# Discharge results for specific shirts, let's share



## brent (Nov 3, 2006)

I've really enjoyed playing with discharge, but it can be so finicky. I'm hoping that those of us who do discharge printing can share our notes on what brands and specific colors of those brands discharge or don't discharge well.
Also state the brand of discharge you use. (I'm not sure how much impact different types of discharge have on the same garment. Fill me in if you know.)

I use Matsui waterbased discharge, great stuff.

Gildan 2000/g200;
Discharges well:
Olive
Black
Navy
Brown
Doesn't discharge well:
Purple (becomes grayish with a hint of blue)

American Apparel 2001;
Discharges well:
Slate
Black
Army
Olive
Doesn't discharge well:
Mint
Baby Blue


Jerzees 363;
Black doesn't discharge super well, not as brightly as Gildan, but has more of a light to medium-light tan result.

That's all I've tried that I can think of, If you have discharge experience, please share your results, as we can all learn from each other!


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## Unik Ink (Nov 21, 2006)

I would like to revive this thread. I have customers that ask what shirts that they should order for discharge prints, and I can't give them much advice.

Does
Gildan 2000- red, cardinal red

Does not
Hanes Beefy-T- Black


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## brent (Nov 3, 2006)

You had success with 2000 Red? I've discharged AA2001 Red and Green and neither did very well. Red became pinkish and green became yellowish. The client liked it but it definitely wasn't a 100% discharge result.
Forest 2000 discharges really nicely.

Other discharge printers please talk about some of your results!


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## Unik Ink (Nov 21, 2006)

Yeah, there was a slight red/pink hue to the print, but overall it turned out good.


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## brent (Nov 3, 2006)

That looks awesome. It was on a 2000 red? Straight discharge and then a spot color? 
For the record, what discharge ink do you use? I use Matsui DSPS.


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## Steelheader100 (Jan 18, 2007)

I use Matsui discharge and so far it works well on

American Apparel - Black
- Charcoal gray

Gildan 2000 - Black
- ( Red sort of worked for us but the discharge white came out kinda pink)

Bella 8701 ladies - Brown

Anvil Organic - Navy
- Charcoal Gray
- Olive

I also tried it on District Threads black and it mostly worked but it did not discharge quite as well as the American Apparel.

I've had no luck with Royal or Purple of any brand yet.
I'm sure it must work on many more but that's what I've tried so far. Good idea for a thread.


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## brent (Nov 3, 2006)

John- how affective was the discharge on black 2000? Last time I did it, It was a light tan, not an off white. I thought I remembered 2000 black discharging very well, so I'm not sure if I just didn't mix it strong enough...
Yellow pigmented discharge on black 2000 looks awesome. this is what I'm wearing right now:


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## LitPrinter (Apr 25, 2008)

Royal blue t-shirt color discharges wery bad and it is not important what brand of t-shirts or ink You use. It is for specific structure of cotton dye, royal blue dyestuff are very stable and discharge paste can't break it. Also very pure discharge effect are on turkis color. Black (and all other colors) discharges very well if fabric before dyeing were bleached (just ask it for producer)and it is dyed with reactive dyestuff.


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## korey (May 18, 2008)

The shirt needs to be dyed with fiber reactive dye. Then it will discharge fine.
You can't say this shirt does and this shirt doesn't. Ask the company if they use reactive or direct dyes. Direct won't discharge.

Also, worth a mentioned is Union Inks Plasticharge. Mixes with regular plastisol so it will discharge and doesn't smell as bad as other stuff.


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## Steelheader100 (Jan 18, 2007)

The Gildan black actually discharged pretty well. Our white came out good on it but that has a lot of pigment in it. I did some yellow pigmented discharge base on them too and it looked pretty bright. I did grab an old black Gildan to do a shop sample with and it did not discharge at all, not even a little bit. Just a wierd one I guess because the rest of the job was great.


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## Unik Ink (Nov 21, 2006)

korey said:


> The shirt needs to be dyed with fiber reactive dye. Then it will discharge fine.
> You can't say this shirt does and this shirt doesn't. Ask the company if they use reactive or direct dyes. Direct won't discharge.
> 
> Also, worth a mentioned is Union Inks Plasticharge. Mixes with regular plastisol so it will discharge and doesn't smell as bad as other stuff.


