# Photo Trans ImageClip paper?



## visualnewbie (Jun 19, 2006)

What is your opinion on the Photo Trans Imageclip transfer paper as well as your experience with the paper. I'm thinking of going this route, but I'm new to this and your thoughts would be of great help. Thanks.


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## badalou (Mar 19, 2006)

You talking about just transfer paper that you can put a picture on? Like we all use? I use Iron All on lights and jet dark now for darks.


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## jdr8271 (Jun 16, 2005)

Photo trans image clip is a special paper that can only be used with color laser printers. It is a self weeding paper, so that it supposedly looks like screen printing. No waxy stuff is transfered onto the shirt...just ink. 

I have never used it, so I cant comment. I have heard that its not worth the extra money though.


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## visualnewbie (Jun 19, 2006)

badalou: Yes...bascially the transfer paper that everyone else uses. It's the self-weeding paper like jdr8271 stated.

Basically, I'm interested in the ImageClip paper because of the self-weeding(no window) attributes. Are there any other transfer paper that does the same thing without the window and can run through a laser printer? I'd like to use something close to plastisol screen transfers but going the laser route if possible. 

I want to know if ImageClip paper is worth it to those who use it because it is a bit more expensive. 

Thanks.


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## PlayHard (Sep 21, 2006)

I've been using ImageClip for about 8 months now. The no weeding aspect is great and has saved me a lot of pain from long sessions with the X-acto knife. The extra expense of the paper (I'm paying $.69 a for A-size sheets) is worth it. The color fastness is great. My first test involved soaking a newly pressed shirt in a sink full of hot water. I haven't had a bleed yet. 

The hand is very similar to traditional inkjet transfer but of course you don't have polymer in the white areas. 

On the downside, I have had zero success in getting it print light gray tones and any gradients that fade to white. Tonight I found out that it also won't handle light pink. Yesterday, I had to switch back to inkjet to finish a job because of the troubles with gray. 

It also seems to have trouble with large areas of black. I have yet to achieve a true deep black tone like I can with ink-jet. I compared my black to an Imageclip sample I got from a tradeshow, and mine didn't come close. I believe this is a printer/toner specific problem and not the due to the paper. I printing on a OKI C3200 which was one of the printers recommended by the supplier. I think I'll take some sheets down to Staples and try it out with some different printers to see if I have better success with a different printer. 

Not having to weed and worry too much about bleeds would be well worth finding the right laser printer.

I really hope that Neenah continues development of this line and gives us a better product. I'm hoping for a dark print version.


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## Twinge (Apr 26, 2005)

You won't have to worry about ink bleeding with inkjet if you're using pigmented inks, though you will still have to trim the image, of course.


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## MotoskinGraphix (Apr 28, 2006)

I would love someone to explain self weeding/no weeding digital papers. Can you post some step by step photos of how it works. This is a big deal for anyone doing digital printing at home. Is it a breakthrough? Is it a fad?


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## T-BOT (Jul 24, 2006)

MotoskinGraphix said:


> I would love someone to explain self weeding/no weeding digital papers. Can you post some step by step photos of how it works. This is a big deal for anyone doing digital printing at home. Is it a breakthrough? Is it a fad?


hi David, du-no about photo-trans (mind you they have been around since the begining), but there is another company down the street that tells me that they too have developed a transfer paper media where NO trimming is required around the design. This would be for CLC machines but the real break thru is that you will also be able to use OFF the shelf type Lazer Printers. 

They are sending us out samples friday (tomorrow), so early next week when i get them I will test it thru our Xerox CLC and will even go out and buy a color Lazer printer just for this testing. 

We have known this fellow for a while and he too has been around since the begining and we have faith.....so its worth buying a Color Lazer printer ( i need one anyways ).

We'll see how it turns out.


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## MotoskinGraphix (Apr 28, 2006)

Thanks Lucy...but ya know me, plastisol transfers for life. I just would love to see a self weeding digital paper. I thinks its an interesting breakthrough if its what they describe. Love to actually see it in action.


