Sublimation Mugs, Faded bottoms and corners - Tried what seems like everything!

[justr77]

I decided to 'upgrade' my cheap chinese eBay press as it was starting to struggle with the heating element showing through on the mug. After much deliberation I went with the DF1 mug press from BMS. I had heard great things about them as a company and I had been buying their European mugs from them for a while already.

I received the press and straight away I had terrible faded mug bottoms. I sent photos to BMS and called them to try and get some support. I was told by the lady that answered the phone that they had never heard of faded mug bottoms before! The person that I needed to speak to was not in and she couldn't tell me when they would be back. To cut a long story short, they would not help, eventually arranged to pick the press up and after 2 weeks of excuses had to threaten filing with small claims court to get my refund. Worst customer experience of my life, was very surprised after all the good things I had read about them

I now have the from Subliblanks, I purchased it after watching Martin Butlers review video at

But.... I am still having issues with faded bottoms and corners

I have tried what seems like every combination of time, temperature and pressure and have had numerous support calls with Chris from Subliblanks, he has been excellent throughout this but I feel like I am going round in circles, nothing changes no matter what I do.

I have tried European mugs from BMS, Duraglaze mugs from Listawood and also the Orca mugs from Subliblanks. I have brand new In date Sublijet-R cartridges in my Ricoh 3110.

I need help! I just can't afford to waste any more mugs, I have been through over 150 now just trying to get this right.

I am currently pressing at 185 degrees for 80 seconds with an idle temperature of 160. Quite hard to get a decent photo but this one demonstrates my issue, seems to be the bottom corners nearest the handles that suffer most but it is happening along the whole bottom edge.

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mug_bottom.jpg (73.56 KiB) Viewed 2 times

Please help!

[socialgiraffe]

I use oven now, but from my experience of these type of machines you need to try something along the lines of

170 IDLE
180 TEMP
180 SECONDS

Make sure the mug is at least room temperature before attempting to print.

Also, note that if you follow Martin's video, his settings are very different to yours (and mine).

I also question the validity of his video. The second mug is placed in and is heating/printing. When there are 8 seconds left he cuts the video and then comes back with a couple of seconds left. I reckon this is because the second mug initially failed due to the temperature being 170 degrees. That is just a hunch, but my experience is telling me that there is no other reason to cut the video at that point, it just doesn't make sense.

Lastly, you could probably get more help if you listed your location. Having it as UK is a bit of a no no on this forum and means we can not suggest someone or a company close by who could help.

[justr77]

With regards to Martins video, it is very frustrating because the part of the mug that I really want to see in detail ie; the bottom and the bottom corners seem to be kept off camera :frown: Is Martin a member here?

I have tried 180 degrees for 180 seconds but blacks were all coming out brown, I assume it's because I am using a Ricoh with Sublijet-r inks which prefer lower temperatures.

160 degrees is the highest idle temperature that the Galaxy Mug Press goes to so I am stuck at that.

[webtrekker]

I had the same problems as you at first, with Ricoh 3110DN and CIE inks.

However, what works fine for me now is to attach my printed wrap to the mug, pre-heat the mug to 110 degrees for 240secs, the press it at 180/180. No top and bottom fading and no fading near the handle, and my blacks are black.

[Andrew]

You are not getting enough heat into the base. As there is more ceramic in this area it is like a sink hole and heat keeps absorbing until the whole base is upto temp. During this time the body has already started printing. Various ways to overcome this and many discussions on here. Basically you need more heat but not too much to scorch the body. Warming the base prior to going in the press is always first course of action especially with the orca which tends to have a heavier base to keep them straight. Try sitting the mug on a radiator for a minute or you can even sit them on an upside down mug that has just come out of the press. Try printing one after that otherwise then you need to move on to a combo of more time/temp scenario. The corners fading might also need a bit more pressure on the press. Elements soften after a bit so will naturally shape to the mug better but a new press can be firm.

[brightday83]

I use an oven for this exact reason! The results are perfect every time, and you can print right up to the edges of the mug.

I watched several of Martin Butler's videos, and I spotted on one when he took one of his mugs out of the press, it looked 'really' faint. Then after the video was stopped and restarted, he held the mug up to the camera again, and this time the colours appeared really strong. That for me rang alarm bells. He does come across as very sales-orientated, so as a result it's probably wise to take his recommendations with a pinch of salt.

I hope that you are able to sort out the problem.

[socialgiraffe]

If you are wanting honest, independent and reliable You Tube videos then search out Paul (a member on this forum) and look for references to his video tutorials. Knows his stuff and is not associated with any supplier (not saying Martin is either though)

[brightday83]

If you are wanting honest, independent and reliable You Tube videos then search out Paul (a member on this forum) and look for references to his video tutorials. Knows his stuff and is not associated with any supplier (not saying Martin is either though)

Agreed, Paul's videos are great.

[UK Printed Mugs]

Ensure mug press is not too tight against the mug. If using Sawgrass ink then 160c or 170c should be fine and we use 145 seconds.

[markromain]

When I use dino mugs i press at 350 degrees sit the mugs onto of my mug press to warm the bottom and put mug in press let the mug press drop in temp and raise back up to 350 then leave in for 30 sec which gives me a perfect result every time. I only have a cheap mug press from eBay but works for me.