# making plastisol transfer!



## capricorned (Jul 19, 2011)

Hey everyone, sorry in advance that i ask a frequently asked question;

I'm starting a at-home business and i'm aiming for the plastisol method. i realize that this thread is mostly for those who are already familiar with silk screening, and embarrassing enough for me, some steps are vague!

step 2 - "print on transparency" = the transfer sheet?
and what ink is it supposed to be printed with?! regular inkjet ink or...?

step 3 - is the "frame" the same old silk screen? i'm not following. 

i can't even begin to understand the next steps until i figure these preliminary ones out. i'd appreciate it if you could shed some light on the subject.


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## tazzringel (Apr 27, 2010)

Google some vids on YouTube. Transparency not transfer paper. Use film positives, not transparencies from an office store.
Need a printer that can lay down a thick coat of black ink..ie Epson 1400 with accurip. There is also some threads on here too. Take classes, Ryonet offers them. Good luck!


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## capricorned (Jul 19, 2011)

just did, videos relevant to this subject are pretty scarce! i now understand printing the transparency/positive film (using a printer like epson 1400 and the AccuRip software) but what about the ink? what about the "frame"?


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## tee09 (Oct 30, 2009)

Have you tried contacting the publisher of the article directly. Send him a PM.


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## tazzringel (Apr 27, 2010)

Pm me your email & I'll send ya some links


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## treadhead (Jul 26, 2006)

The frame is part of the screen that you use to print the design. The screen is made up of the mesh which is stretched over the frame which is typically wood or aluminum.

The ink used to print the film is inkjet ink but you don't need to use a rip software such as accurip unless you do halftones. I use the Epson 1400 everyday doing separations without anything but CorelDraw but I only do spot colors.

The ink used to print the design onto the heat transfer release paper is the same plastisol ink that you use for normal screenprinting. However, you burn the image onto the screen as a "mirror" image instead of "right read" normally used for direct screenprinting.

Hope that helps....


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## james444 (Jul 19, 2011)

john is professional


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## capricorned (Jul 19, 2011)

Thanks again Treadhead! i now fully understand the making of normal frames;

(frame + appropriate mesh + emulsion fluid + *mirrored* printed positive film + UV lamp => final frame, right?)

what then?! how is the frame utilized in the process of printing plastisol release i can't quite make the connection here. Thanks again for your aid


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## tazzringel (Apr 27, 2010)

Try this video
‪Plastisol Transfer 9 color‬‏ - YouTube

Go to the various Transfer companies sites, many of them have training videos.


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## treadhead (Jul 26, 2006)

capricorned said:


> Thanks again Treadhead! i now fully understand the making of normal frames;
> 
> (frame + appropriate mesh + emulsion fluid + *mirrored* printed positive film + UV lamp => final frame, right?)
> 
> what then?! how is the frame utilized in the process of printing plastisol release i can't quite make the connection here. Thanks again for your aid


Correct...typically you can buy the frames with the mesh already. You just need to decide wood or aluminum and what mesh size (screen openings).

When you are done "burning" your image onto the screen..and the initial prep / setup of the screens onto the press, you will print the image onto the release paper instead of a t-shirt or other garment with the plastisol ink that is in the screen. 

The video mentioned above is a great illustration of how this last part works....printing onto the release paper.

Once you create your transfer, you are ready to heat press it onto a garment with your heat press.


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## capricorned (Jul 19, 2011)

Thank you, i just have 2 last question 

1. i understand after coating the paper with plastisol, the ink on the paper is supposed to be mildly heated (the term is to gel the ink?), is that correct?! how is that done?!

2. glue/adhesive was mentioned, how does that work? is that a must?! is that a kind of powder-glue we use? does it have anything to do with the type of paper (cold/hot peel) which is being used?!

Plus: how hard (if at all possible) is it to make this sort of transfer?


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## treadhead (Jul 26, 2006)

capricorned said:


> Thank you, i just have 2 last question
> 
> 1. i understand after coating the paper with plastisol, the ink on the paper is supposed to be mildly heated (the term is to gel the ink?), is that correct?! how is that done?!
> 
> ...


After you print your image onto the transfer paper, you then "gel" it or "semi-cure". This is usually done with a flash dryer or conveyor dryer but can also be done with a heat press or various other less convenient methods. The idea is to get the ink to a point where you can handle it without smearing but it is not completely cured. The final curing of the ink will happen when you heat press it onto the garment. I use a flash dryer for about 10 to 12 seconds to "gel" mine.

I don't like the adhesive powder (glue) because it is messy. But it is supposed to help the design stick to materials such as Nylon that is more difficult to apply to. Also, it does help with adhesion to cotton as well especially if you happen to over-cure the designs. Overcured ink does not stick to the garment as well. However, I've heard (and experienced) where the adhesive causes the designs to crack after a short period of time. Perhaps when heated the adhesive becomes brittle and doesn't stretch like the ink normally does when cured.

Some people will use a clear-coat as the last "color" to put on top of all the other colors. This helps with the adhesion of the transfer to the garment especially where the ink may have been overcured. Downside is that it is basically an extra color. If your design has a white underbase then that does the same thing or you can use one of your existing colors as the final top color to cover all of the other colors. The theory is that even fully cured ink will stick to other ink during the heat press phase so even if you over cure your other inks, the final coat will stick to the garment fine as long as it was not over / fully cured.

I've just started getting into printing my own and they are a bit more challenging. Not rocket science but they do take more effort to learn but once you get through the learning curve and get things "dialed in" then the can provide huge advantages in various situations.

That design you mentioned is defintely doable using plastisol transfers. You can do it yourself or buy them custom from a supplier of plastisol transfers.


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## capricorned (Jul 19, 2011)

Thanks a lot treadhead


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## treadhead (Jul 26, 2006)

capricorned said:


> Thanks a lot treadhead


No problem....hope I was able to help!


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## InkedApparel (Mar 18, 2009)

I have a question about this whole process....I do screen printing ..never tried plastisol transfers as of yet.....

if someone is going to print there own transfers , they must already have the screen printing press , screens and all that goes with screen printing...why not just print the t-shirt and skip the transfer part?

just curious.

Inked


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## Upful Creations (Aug 7, 2011)

InkedApparel said:


> I have a question about this whole process....I do screen printing ..never tried plastisol transfers as of yet.....
> 
> if someone is going to print there own transfers , they must already have the screen printing press , screens and all that goes with screen printing...why not just print the t-shirt and skip the transfer part?
> 
> ...





Correct me if im wrong guys, but alot of people like transfers for a couple of reasons. If you go to a fair or a show you can have images that people can pick out and they can decide prior to the printing what color and size they would like. Alot of other people do transfers for customers that only have heat presses and not the actual screen press or what not. as well people find it more affordable just getting the transfers. but I honestly would rather print the shirt directly than transfer it and then heat press it. IN my opinion the tooth that is given when heat pressed it more rigid.


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## wormil (Jan 7, 2008)

InkedApparel said:


> if someone is going to print there own transfers , they must already have the screen printing press , screens and all that goes with screen printing...why not just print the t-shirt and skip the transfer part?
> 
> just curious.
> 
> Inked


Print now and press later and/or keep some in reserve in case the customer needs more later and/or it's easier to press on garments with linings but this has been discussed dozens of times at least, a quick search should bring up threads with quite a few posts on the advantages and disadvantages.


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