# Shirts comparable to American apparel



## tkster95 (Aug 11, 2011)

I have a client who wants shirts printed on a more light weight, fashion fit, t-shirt. He mentioned american apparel as a brand their used to using. I want to use american apparel, however they don't have the color for this particular design. Was looking at the District Made™ Mens Perfect Weight Crew Tee DT104... is that a comparable shirt? Have never felt either shirt.. so Im not really sure what to expect for either. Thanks for any other help. If the District shirt I mentioned above is not a comparable option.. could you name off a few... are there any better options than american apparel? I purchase from sanmar and imprints wholesale mostly. Thanks for your help.


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## susu (May 20, 2011)

not sure if district threads is comparable. I use next level apparel and it is comparable. I get it from video but I believe imprints carries it.





tkster95 said:


> I have a client who wants shirts printed on a more light weight, fashion fit, t-shirt. He mentioned american apparel as a brand their used to using. I want to use american apparel, however they don't have the color for this particular design. Was looking at the District Made™ Mens Perfect Weight Crew Tee DT104... is that a comparable shirt? Have never felt either shirt.. so Im not really sure what to expect for either. Thanks for any other help. If the District shirt I mentioned above is not a comparable option.. could you name off a few... are there any better options than american apparel? I purchase from sanmar and imprints wholesale mostly. Thanks for your help.


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## Narf (Nov 21, 2012)

I find it strange that AA doesn't have the color the client wants; they have the widest range of any of them!

That said, another nod to the Next Level 3600. Similar in cut and length, a neck hole that isn't oversized, and lighter weight but oh so very soft.


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## twistedfuks (Oct 2, 2012)

Next Level or Alstyle... both great and better priced..


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## selanac (Jan 8, 2007)

Anvil has some t-shirts that compare with AA, Next Level etc.


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## mrvixx (Jan 13, 2009)

Bella. What color are you looking for?


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## tkster95 (Aug 11, 2011)

Thanks for the replies everyone. I'm looking for a dark brown shirt. I use the shirt color as part of the design so if the brown isn't dark enough the shirt doesn't come out right. I typically print on Gildan's 2000 dark chocolate shirt. I've tried a bunch of brands like hanes and jerzees but their browns weren't the shade I needed. From the looks of it American Apparel's brown is a earty chocolate brown... not the rich dark chocolate i'm looking for. I've printed on District threads expresso brown (for some woman's v-necks i did) and its the exact shade i'm looking for.. very close to the gildan 2000 brown. Alstyle's brown might be what i'm looking for but next level doesn't look like they have the color i need. I've used next level in the past and they make great shirts tho. 

Has anyone ever used American Apparel's brown? Is it a rich dark chocolate or more of a earty chocolate? 

Thanks for the help everyone.

#edit
Actually... after I followed the link that Narf provided above, it looks like Next level may have the shade I'm looking for in the 3600 shirt. And its cheaper than the district thread shirt. May have to give it a shot. Although I still am curious about the District Made™ Mens Perfect Weight Crew Tee DT104, just because the woman's v-necks I did before were such a nice shirt.


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## Narf (Nov 21, 2012)

tkster95 said:


> ...
> #edit
> Actually... after I followed the link that Narf provided above, it looks like Next level may have the shade I'm looking for in the 3600 shirt. And its cheaper than the district thread shirt. May have to give it a shot. ...


It's definitely darker. Left is printed on a NLA 3600 dark chocolate, right is AA 2001 brown (excuse the wrinkles and the graininess due to the lighting).


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## tkster95 (Aug 11, 2011)

Narf said:


> It's definitely darker. Left is printed on a NLA 3600 dark chocolate, right is AA 2001 brown (excuse the wrinkles and the graininess due to the lighting).



Thanks Narf! I appreciate the pic man... That's just what I was looking for; a side by side comparison. The next level is defiantly the shade I'm looking for. Thanks.

I'm so used to free shipping from companies like sanmar.. I remember ordering from NextLevel in the past, at that time they didn't offer free shipping. Is that still the case? Have no idea what to expect when ordering say.. 200 shirts. Are they going to get me with like a $90 shipping tab?


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## royster13 (Aug 14, 2007)

Would it not be less costly to just add another colour to your print?...


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## Narf (Nov 21, 2012)

royster13 said:


> Would it not be less costly to just add another colour to your print?...


Considering that NL costs way less than AA, and at 200 qty., probably not.


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## tkster95 (Aug 11, 2011)

In order to get the desired results I have to use the shirt color in the design, adding another color to the print would mess up the effect i'm trying to achieve. 

