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Printing :basic info

Inks + Printing

Plastisol vs. Water-based ink for textile Printing

There are two main types of ink that are used for text i le pr int ing.

1- Water-based Inks : softer feel (c loser to texti les rather than regular tshirts)

Water-based ink ut i l izes either dyes or pigments in a suspension with water as the solvent. Water-based inks are a good choice when a �soft hand� is desirable. A soft hand is the condit ion where the ink f i lm cannot easi ly be felt with the hand when passed across the surface of the fabr ic. This affect is often used as an argument for why water-based is preferable to plast isol as plas-t isol has more of a hand than water-based. Disadvantages of Water-based Ink Water-based ink is much more di ff icult to cure than plast isol . A shop that is interested in pr int ing water-based ink must have the drying capacity to remove the water. The dryers used for water-based pr int ing tend to be larger than those needed for plast isol . In plast isol pr int ing, the ink f i lm must only reach the cure temperature for a br ief moment. With water-based ink, the temperature must be reached and then held unt i l a l l of the solvent (water) is removed. There are water-based inks that wi l l a i r dry but they are usual ly only acceptable for craft level pr int ing as the room required for cur ing great ly reduces product iv i ty.

2- Plastisol ink : heavier (thicker / plastic ) feel

Plast isol is referred to as a 100% sol id ink system. Plast isol is a thermoplast ic ink in that i t is necessary to heat the pr inted ink f i lm to a tempera-ture high enough to cause the molecules of PVC resin and plast ic izer to cross- l ink and thereby sol idi fy, or cure. The temperature at which most plast isol for text i le pr int ing cures at is in the range of 300 °F to 330°F

Advantages of Plast isolPlast isol comes in strengths f rom transparent to very opaque and most pr inters wi l l have the var ious vers ions avai lable to use, depending upon the type and color of fabr ic they are pr int ing on. The var ious opacit ies of ink also vary great ly in pr ice with the most opaque being the most ex-pensive, mainly due to the cost of the increased pigment.

Plast isol Disadvantages Since Plast isol is a thermoplast ic , i t wi l l remelt i f i t comes in contact with anything hot enough. For that reason, plast isol pr ints cannot be i roned. I f an i ron touches a pr int , i t wi l l smear the ink. Plast isol ink also creates an ink f i lm that can be felt with the hand. The higher the opacity of the ink, the greater the hand. This heavy hand is considered a disadvantage at the consumer level . One of the most important pract ices when using plast isol ink is to keep the ink c lean.

Both types of ink are very popular. However, for the most part , they are used in very di fferent appl icat ions. Plast isol is typical ly the ink of choice for pr int-ing of f in ished goods such as T-shirts , sweatshirts , jackets, and tote bags. Water-based ink is the ink of choice for the pr int ing of yard goods; either in piece form or on the rol l . That certainly doesn’t mean we have to st ick to that usage sty le though. The softer water-based ink might just be the way to go for most of the Happy biker l ine.

Usage Plastisol Water-baseT-Shirts/ l ight colors Excel lent Excel lent

T-Shirts/dark colored Good PoorNylon Jackets Good Poor

Towels Poor Excel lentYard goods Poor Excel lent

Sport ing Goods Excel lent Poor

Screen Pr inter MATTEO STuDIOS www.matteostudios.com 408 - 885 -1231

Screen Pr inter EMINENCE FrONTS www.efgshirts .com 408 - 295 -9385

Screen Pr inter APE DO GOOD www.apedogood.com 415 - 826 - 0277

Screen Pr inter BABYlON BurNING www.babylontee.com 415 - 777 - 8244

Apparel Distr ibutor GOlDEN STATE www.gsact ivewear.com 800 - 892 - 8337

Apparel Distr ibutor BODEk + rHODES www.bodekandrhodes.com 800 - 382 - 8337

Quick Links

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scrEEnPrintErsI ’m including quest ions for each locat ion, but real ly you just need to look for a few specif ic things when meeting with any of the pr inters.

1- look at samples of one color pr ints on a var iety of shirt colors- with every ink option avai lable- water based and al l the di fferent forms of plast isol . So you might ask to see samples of : A black shirt with white plast isol ink A black shirt with white waterbased ink A l ight shirt with dark plast isol ink Al ight shirt with dark waterbased ink.

2- Ask about the di fferent ink treatments: one pr inters uses something cal led CHINO for a softer plast isol pr int .

3- Ask about f in ishing techniques- look at how they remove tags and f in ish the col lar, then pr int the tag info inside.

4- Ask about how they handle samples and how long i t takes to do the pr int run after samples are approved.

5- Ask about any shirt recommendations / show them samples of the shirts you want to pr int on to make sure they wi l l work for screen pr int ing.

