost

Primary Use

Aspects of a great sublimation printer

Best pick for you

Having guided you through the main secrets to choosing the ideal sublimation printer, you can now take a look at specific sublimation printers that have met the aforementioned threshold.


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