# Pic's of cotton tank top dye subed before and after wash



## mystysue (Aug 27, 2006)

Well, Ive mentioned a few times how i never dye sub onto 100% poly shirts .. I normally use 50/50 cotton/poly blends.. But I had a customer that wanted some sexier tops to take to sturgis motor cycle thingie next week.. and I had heard from other users of my system that they were getting good results from using the prep spray (soft coat from ATI) with even 100% cotton shirts..
So I figured this was the time to try it out.. 
I got some cotton girlie tanks and got to work.. Here are the before wash and after wash pictures..
I did 60+ of these shirts today.. the after wash picture is a shirt that I washed 5 times.. in warm water.. and dried in dryer.. As you can see there is very little fade and it is quite sellable.. im very happy with the results as is the customer..

We also did a bunch of 50/50 mens t-shirts and I will try to get pic's of them tommroow..


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## mystysue (Aug 27, 2006)

oops and yes.. the one washed was a boo boo... I put the transfer on upside down lol..


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## Rodney (Nov 3, 2004)

What kind of inks are you using in your okidata printer for dye sub work?

Thanks for posting the pics!


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## mystysue (Aug 27, 2006)

Rodney.. I have two of the okidata 5200's one with the ATI sub toner and one with white sub toner. I got them from al at Automatic Transfer, Inc. - Sublimation Transfer Inks and Heat Transfer Papers


The also carry it at Dye Sublimation Ink, Supplies & Equipment Coast Graphic Supply

I have not had time to fiddle with the white toner at all.. and it has quite a learning curve.. but i like my laser with the toner..

I know the people from Dye Sublimation Ink, Supplies & Equipment Coast Graphic Supply will be at the show in long beach.... and perhaps they will have it set up.. i donno..


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## Rodney (Nov 3, 2004)

Now you've got me all confused  Did you say "white toner" for your clc printer? I didn't think that existed.

Does that mean you can print full color transfers on dark garments? What kind of transfer would you use for that?

Do you have any pictures of that?

*edit: *I guess I answered my own question by clicking on the ATI link you posted. They have samples here of dark shirts printed with white toner: White Sublimation Laser Toner!

I can't wait to see this in person to see how it feels.


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## mystysue (Aug 27, 2006)

I know.. i wish i had the time to fiddle with it and figure it out.. I have done some hard items with it.. (tiles etc) but not much.. we need to hire some help.. so i can have more time to try new things..
Been way to busy..


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## AustinJeff (May 12, 2007)

For multicolored transfers that include white, do you run the transfer through both printers? If so, how does the registration work? Or do you print two transfers and somehow layer them?

On the shirt pictured above, does the process produce any window around the image? Do you have to trim at all?

I read their instructions about pouring a 1/2 inch drop of the coating onto the transfer and rolling it around to cover. Is this as much of a pain as it sounds like? What was your production time on the 60 shirts?

Sorry for all the questions, but I've been looking for this type of info and am not having much luck in finding it. Any help would be greatly appreciated.


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## mystysue (Aug 27, 2006)

Ok.. for the ones with white you run it thru the colored printer then the same page thru the white.. but like i said..I have not had time to fiddle with the process.. as we have been doing the 3 times the work as previous years.. and I just have not had the time.. One of these days ill make the time..
As for a window around the image.. if you look really close at the before picture you can see a slight window kinda thing.. But what it really is is just the mark where the paper was from the pressure there is no window at all on the finished product after the wash.. 

I have at times done the pre treat with a roller.. but i never measured... .On this shirt becuse it was 100% cotton its much easier just to spray the shirt with the hvlp sprayer.. 
These shirts took me a bit of time to do today.. but not because of the pretreat.. i do that while the shirt before it is pressing.. These shirts took time becuase of them being skinny shirts I could not dress the press (put just one side on at a time) so i had to put the teflon sheet between the layers before i pressed it, so there wasnt any bleed thru to the back..(that is something i would have had to do even if they were 100% poly. )

I never really have timed how much time the shirts take because with doing them at the shop I am interupted continually lol.. phone customers, my partner in crime.. lol.. I know i have heard from other that doing 2 sided shirts.. using teflon between the layers they do a bout 25 an hour..


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## macumazahn (Jan 11, 2007)

Am I reading this right? Can someone explain dye sub on cotton, I was under the impression that this could not be done. Does this pre treatment give the dye something to bond to, or some other mechanism that I can't comprehend in my "dye sub newbie ness" And does this just work for the laser toner and not for the ink jet dye sub. I am full of questions about this since my company is going to add some dye sub designs to our line when we buy a heat press in month or so.