6- Ask about what happens in the event of damaged shirt or mispr inted shirts : do they replace your inventory?

Production Reference: Screen Printers

** CONTACT INFO **

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EMINENCE FrONTS

Contact : Dominic Asciutto (408) 295-9385 info@efgshirts .com www.efgshirts .com

Address: 115 Phelan Ave. #9 San Jose CA 95112

144 $.82 1.24

.35 each

$.82 l t/$1.24/dkeach shirt

$10 proof

$50 screencharge

$30color setup

Works with Golden State for f ree pickups and del ivery - wide var iety of pr int ing. reviews found onl ine: http://www.yelp.com/biz/eminence-fronts-san- jose

They use Plast isol inks but offer a softer vers ion cal led Chino.

They are located r ight near Golden State so you’ l l be able to stop by quickly to v iew samples of their pr int-ing after looking at shirts .

Est imated Costs for 144 shirts 118.08 646.56 50.40 118.08 90 $1023.12 for 144 / one color design

EMINENCE FrONTS

Questions + Meeting Suggestions1- Ask to see samples of their softer vers ion of plast isol cal led Chino.

2- ask to v iew what the shirts look l ike with the labels removed and the ‘ tag’ information pr inted on the inside.

3- Ask about turn around t ime versus volume. We havesn’t discussed the init ia l volume yet but this could have an inpact.

4- ask about housing screens for future pr int runs.

5- They work direct ly with Golden State ( t -shirt distr ibuter) so ask about how they handle pick - up of ma-ter ia ls .

6- Once the sample is approved how long does i t take to pr int i t ?

EMINENCE FrONTS

Production Reference: Screen Printers

** CONTACT INFO **

# o

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MATTEO STuDIOS

Contact : Marisa rodrigues 408- 885-1231

orders@ matteostudios.com www.matteostudios.com

Address: 1725 De la Cruz Blvd. 5 San Jose, CA 95050

***Cal l for appointment to stop by

72 $1.28 $1.50

.25 .60 $25 / $25

best PriCes + best options

Very helpful and located in San Jose. They can do everything from label removal to pr int ing and f in ishing. Marisa has been incredibly generous with her t ime.

I t would be wel l worth going by and meeting with them to v iew samples.

**** You’ l l need to make an appoint-ment f i rst .

144 $1.13 $1.35

288 $.98 $1.13

Est imated Costs for 144 shirts 162.72 646.56 +36 +86.40 +50 $981.68 for 144 / one color design

MATTEO STuDIOS

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Questions + Meeting Suggestions1- They work with both types of ink so ask to see a few samples of both Water based and Plast isol .

You’ l l want to look for a var iey of things when meeting with Marisa: The way the di fferent types of ink look when pr inted: Water based inks vs Plast isol ink. Also you’ l l want to see how the shirts look when the labels are removed and the la-bel is then screen pr inted into the neck of the shirt . Be sure to look at a l l avai lable pr int ing options.

Marisa is incredibly helpful so I wouldn’t be surpr ised i f she walks you through each step and every option avai lable.

2- Ask to see both inks on di fferent colors of shirts - both l ight and dark. I f we go with water based ink i t wi l l be important to see how a black shirt is handled.

3- Ask to see a shirt with the label removed and a ‘ tag’ pr inted on the inside.

4- Once a sample is approved how long does i t take to pr int i t ?

MATTEO STuDIOS

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Production Reference: Screen Printers

** CONTACT INFO **

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APE DO GOOD

Contact : Helen 415 - 826 - 0277 ape@apedogood.com www.apedogood.com

Address: 1672 15th Street San Francisco, CA 94103 M-F 9am to 5:30pm

up to 24 $4.15 $8.80 $8.43

n/a

$1.00 per shirt

$40 perscreen

***More exPensive per Print**

I ’m real ly only l ist ing them because they are in SF, so i t might be easy to go over for a v is i t to look at their samples.

Pr ices l isted are for typical Plast isol inks ( more opaque but also thicker feel )

Add an addit ional $ 2 per shirt for waterbased ink!

Would only use tear away labels- not resewn.

24-144 $2.31 $7.30 $6.93

144-288 $2.20 $7.25 $6.88

1000 + $2.10 $7.05 $6.68

Est imated Costs for 144 shirts 1051.2 +144 +80 $1275.20 =144 / s ingle color design

APE DO GOOD PrINTING

Questions + Meeting Suggestions1- Ask to see how they pr int on a var iety of colors of shirts .

l ike I mentioned on the last page, I ’m real ly only l ist ing them because they are in SF and you might be able to run over to look at their work quickly. Their costs are much higher than the others I ’ve l isted and they seem to cater to crafters more than wholesale endevours.

