# Shirt printing issue



## raffprint (Feb 28, 2013)

I printed about 40 navy gildan tshirts for the boys basketball team and ive had 1 parent come back twice with issues about her 2 shirts. Im using a manual 6/4 Vastex press with Union Maxopake Plastisol ink. First issue was orange wasnt dark enough on 1 shirt and the ink ran on the other. Reprinted them same way but made sure ink was nice and dark and even ran them thru my Vastex dryer 3 times to make sure they were cure. She brought them back in after 2 weeks saying her sons never wore them and she washed them inside out and hanged them to dry. Here are the pictures of them. I dont understand how 1 person can have problems when . ive printed at least 300 other shirts for customers the same way for the last 3 months and no issues. BTW, my daughter said one of her boys wore the shirt to school on monday and customer said they were never worn. They looked great when she picked them up last time.


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## raffprint (Feb 28, 2013)

The 2nd shirt.


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## raffprint (Feb 28, 2013)

I am curing at 320 degrees and flashed between colors. I actuall layed 3 layers of orange down so it would be bright.


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## squeegequeen (Feb 11, 2009)

It appears the ink isn't cured.
With so many layers it will take more to get to the bottom layer to cure.
Did you do the stretch test after it cooled down?
Another test I do is the scratch test...after it's cooled down...take your finger nail & try to pick/smear the ink off.
Did you put white down under the orange first?


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## raffprint (Feb 28, 2013)

I didn't put a white underbase under the orange. Just 3 layers of orange and flashed it each time before another layer was put down and made sure the ink was dry before I put the other layers down. I did do the stretch test and they were fine. Ran them thru the curing heater at 320 degrees 3 times. On this next reprint, I'm going to wash them after they are printed to see if they do the same thing before I give them to the customer. I printed almost the exact same shirt for my daughters basketball team and all those shirts are still very nice. Just strange how 2 shirts from the same person had issues on the first print and 2nd reprint and nobody else had any issues with theirs. I'm still learning about the screen printing process after adding it to my printshop 5 months ago but I definitely have all the right equipment. Bought a complete new Vastex package that includes the 6/4 press, flasher, curing dryer and exposure system. Had some issues with screen emulsion in the beginning but got that under control now.


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## LocalCustomz (Jul 20, 2010)

Yea 320 is what they all say but I find they should come out the dryer around 350-360. Also always do a stretch test throughout the print.


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## TYGERON (Apr 26, 2009)

Different colors cure at different rates. Different fabrics and contents cure at different rates. The more layers of ink, the longer to fully cure. If flashing between colors it's important to not over-flash. If you're using the right inks, mesh count, off contact, pressure etc, it shouldn't be necessary to print 3 layers of ink for good coverage and opacity.

Don't know about the other shirts that didn't come back, but from the photo, the ink didn't fully cure throughout the entire ink deposit. How are you measuring temperature? 320 setting or reading on the dryer doesn't mean 320 all the way through the ink even with multiple run throughs. You can scratch or stretch "test" and it may "work" for some folk but still not consistently accurate. Temp strips and laser guns aren't either. 

Sure fire measuring is with a donut probe with wires that are actually in the ink and measures the temp.


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## gtgraphics21 (Aug 31, 2009)

I agree with tygron. It definitely didn't cure through all the layers of ink. I used to think it was a hassle to burn an extra screen for an under base, but I have come to realize its absolutely necessary. 1 swipe of the orange and its bright as can be! Plus you don't want the feel of 3 layers of ink, the softer the ink feel the better quality shirt you have.


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## raffprint (Feb 28, 2013)

I have a radar gun type thermometer that came with the package I bought. This time I will put a white underbase under the orange and see how that goes.


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## TYGERON (Apr 26, 2009)

Contrary to what is widely suggested, the laser gun is only going to tell you the surface temperature of the ink deposit. They're good for checking heat press surfaces.

Imagine baking a turkey. You need something to accurately measure the_ interior_ to make sure how hot it's getting.

http://youtu.be/fBWmZb2XK6g


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## raffprint (Feb 28, 2013)

Just a curious question. What screen mesh would you use to print this job? I think I used a 230 screen last time to get the letters to come out crisp. I have screens that are 110, 125, 155 and 230. I'm thinking the 125 or 155 would be fine for this job. I know when I printed all 40 shirts, that 230 screen wore my arms out getting the ink thru the tight mesh. On the 110 mesh I tend to get jaggy type.


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## TYGERON (Apr 26, 2009)

Whether underbasing or not, don't overflash. The ink should gel, not cure, then print the next pass.

If you're underbasing with White, use a fast flash white to speed things up and choke it back .5-1 point so it doesn't peek out beneath the Orange.


