Use designs that are very dark (black, red, purple, blue, etc) for the best results such as this elephant tumbler wrap design, which you can find in the Coffee Mug & Tumbler Design Bundle.
One trick to making a design more vivid (and have it showing up a little better on a glass can or tumbler) is increase the saturation of the images in your design software prior to printing to help make the transfer look brighter when sublimated.For even brighter images, sublimate onto the frosted glass cans and tumblers. Like the clear glass tumblers, these are specially designed to work with sublimation, and the same image sublimated on a frosted tumbler will appear brighter than the same image pressed on a clear can.
Is sublimation high quality?
Sublimation print quality is outstanding. You can print fine lines and details in multiple colors that will be vibrant and sharp. Since the color is embedded into fabric fibers, it doesn’t wash out easily and it doesn’t crack or peel. Sublimation print is durable and long-lasting.
When sublimating onto clear glass cans or tumblers, the image will be lighter than the image on your computer screen because you are applying it to something that is clear.
Use 400 degrees F for 120 seconds, then rotate 180 degrees and press another 120 seconds. If the tumbler does not fully fit in your mug press, you may need to press in sections.To provide the best quality custom creations and sublimation blanks one customer at a time while continuing to support her little friend Jaxon in his battle against leukemia.
This 1.5 oz. shot glass is an ideal gift and giveaway for trade shows, cafes, bars, novelty shops, company events, birthdays, weddings, and more. Standard bar size and weight, the imprint patch area (with a small gap) covers the majority of the face.
Often imitated, never duplicated; our dedicated team of technicians are capable of providing support to your product at any point of its life. Whether it be during the setup process or even years down the line where troubleshooting may be required, they’ll have your back and provide a solution.
*Due to the physical nature of this material expanding under heat, it is recommended to use lower levels of pressure or pre-heating the substrate prior to application. This will help prevent too much force from being applied against the expanded surface during application.*
The HPN MyExpert Support guarantee is our commitment to Life Time Technical Support. No matter where you are in your products life cycle, we will be here to provide support to your product and make sure you are fully covered.
I just received one of these glasses . Though the design looks great on them I don’t like the glass because of the lid. It’s hard to drink from it because of the suction.
Pad printing is an indirect form of printing whereby the ink is transferred by means of a silicone printing pad. The great advantage of this printing technique is that the pad is flexible and adapts to the object to be printed. It is therefore possible to print on curved, hollow and differently shaped surfaces, among other things.
Samples under £5 are free of charge. Samples above £5 are free of charge when a full order is placed for the article. Samples are delivered without print and cannot be returned.
Why is it called sublimation?
The sublimation name was first applied because the dye was thought to make the transition between the solid and gas states without going through a liquid stage.
Sublimation is a printing technique in which a digitally printed image changes directly to a gaseous phase by means of a heat press. The special sublimation inks have the property of changing, at a certain temperature, from a solid into a gaseous state, bypassing the liquid phase. The print is then woven into the fabric.Keep collections to yourself or inspire other shoppers! Keep in mind that anyone can view public collections—they may also appear in recommendations and other places. View Etsy’s Privacy Policy
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We are the UK’s largest wholesale sublimation blanks supplier. We also have a large and varied range of printing supplies, consumables and hardware. We pride ourselves on having large stocks of popular sublimation printables, dispatching items fast and offering great after-sales care.
What temperature do you sublimate shot glass?
400 degrees Once your wrap is secured, place your shot glass in an oven that has been preheated to 400 degrees. The shot glass should stay in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes. You may do multiple shot glasses at one time.
