# Best T shirt for DTG printing?



## Philnwife

Hi again everyone. Well, I was almost locked on buying a bunch of Beefy T's, but I thought it would be better to double check with the pros on this awesome forum. Which brand / model of T shirt do you you feel is the very best for DTG printing? I'd hate to drop a bunch of moolah on Beefy T's to then realize they're not that great after all.

Thanks!


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## proworlded

I would suggest anything but Beefy T's. Too loose a weave. Gildan is an excellent choice.


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## Philnwife

Which model Gildan?


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## proworlded

2000 is my choice 6.1 ounce.


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## suffix

i prefer the gildan 2000 as well. the 64000('soft style') are also good I just have to watch how much pretreat i use.


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## KB Graphics

Gildan 2000 or hanes tagless. Have had problems with the beefy tees


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## GraphixGuys

I got to go with everyone else. I use the gildan 6.1 for normal use DTG.


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## Philnwife

Is the G 2000 a ring spun cotton shirt / does it really matter if it is or not?


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## atigerwanabee

I challenge all of you guys here to a blind test. Gildans so called Ultra vs. Hanes Beefy T-shirts and even the Hanes Nano. Do a Blind Feel test and let me know. I already know the answer to the question. All of you guys would be shocked. As far as printing the shirts via DTG To me the Hanes has the better Feel, Tighter weave. I could go into more of a technical aspect but, I suspect a Blind Test Feel would solve this but, Hey what does the feel test have to do with how they print? Good question. Like I stated we all have our preferences don't we. $2.39 Hanes Whites vs. Gildan White Ultra $1.45 you do the Math and the feel.


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## tfike

I'm going to look into getting the 3 styles and have my DTG dept. run some tests. Will post the results as soon as possible.


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## Philnwife

Very cool. Thanks Todd


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## sodrisc

beefy t's have imo a very nasty collar, gildan ultra ftw, been using them for years with zero problems or complaints.


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## atigerwanabee

That is funny you should say that. Because I love Fruit Of The Looms weight, Tight weave but, the collar is not that great but, we are not printing on the collars right. I like the Pro Club's Inc really heavy t-shirt they have. I think it is either a 6.5 oz. or a 7.1 oz. All i know is it is very heavy. I like heavy and it prints amazing with the right Pretreatment any shirt will look good White or Black. Pretreatment is the way to go on all shirts Period. Otto which makes caps carries their own brand(Compy tee's) It is a Pro Club Inc with their own label. It is still expensive #3.30 each vs $2.30 Hanes Beefy tee's. If you can up sell more power to you.


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## FatKat Printz

Gildan 2000 are my base model shirts. I have customers than love them so whatever. I get my best prints from ringspun shirts. I like Beefy T's, Tultex and Zorrel. You notice it in the detail of the print and how well it washes.


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## atigerwanabee

I have grown up using the Original Hanes Beefy T-shirts. I love the feel. I love heavy. I use to use a Stedman Super High Crew. I live near the beach and all of the Side Out shirts came that way. So, I gravitated to that shirt. I don't really know how Gildan came in and took the Thunder away from Hanes but, it appears that a lot of folks like that brand. I know it is a great Price Point shirt. With that said, If Customers want that shirt I will get it to them. But, once they feel the difference between a Beefy T and a Gildan they then make up their mind. From a Sample stand point and in our shop we perfer the Hanes Nano for samples. You really can't go wrong with either brand.


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## atigerwanabee

I was given a case dozen of the Gildan Ultra Whites. I will do a test on them to see what all the hoopla is about and get back with you on that one. I do like the price of the Gildans though.


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## b6design

atigerwanabee said:


> I was given a case dozen of the Gildan Ultra Whites. I will do a test on them to see what all the hoopla is about and get back with you on that one. I do like the price of the Gildans though.


And the winner is?


