What type of t-shirt printing is best?

T-shirts with unique pictures are both an interesting gift and a way to advertise different brands and products. It’s important to identify the primary means by which one may get T-shirts with promotional and gift printing. Neither one nor the other is without flaws. 

When choosing a printing method, the manufacturer focuses on two indicators: the resistance of the printed image to repeated washing, as well as the cost of manufacturing custom T-shirts. As we provide the service of custom t shirt printing in Dallas so lets discuss about custom printing.  

Among the large number of methods worth paying attention to:

Printing with a Printer (DTG Technology)

The concept behind this piece is similar to that of an inkjet printer. Usually a high temperature press or dryer is used. Effective technology for cotton T-shirts. When printing a photo on T-shirts of other colors, a white backing (white ink) is required.

DTG (direct-to-garment) technology – printing with special, environmentally friendly inks. It is the most advanced on-demand garment printing technology available today. Clothes printed using this technology fit perfectly and can withstand many washes. Does not cause allergies. Since the picture is painted directly into the cloth, it will not fade over time. No rubber sticker effect.

Digital printing

Printing T-shirts on a printer advantages and disadvantages

Advantages of the textile device:

• The speed of preparation before printing;
• Multiple T-shirts may have unique writing added on them in a short amount of time;
• High resolution photos.
• Printing on cotton

The negative aspects of this method:

• Why one print costs so much: high ink costs, time-consuming printer effort, and equipment depreciation.
• Slow application. Printing time may take up to 20 minutes depending on the size of the image;
• An expensive method of production is required for such a t-shirt.

This method of printing on a T-shirt can be considered the best for photographic images for small volumes.

Thermal transfer

Simple technology. The image is printed on film and then placed on the T-shirt in the desired position. After it is applied to products using a heat press and pressure.

Thermal transfer printing

Decals for T-shirts advantages and disadvantages

Advantages of thermal application:

• Allows you to select any texture. The image can be metallic or velvety;

• Good print quality when using vector images

Cons of thermal transfer:

• Small circulation and high labor intensity;

• Drawing only simple drawings.

sublimation printing

The deep penetration of dye into the fabric, smooth color transitions and the photographic quality of the resulting image are just some of the reasons why sublimation on T-shirts has become very popular. For such application, products made of polymeric (synthetic) materials are used. Natural fibers are not dyed properly, so you can’t get a bright enough picture.

The technological process is based on thermal sublimation of solid dyes. The high temperature for sublimation on a T-shirt, created by a heat press, turns the paint into a gas that penetrates deep into the surface to be painted and condenses there. The dye particles seem to be soldered to the fibers of the material. The result is an image that is very resistant to mechanical stress and washing.

Under the influence of temperature, synthetics become loose, as if pores open on its surface, and then ink easily gets into them. But this does not happen in natural tissues. For the print to hold up well, the woven backing must contain at least 60% polyester. But sometimes natural t-shirts for sublimation are also used. To do this, the application surface is treated with a special polyester primer, called a primer.

sublimation printing

Sublimation on fabric advantages and disadvantages

Advantages of sublimation:

• The resistance of the resulting image to washing and fading
• Photographic print quality, obtaining images with complex graphics;
• High print speed;
• Low cost per print;
• Ability to run large and small runs

Disadvantages of sublimation printing:

• Use of exclusively light-coloured T-shirts when a contrasting pattern is required.

• Restrictions on the choice of material for products intended for application, the fabric must contain at least 50% synthetics.

Silk screen printing on fabric

This method is called screen printing. The method is industrial widely used. The method is based on several processes:

Silk screen printing on fabric advantages and disadvantages

1. • Making a layout on film.
2. • Transfer of the picture by means of illumination of special photographic emulsions.
3. • Bonding the mesh screen onto the aluminum frame.
4. • Fixing the stencil on a special machine.
5. • Applying a picture with a special paint through non-illuminated areas of the stencil.

Each color has its own template and stencil. The colors on the T-shirts are applied in a certain sequence. The thickness of the paint layer can be adjusted, and any paint is used. This method of printing on T-shirts is considered the best for high-volume production.

Advantages of silk screen printing:

• Durability of printed T-shirts to repeated washings;
• Work with large volumes;
• High print speed;
• Low cost per print;
• Work with a large number of colors;
• Low labor intensity of the process.

Disadvantages of screen printing:

• Long prepress production time. You need to make a template and stencil for each color.

• When you change the picture will have to create a new grid;

• There are limitations when printing a raster.

If we compare what is better than silk-screen printing or sublimation, then these methods are suitable for different circulations. Sublimation is needed for a small print run with a variable pattern, and screen printing is an industrial method.

What determines the cost of making one T-shirt?

If you need a small print run, then you should look at the method of printing on a printer or thermal transfer. These images can last a long time, but with proper care, the life of the print can be increased. To do this, the T-shirt must be washed at a temperature of 30 degrees, preferably by hand and do not use abrasive substances.

If you need T-shirts for promotions or need a large circulation for sale. In this case, a t-shirt with an image obtained by silk-screen printing will be the best option. This print is best for T-shirts with a circulation of 50 pieces.

The more T-shirts you need to make, the lower the cost of one product will be, because stencils last a long time and its cost is distributed over the entire circulation.

Size matters, because when transferring paint, a different amount of substance is consumed.

The speed of production also affects the price of making a print. In the case of screen printing, you need to get a new grid. If the stencil is already there, then the process of applying the print takes a little time.