DISPATCH UPDATE: NORMAL DISPATCH OPERATION. ALL ‘COURIER’ ORDERS PLACED BY 2PM WILL BE DISPATCHED SAME-DAY. PLEASE EMAIL IN FOR ANY QUERIES OR IF YOUR ORDER IS URGENT.Sublimation vs. screen printing: which one is better and how can you choose? Which method will fit your designs, your brand, and your business? If you’re eager to get your questions answered, keep reading.The choice is yours. You’ve learned about sublimation and screen printing, their differences, benefits, and disadvantages. You’ve also learned what type of products, designs, and fulfillment methods are best for each printing method. Now it’s time to choose which technique fits your business model the best!Silk screening will be your only option if you want to add some pizzazz to your designs. For example, you can add glitter to your artwork or other types of inks for different effects. To create interesting textures or eye-catching designs, you can use specialty inks like gold or silver. There are also inks that produce a cracked or cork texture, or a leather effect.
What is sublimation glass?
Without mirroring your print. And the print shows through the glass to the front. So it does make these types of blanks. Unique. But also really cool it’s kind of like magic.
Sublimation uses four primary colors (known as CMYK or cyan, magenta, yellow, and black) to print all designs. Unfortunately, sublimation printing doesn\u2019t support specialty inks and other extras like glitter, so screen printing would be the better option in that case.
How do you sublimate clear shot glasses?
Machine we recommend wearing heat resistant gloves during application. After 190 seconds open your machine and peel the tape on the machine. Out carefully bringing the shot glass out to cool. Down.
Screen prints last, but after many washes, the print will start to crack, peel, and wash out. That’s because in traditional screen printing the ink sits on top of the garment and does not sink into the fabric.
If your design is simple and consists of just one or a couple of colors, screen printing is a good choice. You’ll like this printing technique if you like the feel of ink on the garment. You can also add extra flair with glitter or specialty inks to make your designs more eye-catching.
With screen printing, you’ll likely need to invest in products before you sell them. That’s because when you order in bulk, you typically have to pay for the whole batch upfront. The problem is your money is tied up in stock and you may not be able to sell all your items. If you end up having to sell products at a larger discount just to unload stock, you won’t take in as much in profit.
Can you sublimate shot glasses in the mug press?
Go ahead and place the shot glass inside, press it, then stick the tape to the mug press. Let your shot glass cool away from the machine for about 30-60 seconds. Then peel the transfer to reveal your beautiful results. You should have an awesome sublimated shot glass with rich, vibrant colors.
Sublimation print quality is outstanding. You can print fine lines and details in multiple colors that will be vibrant and sharp. Since the color is embedded into fabric fibers, it doesn’t wash out easily and it doesn’t crack or peel. Sublimation print is durable and long-lasting.Screen printing also provides fantastic print quality. The colors are just as vibrant and sharp. However, screen printing doesn’t support very colorful designs like photos. If your designs contain just one or a few colors, screen printing can still be your go-to technique. Keep in mind that the ink doesn’t sink into the fabric as it does with sublimation. The more colors you print on the garment, the thicker the print will be.
What temperature and time to sublimate glass?
Use the correct time and temperature Use 400 degrees F for 120 seconds, then rotate 180 degrees and press another 120 seconds. If the tumbler does not fully fit in your mug press, you may need to press in sections.
Sublimation, also known as heat transfer printing, is a technique where the design is embedded in the fabric using heat and ink. In the print-on-demand world, it’s the go-to printing method for creating all-over print products as it allows printing on fabric from seam to seam.
As for screen printing, like we’ve discussed, designs with one or a few colors work best. Each color has to be printed separately, which takes more time to print the garment. But screen printing can be done on different fabric colors, so you can use that to your advantage.