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## HardEdge

Coming into this thread late, but we just added DTG to our services. Is anyone using a Viper One for pretreat? If so, what are your settings ( turns ) for specific tee styles that work for you? It will give me a good start point, since our shop parameters may be different from yours. Any input will be appreciated.


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## allamerican-aeoon

Jeff,
Starting point is trail error. This viper pretreat machines are not all same also compressors. 
Neo set up done? Good luck. Ask in NeoFlex section. They will be happy to help you out. Family the NeoFamily.
Cheers! Beers are on me always.


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## thedigiguy

We have had good results using Port and Company (sanmar) PC61 as well as the Hanes Beefy Tee. I like the feel of Tee shirts from Gildan but I find they are a little to fuzzy for DTG printing.


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## 1316Promotions

We have found the PC61 to be our favorite.


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## HardEdge

Thanks Peter, 
Neo was delivered late Tuesday. I've been busy till now. Will have it up and running in no
time, I hope. I just picked a new i7 laptop to let NeoRip its thing ( quickly ). Goal is to load Rip, get set up, and start doing testing by Wed. I'll give Tigers a call if / when I get stumped. I'm sure I'll be calling on NeoFamily in the beginning for some help and tips.
Jeff


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## 135367

Just to add something to the pot. I've been using Port and Co PC60 from San Mar. Not had any problems.


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## TUANISAPPAREL

I personally like the Anvil 980's

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using T-Shirt Forums


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## photoshirtzz

Gildan would be the best one T-shirt printing with DTG.


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## MiEmb

I will vouch for Gildan 2000. We also get reasonable results with jerzees brand shirts.


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## thedigiguy

Al,

Are you using white ink on the Gildan 2000? I have tried them and found I had way to much fuzz coming through the print. I love the way they feel, they are very soft but I have never been very happy with the print quality using DTG. I use them for Embroidery or Screen Printing and they work fine, just not so much with DTG.


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## EricDeem

Ringspun, ringspun, ringspun. It's just like printing on paper...photo paper will have better results then standard copy paper. I use ringspun 30/1 shirts from several mfgs but Gildan is NOT a brand I can recommend for DTG.


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## MiEmb

thedigiguy said:


> Are you using white ink on the Gildan 2000?


yes, with white ink we occasionally see the fuzz. they work really well with cmyk.


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## maikman

I'm currently running a 6 dozen order of Hanes beefy tees on our GT-782 and was wondering what everyone else's thought were on them. I think they're absolutely horrible and can't imagine why the client would want them this time of the year. 
I've printed thousands of G2000s, G5000s and 6400s and have found Gildan is the best budget tee to print on (using the GT-782 and Mod 1). If I could have my way I'd print AA 2001s all day, but not everyone has the money for it. We used to print the pc61s and they printed decent but the collars were way too thick so we moved away from them.
When it comes to printing white shirts it's not really an issue and really comes down to the resolution of your printer.


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## Zippy Doodah

FatKat Printz said:


> Gildan 2000 are my base model shirts. I have customers than love them so whatever. I get my best prints from ringspun shirts. I like Beefy T's, Tultex and Zorrel. You notice it in the detail of the print and how well it washes.


Are you still getting good results with DTG printing on Gildan Ultra Cotton shirts? Have you ever tried Hanes Nano ring spun? I've been experimenting with pre-treatment on white and light colors and find the print seems, to hold up better in the wash without the pre-treatment. The problem I have is that the print without the pre-treatment doesn't have the sharp edges I prefer. I know you have been printing shirts for a while. What do you think?


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## equipmentzone1

The last time we tested them, we didn't get great results on Hanes Beefy-T or Nano for DTG. Just wasn't the surface necessary for the best direct-to-garment prints. We've had good luck with Hanes Tagless 5250 in the past, but there is a major quality difference between Hanes Tagless' different countries of manufacture. Must be different machines between the countries. And unfortunately there's not really a way to request which country you get from a wholesaler. There are certainly other shirt styles in this thread, including Fruit of the Loom HD. which are reasonably priced and print well. 

