# siser vs. thermoflex



## knifemaker3

Anyone here using the siser vinyls sold by Coastal and others? I've been using Thermoflex for shirts and spectra cut plus for vest and jackets.

Just wondering if anyone has had any experience with it as it's a tad bit cheaper than thermoflex.


Thoughts? 

Craig


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## cmyk

i'm also interested.
what do you think about Siser made Videoflex?


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## Chani

This is a little confusing for me...I've seen references to Siser on my Therofelx Plus rolls, and I'm wondering if Siser actually manufactures it for Specialty Materials?

I'm not sure they're the same thing, tho...

It's not unheard of. 3M manufactures sign vinyl for Gregory.


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## cmyk

Siser is an italian producer, well/known in europe for its textile tranfer vinyls and equipments.
i don't know if they have a diferent name in the usa.
Siser S.r.l. | produzione dei materiali termotrasferibili per applicazioni sul tessile


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## CuttingEdge

I'm a novice at this, so with that said. The first thing I did was purchase a roll Siser EasyWeed and roll of Thermoflex + after reading as much as I could here.

What little I have done, I would have to say it's a wash as to which product weeds easier. 

I have pressed both on blended and cotton T-shirts. Surprisingly to me where I believe the Sisor EasyWeed shines is the actual application and peel. For me following the mfg instructions that came with each product, the EasyWeed has been less trouble. However the difference hasn't been enough that I would say never buy one or the other, but I'm inclined to go with EasyWeed in the future unless there's a huge $ difference.


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## maddog9022

i really like the sissers. i would reuse it again in a heart beat. it was easy to weed and press. it came out great.
thats my 2 cents


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## mbtshirts

I have been using Thermoflex Plus for 2 years and this past year I started using Siser Easyweed also. I am trying to use all Siser because it weeds easier than Thermoflex and also is a hot peel. It washes and feels just like Thermoflex, but is a lot easier to use (and less expensive). Thermoflex also seems to get a film on the back of it after it is about 5-7 months old, so use it quickly.


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## deChez

I've used both, and I like the Siser much better. I find it much easier to weed.

I haven't tried the VideoFlex. I used the Thermoflex Xtra recently for some nylon cinch bags and it worked great BUT...

I ordered a roll, and an extra 2 feet from Specialty Grapics. The material on the roll was fine but, the cut 2 feet was crap. The 2 ft piece had a pink film that needed to be removed, but the roll didn't. So, it appeared that the roll wasn't Thermoflex x-tra.

I tried to call them but they were already closed so, I sent them an e-mail telling them that they looked like 2 distinctly different materials, and asked them if the roll was in fact what I had ordered, or did I just pay premium price for something that wasn't going to work on nylon. I was livid because I had to get these bags done the next day. I had just wasted the 2 ft piece, and I was worried that I wasn't going to have enough to do all the bags, or that the roll wasn't Thermoflex X-tra.

I finally figured out on my own that they were both Thermoflex X-tra but, the 2 ft piece was old material, and the roll was new material. So the way I figure it, I paid for their old crap that they wanted to get rid of.

To add insult to injury, Specialty Graphics NEVER RESPONDED TO MY E-MAIL. It really sucks too, because I won't order from them again, and I would like to be able to get Siser from them, and I sometimes like to get the rolls custom cut. 

So I called Joto, and I'm waiting for samples of their material.

I tell you, if I treated my customers like Specialty Graphics treated me, I'd be out of business.


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## cbs1963

I've been trying Videoflex today without success. It is a very low tack backing, so everything weeds easily, even your design peels up easily. I could not get the necessary parts to stay on the sheet. I am new to vinyl but other products I've tried have a sticker backing which helps the design to stick. I've decided to use it only for large less intricate designs. It definitely does not work for smaller letters.