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## mystysue (Aug 27, 2006)

I am not sure what is in the pretreat.. It works fantastic on 50/50 blend shirts and as you can see from the pictures pretty well on 100% cotton.. .. It is not like the cotton trans spray that one company sells which i found not to work as well.. There is a bit of a learning curve and i found works best with the hvlp sprayer in most cases.. I have an electric sprayer that i got from harbor freight that works good for me.. 
I really am not fond of 100% poly shirts which was the main reason we went with this system. that and i dont have to worry about clogged heads if i dont use it daily.. .. the down side is that you are limited in size the biggest paper i can use is 8.5 x 14 (legal size)

I use the okidata to do name badges, mouse pads, shot glasses, mugs, steins, and basically anything done with ink jet dyesub systems.


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## COEDS (Oct 4, 2006)

Thanks for sharing all you have.What is the get started dollars needed ?..... Thanks ...JB


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## dyer (Jul 11, 2007)

hiya.beem looking for this info.just got a c88 printer and been playing around with it,got image to stick on dyed golden yellow 50/50 burnout.where can i get the spray susan?how long do you hold the press down? at what temperature?i'm new to this.my business is basically hand dyeing tees and screening them.gonna attempt sublimation on dyed 55/45 dyed thermals today if i can figure out the camera i'll post a pic.not very techy but determined to make this work.jeff


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## mystysue (Aug 27, 2006)

dyer.. make sure you wash the item a few times after pressing to make sure that the dye is staying..

On the subject of the spray with other inks/ toners.. this is what i read posted on a yahoo group i belong to.

*****Yes, the prep solution does give a much greater level of vibrancy to transfers
using dye-sub. It works with ink jet dye-sub and Okidata laser dye-sub, so I
would guess it works with all dye-sub.*****

my suggestion if you are wanting to find out if it will work with what ink you are trying.. is to contact Walt at..
Dye-sublimation toner, white toner, transfer paper, release paper and Geo Knight heat presses.

He also is a dealer for the laser toners i have.. and he has a yahoo group with alot of info shared on this subject.. there is a link to his yahoo group on his site..

Coed .. the cost of the toners are like $675 for all four toners..
in t he long run toners are much cheaper to do shirts with than ink jet from my understanding.. I think walt and al both have the whole systems for sale including the printers.. not sure of the price..

hope that helps all..
huggles
sue


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## dyer (Jul 11, 2007)

thank you i'll check it out.jeff


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## rusty (Feb 9, 2007)

mystysue, what kind of feel do your prints have? Can you feel the image on the shirts?

You said there is a slight clear window after pressing. What is the window from? From the paper? Do you have to trim the image, or just press the whole sheet? You said it washed out after the first wash. What is it that washes out?


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## mystysue (Aug 27, 2006)

I do not have to trim the paper.. I use regular laser dyesub release paper..after washing you cannot feel the print on the shirt.. before washing you can feel a bit of the pretreat but it is gone after wash.. also you can see where the paper was before you wash.. but after wash there is no.. I think that paper line is just from the pressure..


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## dyer (Jul 11, 2007)

just an update... i've been sublimating on 50/50 dyed [light color] burnouts.and they are turning out great.gonna bring em to one of my stores tomorrow.jeff


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## mystysue (Aug 27, 2006)

hows the wash test going???


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## dyer (Jul 11, 2007)

let you know tomorrow.jeff


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## mystysue (Aug 27, 2006)

dyer.. the real test will be in the washing.. as thats when you can tell if the shirts work.. also.. depending on the dye you use on the shirts.. It can do funny things with dyesub.. so watch for ink migration. (even before and after you wash)


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## Cathybun (Dec 7, 2006)

I'm so confused. I've just invested in an Epson r1800 ink jet for doing dye sub and an Oki 5600 for doing laser transfers. So what is laser sublimation? This thread is the first I've heard of it. Can I do it on the Oki 5600 and what are the benefits of it above ink jet? Or above using the Oki with laser papers?


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## ukshirtguy (Nov 23, 2006)

This is very interesting, white toner !
Does anyone have any links to videos for this process ?

Thanks


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## dyer (Jul 11, 2007)

i'm sublimating on 50/50 tees they are turning out great and they are retailing.I'm getting a good price.no issue with washing.jeff


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## howrdstern (May 7, 2007)

mystysue said:


> I do not have to trim the paper.. I use regular laser dyesub release paper..after washing you cannot feel the print on the shirt.. before washing you can feel a bit of the pretreat but it is gone after wash.. also you can see where the paper was before you wash.. but after wash there is no.. I think that paper line is just from the pressure..



mystysue,

are you using a air powered heat press? because i was told you need a lot of pressure to make this process work for 100 per cent cotton...


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