Hi there, I've been printing with Plastisol Inks for a while now, but have decided to switch to WB inks, as it's supposedly better for the environment!
I was hoping that someone would give me a few pointers to printing with WB inks. I am using standard WB inks from Union Inks and need help with the following points:
Thread count: What size screen mesh is best suited for wb inks?
How to print onto dark garments? with plastisol, we just used a white base, but it doesn't seem to be as easy with wb inks. Also, we don't want to use a discharge ink as it contains formaldehyde.
Curing times / methods: have heard a few different ideas, such as 3 minutes under a dryer, or 1 minute in a heat press. does anyone know the best way including times and temperatures?
Any help would be greatly appreciated or if anyone knows any websites that would help.
Cheers all.
Waterbased Ink - Printing Help
Moderator: Moderator Team
I only print with waterbased inks and this is how I do it.
- screen = P55 (mind you that this is a european measure, so this means 55threads/cm not inch!)
- print your white
- a quick dry for 15 seconds
- print your white again to obtain a bright white on dark t-shirts
- flashcure for 30 seconds (depending on your type of flashcure) or dry it in your tunnel
- screen = P55 (mind you that this is a european measure, so this means 55threads/cm not inch!)
- print your white
- a quick dry for 15 seconds
- print your white again to obtain a bright white on dark t-shirts
- flashcure for 30 seconds (depending on your type of flashcure) or dry it in your tunnel
A 43T is perfect for big spots without too much detail or to use as a ground-layer. Actually you can't go wrong with a 43T, but I'm used to working with a 55 because i often print a rasterized image on textile.
You can perfectly print a red on the white, but maybe it's better to:
- print white, quick dry, print red, dry
or
- print red, quick dry, print red, dry
It's more a trial and error thing. Just do some tests and you'll see what gives you the best result.
good luck!
You can perfectly print a red on the white, but maybe it's better to:
- print white, quick dry, print red, dry
or
- print red, quick dry, print red, dry
It's more a trial and error thing. Just do some tests and you'll see what gives you the best result.
good luck!