# Graphics crack in a year of less



## gijoe985 (Sep 15, 2009)

So, I've noticed that the plastisol transfers that I have pressed have a tendency to crack after some time, specifically on the shirts that are more stretched. I.e. the womens shirts which fit tight, or the guys shirts... which the guy "fill" well... 

Either way, I believe that I am pressing to the manufacturers recommendations. I really want my products to last as long as possible. I see plastisol transfers as somewhat of a stepping stone before I get into screen printing. I'd like to have the same quality and I believe it is possible. Just got to work out some kinks. 

Any thoughts? This shirt is a year old, but has had that cracked look for a while now.


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## djque (Feb 5, 2013)

silkscreen does that sometime longer or faster depending on how many times you wash and wear it and the sun hits it. the only way to get a better life span would be either Heat transfer vinyl, sublimation or waterbase discharge but they dont make discharge transfers that I know of. looking at that shirt I can see its been washed a million times lol. if you want a longer and better look go HTV that will out last the garment very easy.


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## Jaenes (Mar 20, 2012)

My recommondations to customers: 40° Celsius, never ever in the tumble dryer!!!!!


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## Preston (Mar 21, 2006)

Plastisol cracks when it is under cured. Plastisol transfers has the plastisol on them in a simi-cured state. This is needed to allow it to transfer. Once transferred you still need to get the plastisol to at least 320 degrees for it to fully cure. If properly cured it should not crack.


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## Blue92 (Oct 8, 2010)

One of our better customers has a brother that runs a screen printing company.

He buys from us because he gets more than one season out of the jerseys done with vinyl. He says they look as good the second year as they did the first. The screen printed had to be replaced every season.


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## gijoe985 (Sep 15, 2009)

I've got a vinyl cutter. This far I just don't like the heavy feel of the vinyl in comparison. 

Though I feel like I should not be surprised by the wear after so many washes, it isn't holding up to some of my wife's shirts that are screen printed and she has had twice as long. 

I will mention that from then to now, I am now using a pneumatic press, so hopefully I will be more consistent with pressure.


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## djque (Feb 5, 2013)

gijoe985 said:


> I've got a vinyl cutter. This far I just don't like the heavy feel of the vinyl in comparison.
> 
> Though I feel like I should not be surprised by the wear after so many washes, it isn't holding up to some of my wife's shirts that are screen printed and she has had twice as long.
> 
> I will mention that from then to now, I am now using a pneumatic press, so hopefully I will be more consistent with pressure.


you should try thinner vinyl material like thermo flex plus or stretch.


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## proworlded (Oct 3, 2006)

Different manufacturers might use different processes. You might want to try someone else. The example you have provided has excessive cracking but might be due to the washing method or the number of times it has been worn.


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## gijoe985 (Sep 15, 2009)

I will say that it was from when I first started, so there is a good chance it was operator error. I will also not that these problems are way more noticable on the womens shirts which are tighter fit. So, it may just have to do with the material being stretched so much. 

I've been using a different transfer provider lately. We'll see how things go. I did buy large stock of transfers originally, so it'll be a while before I run out.


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## Jaenes (Mar 20, 2012)

As mentioned, for me it looks like a typical tumble dryer problem. 

Beside this.... It looks pretty cool the distressed way!


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## gijoe985 (Sep 15, 2009)

Jaenes said:


> Beside this.... It looks pretty cool the distressed way!


Agreed...



Oh, but on the tumble dry part- my wife does all of her shirts together. Shirts I've made and others. She has a, presumably screen printed, shirt from college which is still holding up nicely, on a very similar style ring spring shirt, but no cracking. It gets washed along with everything else. 


Assuming that there was an error in my pressing methods. Is there a way I could lean to guesstimate what I did wrong? Too hot/cold, pressure too high/low? 

I may write the transfer producer and see what his thoughts are.


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## Jaenes (Mar 20, 2012)

Your wife's shirt is probably direct printed. That makes a huge difference.


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## Stefano (Aug 5, 2013)

gijoe985 said:


> So, I've noticed that the plastisol transfers that I have pressed have a tendency to crack after some time, specifically on the shirts that are more stretched. I.e. the womens shirts which fit tight, or the guys shirts... which the guy "fill" well...
> 
> Either way, I believe that I am pressing to the manufacturers recommendations. I really want my products to last as long as possible. I see plastisol transfers as somewhat of a stepping stone before I get into screen printing. I'd like to have the same quality and I believe it is possible. Just got to work out some kinks.
> 
> Any thoughts? This shirt is a year old, but has had that cracked look for a while now.


