# Duracut



## leisure (Mar 3, 2007)

Hi 
has anyone had experience with duracut if so do you like it and how well does it stand up to washing.Can you overlap 2 or more colors and them stick .I'm curious to try it.thanks for any input.


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## leisure (Mar 3, 2007)

I would really like some input on the duracut from imprintables before I buy if anyone has used it.Thanks


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## rusty (Feb 9, 2007)

I've used it, and will never use it again. It cracked horribly after a few washings, as you can see in the pic. Of course I could have done something wrong, but I did it exactly according to the directions. And I ordered it from their cut center where they cut it and ship it to me, and all I did was press it on the shirts. I'm pretty sure you cannot overlap colors, but I could be wrong. Instead of DuraCut, I now use SportFilm from TwillUSA. It's a thick durable vinyl.


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## leisure (Mar 3, 2007)

Oh my gosh that's awful the one i was looking at is from imprintables and it comes in sheets.My local fire department wants me to put there name in big letters on the back of t-shirts and someone suggested i use duracut instead of vinyl,they said the duracut was like ink that would dye into the fabric with no hand, as where the vinyl would set on top of the shirt.Hope I explained that so you understand what they told me.After seeing your picture I would be scared to use it now.Thank you soooo much for the help.You probably just saved me a customer


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## rusty (Feb 9, 2007)

DuraCut is advertised to have a "look and feel identical to a screen printed design". I'm sorry, but that claim is a load of hogwash. If that were true, everybody would be using it. Yes, this is the DuraCut sold by Imprintables. They sell it in sheets you can cut yourself, or they will cut your names/numbers for you which is how I ordered it.

Concerning what somebody told you, they were mistaken. DuraCut does not dye into the fabric and it does have hand. Even screen printing has some hand. The only thing I know of that dyes into the fabric and has no hand is Dye Sublimation. DuraCut does sit on top of the material similar to vinyl.

Of course, you may have better luck than me. The only way to know for sure is to get a sample and try it out yourself doing some of your own wash tests. Josh is a good guy and would proably send you a sample if you asked him. I believe there are some people on here who had better luck than I did. You really should do that with any product before selling it to a customer. I used the DuraCut on our softball jerseys, and I've had to remake all of them, and asked the guys not to wear the bad ones in public...


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## JoshEllsworth (Dec 14, 2005)

leisure said:


> Oh my gosh that's awful the one i was looking at is from imprintables and it comes in sheets.My local fire department wants me to put there name in big letters on the back of t-shirts and someone suggested i use duracut instead of vinyl,they said the duracut was like ink that would dye into the fabric with no hand, as where the vinyl would set on top of the shirt.Hope I explained that so you understand what they told me.After seeing your picture I would be scared to use it now.Thank you soooo much for the help.You probably just saved me a customer


The duracut does work. We have a lot of customers who use it very successfully. I am not sure what happened in this instance, but had mentioned before that I thought it was due to the laundering of the garment.


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## actualgrafix (Apr 25, 2007)

LEISURE, I would not go by just one persons opinion(if any). Do a search for enduracut and go from there. I'm not saying RUSTY is lying, just saying that there could be a lot of factors to focus on. My suggestion . . . . do the search.


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## leisure (Mar 3, 2007)

JoshEllsworth said:


> The duracut does work. We have a lot of customers who use it very successfully. I am not sure what happened in this instance, but had mentioned before that I thought it was due to the laundering of the garment.


Hey Josh,
would this hold up as good or better then the vinyl if applied correctly.This is my local fire department so I would like to stay on there good side.


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## rusty (Feb 9, 2007)

I agree, which is why I suggested to try it out for herself. Don't just take my word as gospel. It might work great for her. She was asking for opinions and I'm the only one that has shared one so far.


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## rusty (Feb 9, 2007)

leisure said:


> Hey Josh,
> would this hold up as good or better then the vinyl if applied correctly.This is my local fire department so I would like to stay on there good side.


Josh mentioned that he thought the problem was due to laundering. That's another reason I won't use it. I don't want a product that the customer has to be very gentle with when washing. If a product is called "*Dura*Cut", you should be able to throw it in with your regular laundry without it falling apart. If you have to baby it in the wash, then it's not very "durable", which is what I was expecting when I bought it for softball uniforms.


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## leisure (Mar 3, 2007)

actualgrafix said:


> LEISURE, I would not go by just one persons opinion(if any). Do a search for enduracut and go from there. I'm not saying RUSTY is lying, just saying that there could be a lot of factors to focus on. My suggestion . . . . do the search.