Here's my situation: I have a line up of shirts that i'm trying to sell through different retail locations on a consignment basis. The 2 retail outlets I currently sell through are looking for a standard fit, durable yet cheap shirt. Thats why i've been printing on mainly gildan 2000. A new retail shop i'm in discussions with, wants to sell a more fashion fit shirt, geared towards a younger college crowd. In my line up I have about 5 shirts that all come on different color shirts. Dark brown, orange, navy blue, charcoal and red are the shirt colors I need. I want to find a good "fashion fit" shirt, relabel it and call it a day. Problem is, its tough to find the Dark Brown shade i'm looking for, as well as the orange (and oddly the dark brown and orange shirts are my best sellers). I'd like all the shirts to come from the same brand cause I plan on relabeling and selling as my line. The Next level brown is just what i'm looking for and they have; navy blue, charcoal and red... but no orange. Now American Apparel has all the colors above... but their brown is the wrong shade. If i'm trying to start a "line" would it be acceptable to sell shirts from different brands in the way I mentioned... or is that bad business practice, cause customers would always have to guess on sizing.

With all that being said... I saw that Gildan makes a soft style shirt (Gildan - Softstyle T-Shirt. 64000).... and it comes in all the colors I need. Right away i'm hesitant cause of the price... its sooo much cheaper than the american apparel and even Next Level counterparts. I mean... i like that its cheaper but I also imagine it doesn't stand up to them as far as quality. Am I wrong? Is the Gildan brand softsyle comparable to the Next level 3006 and American Apparel 2001? Or is my best bet to get my shirts from Next Level, all but the orange shirt that i'd have to get from american apparel? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks again.


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## Narf (Nov 21, 2012)

I'm personally not a fan of the 64000, but that's also because it starts off over an inch shorter in length compared to AA. Also, it's not a tear-away tag, adding a bit more labor involvement when retagging.

Another blank to look into - Tultex 0202. I wasn't fond of the older shirt's inconsistency, but now that the newer ones are made in Mexico, that may have changed. Not much recent experience here; someone else will have to chime in on this one.

Not sure if side seam vs. tubular construction matters - Next Level are all side seamed, Tultex/Gildan are tubular. AA, could be either.


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## tkster95 (Aug 11, 2011)

Thanks.. The tultex looks interesting. Is the pricing comparable to Next Level.. I'm not registered yet with any distributor that carries that line. I also found the CANVAS 3001 3001 - CANVAS UNISEX JERSEY TEE
and Anvil 980 980 - ANVIL RINGSPUN FASHION FIT TEE

I like the anvil cause its tagless but still not sure on the shade of brown. The canvas looks like a good option. Seems as if it isn't a tear away label though, not a deal breaker i guess. Both seem to be the same length as the American Apparel as well. Has anyone had any experience with these two shirts? Thanks.

Edit#
Not sure about seam vs. tubular... is that a durability or fit thing?


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## Narf (Nov 21, 2012)

Tultex is exclusively distributed by TSC. Pricing is probably going to be on par, if not lower, to NL. Price isn't everything in this industry, though - customers that are happy with your product are. 

I personally find that both the 3001 and 980 have wider neck holes, with the latter really not holding its shape after wearing a few times. Also, personal experience with the 980 is excessive shrinkage; even my line dried 980's are shorter than dryer dried 2001's.

Some folks say side seams look more high end because there's added labor involved in its construction. Others prefer tubular because there's no seam running down their side to "bother" them and less likely to twist (torque) since it's one continuous run of fabric. It matters to some folks, but not to others.


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## tkster95 (Aug 11, 2011)

Cool.. I'll get an account with tsc and check it out. Any chance you know what the shade of brown is like? 

I've heard a couple bad reviews on the anvil 980.. think i'll scratch that off the list along with the gildan softstyle. The canvas looks pretty promising... just cause it seems to have the darker shade brown and orange i'm looking for. You said you don't like the neck? Is it cause they come big.. or seem to stretch out after wear? Do they shrink up and not hold as good a fit as the American Apparel and Next Level shirts? Thanks.


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## ROSP (Nov 24, 2012)

Sun Apparel has t-shirts that are VERY comprable to American Apparel and they cost less. Sun Apparel


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## martin43 (May 15, 2017)

I know that this is an old post but I was wondering if you ever tried the DT104. The DT104 cost more but it is District Threads comp to the Next Level 3600. I'm considering it after talking to a rep who verified what I wanted. A NL3600 that isn't as fitted but is still side stitched. It has a 32 thread count as well.


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