That's what I used in the pic above on the red Gildan 2000. It was Union Ink plasticharge mixed with an off white, and then black plastisol.


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## studog79 (Jul 13, 2006)

brent said:


> You had success with 2000 Red?


 We have no problem getting these white using Wilflex Super White Discharge NF.


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## JayJaySerious (Sep 19, 2007)

We do mostly discharge ink or paste. We've used the discharge ink from Standard Screen (Standard Screen Supply Corp. | Manufacturer of Holden's Screen Printing Supplies) here in NYC and we've used the discharge paste from Dharma Trading (www.dharmatrading.com).

I want to try Matsui discharge inks. Where do you order them?

We've had our best results from Hanes Heavyweight and Fashion tees (Fashion tees discharged the best), Gildan were ok, Jerzees were ok. We did a few discharge prints on Alternative Destroyed tees and they came out beautiful. We had some unexpected but nice results on some Bella heather tees.


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## brent (Nov 3, 2006)

JayJay- I order Matsui discharge and everything else from Screen Printing Equipment, Supplies, Service & Support - Westix Online

I did a royal blue yesterday because my customer provided a few before I had a chance to tell them that I heard that they don't discharge well. It's bizarre, they discharged to dark gray! I think it's kind of cool, and I hope he does too. I only did 6 royal blues out of 100 shirts for his discharge order. 

I'm doing some Hanes ladies tank tops and they are discharging well. I wish Gildan 2000/5000 black discharged brighter so it would be better for use as an underbase.


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## Unik Ink (Nov 21, 2006)

I used Matsui white discharge yesterday on some Gildan 2000. Worked well on navy, but not chestnut. I think my dryer got too hot though.


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## brent (Nov 3, 2006)

I did chestnut 2000 before and remember it working pretty well. I don't have the test shirt anymore. Was it just not bright enough, unik?


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## brent (Nov 3, 2006)

Would you guys say that Hanes (not beefy t) black discharges better than black gildan 2000? I need a good option for a discharge underbase. The gildan doesn't get very bright, and if I'm to be doing spot colors on top of it, I want the brightest discharge possible on a nice black shirt.

I did some Hanes tank tops today that seemed to be discharging better overall than black 2000...


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## RadiantStatic (Apr 15, 2008)

What is the advantage of discharge over screen printed? Or are they the same? I dont really know.


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## brent (Nov 3, 2006)

Discharge is like the opposite of printing. It removes the shirt's color, instead of laying a color on top of it. Sort of like printing with bleach.
It uses the same equipment, it's just a special ink, or a special ink additive.
You can also print colors on top of the discharged area, or mix pigments with the discharge. In the latter case, you print the pigmented discharge ink like any regular ink, then when it hits a certain temperature in the curing process, the shirt's dye is removed and replaced with another color.
The ink itself, at least what I use, looks like a runny elmers glue.

Pretty cool stuff! But it can be a pain in the butt.


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## JayJaySerious (Sep 19, 2007)

We've had better luck with Hanes Heavyweight black shirts discharging than with Gildan. It's a slight difference, but the Hanes seem brighter. We've had even better luck with Hanes fashion shirts. 

I like using discharge inks and paste, in spite of the difficulty, because I just hate the feel of plastisol inks on the shirts. Even when we've used the soft hand additives, they are still so plastic-y. Discharge just feels like the shirt. So nice. And the people that buy our shirts do seem to like that, too.


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## Unik Ink (Nov 21, 2006)

I printed Matsui discharge on Anvil 980 black fashion fit tee today with bad results. I was printing premix white, and it discharged a cream color. I tried straight discharge, and it discharged to a brown coffee stain color. I also printed white on an American Apparel scrap shirt, and it worked fine.


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## Georgies (Jul 30, 2008)

i use the manokian products..very good


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## sg613 (Jul 19, 2007)

Georgies said:


> i use the manokian products..very good


Is that a shirt company?