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## PlayHard (Sep 21, 2006)

Twinge said:


> You won't have to worry about ink bleeding with inkjet if you're using pigmented inks, though you will still have to trim the image, of course.


Hey Twinge help me out... I have 4 injet printers, an Epson 1280, a Epson Photo R320 (my favorite), a Epson C66, and some HP which I don't use anymore. 

I bought the cheapo C66 to try out the Durabrite inks which are pigmented (correct me if I'm wrong). However, I have gotten a bleed from the black ink. The colors also seem to color-shift unpredictably when heat his applied. 

I thought perhaps that only the color cartridges were pigmented but according to Epson's website, the black is also a Durabrite ink. 

What printer/ink combination are you using?


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## PlayHard (Sep 21, 2006)

Imagetrans comes as two sheets of paper. One with red text on the back and one with green text on the back.

Basically, you print a mirror image on the paper with the red type using CLC or CLP with the saturation kicked up, and media set to "heavy." 

Lay the print on your heat press and cover it with a the transfer sheet (green text) containing a layer of polymer. Press 20 seconds at 225 deg-F. 

Peel the top sheet (green) off hot and set the original print (red) aside. 

Heat up to 375 degrees and press the original print (red) to your garment. No X-acto knife needed. 

I think it's a break-through, not a fad. It just needs more development. I opened a new pack of paper last night and noticed they've changed the paper with the polymer. It seems like the polymer is thicker and the release paper itself is different. 

Neenah is the manufacturer. If you go to their website under Products>>Technical>>Heat Transfer>>Photo-Trans Imageclip, there are pictures, instructions, and an article from Printwear.


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## Twinge (Apr 26, 2005)

PlayHard said:


> I bought the cheapo C66 to try out the Durabrite inks which are pigmented (correct me if I'm wrong). However, I have gotten a bleed from the black ink. The colors also seem to color-shift unpredictably when heat his applied.


I don't know why you are getting any ink bleeding; I've never really heard of pigmented inks bleeding after being applies to a shirt. The color shift is common with Durabrite though, and generally easily fixable:

You will need to adjust your color profile settings when printing. Go into the advanced section and try setting yellow to -15, cyan to +5, and magenta to +5. This should probably solve it, though you might try tweaking these settings for best effect.


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## PlayHard (Sep 21, 2006)

Thanks Twinge, I'll try that for the color and give the Durabrite another try.


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## elviejo (Sep 13, 2006)

PlayHard said:


> Heat up to 375 degrees and press the original print (red) to your garment. No X-acto knife needed.
> 
> I think it's a break-through, not a fad. It just needs more development. I opened a new pack of paper last night and noticed they've changed the paper with the polymer. It seems like the polymer is thicker and the release paper itself is different.


I have just tried a couple of transfers and have experienced some peeling problems. I am using a Geo. Knight 16x20 Swinger at 225 degrees for 20 seconds for the red to green transfer and then 375 degrees onto the T. I start peeling after about 5 seconds and abuot half the time get some of the transfer staying on the paper - ie, not pn the sheet.

Any ideas?

Charlie


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## PlayHard (Sep 21, 2006)

Is the part of the transfer staying on the paper specific to some colors or does it seem to affect the design in general? I've seen that with very light colors, light grays and gradients fading to white. 

Are you getting a good transfer of polymer from the green sheet? Usually you won't see any polymer left on the green sheet in the image areas. You also shouldn't have any polymer on the white areas of the red sheet.

I think that the with the light colors and grays, there's not enough toner on the red sheet to "grab" the polymer from the green sheet and therefore those areas won't transfer well to the garment. 

Check your print settings. I set the paper weight in print options to heavy and max out the saturation. 

If it is affecting the whole transfer it, you might also check the accuracy of your temperature settings. 

Good luck. I'm hoping this new(reformulated) no-weed Duracotton paper will solve these problems (fingers crossed).


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## elviejo (Sep 13, 2006)

PlayHard said:


> you might also check the accuracy of your temperature settings.
> 
> Good luck. I'm hoping this new(reformulated) no-weed Duracotton paper will solve these problems (fingers crossed).


