It allows you to have more time to mess around with belt speed and temperature, so can fine tune your curing process. Conveyor dryers like the Riley Cure are mainly used for plastisol, but it can work for water-based ink if using Warp Drive. Think of curing like baking a cake. After the timer dings and you pull the cake out of the oven, it may look perfectly baked. Once you stick a toothpick in the middle of the cake, pull it out, and see that it's still gooey, you then know it needs to be baked for longer.
Same idea applies to testing cured ink. It may look cured, but you won't know for sure until you test. A printer can perform two tests on a garment to double check that the ink has fully cured.
The first test is the stretch test. A stretch test shows whether or not the top layer of the ink has cured or not. After curing the garment, pull on the ink. Stretch the biggest area of ink to see if it cracks. Cracking ink means it wasn't completely cured.
There is a difference between cracked ink and ink film split. Ink film split happens when the ink layer is stretched further than its capabilities.
How do you tell the difference between cracking and film split? Ink cracking will be uniform and all over the print. Film split will be scattered and there won't be a ton of it.
Performing a stretch test will just give you a brief idea of whether or not some curing has occurred. It's not an accurate way to see if the ink has cured to the bottom layer.
Therefore, you need to perform a second test. The absolute best way to confirm cured ink is with a wash test. Throw the printed shirt in the wash. Wash and dry in the most harsh conditions. Wash it normally. Put it through all the different scenarios people may do when they wash the shirt.
Perform the wash test for at least three wash-dry cycles. Don't be gentle, don't be careful. How the ink responds to the wash test will tell you everything you need to know.
If the ink cracks or parts fall off, it wasn't properly cured. If it looks just as good as when it came off the press, you're good to go. Before you print someone's order, always test. Print on a few garments and dial in details before printing the final product. Testing may seem tedious, but it'll save you a time, money, and headaches down the road. A laser temperature gun is a common way to read temperature. All you gotta do is point the laser at the middle of the print to see the ink's temperature.
Just because everyone uses it doesn't mean it's the best method. Have you heard of a donut probe before? A donut probe is a small, circular device with two wires that run perpendicularly. Where the wires meet is where it reads the temperature. The biggest difference between a temp gun and a donut probe is that a temp gun picks up a reflective heat reading whereas the donut probe reads the temperature at the point of contact.
As you reach the end of the dryer, those temperatures will get closer together. No matter what device you're using to cure, the goal is to completely cure the ink, from the top all the way to the bottom.
Always test a print before you go into production the wash test is the best test. If you're running into issues, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. We're here to help. Create your account Lost password?
First name. Last name. Company Name. Classes Online Classes My Courses. You won't be curing discharge ink with a heat gun. Keep reading to find out when you can. A heat press is a no-can-do for discharge ink. Keep going. Do not forget to TEST. Perform a wash test before going into production. Previous article Next article. How to Print T-Shirts Apr 10, Sep 29, Looking For A Tax Break?
Since there is a vertical seam that runs through the center of the screen, I am concerned that this will not allow the printing to be even.
Do you have suggestions on how to print these. I have both the B5 and the B6. If there is a seam, your print will be affected - unless you make two screens and align them at the seam up using a jig. This is not too difficult but if will involve creating two screens and then having to use a jig or Jig hinges.
If the design does not go across the seam then the print should not be affected. The screen printing method will give you a bit more flexibility around and over the seam area. All screen printing is the same - only one colour per screen unless you place multiple colours on the same squeegee as you print to get a rainbow effect. This is due to the structure of the ink used - they bleed together so colours begin to mix when you print. To keep the colours separate a different screen is normally used for each colour.
However, depending upon your design you can sometimes use the same screen for printing multiple colours. YES you can print off the computer and use the design, provided that the artwork is carbon based. With standard water based fabric screen printing ink the average is about 20 minutes to touch dry, but as with ALL screen printing inks you MUST heat set the print to make it permanent.
Related links. Product links. Video link. Technical support. Contact Us. Print this page. A good question but not a straight forward answer, as numerous factors effect the speed:. We will assume it's a standard t-shirt. Garments with folds, ribs, long sleeves, etc with parts that you need to move may take a few extra seconds to lay onto the board of the jig.
Size of design and screen has little to no effect on time which using a jig. It is available in 10 colors: black pearl, gold, raspberry, blue topaz, pearly white, emerald, citrine, amethyst, silver, and sherbet. All screen printing, both fabric and opaque fabric, is suitable for beginners to expert screen printers.
Moreover, they are easy to wash with little soap and water. Like regular water-based inks, Speedball is suitable for printing on cotton, polyester, rayon, and other synthetic fibers, excluding nylon. Also, it works great on paper and cardboard. It easily combines with Speedball Diazo and Bichromate photo emulsions, screen filler and stencils, to produce a vivid, matte finish and permanent prints.
The ink is wash-fast on the fabric when heat-set properly. It easily cures at room temperature or with the use of a dryer. Moreover, you can mix and create your custom colors from a broad range of premixed colors. You can print them onto light-colored fabrics, white or dark garments. Being a beginner or an expert, you need a reliable source of screen printing supplies, and Speedball is one of them. Other than inks, Speedball is a reputed screen printing supplier of all size and durometer squeegees, screens, modifiers, emulsions, stencils, media paper, fabrics , frame base, hinge clamps, and other additional helping tools like brush, masking tape, rubber gloves, sponges, aprons and more.
Any other inks will not remain permanent against normal wear and tear. Your email address will not be published.
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