unhappy results

[vinsin10]

I am seeing too much lint from the shirt come through all my colors as I print my image. It doesn't matter if I am using one color or multiple colors for images. The lint is always visible! What am I doing wrong?

[drew]

Fibrillation, I believe its called. The more passes you make over the screen, the worse it will get. I try to flood the screen well and print just once but sometimes that doesn't do it. The less passes you can make over it, the better. The shirt material can make a huge difference. Some materials are just not ideal for screen printing. What mesh count are you using and what type of material are you printing? The shirt should be new as well, a prewashed shirt will most likely be harder to print.

[Catspit Productions]

Yup, great points drew.

I’ll reiterate and emphasize:

The fabric - some knit finishes are brushed or soft and may have a generous quantity of loos fibers. Use a nice tight knit garment with a smooth finished surface.

The printing action - more action during printing on the garment may cause fibers to release into the printed ink surface. Try to get the best print with the least amount of activity.

The ink - some inks may not cover as well and could even require a semi curing following up with a second print pass.

A nice tight screen with a sharp squeegee will also help of course. I never print washed garments except for test printing because the laundry detergents leave agents behind in the fabric that prevent staining. These chemicals will prevent plastisol inks from bonding properly with the fabric and could result in washout issues.