# RECOMMENDATION: Beginner Silk Screen Kit



## cbbond (Mar 6, 2020)

Hello Forum Members:

I want to find a beginner Silk Screen Kit for creating a few silk screen projects for Athletic Shorts, Hockey Jersey, and Performance T-shirts (for Sports). Any suggestions for easy to use kits ? 

I wish to replicate some logos, on some existing shirts, and silk screen the same logos on new apparel.

Note: only have a few one-off projects, not doing more than 5 items in 1st printing

Please help!

Thanks,

Casey


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## JennVDS (Aug 13, 2019)

when I started, I bought the Speedball kit from Michaels. It has one screen and all the chemicals to coat and remove the emulsion, plus a couple of pots of ink. the instructions are good enough to get you going, but I would recommend getting a 1000w halogen work light from home depot so your burn times aren't super long. there are tons of YouTube videos on techniques - I particularly liked the Ryonet ones. 

Good luck!


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## cbbond (Mar 6, 2020)

Thanks Jenn ! I have been looking at the Speedball Kits on Amazon. What do you mean by burn times ? Please advise. Thanks, Casey


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## undrwater (Jun 17, 2019)

cbbond said:


> Thanks Jenn ! I have been looking at the Speedball Kits on Amazon. What do you mean by burn times ? Please advise. Thanks, Casey


Hey Casey! Newbie here too, though I was lucky enough to have a lot of equipment land in my lap, so don't have to look around for it.

To help you understand a bit of the process, the workflow generally goes something like this:


Idea
Idea to design - Computer software (Photo manipulation, vector graphics)
Print design on to film positive (this is a transparency film that gets black ink printed on it where the color ink will eventually get on the garment)
Using film, positive image gets "burned" onto a screen with emulsion, hardening all the emulsion that is not under the black image
Soft emulsion that was under the image gets washed out leaving a "stencil" for the ink to flow through
Ink is pushed through the stencil onto the garment
Profit

The above is simple, but you begin to understand the "burn" concept? You will need films, screens, emulsion, and some kind of light source that will harden the emulsion. This is probably the most frustrating part for the newbie like us. I'm just barely getting a handle on it. There is no shame in sending your idea to someone to have the screens burned. Just watch out that what you are sending does not violate copyright. 

Hope that helps a bit. This stuff is fun and, once everything works, very rewarding! Read a lot, study a lot, ask a lot of questions. 

I went to ISS (garment decorating event), explained to everyone that I'm basically a hobbyist, and they were so jazzed to talk to me. I think they figured I'd be spending money, but not competing too much.


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## DrivingZiggy (Apr 24, 2017)

cbbond said:


> Note: only have a few one-off projects, not doing more than 5 items in 1st printing


In this case, I would consider a different method such as heat transfers or heat transfer vinyl. If you're printing only onto white/light colored polyester I would consider sublimation. All of these are more suitable to one-offs than screen printing.


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## cbbond (Mar 6, 2020)

Driving Ziggy,

I don't want to use Heat transfer Vinyl method, it does not work well for Jersey. I don't know anything about sublimation process, but I know the design gets burned into garment, but don't have that sublimation equipment. I am leaning towards Speedball because I am talented with logo designs in Adobe Photoshop. 

Are you the screen printing business ?

Please let me know your thoughts.

Thanks, 

Casey



DrivingZiggy said:


> In this case, I would consider a different method such as heat transfers or heat transfer vinyl. If you're printing only onto white/light colored polyester I would consider sublimation. All of these are more suitable to one-offs than screen printing.


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## DrivingZiggy (Apr 24, 2017)

Well, Casey, Imma start with the part about me and being in the business. Short answer: No, I am not. But the longer answer is that I have been interested in the business for a couple of decades and began getting serious about learning about it ~3 years ago. Since then, I've been on this site daily, learning. And learning. Alas, my financial situation has not had me in a position to buy _any_ equipment so I have not as yet actually done anything. But I've been learning!

Now that that's out of the way, I'll be bold enough to say that from your description of the process(es) you've heard some stuff from somebody whose education about the processes stopped in the seventies. Vinyl has come a long way in 50 years and many teams are using vinyl numbers/names on their jersies. And your description of the sublimation process is incredibly wrong--there is no burning involved.

Your mention of designing logos and proficiency with Photoshop leads me to believe that sublimation just might be the best scenario for you. The only "special" equipment you would need would be a separate printer for your dye sublimation inks. Almost all of the garment printing processes require a heat press, so I'll just take it as a given that you're planning to have one of those. Of course, if you're screen printing you might be able to get away with a heat gun.

And the drawback for sublimation is that you will be relegated to white/light-colored polyester garments. Unless you choose to use one of the various "sublimation to cotton" processes which are all controversial. It involves printing your dye sub image onto a white sheet that will then need to be cut out and then used as the background to your image that you press onto the shirt. This starts many lively conversations on this forum. And they usually get ugly.

Now, the alternative would be to use your regular printer and use one of the similar backing papers to do the same. It looks like this method proves to be less permanent, but I haven't been able to get an answer out of anybody whether or not there is any difference in the vibrancy between this and dye sub.

And there are other papers out there that will give you a multitude of colors onto your garment. You just load it into your printer like a normal sheet of paper and then print the image onto that paper. Then when you press that onto the garment, only the portion that has ink/toner on it will stick to the garment.

So I guess my entire point is that there is much to learn. And many more processes to investigate. And talk to people who are not stuck in the seventies.


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## LancerFlorida (Mar 20, 2018)

Speedball! What a great idea. This will get the user familiar with some of the hobbyist terminology and the general process. However, you can do nothing of quality with the SPEEDBALL kit except print on paper.

What you will learn is how to emulsify a screen.
That 30 seconds in the Florida Sun is all the exposure needed using Dual cure emulsion (speedball and Ryonet)

Hey you might (should) attempt multi color. When you see why it so hard it will help with the next step.
Now the fun is over and it's time to buy some grown-up stuff.

Only when you have exhausted the supplies of your Speedball kit and perhaps bought more at the Craft store will you have sufficient experience to know what problems you really have and just how much you are able to spend to do such low volumes.

Five reps using silkscreen is a true labor, labor., labor, labor of love.
That is why exploring the very compatible alternatives is in your best interest. Keep an open mind and if you get the chance to visit expos or a supplier or a print shop, you will discover the difference between transfer methods and silkscreen is impossible for the typical consumer to discern.

For example, you think you can spot by look and feel a 100% polyester shirt. No you can't. The business and technology have changed. And Speedball is a good gateway.

Best of success.


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## dwhite53 (Apr 28, 2017)

I started out Speedball.

They offer a kit that comes with two screens, emulsion, emulsion remover, squeegees, ink for paper and fabric, and some other items. Kit allows you to print t-shirts as well as paper items. 

Wife got it for me for as a gift a few years ago. What I've learned with it is priceless! Feel like it was a great way to start.


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## into the T (Aug 22, 2015)

i would think the open mesh of a hockey jersey would be a very involved process for experienced silk screeners with the proper equipment

i think even the poly performance tees need special inks


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## dwhite53 (Apr 28, 2017)

Kit wife got me was the "Speedball Intermediate Deluxe" kit.


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## JennVDS (Aug 13, 2019)

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into the T said:


> i would think the open mesh of a hockey jersey would be a very involved process for experienced silk screeners with the proper equipment
> 
> i think even the poly performance tees need special inks


This was just in the r/screenprinting sub-reddit. They suggested a lot of flashing and/or paper between the platen and the shirt. 

that's way to scary for me!!


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## crwhite32 (May 15, 2020)

Advanced T-shirts


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