True nothing like research.Thanks for all the help, the fire department doesn't have a big budget so i'm tring to help out by donating my time and t's and they would pay for the product(duracut,vinyl etc.)


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## leisure (Mar 3, 2007)

rusty said:


> Josh mentioned that he thought the problem was due to laundering. That's another reason I won't use it. I don't want a product that the customer has to be very gentle with when washing. If a product is called "*Dura*Cut", you should be able to throw it in with your regular laundry without it falling apart. If you have to baby it in the wash, then it's not very "durable", which is what I was expecting when I bought it for softball uniforms.


Your opinion is very welcome and I thank you very much.


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## jberte (Mar 25, 2007)

with the wear and tear the fire dept will give those shirts, i'd use thermoflex or multicut on them - it's what i use for our fire dept here and they wear like iron. there IS a hand, but it is very soft and not objectionable at all.


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## leisure (Mar 3, 2007)

Jan 
is that the same as spectra cut.
Thank you


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## theflowerboxx (Mar 26, 2007)

leisure yes it is the same, thermoflex plus is a little better especially the white, but they are almost identical.


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## leisure (Mar 3, 2007)

theflowerboxx said:


> leisure yes it is the same, thermoflex plus is a little better especially the white, but they are almost identical.


Thank you


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## rusty (Feb 9, 2007)

leisure said:


> Jan
> is that the same as spectra cut.
> Thank you


I would say they are 2 very different products. The finished product does look, feel, and wear similarly, but the products themselves are very different. SpectraCut II, you have to press at a very low pressure and very specific temp and then peel cold and then repress. ThermoFlex Plus, you can press at wide range of temps, mid to heavy pressure, and you can peel it hot (which I like) or cold. And you don't have to repress it a 2nd time, although I usually do just to be safe.

The SportFilm I mentioned earlier is a thicker version of these 2 and very durable. It's made for athletic shirts, but could be used in any application that needs to be able stand up under some adverse conditions.

All 3 of the products should look good and wash ok. I believe SportFilm is the cheapest and ThermoFlex Plus the most expensive with SCII being in between.


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## T-BOT (Jul 24, 2006)

For Fire Dept., I would use the cut TWILL material Josh sells.

Twill is a little thicker than vinyl, durable, looks almost like emb, and has a light reflective type sheet to it. Ideal for the Fired dept. It will make the garment imprint look PRO made for a few dollars more.


believe me, we have been distributing "thermoflex" across Canada for the past few years thru our whs. div. but when our printing dep. gets a call to do PRO League teams, Police or fire dep. etc. uniforms/garments we go with Twill.


i think josh has a video on the cut/application of twill on the board somewhere.



....something else to consider.  TWILL.



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## rusty (Feb 9, 2007)

Twill is very nice. But it also has to be sewn down around all the edges, which will create a lot more work. But if you want to impress somebody, that will do it.


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## T-BOT (Jul 24, 2006)

the reason i mentioned it is because Josh came up with a way to cut and apply Twill where sewing is not required.  I saw his Video a few months back and I liked the idea and end result. It is a new Twill application concept.


As for plastisol ink sheets for a cutter, never tryed that, though about it but gave up when realised that roll format would be the ultimate way to make it but it did not work out (in the labs) . 

Its easier for us to just make a screen/transfer.  


:


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## leisure (Mar 3, 2007)

theflowerboxx said:


> leisure yes it is the same, thermoflex plus is a little better especially the white, but they are almost identical.


Thank you David


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## T-BOT (Jul 24, 2006)

on the "ThermoFlex".

To me, thermpflex does not feel like vinyl at all. Try the new clear color gel vinyls and that is really what Vinyl hand is. Stiffer.

Thermoflex is extremely soft with a tiny stretch. Not like a vinyl feel at all, but thats the lingo our days, so lets call it vinyl i guess.  I'm in.


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## theflowerboxx (Mar 26, 2007)

I agree it definitely doesn't feel like vinyl. I did some shirts for our little league a few weeks ago, with thermoflex plus and SCII, dual colors. My competition did some too and they used Cad-Cut economy and dual colored it, holy crap what a difference, poor kids wearing the shirts they did gotta lug around a logo that feels like a block of wood on their shirts. I think they liked mine better, .