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## COEDS

I will say the Eco film from Imprintable in very sticky and weeds great. I also tried some Multi cut from Joto Paper and it also weeded great. I think the sticky stuff is really easier to weed. The Hotmark 70 aways pressed good for me, but was a little touchy to weed. The stuff from Heat press vinyl is easy to weed too. .... JB


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## maddog9022

COEDS said:


> I will sat the Eco film from Imprintable in very sticky and weeds great. I also tried some Multi cut from Joto Paper and it also weeded great. I think the sticky stuff is really easier to weed. The Hotmark 70 aways pressed good for me, but was a little touchy to weed. The stuff from Heat press vinyl is easy to weed too. .... JB


so you like the eco, i was thinking about buying a roll just to test and do personal stuff.


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## COEDS

maddog9022 said:


> so you like the eco, i was thinking about buying a roll just to test and do personal stuff.


I like the way it weeds,the way it feels after you press,and it's hot peel. I have increased my production output do the easier weed and hot peel of this product. I really like . .... JB


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## maddog9022

think i am going to buy a roll then.

thanks


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## mycraftytoys

I have tried Easy Weed and Eco. The Eco weeds easier but is more expensive. The use the Easy weed everyday from Coastal and have no problems at all.


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## theflowerboxx

I prefer multicut from Transfer Papers and Sublimation Inks at Joto it is the best I have ever used and it's 20" wide.


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## kathbath

Siser North America is the usa site for siser and there prices are very cheap, easyweed is on a pressure sensitive carrier, where videoflex isnt but is cheaper, for overall use the easiest product to use is easyweed.


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## specialtygraphcs

cbs1963, try increasing your cut force a little when using videoflex. The videoflex is a much thicker material, so with an increased force you should get a better cut. This should make the weeding a little easier.


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## deenastee

kath, i checked out the siser site and i didnt find anywhere on the site that mentions prices. can u give me link to it?


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## cbs1963

Thanks Grant I appreciate the advice. I'm a newbie to vinyl, learning all I can. I've gotten better results with larger designs.


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## kpk703

I must be doing something right, or maybe wrong. I find both the siser easyweed and thermoflex plus to be virtually identical in quality. I haven't had an especially difficult time with either, with the exception of white, which seems always to be a pain to weed, for obvious reasons (like blindness.) I would, and do, feel comfortable using either. I'll often choose based on price, so I've used easyweed more frequently, but that's not always the case. I think both are very good products.


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## treadhead

My preference still is Thermoflex but have tried Eco and Easy Weed recently and both seemed to work well. They also have a lower temp and shorter dwell time which helps production. I am finding the Thermoflex to be more difficult to week visually due to the "film" on the backside of the vinyl. It makes it harder to pick up the cut-lines when weeding. I also find variation in how well the Thermoflex peels hot based on color. Sometimes a color will peel hot and other times it pulls up with the carrier sheet and I need to peel cold / cool. This seems to very by the roll.


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## kathbath

Siser easyweed & eco film are the same product made by siser


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## kathbath

you have to purchase through their dealers. Check out their website for a number.


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## kpk703

I'm going to revise my earlier comments based on my experiences this week. I've always given a small...very small...advantage to EasyWeed due primarily to it's truly easy weeding. Well this week I had 35 full back prints to do and it was anything but easy to weed. I had some small letters that were coming up like crazy...made sure I had complete cuts, which I did, but surrounding material was either catching or sticking to the adjacent material and the small letters were lifting. I spent about twice as long as I would've with Thermoflex Plus cause I had to take the time to hold down every letter as I removed the surrounding material. Even tried the freezer trick, but no luck. Kinda bummed cause I love the hot peel and I hate cold/cool peeling Thermoflex Plus due to the high tack, but in this case the high tack would've saved me a lot of time having to hold down every small letter. Now that's kinda the price you pay when you have small letters...but I now have more respect for Thermoflex Plus.


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## theflowerboxx

Thermoflex Plus is hot peel, I know they say to cold peel it but I never did cold peel it except for their neons and glitter vinyl. Try hot peeling it once, you'll be pleasantly surprised.