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## Georgies (Jul 30, 2008)

no they make various chemicals


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## sg613 (Jul 19, 2007)

Georgies said:


> no they make various chemicals


Ah. Thanks. Just curious. I use Lancer Group's formaldehyde free discharge and a heat press and it works amazing. It worked well on slate and navy M&O Knits but not so well on the purple.


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## brent (Nov 3, 2006)

I did Gildan g200/2000 Metro blue yesterday and it discharged a sort of light rust color instead of off-white


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## Georgies (Jul 30, 2008)

try and dry it again..might get better. we used to do lots of white discharge for Ackomplice


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## 4oclockteetime (Dec 30, 2007)

Thank you all for posting your discharge results. Very informative and helpful... but I was wondering if you could complete the transaction. Many have posted up to the curing portion but not about how they dealt with the fumes and smell. Once you send them through the conveyor, do you wash them afterwards? Do you wash them (or dip them) in a synthrapol wash? And lastly, is it absolutely necessary to cure them in a conveyor dryer versus a flash dryer? I'm not experienced working with water-based inks (played with it, but nothing major). I prefer plastisol, but I want to expand my options. I did try a really generic premixed discharge on a black, navy blue and slate blue tee from AAA. Black turned gray'ish, navy turned a lighter blue and the slate looked great turning into a sky blue. The difference though is that I used a heat gun to active the discharge and it worked really well. In fact, I was able to control how much of a change the discharge made giving myself a bright center graphic with a sort of gradient border... It was fun and a nice look, but nothing I want to do often. And of course, the smell was madness.

Anyway, any additional info would help. And once again, thanks for posting these results...


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## midwaste (Apr 8, 2008)

Anybody tried discharging Gildan 2000 Cherry Red? I am planning on using Matsui white discharge.


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## Georgies (Jul 30, 2008)

This is our Discharge pritning. We make our own colors.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HvODXV-twA&feature=channel_pagehttp://www.youtube.com/my_videos_edit2


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## Georgies (Jul 30, 2008)

im surprized no one has watched my video yet...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HvODXV-twA


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## brent (Nov 3, 2006)

Midwaste, I've never done cherry red gildan but cardinal red works very well IIRC.


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## n.signia (Nov 21, 2007)

when curing discharge waterbase inks what do you recommend for chamber time/tempature?


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## brent (Nov 3, 2006)

I think shirts take about 2 or 2.5 minutes to go through my chamber. I usually have the heat cranked all the way to 450F...


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## n.signia (Nov 21, 2007)

brent said:


> I think shirts take about 2 or 2.5 minutes to go through my chamber. I usually have the heat cranked all the way to 450F...


wow, this doesnt damage the shirt?


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## brent (Nov 3, 2006)

No. They don't reach 450 degrees on their way through. I keep it lower when printing white/lights with WB inks so there's no scorching. 
At 450 the shirts will be 350 or so coming out of the gate.


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## n.signia (Nov 21, 2007)

ok, so if measuring the ink inside the chamber via temp gun, the ink needs to be at 350?

I control my ovens heat by speeding up and slowing down the conveyor speed.


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## brent (Nov 3, 2006)

You don't have a temperature read out on the control panel and a thermostat? What kind of oven do you have?

Really, with discharge, IMO if it has discharged fully, like changed colors, then it's good to go. with WB inks it's arguably fine as long as the ink is above boiling point for a while... Hopefully Matt from Westix will see this thread and pop on. I only use Matsui inks, which Westix sells, so everything I say is in reference to that brand of inks.


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## n.signia (Nov 21, 2007)

I have a hopkins international dryer, its 12 foot long, and 50 amps, 10,000 watts, it has percentage on & percentage off knobs, no actual temp knob, and then the blower controls and conveyor speed.


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## jcluttrell (Apr 28, 2009)

georgies said:


> im surprized no one has watched my video yet...
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hvodxv-twa


holy crap that is awesome!!!


