Question about where to find learning material
Posted: Wed Jul 01, 2015 1:02 pm
I recently bought one of the home screen printing kits from a company. It had emulsion screen, ink, transparencies, exposure board, etc.
First let me say that this is my first post here, and it looks like a place where I can get some good info. I have always been an artist, and I am also a tool maker. Basically, that is a glorified machinist. I am very proficient at CAD / CAM programs, so drawing with a PC is not foreign to me. The few designs I have made worked great as far as the creation of the screen. Artwork is not the problem; the printing process is.
The first thing I noticed is that I am using emulsion screen, which must be taped to the garment. This doesn't really give a good way to lift and flash, and come back down in the exact same spot. I know that there are several reasons for this. When studying about this, I discovered the pros use actual aluminum frame screens that can be hit with emulsion and then wiped clean, to be used numerous times over and over. I don't know much about this process and I need to learn. It is pretty obvious that I am wasting my time with the green emulsion screen sheets that probably could be taped to a frame somehow, but I'm not sure it is worth doing.
Another problem I have run into is that without the ability to lift the screen (with a press), I can't flash. I don't have a flash machine, so I was using a heat gun. I ended up just about melting a dry fit shirt I was trying to dry the ink on. So this is when I realized that a heat gun was a poor choice. It also highlighted the problem of needing a press, to be able to lift the screen for the flash and properly reposition it. I was trying to flash to get good, uniform coverage of ink because I could see I would need at least two coats (light color, dark garment).
Not only as it relates to flash, but the curing of the ink in general - Obviously, I cannot properly and uniformly heat my ink to get a good set and give me the durability I need using an iron or even a heat gun. I need the uniformity of a heat press apparently.
I want to do this as a hobby, and maybe get into doing it for a little side money. I want to create my own t shirts, and if people like my designs I can offer them for sale..but not until I get the bugs worked out of the process. Nobody wants to buy a shirt that will fade out after a wash or two because it wasn't done right. On top of that, I need to quit throwing money at things that are not what I really need, and focus on the right way to do it.
So looking at start up set ups, I found Catspit Productions. It was then I started looking close at the presses, and discovered the guy building the four station press on youtube. I could do this, and save a ton of money on a press. I know it isn't exactly commercial, but it will cost very little and if it happens to work and start being productive, I can step up from there.
I use my machining CAD/CAM software to start mys designs, and the DXF over to Corel Draw, where I fill in my letters and designs. What I need is a heat press, maybe a flash dryer, and some screens that have the type of emulsion that can be removed and reapplied. I also need the emulsion and cleaner, and I guess maybe some plastisol ink.
I have been using Speedball ink, which I think is water based. If I can get better durability and easier use out of plastisol, I will do it that way.
The main focus of this post is to hopefully be pointed in the direction of some reading material or videos. I started to watch the Catspit youtube channel, but I don;t have time to watch all 400 videos. lol. If there is a book or a list of pertinent videos I need to watch, that would be awesome. If I need to watch all 400, then I guess I better get started. Either way, some direction would be awesome.
Thanks
First let me say that this is my first post here, and it looks like a place where I can get some good info. I have always been an artist, and I am also a tool maker. Basically, that is a glorified machinist. I am very proficient at CAD / CAM programs, so drawing with a PC is not foreign to me. The few designs I have made worked great as far as the creation of the screen. Artwork is not the problem; the printing process is.
The first thing I noticed is that I am using emulsion screen, which must be taped to the garment. This doesn't really give a good way to lift and flash, and come back down in the exact same spot. I know that there are several reasons for this. When studying about this, I discovered the pros use actual aluminum frame screens that can be hit with emulsion and then wiped clean, to be used numerous times over and over. I don't know much about this process and I need to learn. It is pretty obvious that I am wasting my time with the green emulsion screen sheets that probably could be taped to a frame somehow, but I'm not sure it is worth doing.
Another problem I have run into is that without the ability to lift the screen (with a press), I can't flash. I don't have a flash machine, so I was using a heat gun. I ended up just about melting a dry fit shirt I was trying to dry the ink on. So this is when I realized that a heat gun was a poor choice. It also highlighted the problem of needing a press, to be able to lift the screen for the flash and properly reposition it. I was trying to flash to get good, uniform coverage of ink because I could see I would need at least two coats (light color, dark garment).
Not only as it relates to flash, but the curing of the ink in general - Obviously, I cannot properly and uniformly heat my ink to get a good set and give me the durability I need using an iron or even a heat gun. I need the uniformity of a heat press apparently.
I want to do this as a hobby, and maybe get into doing it for a little side money. I want to create my own t shirts, and if people like my designs I can offer them for sale..but not until I get the bugs worked out of the process. Nobody wants to buy a shirt that will fade out after a wash or two because it wasn't done right. On top of that, I need to quit throwing money at things that are not what I really need, and focus on the right way to do it.
So looking at start up set ups, I found Catspit Productions. It was then I started looking close at the presses, and discovered the guy building the four station press on youtube. I could do this, and save a ton of money on a press. I know it isn't exactly commercial, but it will cost very little and if it happens to work and start being productive, I can step up from there.
I use my machining CAD/CAM software to start mys designs, and the DXF over to Corel Draw, where I fill in my letters and designs. What I need is a heat press, maybe a flash dryer, and some screens that have the type of emulsion that can be removed and reapplied. I also need the emulsion and cleaner, and I guess maybe some plastisol ink.
I have been using Speedball ink, which I think is water based. If I can get better durability and easier use out of plastisol, I will do it that way.
The main focus of this post is to hopefully be pointed in the direction of some reading material or videos. I started to watch the Catspit youtube channel, but I don;t have time to watch all 400 videos. lol. If there is a book or a list of pertinent videos I need to watch, that would be awesome. If I need to watch all 400, then I guess I better get started. Either way, some direction would be awesome.
Thanks