Sublimation is a better choice for on-demand fulfillment as it’s possible to order just one item. Screen printing on the other hand is not a popular technique in on-demand production.For example, at Printful, when you offer all-over print products or other items that are sublimated, your order gets made only after you receive it. But if you’d like to offer screen-printed products on your store, it will be more cost-effective to sell them only in bulk. That way, you can make sure no items are left in your stock that you may never sell. After checking out each of the printing techniques and discovering their advantages and limitations, let’s see which method suits your business model best. Let’s see… You create designs and want them printed, but can’t decide between sublimation and screen printing. And the printing process and fulfillment techniques are different for each. The more colors in your design, the more ink is used to print it. Using a lot of ink for designs will create a thick layer of paint on the garment. That’s because the ink doesn’t soak into the fabric but stays on top of it. This creates interesting ink textures that can be a nice touch to your design. If you choose to print your designs with the screen printing technique, a special screen needs to be made for every element of your design. Because of that, it’s best to have simpler designs with one or a few colors as each color is applied separately layer by layer. Alternatively, when you choose to screen print products for your brand, you\u2019ll most likely have to order in bulk to get the best price per item. This may result in leftover stock and product waste if your items don\u2019t sell. What\u2019s more, plastisol inks that are most commonly used in screen printing are toxic and not biodegradable. However, screen printing does support water-based inks that are more eco-friendly but you\u2019ll have to do your research\u2014not all suppliers use these inks.Sublimation vs. screen printing: which one is better and how can you choose? Which method will fit your designs, your brand, and your business? If you’re eager to get your questions answered, keep reading. If you\u2019re looking for an eco-friendly fulfillment method, sublimation is a good choice. Sublimated products that are created on demand eliminate overproduction. Also, the sublimation ink is non-toxic and eco-friendly, and sublimation doesn\u2019t require a lot of water compared to other dye transfer techniques. Generally, screen printing is not a technique that print-on-demand companies offer. Still, you can try to find a company that’ll be willing to fulfill and ship your orders under your brand.A sublimation design is also known as an all-over print design. It’s when the design covers the product fully. For example, hoodies are printed from seam to seam. Only sublimation supports printing on the product fully. The main difference between sublimation and screen printing is that sublimation uses heat to embed ink into the fabric while screen printing is done by using a woven screen and squeegee to press ink onto the fabric. Sublimation is best for polyester fabrics and screen printing is best for cotton. Sublimation and screen printing are two different printing techniques, and each of them have their advantages. Sublimation is better than screen printing if you want to print on polyester fabrics or want your design to cover the garment from seam to seam. Sublimation is better than screen printing if you want to print designs that are detailed and contain many vibrant colors.Sublimation is most suitable for printing on light-color polyester, polyester blends, or polymer-coated fabrics. Sublimation also is a good fit for materials that contain nylon, spandex, neoprene, lycra, and others. You can sublimate cotton but heat transfer printing is better adapted to synthetic fabrics.
The choice is yours. You’ve learned about sublimation and screen printing, their differences, benefits, and disadvantages. You’ve also learned what type of products, designs, and fulfillment methods are best for each printing method. Now it’s time to choose which technique fits your business model the best!
Sublimation is best for printing on light-colored polyester, polyester blends, or polymer-coated fabrics. That’s because the ink binds with synthetic fibers better. Sublimation is also used to print home & living items like blankets, mugs, laptop sleeves, and gaming mouse pads.If you’re looking for an eco-friendly fulfillment method, sublimation is a good choice. Sublimated products that are created on demand eliminate overproduction. Also, the sublimation ink is non-toxic and eco-friendly, and sublimation doesn’t require a lot of water compared to other dye transfer techniques.
Plus waste is kept to a minimum during the production process. For example, Printful\u2019s all-over print products are cut & sewn in-house. The leftover fabric scraps are used to create scrunchies and headbands, reducing fabric waste as much as possible.
Sublimation printing is a great option if you’ve chosen to dropship the products you sell. For example, if you sell products that are manufactured on demand, sublimation printing is more suitable for your business. It’s one of the most popular printing techniques offered by print-on-demand companies like Printful.Since the ink sits on top of the garment, screen printing can be less durable over time than sublimation printing. After many washes, the ink may crack and peel, and the colors can fade.