Had not thought about the polymer issue. Would a slightly higher heat (240-250 vs 225 or slightly longer time 30" vs. 20" help ....or hurt?

What is Duracotton? Is this a CLP transfer?


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## PlayHard (Sep 21, 2006)

According to Neenah the transfer temperature needs to be right on 225. I don't think changing the time would help either. You might measure the temperature of your press when it's set to 225 and see if it is accurate. 

Duracotton is for CLP/CLC.


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## elviejo (Sep 13, 2006)

Who makes / sells DuraCotton?


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## GloverEggs (Oct 19, 2006)

I have some of this Image Clip paper. I am just now trying it out. I was able to get the images to transfer the polymer just fine (though I had the same problem with a nice even gray not transfering until I darkened it). However, after I washed the T-shirt, the image cracked very badly. I had washed the t-shirts before applying the transfer to make sure that they had shrunk. My image has large colored areas, so the cracking is very noticable and not good.

What do I do to fix this?

Thanks.


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## bugleboy88 (Oct 7, 2006)

Hi Playhard
Appreciate your comments and am awaiting your test,I just picked up a konika minolta magicolor 2300dl CP and am trying to find transfers that will work on it,Hoping the image clip will but one Dist. I called had no Idea,and boo-z had me on hold so long i gave that up..and called my screen supply and have them researching it?? Confused bugleboy in NY


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## periscope (Sep 14, 2006)

elviejo said:


> Who makes / sells DuraCotton?


Duracotton 98 is made by AutoART. Their address is www.autoart.ca. You can find all you need to know on this website. I am a distributor for this new transfer paper.


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## periscope (Sep 14, 2006)

elviejo said:


> Had not thought about the polymer issue. Would a slightly higher heat (240-250 vs 225 or slightly longer time 30" vs. 20" help ....or hurt?
> 
> What is Duracotton? Is this a CLP transfer?


I use a temp setting of 400 degrees F for 14 sec on high pressure using a pneumatic press. If you go to www.autoart.ca you will find all kinds of information/tips on using Duracotton 98.


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## DyeRex06 (Dec 4, 2006)

elviejo said:


> Who makes / sells DuraCotton?


DuraCotton 98 is available through AutoArt. You should consult their site to determine who your regional reseller is. You will find that re-sellers are assigned by country and locality therein.

Also, My name is Paul, I am a US reseller of DuraCotton 98. As such, my purpose in this forum is ONLY to answer technical support questions and to add to the usefulness of the product by revealing in-house test results on variuos substrates including fabrics. 

I have personally attempted wood, ceramic, metal, platic, canvas, twill, 100% cotton & 50/50.

I'll try to monitor any questions about DuraCotton 98 that I can answer and do so.

Thanks for welcoming me into your group

Paul.


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## Rodney (Nov 3, 2004)

Hi Paul, welcome to the T-Shirt Forums!


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## T-BOT (Jul 24, 2006)

DyeRex06 said:


> I'll try to monitor any questions about DuraCotton 98 that I can answer and do so.
> Paul.


hi Paul, can you have a look at my post here : http://www.t-shirtforums.com/showthread.php?t=6315&page=7 

from what i know the results are very good but i dont understand why Ken believes there is something wrong with my product test.


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## elviejo (Sep 13, 2006)

DyeRex06 said:


> DuraCotton 98 is available through AutoArt. You should consult their site to determine who your regional reseller is. You will find that re-sellers are assigned by country and locality therein.
> 
> Also, My name is Paul, I am a US reseller of DuraCotton 98. As such, my purpose in this forum is ONLY to answer technical support questions and to add to the usefulness of the product by revealing in-house test results on variuos substrates including fabrics.
> 
> ...


What can you tell me about Transfer Dark as well as 98 on medium shades of cotton like yellow, light green, etc.?


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## DyeRex06 (Dec 4, 2006)

*Re: Transfer Dark / Light Colors Using DuraCotton 98*

As for Transfer Dark, well.. that's the golden cow. Everybody's working on something. AutoArt is also very close to something I believe, but I don't know the exact timetable or anything as to what IT is.