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## mbtshirts

I also hot peel Thermoflex plus. If I cold/cool peel Thermoflex Plus I see a slight discolorization(especially on dark shirts) where the residue of the glue from the weeded area.


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## knifemaker3

kpk703 said:


> I'm going to revise my earlier comments based on my experiences this week. I've always given a small...very small...advantage to EasyWeed due primarily to it's truly easy weeding. Well this week I had 35 full back prints to do and it was anything but easy to weed. I had some small letters that were coming up like crazy...made sure I had complete cuts, which I did, but surrounding material was either catching or sticking to the adjacent material and the small letters were lifting. I spent about twice as long as I would've with Thermoflex Plus cause I had to take the time to hold down every letter as I removed the surrounding material. Even tried the freezer trick, but no luck. Kinda bummed cause I love the hot peel and I hate cold/cool peeling Thermoflex Plus due to the high tack, but in this case the high tack would've saved me a lot of time having to hold down every small letter. Now that's kinda the price you pay when you have small letters...but I now have more respect for Thermoflex Plus.


I know what you mean about the small letters. I was going to a fair last week and thought I'd make up some hats with my business info on them for give aways. I cut and had to hold down all the lettering. Changed to brand new blade and it was better but still lost all the dots on i and had to be careful of - between phone number. And this was on thermo+

But, that seems to be the nature of the beast when cutting such small detail.  

I will stay with thermo+ for most although I have a roll of eco-film that I have yet to try. I still use spectra reflective for safety shirts though as it is cheaper priced. It will crack though but the design and reflective quality is still there.

Craig


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## kathbath

I use EasyWeed all the time cutting small text & don't have any problems. You may need to increase your cutting force. I love the product!! I visitied their booth at a trade show & they had new cool electric colors.


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## Louie_J

theflowerboxx said:


> Thermoflex Plus is hot peel, I know they say to cold peel it but I never did cold peel it except for their neons and glitter vinyl. Try hot peeling it once, you'll be pleasantly surprised.


I also hot peel the Thermoflex Plus. I tried cold peeling it once and I almost couldn't get the backing off the garment! 
I re-pressed it for a few seconds and it came right off...


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## kpk703

I hot peeled Thermoflex Plus for the first time this week and lo and behold it was like butter! Now, I haven't washed anything to see if there's any adhesion issues, not that I expect any, but does anyone repress with a teflon sheet after hot peeling to ensure good adhesion? If not, why do they clearly instruct you to peel cold? And like others have stated, when you peel it cold you nearly need an assistant to hold the fabric down...it nearly tears up the fibers with whatever adhesive they're using. Hot, it came up just like EasyWeed. I'll never peel it cold again! Thanks all!


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## cmyk

kpk703 said:


> I hot peeled Thermoflex Plus for the first time this week and lo and behold it was like butter! Now, I haven't washed anything to see if there's any adhesion issues, not that I expect any, but does anyone repress with a teflon sheet after hot peeling to ensure good adhesion? If not, why do they clearly instruct you to peel cold? And like others have stated, when you peel it cold you nearly need an assistant to hold the fabric down...it nearly tears up the fibers with whatever adhesive they're using. Hot, it came up just like EasyWeed. I'll never peel it cold again! Thanks all!


 
from what i understand, thermoflex plus and videoflex from siser are the same product.

the instructions for vodeflex are press at medium for 15 - 20 seconds, 150 degrees celsius, cold peel.

everybody i know useing it do like this - maximum pressure for 20 sec., 175 degrees Celsius, hot peel, AND 8 more seconds without a teflon sheet or something like that.

after that, you can see the texture of the fabric through the vinyl and i believe this guarantees a perfect bond.


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## Louie_J

I'm still relatively new at this , but this is how I've been using it...
I heat the press up to 350F. First I pre-press the shirt for 5 seconds. Position the Thermoflex transfer on the shirt. Press for 20 seconds. Peel the backing off as soon as I can do so without burning my fingers (usually about 5-10 seconds after pressing). Re-press with a piece of kraft paper over the transfer for about 5 seconds.

