# Different Quality in Printful Samples I Just Got



## AAAABBBBCCCC (Aug 12, 2016)

Hi. This is my first post. Sorry about my username. I tried about 4 before this one, but they kept getting rejected, so in frustration I typed in a name I knew no one else had! (Hope I can change it later.)

So I just got my first Printful samples, and I'm pleasantly surprised at the print quality on the black shirt (Anvil 980). The colors look vibrant and the type crisp (I ordered a print of their color swatch chart).

However, the colors and lettering on the white shirt (Anvil 980) are much duller and less crisp.

This is concerning, and I'm hoping it's just a matter of requesting a white underbase even on white shirts. Would this make the colors look brighter and the lettering crisper?

Also, a few of the color swatches look slightly uneven (tiny light specks in a solid color). Would this be eliminated if I requested a double-pass? Would this cost more money?

I'm planning on launching my store soon and am having difficulty with pricing. Using decent-quality blanks (Next Level or Alternative) and a neck tag, each shirt is so expensive ($18) that I'll make very little profit if I keep my prices competitive with the big stores ($24-$26). I'm trying to build a brand, so the shirts have to be fashion-quality. My customers will skew young, so I can't charge a lot for my shirts ($24 max). I guess I just have to accept this in the beginning, and hope I can eventually sell enough to get costs down, right?

Thanks for any input!


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## soze (Aug 12, 2016)

Hey, I'm having the same issue myself.If you find a solution please post and I'll do the same.


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## AAAABBBBCCCC (Aug 12, 2016)

Hi, Soze. Will do. I emailed them with my query, but they haven't gotten back to me. I realize they're busy, but it's stressful having to make a lot of decisions and not getting answers in a timely way. My Print Aura samples will be coming next week. I'll keep you posted.


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## YurpTees (Aug 14, 2016)

in for updates on this as well. I got a few samples from Printful today and was very happy with some, very unhappy with others; My print on olive and black, both of which I assume used the underbase, were the best ones. On slate and butter which I assume did not, they looked horrible. Super washed out and lacking true black. 

I was with you thinking that the underbase on every color tee would help tremendously. I didn't see that option anywhere when adding products though. Curious to see what you find out.


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## RustyBread (Jan 25, 2015)

Any update on this guys?


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## rklovestruck (May 1, 2015)

Coming from our experience, we cannot underbase on WHITE shirts. The pretreatment is a saline-like solution that needs sprayed down first and cured and then the underbase white ink will lay down then the color ink. There is a discoloration to the white shirt after the pretreatment is cured twice. We underbase on light blues, light pinks, ash, butter, etc without issue (since I am guessing you cannot see the discoloration on those colors).

Hope this helps!


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## Zelwood (Jan 18, 2017)

Hey i am having my designs sent to me soon from printful. Www.zelwoodart.com I have two shirts coming that are white and printed an image over the entire shirt. The first shirt I printed came out great, there are some white spots near the sholders due to the fabric folded when printed but it is very unnoticeable. I have a Hat on its way a similar shirt with image printed over entire garmet. I was wondering if u guys can give me some feedback on the designs... i am a new store an yet to make a sale online but i have sold in person


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## djque (Feb 5, 2013)

Zelwood said:


> Hey i am having my designs sent to me soon from printful. Www.zelwoodart.com I have two shirts coming that are white and printed an image over the entire shirt. The first shirt I printed came out great, there are some white spots near the sholders due to the fabric folded when printed but it is very unnoticeable. I have a Hat on its way a similar shirt with image printed over entire garmet. I was wondering if u guys can give me some feedback on the designs... i am a new store an yet to make a sale online but i have sold in person


that shirt would look best to sublimated allover.that picture is a sublimation


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## AnACustomPrints (Dec 1, 2016)

Agree with RKLOVESTRUCK. We pretreat whites for color prints. No staining. Pretreat, underbase on color print.
A questionable black often has to do withe artwork/file RGB code. The printer only prints what it receives. That can be a problem as different printers often interpret the files differently, resulting in a need to tweek. A sometimes time consuming process that big companies might not have the time for.


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## Cottonandfern (Sep 21, 2016)

Yes if you want the crisper colors on the white you'll have to request the white underbase on white tees. This difference in normal as the ink soaks in to the white fabric due to the lack of underbase


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