As for light colors using 98, Ash is perfect. Yellow, Light Blue, Light Pink, and others have not performed to our expectations. If you have a graphic you can easily cut, ie; squares & such, no problem, looks really great.
Although the border on light colors is only marginally visable and only in certain lighting, alas, I am a perfectionist. Problem is, I look for it, sometimes too hard, and of course I see it.

I really think that a great deal of the end customers, ie;your customers, may not care, or may not see what I am seeing.

As far as I know, there may already be solutions in progress to improve on the borderless feature. I believe this because it is logial to assume that the "clear" effect is a must in order to procede to TransferDark.

I'm doing a rectangular graphic for a memorial shirt for my doggie, (aged 12.75 years), and it looks really great on light blue.

My recommendation is this, try it, see what you think. You may not be so hypersensitive to the whole thing as am I.

Regards,
Paul


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## TaylorTees (Nov 8, 2006)

MotoskinGraphix said:


> Thanks Lucy...but ya know me, plastisol transfers for life. I just would love to see a self weeding digital paper. I thinks its an interesting breakthrough if its what they describe. Love to actually see it in action.


\


Is the paper you guys are talking about.. "no weeding"... similar to what the Dura Cotton98 would be?? I requested samples of that and have not received them yet, but will post pics once I get a chance to check them out.
From reading the posts on the Dura Cotton98 and the pics that are there so far.. It seems this would be similar to what you are talking about.. "Not leaving white around the edges"... etc... 

Just a thought if you havent had a chance to read the thread on that paper.. 

Ambrelee
Taylor Tees


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## Tripledose (Aug 18, 2006)

I just wanted to say that I have used the image clip paper for over a year now and I absolutely LOVE it. I have never had a problem with it. I use an oki C5200 and it prints my greys and pinks and any color for that matter just great.. I have never had a color that didnt produce with the image clip. I did have to figure out the correct settings to use when I first started using it. I had an awful time but once I figured it out it has been a godsend. I have shirts that are over a year old now and after normal washing they still look like brand new. I set the printer on "label" paper mode and it works perfect every time and with all colors..

Good luck on finding a paper that works great for you and one that you can be proud of!


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## Lnfortun (Feb 18, 2006)

MotoskinGraphix said:


> I would love someone to explain self weeding/no weeding digital papers. Can you post some step by step photos of how it works. This is a big deal for anyone doing digital printing at home. Is it a breakthrough? Is it a fad?


Check some of the posts in thread below. I explained to the best of my knowldge how Imageclip works based on my experience using it. I have attached in one of my posts an scanned image of a shirt I printed with full color. It has a lot of gradient and variaying color. The black is as dark as can be expected.









PhotoTrans ImageClip - only option that won't leave polymer window? 

I also printed an order of beefy-t golden nugget and grey colored shirts with bold lettering of black toner and it came out as black as what was on the transfer paper it was pressed. The same thing with red bold lettering it came out great. Ok, there is a liitle bit of shirt color showing through. Just like any polymer coated transfer paper. One thing though the print seems more opaque than other transfers. There is no hand in un-printed area. It looked and felt like it was screenprinted. It is a bit tricky to use but once the right setting is figured out for your equipment this product is as good or better than what is out there.

I use C5200 CLP and Hotronix swinger heat press.

Not trying to push Imageclip. I am just a happy end user that wants to share my experience with this transfer product.

Luis


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## Lnfortun (Feb 18, 2006)

TaylorTees said:


> \
> 
> 
> Is the paper you guys are talking about.. "no weeding"... similar to what the Dura Cotton98 would be?? I requested samples of that and have not received them yet, but will post pics once I get a chance to check them out.
> ...


No it is a two step transfer paper product. The imaging paper does not jam since there is no polymer coating. I have printed on it in heavy/cardstock (Very hot) and transfarency media weight settings with no jamming problem. Some user prefer label settings with great result. The imaging paper has a special coating that accepts toner and polymer from the second paper but the polymer transfers only in the printed area. Although some polymer specks are transfered in un-printed area, it does not affect the printed image and open area when pressed on the garment.