I've been doing my own "beta testing" on the durability of my process. After about 20 washings and dryings the transfer looks like it did the day I pressed it. I'd swear the shirt feels more comfortable the more I wash it.

The Thermoflex is pretty idiot-proof. It doesn't seem to care much about temperature (I've pressed anywhere between 325 and 400 degrees), press pressure, hot or warm peeling, over pressing, underpressing... I'm yet to lose a shirt to a mistake. Maybe I'm just lucky.


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## MotoskinGraphix

I use thermoflex plus simply because it has never let me down. I have always hot peeled the product after a quick rub down. Not quite sure about being hard or easy to weed as you just grip it and rip it with a smile. It can be hard to see the cut line with some colors. I like the sticky backing especially for outdoor events in the wind.


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## kpk703

cmyk said:


> from what i understand, thermoflex plus and videoflex from siser are the same product.
> 
> the instructions for vodeflex are press at medium for 15 - 20 seconds, 150 degrees celsius, cold peel.
> 
> everybody i know useing it do like this - maximum pressure for 20 sec., 175 degrees Celsius, hot peel, AND 8 more seconds without a teflon sheet or something like that.
> 
> after that, you can see the texture of the fabric through the vinyl and i believe this guarantees a perfect bond.


According to the manufacturer they are not the same product, for what it's worth. Siser says there is a difference in the adhesive, but who knows.


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## fajedi

deChez said:


> I've used both, and I like the Siser much better. I find it much easier to weed.
> 
> I haven't tried the VideoFlex. I used the Thermoflex Xtra recently for some nylon cinch bags and it worked great BUT...
> 
> I ordered a roll, and an extra 2 feet from Specialty Grapics. The material on the roll was fine but, the cut 2 feet was crap. The 2 ft piece had a pink film that needed to be removed, but the roll didn't. So, it appeared that the roll wasn't Thermoflex x-tra.
> 
> I tried to call them but they were already closed so, I sent them an e-mail telling them that they looked like 2 distinctly different materials, and asked them if the roll was in fact what I had ordered, or did I just pay premium price for something that wasn't going to work on nylon. I was livid because I had to get these bags done the next day. I had just wasted the 2 ft piece, and I was worried that I wasn't going to have enough to do all the bags, or that the roll wasn't Thermoflex X-tra.
> 
> I finally figured out on my own that they were both Thermoflex X-tra but, the 2 ft piece was old material, and the roll was new material. So the way I figure it, I paid for their old crap that they wanted to get rid of.
> 
> To add insult to injury, Specialty Graphics NEVER RESPONDED TO MY E-MAIL. It really sucks too, because I won't order from them again, and I would like to be able to get Siser from them, and I sometimes like to get the rolls custom cut.
> 
> So I called Joto, and I'm waiting for samples of their material.
> 
> I tell you, if I treated my customers like Specialty Graphics treated me, I'd be out of business.


I had the worst experience with specialty graphics as well when I was starting out. David the owner/Manager is particularly arrogant. I buy from Coastal Business and Ryonet. Great customer support and prices from coastal business especially.


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## royster13

Both products are available at Heat Transfer Warehouse - Heat Transfer Vinyl, Cad-Cut Vinyl, Heat Transfer Materials good prices.....


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## nitewalker

I've only had good experiences with specialty graphics, even when I had a bad roll of vinyl. They took care of it right away. Just keep calling until you get ahold of someone. They'll make it right.


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## shaz1

I've used Thermoflex in the past but i'm switching over to easy weed,Thermoflex is good but its a pain with intricate designs,where as Easy Weed is good for small intricate designs,it use less pressure to cut on my plotter,less pressure,time and temperature on my press and that equals to less wear ant tear on my machines,plus its cheaper!!!!!!!!


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