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## Yo' Daddy (Aug 17, 2007)

Hey all,

I'm surprised to hear all this jibber jabber about discharging on red garments. I attended a discharge specific class at my local printing product suppliers shop that was hosted by a rep from Union Ink. He said that you can't use Union's plasticharge on red and kelley green garments. We were using Hanes' 5250 and/or beefy t's. I've had decent results with the plasticharge on black hanes shirts, however the colors seem a little dull - even the prints I came back from the class with. 
You can't say you can't discharge at all on red, because there is no arguing with the Unik Ink's prints. They look simply radiant!

Glad to hear it can be done on red garments! I'm trying to merge to a true waterbased discharge that is a little more health friendly anyways.

Cheers


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## Georgies (Jul 30, 2008)

we die the garments for our customers..so when they have discharge in mind, we use dischargable dys..they have ratings that tell you how well they discharge...its all in the dying...printing is the easy part...


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## chuitt (May 1, 2009)

I have had some extensive experience in using various discharge ink systems.
With all of these systems 3 points should be brought up to help make sure you get the best finished results.

1. Garments that have been to heavily printed may not discharge fully through the dryer, they can be run back through again to complete the reaction. it is a waterbase system and needs to react and evaporate out the water.
2. Garments should not be washed within the first 24 hours after printing, the color needs time to set. Colors will tend to wash down or dull out much more if washed right away.
3. Adding Matsui Fixer N or Fixer F to all discharge colors greatly helps keep the colors intense after washing. I add this to every print order, except clear discharge.

Hope this helps.


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## loustuff (Apr 3, 2009)

How does discharge work, is it only done with screen printing equipment and can it be done on polyester?


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## printing40years (Dec 27, 2008)

Well you might want to try a superior discharge ink system for better results made by one of the wordl's largest screen ink and digital ink manufacturers..... SERICOL. Their discharge ink has dominated European shirt printing for years and now it is made at affordable price levels in the USA with the highest quality standards and the lowest possible levels of formaldehyde for user safety without sacrificing results on shirts properly dyed with dischargeable dyes. The ink line is called TexCharge TC. I understand most manufactureres have given up trying to make anything with the great color punch of the TC DayGlo colors. The TC-311 Opaque white has great coverage on darks with still a soft hand. You can also buy the base and put in your own pigments if you like, but this ink line is ready to use with brilliant colors out of the can like plastisol. You just add the powder activator before printing and that's it. They also manufacture their own dual cure water resistant emulsion for use with this ink and plastisols as well. Dirasol 916. It has high solids and is almost impossible to over expose. Buy from their distributors or buy direct at 1-800-SERICOL. Ask for tech support first if you have questions, then ask for customer service and you will like what you hear, Fast friendly knowledgeable people ready to help you out. Gallons and fives. Make sure your dryer is long enough, hot enough, has good air circulation and well ventilated. Yes, plastisol can be printed over the top...and they sell International Coatings Plastisol for one stop shopping.


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## loustuff (Apr 3, 2009)

Can this process work on polyester and then sublimate image where the discharge has occured?


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## Unik Ink (Nov 21, 2006)

Discharge only works on natural fibers. Polyester is synthetic.


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## loustuff (Apr 3, 2009)

Does anyone know anything about what one shirt printer called dye dispersal?


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## Georgies (Jul 30, 2008)

u wrestling the bull by its *** with ur polyester....get sublimation paper that has the dark backround and image you want and sublimate it on white polyester...


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## edwardo_machino (Jul 27, 2008)

Unik Ink said:


> I printed Matsui discharge on Anvil 980 black fashion fit tee today with bad results. I was printing premix white, and it discharged a cream color. I tried straight discharge, and it discharged to a brown coffee stain color. I also printed white on an American Apparel scrap shirt, and it worked fine.


Yeah, I'll second this - black Anvil 980's discharge to a cream with Matsui white. Discharge only coffee brown.


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## printing40years (Dec 27, 2008)

Discharge inks only work on 100% cotton shirts. You have to use low bleed plastisols on 50/50 and 100% polyster shirts. I use IC900 series on Nylon shirts


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## BrickShirtHouse (Feb 25, 2010)

I just completed a few runs using Sericol discharge white and red. I printed on Tultex fine jersey Ts. The firt run was white ink on a charcoal shirt. It discharged quite well, almost bright white. The next run used red and kelly green shirts with white ink. They did not discharge as well but still not bad. The end result was light gray. The third run was on royal blue shirts with white and red ink. They did not turn out well. The white looks gray and the red is very dark, almost purple. Kinda bummed about that run and I'm debating trashing the run. I have had success with black Tultex shirts discharging well.