-Alex


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## Zippy Doodah

I see a lot of people like ring spun for DTG printing. I happened to find some (white) Anvil 980s I had ordered and decided to print and wash to see how they work. WOW!, what a difference. No pre-treat, sharp edges and minimal if any fade after 2 washes. I'm not sure I will use them to replace the Gildan 2000, but if a customer wants a Softer style shirt, this is the ticket. I'm still having the problem of white speckles after washing, though. Does anyone know how to get rid of them?


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## rmreshub

Hi friends!

As new bee in print bzn, I still unable to decide which one I should buy between DTG printer and heat press machine fot t shirt printing. Pls advice which brand I should buy for better quality and lasting. 
TQ


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## equipmentzone1

Zippy Doodah said:


> I see a lot of people like ring spun for DTG printing. I happened to find some (white) Anvil 980s I had ordered and decided to print and wash to see how they work. WOW!, what a difference. No pre-treat, sharp edges and minimal if any fade after 2 washes. I'm not sure I will use them to replace the Gildan 2000, but if a customer wants a Softer style shirt, this is the ticket. I'm still having the problem of white speckles after washing, though. Does anyone know how to get rid of them?


White speckles in a light shirt or a dark shirt? Often speckles are due to lint coming off of a shirt after it has been printed, but this isn't always the case. 

Do you have any photos of this by any chance?

-Alex


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## thedigiguy

rmreshub said:


> Hi friends!
> 
> As new bee in print bzn, I still unable to decide which one I should buy between DTG printer and heat press machine fot t shirt printing. Pls advice which brand I should buy for better quality and lasting.
> TQ


I am sure you will have no problem getting lots of recommendations from various forum users. We ALL have our opinions. Asking advice from current users is just one way of doing your due diligences. If it’s possible, I would visit a trade show and look at, touch, watch and perhaps operate as many of the different printers as you can. I would bring my own graphic and ask to watch it print. This will give you an idea of how easy or hard it is to use the printer and the RIP software. This will also allow you to see the quality and speed of the print. I would walk away from any company that is not willing to print a customer supplied graphic.
 Ask very specific questions about required maintenance, and real world cost per print. Training is very important. Where is it done, how much training is there? What does training cost or is it part of the package?


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## rmreshub

[QUcoyquipmentzone1;1316501]White speckles in a light shirt or a dark shirt? Often speckles are dueuploadlint coming off of a shirt after it has been printed, but this isn't always the case. 

Do you have any photos of this by any chance?

-Alex[/QUOTE]


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## Zippy Doodah

equipmentzone1 said:


> White speckles in a light shirt or a dark shirt? Often speckles are due to lint coming off of a shirt after it has been printed, but this isn't always the case.
> 
> Do you have any photos of this by any chance?
> 
> -Alex


It doesn't happen during the printing process. It happens after the shirt is washed. Usually a white shirt. It seems that the fabric "Fluffs" up a little after the wash and you can see the fiber ends. But the print is still good. Very little fade. This shirt has been washed a couple of times.


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## equipmentzone1

Zippy Doodah said:


> It doesn't happen during the printing process. It happens after the shirt is washed. Usually a white shirt. It seems that the fabric "Fluffs" up a little after the wash and you can see the fiber ends. But the print is still good. Very little fade. This shirt has been washed a couple of times.


This is on a 980? How long did you cure it for? 330 degrees Fahrenheit?

-Alex


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## Zippy Doodah

equipmentzone1 said:


> This is on a 980? How long did you cure it for? 330 degrees Fahrenheit?
> 
> -Alex


 350 degrees 25s hover 60s very very light pressure.


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## equipmentzone1

Zippy Doodah said:


> 350 degrees 25s hover 60s very very light pressure.


