# Transfers for Branding/Tagging



## ClutchInc (Dec 5, 2012)

Anyone use transfers for this? Im looking into buying a heat press and Id like to know what successes people have had doing them. Any pics for example?

Also, if printing white transfers, since you cant see the white ink very well, how do you know that the print will look good when pressed?

Thanks!


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## lben (Jun 3, 2008)

There is no such thing as white ink for transfers. Unless you use plastisol transfers, which are screen printed. When you see those tagless labels on clothes, most of them are done with pad printing, some with vinyl transfers or CAD prints, and some are screen printed, or possibly even DTG printed. If you are thinking about making transfers using the transfer paper for darks it would leave a pretty block of material and you couldn't print it in white.


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## ClutchInc (Dec 5, 2012)

lben said:


> There is no such thing as white ink for transfers. Unless you use plastisol transfers, which are screen printed. When you see those tagless labels on clothes, most of them are done with pad printing, some with vinyl transfers or CAD prints, and some are screen printed, or possibly even DTG printed. If you are thinking about making transfers using the transfer paper for darks it would leave a pretty block of material and you couldn't print it in white.


That's what I'm talking about, Plastisol transfers. Is it do-able with white on a dark shirt?


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## lben (Jun 3, 2008)

I don't see why not. You'd just have to print up the transfers. I'm not sure what the font limit is for screen printing. You'd have to have some really fine mesh and then you'd have to thin down the ink so it would pass through the mesh, but I suppose it's possible. It would be easier with a pad printer though because the ink would go directly from the plate to the fabric. No need to worry about forcing white ink through a screen.


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## lben (Jun 3, 2008)

I did an order last year with CAD Printz labels from Transfer Express and they came out really nice. They could gang them on a sheet for you. If I was going to do what you're thinking, this is the way I would do it.


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## ClutchInc (Dec 5, 2012)

lben said:


> I don't see why not. You'd just have to print up the transfers. I'm not sure what the font limit is for screen printing. You'd have to have some really fine mesh and then you'd have to thin down the ink so it would pass through the mesh, but I suppose it's possible. It would be easier with a pad printer though because the ink would go directly from the plate to the fabric. No need to worry about forcing white ink through a screen.


Yeah, I saw that on a YouTube video. Cool setup, but I have the equipment to do it with transfers so I was trying to save a few bucks...


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## lben (Jun 3, 2008)

The CAD Printz from Transfer Express or Stahls are transfers. They just have special machines that can print and cut at the same time and they use special inks that can get the job done. White plastisol ink is very thick. It is hard to press through a 150 mesh screen and for tiny fonts you would need probably a 300+mesh screen. With the ink thinned out thin enough to squeeze through, it might not be able to be gel cured for a transfer. I would say your best bet would be the CAD Printz transfers. If you look on the Nike shirts they use the CAD Printz transfers for their inside and outside prints. I'm sure they have their own machines for this but the end result is the same.


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## ClutchInc (Dec 5, 2012)

lben said:


> I did an order last year with CAD Printz labels from Transfer Express and they came out really nice. They could gang them on a sheet for you. If I was going to do what you're thinking, this is the way I would do it.


I just took a look at their site. So, they print them up for you and you just heat press them on? Is that how it works?


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## lben (Jun 3, 2008)

Yep, that's how it works. They even come pre-weeded so you don't even have to weed them. They look nice and feel nice and soft. Like I said if I was going to do heat transfer tags like that, this is what I would use. They can gang them on a sheet for you too and that saves money.


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## ClutchInc (Dec 5, 2012)

lben said:


> Yep, that's how it works. They even come pre-weeded so you don't even have to weed them. They look nice and feel nice and soft. Like I said if I was going to do heat transfer tags like that, this is what I would use. They can gang them on a sheet for you too and that saves money.


Thanks, Loretta. Now if I can only find good quality tagless shirts...


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## lben (Jun 3, 2008)

Try American Apparel, they're nice and soft. I think Hanes has a tagless T too.