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## tpitman (Jul 30, 2007)

While this is an old thread, here's a listing of Gildan's colors with "suitability for discharge" ratings:


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## jkewl99 (Feb 9, 2012)

Has anyone used Discharge on 80/20 blends . I just received an order for 100 Black Gildan 345g Crewneck sweatshirts and am contemplating using discharge or White Plastisol?

Anyhelp will be great...


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## BrickShirtHouse (Feb 25, 2010)

I haven't done an 80/20 blend but I have done 50/50 fleece and it will discharge but not fully. The presence of the polyesetr creates a light gray worn look. I have also done a heather shirt with about 5% poly and it discharged fine. I would recommend using an actual white discharge rather than just the base, thin it out with some base to make it more workable. You should be fine but a test is always best to make sure you are achieving your results.

Alex


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## Humboldt (Apr 14, 2009)

Has anyone tried discharge printing on the Hanes Nano 4.5 oz ring spun?
I haven't printed discharge in about a year and I am running a couple discharge designs right now. However, I'm not getting as vibrant of a print with the Hanes Nano's compared to what I remember getting with Gildan 2000 and Jersey's 18Z. 

Straight discharge is coming out looking muddy, purplish/tan.

Are Hanes Nano's reactive dyed?

How much does my discharge mixture come into play? Does adding more ZFS agent help or hinder? What happens if you add too much?

Some insight regarding the Hanes Nano would be much appreciated, thanks!


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## BrickShirtHouse (Feb 25, 2010)

I found the Nano to discharge well with Matsui Discharge Ink. Navy, forest, and black worked best. Maroon was good although the white didn't completely discharge.

Sent from my PC36100 using T-Shirt Forums


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## Humboldt (Apr 14, 2009)

BrickShirtHouse said:


> I found the Nano to discharge well with Matsui Discharge Ink. Navy, forest, and black worked best. Maroon was good although the white didn't completely discharge.
> 
> Sent from my PC36100 using T-Shirt Forums


Yes, after reading through MANY pages it seems Matsui is the way to go. I am using a Rutland discharge base with agent.

To be honest (I know this sounds stupid) but I didn't have a battery in my scale so I just eyeballed it. I don't think I added enough agent to start and that's why I was having the problem getting a vibrant print. 

What are the drawbacks of adding too much, say 20%.


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## BrickShirtHouse (Feb 25, 2010)

Yes, a scale is a must for discharge ink. I would imagine 20% would dilute your pigment and discharge agent. Remember, discharge ink is a two part system, too much/little of either part can effect results.

Sent from my PC36100 using T-Shirt Forums


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## Common Seed (Apr 19, 2010)

Just to keep reviving this thread. I would like to throw in my two cents. 

I have had the most consistent bright results printing Matsui on Royal Apparel shirts. I have yet to try royal blue Royal Apparel tees, but am curious, since all of their other colors discharge nearly to white. 

Also, yes, you can discharge 80/20 fleece. 

I think that some manufacturers sometimes take shirts that didn't dye well, and dye them black, so we have had issues with some Gildans looking a little yellow from time to time.

Managing customer expectations is important with discharge, as it nearly impossible guarantee exact colors and brightness.

Happy Printing,
Mike


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## Common Seed (Apr 19, 2010)

Just to keep reviving this thread. I would like to throw in my two cents. 

I have had the most consistent bright results printing Matsui on Royal Apparel shirts. I have yet to try royal blue Royal Apparel tees, but am curious, since all of their other colors discharge nearly to white. 

Also, yes, you can discharge 80/20 fleece. 

I think that some manufacturers sometimes take shirts that didn't dye well, and dye them black, so we have had issues with some Gildans looking a little yellow from time to time.

Managing customer expectations is important with discharge, as it nearly impossible guarantee exact colors and brightness.

Happy Printing,
Mike


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