I'd be curious to see if it washed any differently if you dried it at 330 degrees for 90 seconds with light pressure. Those are our general drying instructions.

-Alex


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## Zippy Doodah

equipmentzone1 said:


> I'd be curious to see if it washed any differently if you dried it at 330 degrees for 90 seconds with light pressure. Those are our general drying instructions.
> 
> -Alex


I'll give it a try when I get a chance. I'd really like to figure it out, so it doesn't do that. Everything prints fine, but when it gets washed, I get these speckles. I have, even, considred the ink I use, but others that use it seem pretty happy with it. I wonder if I didn't pre-press the shirt, if that would help allow more of the fibers to get the ink? I've thought, maybe, when I pre-press the shirt it covers the fibers underneath the pressed fibers. I don't know..


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## equipmentzone1

Maybe get in a different shirt style with less "fluff" to it. In white, The Hanes Tagless are much flatter as are the Fruit of the Loom HDs. 

-Alex


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## Zippy Doodah

I'm wondering if anybody else has experienced this and if so, what they have done to fix it ..or did they just live with it.


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## FulStory

suffix said:


> i prefer the gildan 2000 as well. the 64000('soft style') are also good I just have to watch how much pretreat i use.


how about 76000 Ringspun?


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## FulStory

FatKat Printz said:


> Gildan 2000 are my base model shirts. I have customers than love them so whatever. I get my best prints from ringspun shirts. I like Beefy T's, Tultex and Zorrel. You notice it in the detail of the print and how well it washes.


how about 76000 Ringspun?


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## g.lupo

Zippy Doodah said:


> I'll give it a try when I get a chance. I'd really like to figure it out, so it doesn't do that. Everything prints fine, but when it gets washed, I get these speckles. I have, even, considred the ink I use, but others that use it seem pretty happy with it. I wonder if I didn't pre-press the shirt, if that would help allow more of the fibers to get the ink? I've thought, maybe, when I pre-press the shirt it covers the fibers underneath the pressed fibers. I don't know..


USe a pretreatment before printing, basically the white shirt is coming through after the ink, with pretreatment you can lay more ink down without bleeding. Cure for 60 seconds and 30 seconds with light medium pressure at around 340


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## g.lupo

My brain has been blown reading this forum. I am shocked to see so many people enjoy the gildan basic and ultra for DTG printing. I can name 10 shirts better than those off the top of my head. have you even tried another brand and compared them? Anything with ringspun would be better. 

For basics jerzees and fruit of loom HD print much better(not as soft)
Premium you have american apparel, next level, canvas, port compnay ring spun.
basics 6.1 oz and soft you have keya. 

Gildan basics are ok for screen printing,but not even brought up in DTG world


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## g.lupo

HardEdge said:


> Coming into this thread late, but we just added DTG to our services. Is anyone using a Viper One for pretreat? If so, what are your settings ( turns ) for specific tee styles that work for you? It will give me a good start point, since our shop parameters may be different from yours. Any input will be appreciated.


WHat up jeff, all set ups are different, enviroment is different, so i would start with 2 turns 5 turns and 8 turns print, cure see how look. Take the ones that look good and than fine tune some more. Than fine turn the curing presure and time. 

Still waiting for my cheesesteak, i didnt forget


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## violetgal

Has anyone worked with organic cotton? I'm looking at econscious brand.


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## RADR0B

Hello again everyone, 

I see a lot of recommendations for Gildan Ultra Tees on here. I use them also as well as Hanes Tagless. 

My question is this: Has anyone noticed that the Gildans as well as other brands require more PT compared to the Hanes to achieve a comparable print?? 

The Hanes Tagless give me the best print quality by far with the least amount of PT which is unfortunate because Gildans are cheaper and offer so many more colors.