Betting on selling all your stock is a risky business. When you sell sublimated on-demand products with Printful, you don’t need an upfront investment. That’s because your products are fulfilled only when your customer orders them. You get money from your customer, pay Printful for the item your customer ordered, and keep the profit.However, screen printing is more suited for bulk orders. That’s because each shirt is printed manually using stencils made specifically for your design. So you want to make a larger order (at least 25 pieces) as the price per t-shirt or other garments will be better in bulk.
No, screen printing does not need a heat press to print the designs. Screen printing is performed with inks that are pressed onto the fabric with a squeegee and then dried.
If your design is simple and consists of just one or a couple of colors, screen printing is a good choice. You’ll like this printing technique if you like the feel of ink on the garment. You can also add extra flair with glitter or specialty inks to make your designs more eye-catching.
Since sublimation supports selling different quantities of products, you can print as many products as you need, whether it’s just one or a hundred. Printful also offers discounts for bulk orders.
How do you put designs on shot glasses?
DIY Decorated Shot GlassesWash and dry shot glass well to remove any residue. Create stencil and apply to glass.Cover with a thick layer of etching cream (to avoid brush strokes) and leave for 2 – 4 minutes.Rinse with cold water and allow to dry to see design.
When you consider a printing technique, you should keep in mind how you want your designs to look on products. Sublimation can print detailed multicolor artwork, photos, and patterns from seam to seam. If you want your designs to cover a garment fully, sublimation printing is the best choice.When it comes to the number of items you can print using sublimation, it’s perfect for both small and large orders. That’s why sublimation is one of the most popular methods among dropshipping companies as it’s easy to use this printing technique for as many or as few items as you need. Sublimation, also known as heat transfer printing, is a technique where the design is embedded in the fabric using heat and ink. In the print-on-demand world, it’s the go-to printing method for creating all-over print products as it allows printing on fabric from seam to seam. Sublimation printing is a great option if you’ve chosen to dropship the products you sell. For example, if you sell products that are manufactured on demand, sublimation printing is more suitable for your business. It’s one of the most popular printing techniques offered by print-on-demand companies like Printful.
Screen prints, on the other hand, are better for bold designs that contain one or a few colors. If you want to print artwork with more than one color, it should be simple. And remember that gradients are tricky. For example, if your design contains gradients, it may not come out exactly as you imagined it because they’re hard to print.
Sublimation is most suitable for printing on light-color polyester, polyester blends, or polymer-coated fabrics. Sublimation also is a good fit for materials that contain nylon, spandex, neoprene, lycra, and others. You can sublimate cotton but heat transfer printing is better adapted to synthetic fabrics. Sublimation is best for printing on light-colored polyester, polyester blends, or polymer-coated fabrics. That’s because the ink binds with synthetic fibers better. Sublimation is also used to print home & living items like blankets, mugs, laptop sleeves, and gaming mouse pads.
With screen printing, you’ll likely need to invest in products before you sell them. That’s because when you order in bulk, you typically have to pay for the whole batch upfront. The problem is your money is tied up in stock and you may not be able to sell all your items. If you end up having to sell products at a larger discount just to unload stock, you won’t take in as much in profit.
Can you sublimate shot glasses?
A: Hello, you can sublimate the shot glasses, using a vacuum transfer machine or using a norm… Cached
Screen prints, on the other hand, are better for bold designs that contain one or a few colors. If you want to print artwork with more than one color, it should be simple. And remember that gradients are tricky. For example, if your design contains gradients, it may not come out exactly as you imagined it because they’re hard to print.
As for screen printing, like we\u2019ve discussed, designs with one or a few colors work best. Each color has to be printed separately, which takes more time to print the garment. But screen printing can be done on different fabric colors, so you can use that to your advantage.
