# Sublimation printing vs screen printing



## macwell

My partner and I am trying to figure out what is the bst way to go with printing onto t-shirts and hoodies. First it was screen vs heat transfer. Now sublimation has entered the ring. Arrghhh! We want a printing process that yields a barely noticable touch, with the flexibility of printing light colors onto dark fabrics with reasonably accurate detail. Is that too much to ask? Please - if you have answers - you would be helping us out a great deal! RMD72 - coming soon.


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## Solmu

macwell said:


> Now sublimation has entered the ring. Arrghhh! We want a printing process that yields a barely noticable touch, with the flexibility of *printing light colors onto dark fabrics* with reasonably accurate detail.


You can take dye sublimation back off the table.


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## Rodney

> We want a printing process that yields a barely noticable touch, with the flexibility of printing light colors onto dark fabrics with reasonably accurate detail. Is that too much to ask?


You can get this with traditional screen printing (with a few tweaks by the screen printer...like using a discharge base), or with water based ink screen printing (which gives virtually no feel when you rub your hand across it).

Dye sublimation won't work for dark garments though.


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## Dime

I have this same problem yet I want an LRG feel to my shirts, I want it so that it doesn't fade in the wash like the previous screen printing process we went through. I didn't do it myself though so I don't know what it was. A guy with a screen printing company told us that it's all about how you dry the shirts whether its in a gas dryer or electric dryer and he said that gas dryer's dry the ink better so that they don't fade... is this true?


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## jiarby

lights and darks? no hand feel? t-shirts AND hoodies (are there any poly hoodies?) 

I guess that's not too much to ask....

You'll need to silk screen with discharge and waterbased inks. 

Sublimation does not do darks, and does not work on cotton fabrics. It DOES have zero hand feel and looks great on light/white polyester.


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## Dime

So what if you want a hand feel?


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## jiarby

if you want some hand feel then you need to deposit ink on the surface of the fabric. 

Sublimation actually dyes the fabric.


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## rene41195

Is sublimination the same as heat transfering an image? What make it different? The printer, presses? Not sure I need help please./


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## GAW

jiarby said:


> lights and darks? no hand feel? t-shirts AND hoodies (are there any poly hoodies?)


 
Yes there are ply hoodies 

Men's Basic Hoodie Sweatshirt White


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## johnsmithjsg

For good Sublimation Print effects on t shirts, the t shirts needs ployester content and the colour should be light. the print should be darker. This makes sublimation print looks bit shiney. If u want print with ZERO HAND FEEL on Dark t shirts, U can go for Discharge Prints.


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## GCharb

Is it possible to use discarge ink, like union discharge ink, which I was told leaves a slight hand, as an underbase for dye sublimation.

Since Union discharge is Plastisol, does it not leave a slight polymer on top of the shirt that could be sublimated?

Gilles


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