You can get sample to try out from Coastal Business assuming you have a laser printer. Coastal Business has the lowest price BTW. If you are interested there is a link in this forum under sponsor section. Price wise it is cheaper than some of the single step transfer paper. I am not advertising for them. Just a happy end user and like to share the best source I found.

Check some of the posts in this thread: 







PhotoTrans ImageClip - only option that won't leave polymer window? 

Hope this helps.

Luis


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## Lnfortun (Feb 18, 2006)

GloverEggs said:


> I have some of this Image Clip paper. I am just now trying it out. I was able to get the images to transfer the polymer just fine (though I had the same problem with a nice even gray not transfering until I darkened it). However, after I washed the T-shirt, the image cracked very badly. I had washed the t-shirts before applying the transfer to make sure that they had shrunk. My image has large colored areas, so the cracking is very noticable and not good.
> 
> What do I do to fix this?
> 
> Thanks.


Try pressing with very heavy pressure and increase the dwell time. This helps dirve the polymer/toner in to the fabric to improve washability. Increased dwell time helps make the polymer/toner flow in between cracks (area between knit). Make sure you use a teflon cover sheet though to avoid scorching. That is what I have to do especially on sweashirts. Some folks consider cracking is actually the unprinted area between the knit that has not been penetrated by the polymer/toner. Some course knit sweatshirts are notorious when it comes to this phenomenon.

I have a hotronix press with digital guage display and I cranked the pressure up way beyond what the display can show and more. I am talking about veryyy heavyyyyy!!!! A good air pressure heat press would be ideal for this application.

I thought about stretching the shirt when pressing, without distorting the shirt, just enough so that the area between the knit is exposed to the polymer/toner. I have not tried it. Just a thought. Someday I will when I find a way to stretch the shirt without distorting it.

I do see some cracking when the shirt is stretched but normally you do not stretch the shirt when it is worn. Unless it is a muscle shirt or one of those stretchable (rib) shirts women wear.

Hope this helps.

Luis


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## cyber_cruiser (Sep 25, 2006)

Can i use the imageclip paper for inkjet printer ?


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## Rodney (Nov 3, 2004)

cyber_cruiser said:


> Can i use the imageclip paper for inkjet printer ?


I think imageclip is for laser printers only.

You might want to try ironall for inkjet printers.


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## Lnfortun (Feb 18, 2006)

cyber_cruiser said:


> Can i use the imageclip paper for inkjet printer ?


Imageclip is for color laser printer or color laser copier use. BTW I am not trying to knock down Duracotton but it looks like there is a problem using it in light color garment. I just read a post that the individual has experienced a polymer patch showed up on a tan colored shirt after it has been washed. The polymer did not show up before wash. I think Duracotton is a good product but for white only?

Imageclip on the other hand is almost absolutely self weeding. What I meant by that is a small (specks) of the polymer from part "B" gets transfered to un-printed area in part "A". But the small amount of polymer in the un-printed area does not in any way affect the shirt. I have used it in ash, golden nugget and natural colored shirts with no issues.

Imageclip is comparable in vibrancy with Duractton as shown below even though they are prssed on different color shirts:








 
Photo of Duracotton HT Transfer pressed on a white 100% cotton tshirt.
The thirt is un-washed.​ 






 
Photo of Imageclip pressed on 50/50 natural colored tshirt. Tshirt has been wahed six times.​ 
Luis


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## marcuskay (May 2, 2007)

Dear all

I are using Imagclip paper and I love it. Just wonder if anyone can share some advice for my problem of printing light color with it.

The problem is about printing light color, especially on pink, that the polymer does not stick even enough to colored paper after the first press, resulting in some uncolored spots in the final tshirt.

My settings
Xerox C360: heavy paper settng
Professional air press: *210F, 20s, 0.4MPa*

On the other hand, I found that if I peel off the green sheet with a slight delay of, say 10 seconds, the polymer will stay more evenly on the pink! However, in this case, the polymer also stays on the transparent area, which defeated its original purpose. 

I did a lot of testing (more than 100 tries, seriously) and couldn't make it. Very frustrated, because it does work great in other brigher colors.