If you choose to print your designs with the screen printing technique, a special screen needs to be made for every element of your design. Because of that, it’s best to have simpler designs with one or a few colors as each color is applied separately layer by layer. When it comes to colors, sublimation supports designs and gradients with multiple colors. Since sublimation is usually performed on light-colored fabric, all whites in your design may be blank spaces on the fabric. When it comes to the number of items you can print using sublimation, it’s perfect for both small and large orders. That’s why sublimation is one of the most popular methods among dropshipping companies as it’s easy to use this printing technique for as many or as few items as you need. Sublimation shirts are also known as all-over print shirts. It’s when the shirts are fully printed with your design and cover the garment from seam to seam. Sublimation t-shirts are usually made with polyester and such fabric blends.Sublimation is usually done on light-colored fabric—that’s the main choice for heat transfer printing. With the right methods, it’s possible to sublimate on dark colors but the process is lengthy and it may not achieve the desired outcome. First, a white base has to be sublimated on the dark fabric, and only then the design can be sublimated on top of it. Silk screening is also often used to print on paper. By using specialty inks, it’s possible to screen print on metal, wood, plastic, and other materials. After checking out each of the printing techniques and discovering their advantages and limitations, let’s see which method suits your business model best.However, screen printing is more suited for bulk orders. That’s because each shirt is printed manually using stencils made specifically for your design. So you want to make a larger order (at least 25 pieces) as the price per t-shirt or other garments will be better in bulk.
Sublimation printing is somewhat of a lengthy process. First, the design is printed on a special transfer paper. Then, the paper is fed into the heat press machine and combined with the fabric. Due to extremely high heat, ink from the paper binds with the fabric fibers.
Silk screening will be your only option if you want to add some pizzazz to your designs. For example, you can add glitter to your artwork or other types of inks for different effects. To create interesting textures or eye-catching designs, you can use specialty inks like gold or silver. There are also inks that produce a cracked or cork texture, or a leather effect. Plus waste is kept to a minimum during the production process. For example, Printful’s all-over print products are cut & sewn in-house. The leftover fabric scraps are used to create scrunchies and headbands, reducing fabric waste as much as possible.
Screen printing also provides fantastic print quality. The colors are just as vibrant and sharp. However, screen printing doesn’t support very colorful designs like photos. If your designs contain just one or a few colors, screen printing can still be your go-to technique. Keep in mind that the ink doesn’t sink into the fabric as it does with sublimation. The more colors you print on the garment, the thicker the print will be.
The more colors in your design, the more ink is used to print it. Using a lot of ink for designs will create a thick layer of paint on the garment. That’s because the ink doesn’t soak into the fabric but stays on top of it. This creates interesting ink textures that can be a nice touch to your design. Jana is a Content Writer at Printful with a background in creative writing and content marketing. She draws inspiration from all things creative and has a deep love for all things written, be it a book, a script, a quote, or a joke.
Sublimation is a better choice for on-demand fulfillment as it’s possible to order just one item. Screen printing on the other hand is not a popular technique in on-demand production.Sublimation uses four primary colors (known as CMYK or cyan, magenta, yellow, and black) to print all designs. Unfortunately, sublimation printing doesn’t support specialty inks and other extras like glitter, so screen printing would be the better option in that case.
Sublimated clothing means that the ink is embedded into the fabric fibers using a heat press rather than the ink being pressed on the fabric. Sublimated clothing is long-lasting and durable, as the ink does not crack, peel, or wash out.
For example, at Printful, when you offer all-over print products or other items that are sublimated, your order gets made only after you receive it. But if you’d like to offer screen-printed products on your store, it will be more cost-effective to sell them only in bulk. That way, you can make sure no items are left in your stock that you may never sell.Alternatively, when you choose to screen print products for your brand, you’ll most likely have to order in bulk to get the best price per item. This may result in leftover stock and product waste if your items don’t sell. What’s more, plastisol inks that are most commonly used in screen printing are toxic and not biodegradable. However, screen printing does support water-based inks that are more eco-friendly but you’ll have to do your research—not all suppliers use these inks.