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## TYGERON (Apr 26, 2009)

Are the shirts 100% cotton, a blend or polyester?


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## raffprint (Feb 28, 2013)

100% Gildan 2000B Ultra Cotton.


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## lvprinting (Sep 23, 2014)

I had a similar issue with a shirt that was poorly designed and required too much white ink over a large surface. I had to re-print a bunch of run them through the dryer multiple times to be safe.

Print a nice white base, print your orange once, and print your bright white lettering. All done! It's faster, looks better, and won't feel like a giant piece of plastic on the front of the shirt. You will need 3 screens, one for your base white of the entire design, one for the orange in the ball, and one for the white lettering only.

Print, flash print, flash, print. Three prints is better than the five you were doing with white, white, orange, orange, orange. Then cure it, stretch, scratch, and wash test it.

This design would have been a good candidate for vinyl too.


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## raffprint (Feb 28, 2013)

Why would I need 3 screens for this? Can't I just use the white screen for the lettering and the ball underbase on the same screen?


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## stickinthemud (Feb 25, 2015)

There is such a lot of experience her..

Can anyone recommend a good DTG Printer.

I want it to print exclusive designs, and have little maintenance.


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## lvprinting (Sep 23, 2014)

raffprint said:


> Why would I need 3 screens for this? Can't I just use the white screen for the lettering and the ball underbase on the same screen?


If you want the big orange ball to feel like a heavy piece of plastic on the shirt, sure.

Sent from my SM-G900T using T-Shirt Forums


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## customapparelpro (May 2, 2014)

Maybe they didn't crack after doing the stretchy test because you did print flash print flash print. So even if they did crack yoy wouldn't have noticed cause you used orange anyway. When you use a white under base you usually see it when it cracks. It could also be that you def. Used too much ink. I also advice, like others, to run your dryer higher than 320...the ink needs to cure at 320...which usually means your dryer should be set to 350-380 to reach this


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## raffprint (Feb 28, 2013)

I used 3 screens this time with 1 being a white base coat under the orange. These look much better and I stretch as much as I could and no problems with the ink. Thanks for the advice!!


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## User254 (Feb 21, 2015)

T-Shirt Transfers are printed on white heat transfer paper. After printing, you transfer the design onto cloth using a Heat Press.


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## sinkdeep (Apr 17, 2015)

I have a similar questions. I've been printing for a few years now. Recently I had a similar situation. I'm confident in my work but has me second guessing. 

On delivery I opened the box to show the client and one of the shirts was creased from the box. The red ink creased as well allowing the base to show. The print order was white base, flash, yellow, flash, orange, green, flash, red, blue. Average flash time was 7-10 seconds with a BBC Afford-A-Flash. Final cure was through a BBC Little Buddy Drier and temped at 315-340°F. 

I tried to do wet-on-wet after flashing the base but the ink was lifting off the shirt fibers and causing the to base show. 

I think the curing issue may have been that the base was flashed twice before the red was printed. Could this have caused the base to cure on the press and cause the red to not adhere? And if so how to avoid this?


This shirt is for a local band that advocates equal rights. I apologize if you find the content offensive.


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## TYGERON (Apr 26, 2009)

Sounds like you've got under cure and ink adhesion issues.

How are you measuring cure temperature?

Each time you flash, the un-printed part of the base is flashing. At some point it's likely to go beyond the gel stage and impede adhesion of the last color(s).

And whatever your dryer temp setting, you're not getting an accurate read of the whole ink deposit.

This could be printed without a base using really tight screens, the right off contact, HO inks (maybe slightly reduced and a single pass for each color especially on 100% cotton. Bill Hood hypes single-pass White printing. The same can be done with colors.

Or you could nix the base and P-F-P each color, making sure to not over-flash and allowing adequate cooling between passes. 

Either way, you HAVE TO have FULL cure throughout and a way to accurately measure ink temp.


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## TYGERON (Apr 26, 2009)

That White base could be choked back a bit to compensate for registration issues. And it could be done as an 80% halftone for a less heavy deposit.


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## sinkdeep (Apr 17, 2015)

I chose to use a base because some of hte inks used (orange and yellow) were not HO. I was also trying to speed up production. P/F/P for each color would have been no fun. I have never had success with a single pass on a dark garment. I wish I could figure that out. 

My drier has been seeming very inconsistent as of late. It does not have temperature controls which is one issue. The other is that one day a certain belt speed will be great. The next day the same speed on the same print with a warmed up drier will not have full cure. It's very frustrating. I've been setting money aside for a new drier but it will be some time before I get one. 

Thank you for the advice.


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