Another way to look at it - isn't this the cool "distressed" look that appears on *every* design out there? Your shirts aren't cracked, they're trendy!


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## gijoe985 (Sep 15, 2009)

Jaenes said:


> Your wife's shirt is probably direct printed. That makes a huge difference.


That's what I said. Or is then somehow different from screen printed? Didn't think so. 

Anyway, yeah, I was hoping to be able to rival the washability of a direct screen printed shirt. From what I've heard, that should be possible with plastisol transfers. Maybe not?


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## proworlded (Oct 3, 2006)

A screen printed transfer, when applied properly, should last as long as a direct print.


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## jleampark (Sep 6, 2007)

Over time, is it the washer or the dryer that does the most damage to a transfer?

Also, will a screen printer using water-based inks last longer than a plastisol transfer (in general)?


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## djque (Feb 5, 2013)

I would say a combinatiin of both. I like htv,sublimation & waterbase better.most people with simple designs like that turn to htv cause of the plastisol tranfers or silkscreen cracking.


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## Dad (Nov 18, 2006)

I have heat transferred shirts going on 3 years old worn by school children with no cracking what so ever. I may tend to think it is maybe a pressing temp problem. Just my thoughts.


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## gijoe985 (Sep 15, 2009)

Dad said:


> I have heat transferred shirts going on 3 years old worn by school children with no cracking what so ever. I may tend to think it is maybe a pressing temp problem. Just my thoughts.


Geese... thanks dad... way to get down on me....

Sorry... saw the dad name and couldn't resist... But I tend to agree. I have an old family friend who ran one of those BIG tourist t shirt stores in Big Bear CA and he said he has shirts from the 80s that still look "good" considering. Just lightly worn. I think a high quality transfers and the correct procedures are the key. 

I got my first large batch of transfers from Barber and Company. They all worked well from what I can tell. And I trust that they make good stuff. I went back and checked the pressing instructions with Dewey. I'll make sure I stick with those for the future.


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## drdoct (Jul 26, 2011)

It could be a variety of things. 

1. Not enough heat can under cure the plastisol, and cause it to crack. But overheating can also cause it to crack and be brittle.

2. Some plastisols just aren't as stretchy. F&M's athletic formula is very thick and I notice it's not the best for stretching.

3. Operator error. You said these were done early in your career. Sometimes it's the press and other times it's our lack of experience. But when it's both... it's dangerous. I know I used to over press things and I'm sure some of the first shirts I did ended up overcured and brittle.

BTW, I LOVE that design. Did you create it?


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## gijoe985 (Sep 15, 2009)

drdoct said:


> BTW, I LOVE that design. Did you create it?


Yes I did! I design all of my shirts. 

Shameless plug time-

www.sportyourfaith.com

I got my updated website live YESTERDAY! 

(New battle is to look for a new host... Hostmonster is just too slow for me now)


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## drdoct (Jul 26, 2011)

I like it man. You're right about it being slow though. But you've spent a LOT of time on it. You must have a lot of money in transfers sitting around, or are you able to absorb a lot smaller quantities in the price?


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## gijoe985 (Sep 15, 2009)

I have a ton of transfers. Worried now that I will be able to use them all before they go bad. I'm keeping them indoors at room temp. Low humidity. Hope they last a while.


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## proworlded (Oct 3, 2006)

Nice designs. Be careful of that Jack Daniels lookalike. They do a pretty thorough job of policing their properties.


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## gijoe985 (Sep 15, 2009)

proworlded said:


> Nice designs. Be careful of that Jack Daniels lookalike. They do a pretty thorough job of policing their properties.


Good to know. I'll be honest, I was less worried about that one because of all the lookalikes I've seen out there. Seems like a very popular parody design.


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## wormil (Jan 7, 2008)

The only way to prevent plastisol from cracking (eventually) is printing it thicker. Durability directly correlates to ink thickness. When I was printing in the 80's, thicker ink deposits were more acceptable and even desired. Some of those shirts had ink that looked perfect even when the cloth was worn out beneath it. Nowadays everything is so thin that a year or two of regular wear is about what you can expect before cracking unless you are very careful about washing and line drying. Even my vinyls start to crack after a year or so on shirts I wear frequently.


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