Heat Press temperature

[Bruno]

I'm looking at buying a large heat press for producing T shirts and have been offered one that only goes up to 200 degrees. Can anyone tell me if this would be a suitable temperature and what questions I should ask? Many thanks Bruno

[Andrew]

All regular heat presses will give you that temp for pressing clothes. It all comes down to budget and size requirements. Also, swing away or clam. Then just get advice on what is best for your money.

[Bruno]

Thanks Andrew - I just spoke to the owner of the press and they tell me it would only suit printing on fabric - not made up T shirts which is what I wanted - I suggested I create a template and put it inside the shirt to keep it flat and they said that wouldn't work - I'm a little confused. Their reply was ' i have been making shirts with this but you have to have all the panels single to get the result , there is plenty of pressure it works out 7ton per sq inch" does that make any sense to you?

[Andrew]

Have you got an image of the press? They might be talking of a specific way of printing such as full garment print rather than basic transfer. Sounds like you could do with a more standard press as there should be loads of options available at a fairly affordable cost. Is it just transfers you are looking to print?

[Bruno]

Thanks Andrew - I just spoke to the owner of the press and they tell me it would only suit printing on fabric - not made up T shirts which is what I wanted - I suggested I create a template and put it inside the shirt to keep it flat and they said that wouldn't work - I'm a little confused. Their reply was ' i have been making shirts with this but you have to have all the panels single to get the result , there is plenty of pressure it works out 7ton per sq inch" does that make any sense to you?

[Bruno]

Yes it's here on ebay. I wanted a large format as the T shirt designs I've created cover the whole shirt and the prices I've been quoted for a Omega 750 go up to about £5000! As I'm in a start up situation this would have been ideal.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... TQ:GB:1123

[pisquee]

That looks more like the kind of press you would use for framing or laminating prints.

[Bruno]

Okay - never mind I thought it was too good to be true. Thanks again B

[Andrew]

I did see this one on there. It is probably a case that you will end up with holidays (gaps) on the print and faded areas by the seams for ready made tees. This is acceptable for the recent full panel sub shirts about but that is the current fashion only. So all depends on the finish you are after. Cylinder presses are another option and there are a couple on here with them. Are you set up for printing wide format for these tees?

If you have an image of the type of tee design you are trying to achieve I am sure someone with more garment knowledge than me will be able to point you in the right direction.

[Bruno]

I haven't bought anything yet but am about to get a wide format printer and was looking to save some cost by getting a second hand press. I shall keep looking.