# Curable Reducer and white ink



## BlackPressGr (Jun 9, 2007)

What kind of effect, if any, does curable reducer have on white ink when printing on dark shirts?

Does it reduce the opacity of the ink?

-Nick


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## adawg2252 (Dec 12, 2007)

the simplest explanation i can give is.

100% white ink = 100% opacity

90% white ink/10% curable reducer = ???

Anytime you introduce an additive into ink, you change its consistancy. Curable is meant to make it easier to cure, and in some cases easier to work with.

BUT white is meant to be opaque, which makes it thick and a PITA. So yes, the opacity is changed, but how much and how much you notice it depends on how much you put in it.

Generally start smaller, and add more until you like the result you get. It's easier to add more, then to try and take it out later...

good luck!!


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## BlackPressGr (Jun 9, 2007)

Yeah, that all makes sense. 

I'm trying to get the softest feel possible for printing on dark shirts with a white underlay. So far my results have been pretty decent but it could always be better.

Thanks for the info.

-Nick


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## adawg2252 (Dec 12, 2007)

also, soft hand clear (wilflex) is another additive you can try. That is made specifically to soften the ink, but again _*opacity is always at risk*_. I feel that soft hand would be a better bet than the curable, as curable is more for reducing the temperature that the ink actually cures at, where as soft hand is to make the print cure softer while still keeping as much opacity as possible.

but like whats said above. stirring the ink REAL good before you go to use it is a better idea.

which white are you using out of curiosity?


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## BlackPressGr (Jun 9, 2007)

adawg2252 said:


> which white are you using out of curiosity?


I'm using Wilflex Bright Tiger white. 

It does the job most of the time. But what I'm trying to achieve is a multicolor print on a dark shirt with an underlay that doesn't feel thick or heavy.

I'm happy with the results I've been getting so far but I'm always looking for a way to make it better.


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## neato (Mar 21, 2006)

adawg2252 said:


> also, soft hand clear (wilflex) is another additive you can try. That is made specifically to soften the ink, but again _*opacity is always at risk*_. I feel that soft hand would be a better bet than the curable, as curable is more for reducing the temperature that the ink actually cures at, where as soft hand is to make the print cure softer while still keeping as much opacity as possible.


Actually, that's not accurate.

Soft hand is a soft base with no pigments. It's great for softening inks with a high pigment load (High Opacity) for printing on lights, but I would never add it too white ink. 

Curable reducer is a better idea. It does not reduce the temp required to cure plastisol, the 'Curable' part of the name only means that it does cure. It's more like a thinner, like adding water to make the ink a little runnier. 

For an underbase, a little curable reducer in your white ink works great, since you don't need an extremely opaque layer for an underbase anyway.


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## vinbasshred (Jun 6, 2012)

I've seen someone use softhand to thin down white once and he said it worked fine. he apparently used a lot of it too cause when I got it back, a good chunck seemed to be missing. I think if you're going for a softer-hand anyway, it's not a bad idea, but it reducer would probably be ideal.


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