Any advice will be highly appreciated.

-mk


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## Lnfortun (Feb 18, 2006)

marcuskay said:


> Dear all
> 
> I are using Imagclip paper and I love it. Just wonder if anyone can share some advice for my problem of printing light color with it.
> 
> ...


Hi Marcus,

The problem you are having is due to the papers cool down way too fast that the polymer transfered to the red paper is inconsistent. Not sure if you have seen this post http://www.t-shirtforums.com/p160268-post7.html. This procedure helps improve polymer transfer to light color toner and minimize polymer transfered on transparent area. Some members had tried it with very good result.


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## gtchamp (Sep 28, 2007)

Just some observations I have made over the past week using Image Clip paper...

First lt me say this forum is great - I read a whole lot about Laser transfers and different printers and papers before deciding on a Oki 8800 and Image Clip - thanks to all for the informative posts - it helped me out considerably since I am new to the whoel heat transfer world - lots of experience with embroidery, digital graphics and vinyl graphics - zip with heat transfer - so this forum helped alot.

Now maybe some of my first hand experiences will help some others....

FIRST - through experiementing with the Image Clip on my Hotronix STX 16X20 - I found the following: (in no particular order) - 
1. Increasing HEAT and DURATION does help with the "making" the transfer - bonding the emulsion from the green sheet to the red sheet. You will have to play with it a little based on the density and size of color area - but on 11 X17 transfers - very colorful (about 70% page coverage) - I went from the stated 220 degrees for 20 seconds up to 228 degrees for 25 to 26 seconds and I got great ploymer coverage - even on drop shadows and fades at a pressure ranging from a 3 to 4.
2. Increasing press PRESSURE - does not help with polymer transfer - it actually causes more polymer to stick in non-printed areas - though this will wash out after first washing - it is better to not have the excess in areas with no print (or toner) - so higher heat and longer duration can help - but increasing pressure is the wrong move.
3. Image Clip does work well with shadows / fades and gradiants - but the secret I found to really making these effects 'pop" is putting a thin white strokes around the letter or image that you are going to add a gradiant or drop shadow type efect to - that allows for a fine line of "breaking" the emulsion transmission and the end result is a real crip and distinctive shadow or graidiant that really stand out off the shirt.
4. Same with printing light colors within your design - put a stroke of white or a white thin outline around it - and since white doesn't print - it leaves the shirt coming through in that thin space and makes for a lot better "pop" of lighter shades on pastel or white shirts.
5. I also found pressing really heavy (9 +) - at 400 degrees for 18 to 20 seconds - works best for color transfer and always remember to peel hot.
6. Using the "silicon cookie sheet" as described by LnFortun really works if you are having a transfer problem as well as it appears the silicon conducts a more even heat (especially in larger 11X17 transfers) and assures even pressure across the image - providing for a more even transfer of emulsion from the green sheet.
And finally - when aligning these 11X17 transfers with image and type - getting them really placed right both visually and squared up on a hot press (while trying to maintain some type of a production pace) I am using my Hoop Master shirt board (that I use in embroidery hooping) - I do an intial press of the shirt for a few seconds to iron out wrinkles - ensure straight seams (for better alignment of the design) - and to iron out any moisture in teh shirt - then I take it off the press - slide it onto the shirt board which gives me the perfect layout space for aligning the transfer - a few small pieces of heat tape to hold it - slide it off the shirt board and right to the heat press - 18 to 20 seconds at 400 degrees and viola' a nice straight design each and every time. For placing logos on sleeves - I use Lou's pads - they are great - Thanks Lou.


I hope this helps the ones using or considering using Image Clip - the more shirts I do - the more I learn and the better the final product - in just a few weeks I have just delivered my 200th shirt and all of my customers are blown away with their shirts - so I am glad I decided to go this route.


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## splathead (Dec 4, 2005)

Thanks Gtchamp. Can you post pictures?

What do you use for darks?


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## gtchamp (Sep 28, 2007)

I will post some pictures tomorrow of some of the shirts I have done - I am only printing on white / grey / and light solid colors - like blue and yellow - all 100% cotton shirts.


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