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## Ghoster32111

RADR0B said:


> Hello again everyone,
> 
> I see a lot of recommendations for Gildan Ultra Tees on here. I use them also as well as Hanes Tagless.
> 
> My question is this: Has anyone noticed that the Gildans as well as other brands require more PT compared to the Hanes to achieve a comparable print??
> 
> The Hanes Tagless give me the best print quality by far with the least amount of PT which is unfortunate because Gildans are cheaper and offer so many more colors.


I find it doesn't matter what printer you use the Gildan needs way more fixation especially the 200's and 500's


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## equipmentzone1

Check the Epson Journal thread for some more comments about Gildan shirts and shirt choice. Some shirts will require much more pretreat than others. And you'll see a big difference in how some shirts print. The standard guidelines are to look for a high-quality, ringspun 100% cotton garments from a wholesaler. 

-Alex


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## Zippy Doodah

Just some food for thought. Now and then I'll run a couple of pre-prints to set things up and I use a Gildan 5000. I have shirts that I've printed and washed and worn, myself, and have found them to print and hold up very well. After printing 100's of shirts in the last year, I find, print quality has a lot more to do with the quality of the image and your skill with your particular RIP and printer.


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## mg.sober

Alstyle Apparel, Anvil "USA", Spectra"USA", Gildan/Hanes not sure if the other companies have a USA or not.


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## Rockford

For a budget shirt we use 100% cotton and have dropped Gildan 2000 and FOL 3930 in favor of Hanes 5250 (tagless) or FOL HD6R (Lofteez). Better feel, weight tight weave and print results.

For a premium tshirt definately ringspun. AA 2001 is very good and $$$. Anvil makes a midweight 780 that is a bit better than the 980 (fashion tee) which we feel is a bit light. There are few others but can anyone comment on the Hanes Nano? It seems to fit our budget and is readily available just wondering how it prints with DTG and if it has enough weight to appeal to a wide customer base??


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## equipmentzone

Rockford said:


> For a budget shirt we use 100% cotton and have dropped Gildan 2000 and FOL 3930 in favor of Hanes 5250 (tagless) or FOL HD6R (Lofteez). Better feel, weight tight weave and print results.
> 
> For a premium tshirt definately ringspun. AA 2001 is very good and $$$. Anvil makes a midweight 780 that is a bit better than the 980 (fashion tee) which we feel is a bit light. There are few others but can anyone comment on the Hanes Nano? It seems to fit our budget and is readily available just wondering how it prints with DTG and if it has enough weight to appeal to a wide customer base??




The people who have tried the Hanes Nano seem to like it. Some like it a lot. I'd advise you to get in 1 or 2 dozen and try printing them yourself to see how they print and wash for you.

_


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## stevealex

Hi from my experience you can not go wrong with GD01 Gildan Softstyle, especially in the summer. I us all year round and they are great fro DTG
I have used Fruit heavy cotton for Yellow Ts for the last 6 weeks as we have been selling Tour de France T shirts by the thousand.
If you want to go upmarket try out the Continental ranges, they have only a size tag so you can put in a printed back label.

Steve


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## equipmentzone

stevealex said:


> Hi from my experience you can not go wrong with GD01 Gildan Softstyle, especially in the summer. I us all year round and they are great fro DTG
> I have used Fruit heavy cotton for Yellow Ts for the last 6 weeks as we have been selling Tour de France T shirts by the thousand.
> If you want to go upmarket try out the Continental ranges, they have only a size tag so you can put in a printed back label.
> 
> Steve



Hi Steve,

I believe the GD01 t-shirts are only available in the UK.

_


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## closetcollection

g.lupo said:


> My brain has been blown reading this forum. I am shocked to see so many people enjoy the gildan basic and ultra for DTG printing. I can name 10 shirts better than those off the top of my head. have you even tried another brand and compared them? Anything with ringspun would be better.
> 
> Gildan basics are ok for screen printing,but not even brought up in DTG world


LOL!!! ME TOO!! what on earth?? I would have never guessed Gildan was so popular with DTG..... Keya and LAT for the win!


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