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## starchild (Jul 22, 2009)

If you've got the setup to do plastisol transfers then by all means you should go for it.. It just may open up new revenues for you knowing how too do plastisol transfers.. Don't just go with the first response you get, do the research..


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## ClutchInc (Dec 5, 2012)

starchild said:


> If you've got the setup to do plastisol transfers then by all means you should go for it.. It just may open up new revenues for you knowing how too do plastisol transfers.. Don't just go with the first response you get, do the research..


Yeah, I still might look into it since the only thing I'd really be out is the transfer paper. If I were doing white plastisol transfers how would I see that my screening was good if the backing was white as well?


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## lben (Jun 3, 2008)

starchild said:


> If you've got the setup to do plastisol transfers then by all means you should go for it.. It just may open up new revenues for you knowing how too do plastisol transfers.. Don't just go with the first response you get, do the research..


He didn't say he could make the transfers, just that he had a set up to do transfers (heat press). Why would he do transfers if he could screen print directly? That would be adding a step. And he's talking about putting labels on the shirts, not printing the design on the chest so the print will have to be very small. 

In order to get that fine of a detail that small the printer will have to use a really fine mesh screen and then thin the white ink down far enough to be able to pass through the fine mesh without distorting the lettering and being able to still be gel cured so that it could be transfered onto the shirt. And I don't know if that's viable or not because I've never tried it.

The CAD Printz is just another option for him to consider. If he has a laser printer he could use some of that self weeding paper, but I think that might need white toner. I don't know anything about laser printers except that the ones needed for this kind of application are quite expensive.


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## lben (Jun 3, 2008)

ClutchInc said:


> Yeah, I still might look into it since the only thing I'd really be out is the transfer paper. If I were doing white plastisol transfers how would I see that my screening was good if the backing was white as well?


With that you just get down along side the ink and see if you've covered it well. I've done printing with clear adhesive for foil and it was hard to see if it was good enough until I started printing on the foil itself, then I could see it, but only because it make a dull outline on the foil that I could see enough of. The white on white might make a shadow high enough to see with maybe something like a flashlight angled against the ink.


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## ClutchInc (Dec 5, 2012)

lben said:


> With that you just get down along side the ink and see if you've covered it well. I've done printing with clear adhesive for foil and it was hard to see if it was good enough until I started printing on the foil itself, then I could see it, but only because it make a dull outline on the foil that I could see enough of. The white on white might make a shadow high enough to see with maybe something like a flashlight angled against the ink.


Makes complete sense. Thank you so much for your help. Think a 195 mesh with a reducer would do the trick? Also, what kind of transfer paper would you recommend?


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## lben (Jun 3, 2008)

How big is this label going to be? If you will have tiny fonts you will need a higher mesh like 300+. I don't think you'll get fine detail of lettering with a smaller mesh size. Unless you just want to put your logo in there in a larger font. But anything smaller would need a high mesh count. Or what you could do is put down a white base to print on and then put the logo or whatnot in black ink. 

I would use a paper that gives a high release.


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## ClutchInc (Dec 5, 2012)

Its only 3x2". Here's a link.


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## lben (Jun 3, 2008)

You forgot the part about turn it inside out before washing.

For that I would do a white base in a 110-150 mesh to make sure you get coverage and then I'd do the lettering in black in a 200-300 mesh screen. That lettering in the washing instructions is going to require some fine mesh. And black ink will be easier to work with than the white.


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## wormil (Jan 7, 2008)

ClutchInc said:


> Anyone use transfers for this? Im looking into buying a heat press and Id like to know what successes people have had doing them. Any pics for example?
> 
> Also, if printing white transfers, since you cant see the white ink very well, how do you know that the print will look good when pressed?
> 
> Thanks!


Lots of people do it. It's easier with a hat press than a full size press..

re: white. Probably 90% of my business is white ink on dark, works fine. Hold the transfers up to a light or window with the ink facing away and you can see any voids or misprints.


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