2- ask to see examples of both plast isol and waterbased pr int ing.

3- ask to see how they f insh the shirts in terms of label removal and label / ‘ tag’ pr intng on the inside of the shirt .

4- Once the sample is approved how long does i t take to pr int i t ?

APE DO GOOD

Production Reference: Screen Printers

** CONTACT INFO **

# o

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1 co

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2 co

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shir

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6.00

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Misc. Notes

BABYlON BurNING

Contact : Mike lynch 415 - 777 - 8422

www.babylontee.com

Address: 63 Bluxome Street San Fran, CA 94107

72 $1.70 $1.90

6.50 pershirt

.63 i f you use their shirts

$25/ 25

Plus extracharges. . .

They seem to have more extra charg-es than most others and don’t have embrodery tools so the label removal would have to be dont elsewhere.

On the other hand, the contact is the owner and he might be wi l l ing to discuss pr ice options on everythings.

Might be worth going by and look-ing at their work.

144 $1.25 $1.40

300 $1.05 $1.20

Est imated Costs for 144 shirts 180 864 90.72 $65 $1235.20 =144 / s ingle color design

BABYlON BurNING

Questions + Meeting Suggestions BABYlON BurNING

1- Ask to see samples of their shirts - both in plast isol and waterbased.

2- ask to v iew what the shirts look l ike with the labels removed and the ‘ tag’ information pr inted on the inside.

3- Ask about turn around t ime versus volume. We havesn’t discussed the init ia l volume yet but this could have an inpact.

4- ask about housing screens for future pr int runs.

5- ask about the shirts they provide, vesus you supplying them.

6- Once the sample is approved how long does i t take to pr int i t ?

t~sHirtdistributErs

Production Reference: T-Shirt Distributers

** CONTACT INFO ***** great oPtion for bella ***

They are located in San Jose and have a showroom to v iew avai lable shirts

GOlDEN STATE APPArEl

Contact : Chris 800 - 892 - 8337 www.gsact ivewear.com

Address: Golden State Act ivewear 2070 South 7th Street Suite E San Jose, CA 95112 M-F 9am to 5:30pm

Bella shirt costs (sty le # 3001)

COST PEr CASE - SINGlE COlOr - 72 SHIrTS $4.49 EACH

Cost per s ingle shirt - white- $6.37 - color - $7.62

Prices vary per sty le and quantity.

V is i t the showroom for choices and to meet with the account manager

GOlDEN STATE APPArEl

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*Questions + Meeting Suggestions

1- The showroom should have al l the shirts on display, but i f you don’t see the sty le you’d l ike then ask to have them look in the warehouse for a sample. More than l ikely you are looking for Bel la + Canvas shirts .

2- Apparently with Bel la + Canvas shirts take ink better than others. Ask i f they know which l ine wi l l work best for our needs: Soft with a high qual i ty feel , good l ines, wi l l take a softer water based ink.

3- Ask about label removal . Most pr inters offer this but ask i f any of the shirts work better than others for this purpose.

4- Once you’ve found the shirt or shirts you l ike, ask about purchasing by the case. The cost di fferent ia l is pretty good so once we have the shirt and colors picked we wi l l need to set up a table for planning out the purchase of the shirts and pr int run combinat ion.

GOlDEN STATE APPArEl

Production Reference: T-Shirt Distributers

** CONTACT INFO ***** great oPtion for bella ***

They are located in San Jose and have a showroom to v iew avai lable shirts .

BODEk + rHODES

Contact : 800 - 877 - 9911 ext . 1239 www.bodekandrhodes.com

Address: 3395 East North Avenue Fresno, CA 93725 M-F 9am to 5:30pm

Bella shirt costs (sty le # 3001)

COST PEr CASE - SINGlE COlOr -

St i l l wait ing for quote

BODEk + rHODES

Questions + Meeting Suggestions BODEk + rHODES

1- The showroom should have al l the shirts on display, but i f you don’t see the sty le you’d l ike then ask to have them look in the warehouse for a sample. More than l ikely you are looking for Bel la + Canvas shirts .

2- Apparently with Bel la + Canvas shirts take ink better than others. Ask i f they know which l ine wi l l work best for our needs: Soft with a high qual i ty feel , good l ines, wi l l take a softer water based ink.

3- Ask about label removal . Most pr inters offer this but ask i f any of the shirts work better than others for this purpose.

4- Once you’ve found the shirt or shirts you l ike, ask about purchasing by the case. The cost di fferent ia l is pretty good so once we have the shirt and colors picked we wi l l need to set up a table for planning out the purchase of the shirts and pr int run combinat ion.