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## T-BOT (Jul 24, 2006)

theflowerboxx said:


> I think they liked mine better, .


wood!!!! thats funny.


i think they like yours better too.  


yeah, thermoflex is great for various applications, fashion included. Due to its extremely smooth screen print like hand/texture. Mind you that there are other comparable products out there.


Have you tryed the thermoflex Silver Flake "vinyl" and other new "flake" colors ? I like that way more than any foils. Way more durable than foils because its a "vinyl" (here we go with the vinyl word again  ) .... and looks cool. Fresh-New.


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## jberte (Mar 25, 2007)

i had some personal bad experience with spectra cut II and that's when i discovered thermoflex and was a die-hard user exclusively.....until i discovered the multi-cut. the same company also makes tuff-cut, glitter-cut and reflect-cut - 20" rolls and with an identical hand to the thermoflex, sticky mylar backing (personal preference) and wears like iron! i've used all of it except the tuff-cut, which is relatively new. i have some customers that have heavy-duty useage of their clothing as well and the multi-cut is now 2+ yrs and counting! good for them - bad for me, i'd like to sell them some new shirts! 

ps: it has the same heat pressing temperature flexibility as thermo too - and except the glitter cut, peels hot or warm


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## leisure (Mar 3, 2007)

jberte said:


> i had some personal bad experience with spectra cut II and that's when i discovered thermoflex and was a die-hard user exclusively.....until i discovered the multi-cut. the same company also makes tuff-cut, glitter-cut and reflect-cut - 20" rolls and with an identical hand to the thermoflex, sticky mylar backing (personal preference) and wears like iron! i've used all of it except the tuff-cut, which is relatively new. i have some customers that have heavy-duty useage of their clothing as well and the multi-cut is now 2+ yrs and counting! good for them - bad for me, i'd like to sell them some new shirts!
> 
> ps: it has the same heat pressing temperature flexibility as thermo too - and except the glitter cut, peels hot or warm


Where can i get the multi-cut.Thanks


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## rusty (Feb 9, 2007)

leisure said:


> Where can i get the multi-cut.Thanks


You can get it at Joto. I'm looking forward to trying some too.


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## leisure (Mar 3, 2007)

rusty said:


> You can get it at Joto. I'm looking forward to trying some too.


Thanks Rusty


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## rusty (Feb 9, 2007)

T-BOT said:


> the reason i mentioned it is because Josh came up with a way to cut and apply Twill where sewing is not required.  I saw his Video a few months back and I liked the idea and end result. It is a new Twill application concept.


The only method I've seen of applying twill without sewing is to have it cut by a laser cutter. I assume the laser fuses the frayed edges as it cuts so that it doesn't fray. They are VERY expensive to buy, but you can have somebody cut your designs for you. Of course you will pay a premium for this service. The first place I saw it available was from Twill USA. I haven't tried it because of the high price. But obviously it will save labor on the sewing end.


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## leisure (Mar 3, 2007)

rusty said:


> The only method I've seen of applying twill without sewing is to have it cut by a laser cutter. I assume the laser fuses the frayed edges as it cuts so that it doesn't fray. They are VERY expensive to buy, but you can have somebody cut your designs for you. Of course you will pay a premium for this service. The first place I saw it available was from Twill USA. I haven't tried it because of the high price. But obviously it will save labor on the sewing end.


Hi Rusty,
there was a video on youtube from Josh of imprintables and he cut the letter from twill then used the vinyl to hold it in place on the garment.I always check youtube for video's when i'm in doubt ,usually I find something on my topic.I think the fire department will need something more durable then that though.
If you want to see it and need help finding it I will be glad to try and send you the link.


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## rusty (Feb 9, 2007)

Oh that's cool, using something like vinyl or flock to cover the edges. I'll have to check that out.


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## MYDAMIT (Jan 14, 2007)

Hi Josh,
I Recieve The Sample Of Duracut From You But I Have A Problem Cutting It.i'll Change All My Cutter Setting To Try To Fix It,but Still Not Get It. I Have A Copcam 24 Cutter. By The Way The I Love The Spectra Cut Ii. Thanks


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## BMurphy688 (Apr 14, 2007)

That multi cut you refer to from Joto is more expensive than thermoflex...


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## jberte (Mar 25, 2007)

> That multi cut you refer to from Joto is more expensive than thermoflex...


 
and if you're comparing pricing on the multicut and the thermo, you need to take into consideration the width difference - 20" roll versus 15" roll....for most of my needs, the 20" multicut becomes a better bargain when i consider that there is more efficient useage of the material and far less waste.


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