Generally, screen printing is not a technique that print-on-demand companies offer. Still, you can try to find a company that’ll be willing to fulfill and ship your orders under your brand.
Let’s see… You create designs and want them printed, but can’t decide between sublimation and screen printing. And the printing process and fulfillment techniques are different for each.Traditional screen printing, or silk screening, is much different from sublimation printing. While sublimation is an almost fully automated process, screen printing is mostly done manually.Betting on selling all your stock is a risky business. When you sell sublimated on-demand products with Printful, you don’t need an upfront investment. That’s because your products are fulfilled only when your customer orders them. You get money from your customer, pay Printful for the item your customer ordered, and keep the profit.Since the ink sits on top of the garment, screen printing can be less durable over time than sublimation printing. After many washes, the ink may crack and peel, and the colors can fade.
The best t-shirts for sublimation are tank tops, sports jerseys and t-shirts, and rash guards. However, you can also sublimate regular t-shirts to show off your designs. Just keep in mind that these shirts have to be made with polyester fabrics, which are better suited for active people.
Silk screening is also often used to print on paper. By using specialty inks, it\u2019s possible to screen print on metal, wood, plastic, and other materials.Sublimation print quality is outstanding. You can print fine lines and details in multiple colors that will be vibrant and sharp. Since the color is embedded into fabric fibers, it doesn’t wash out easily and it doesn’t crack or peel. Sublimation print is durable and long-lasting.
Since sublimation supports selling different quantities of products, you can print as many products as you need, whether it’s just one or a hundred. Printful also offers discounts for bulk orders.
Alps Electric produced the first quality dye-sub printers for home consumers in the $500–$1,000 price range, bringing dye-sublimation technology within the reach of a wider audience. (These models were, however, not true page printers, since they used a narrow printhead that swept across the page, like most inkjet printers.) Now there are many dye-sublimation printers on the market starting from as low as $100, especially postcard-sized mobile photo printers. The ability to produce instant photo prints inexpensively from a small printer has led to dye sublimation solutions supplanting traditional instant photos in some applications, such as ID photography with a card printer. In order to transfer the image from the paper to the substrate, it requires a heat press machine process that is a combination of time, temperature, and pressure. Different settings are used depending on the substrate. This application will transfer the sublimation dyes at the molecular level into the substrate. The most common dyes used for sublimation activate at 350 degrees Fahrenheit / 175 degrees Celsius. However, a range of 380 to 420 degrees Fahrenheit / 195 to 215 degrees Celsius is normally recommended for optimal color.As dye-sublimation page printers utilize heat to transfer the dye onto the print media, the printing speed is limited by the speed at which the elements on the thermal head can change temperature. Heating the elements is easy, as a strong electric current can raise the temperature of an element very quickly. However, cooling the elements down, when changing from a darker to a lighter color, is harder and usually involves having a fan/heatsink assembly attached to the print head. The use of multiple heads can also speed up this process since one head can cool down while another is printing. Although print times vary among different dye-sublimation printers, a typical consumer dye-sub printer can print a 4×6 in (10x15cm) photo in 45–90 seconds. More heavy-duty printers can print much faster; for example, a Sinfonia Colorstream S2 dye-sublimation printer can print a 4×6 in (10x15cm) photo in as little as 6.8 seconds, and a Mitsubishi CP-D707DW is known to have a faster print of under 6 seconds for similar size. In all cases, the finished print is completely dry once it emerges from the printer.Sublimation transfer printing is a digital printing technology using full-color artwork that works with polyester and polymer-coated substrates. Originally used for printing polyester fabrics, the process is now commonly also used for decorating apparel, signs, and banners, as well as novelty items such as cell phone covers, plaques, coffee mugs, mouse mats, and other items with sublimation-friendly surfaces.
Dye-sublimation printers have some drawbacks compared to inkjet printers. Each of the colored panels of the ribbons, and the thermal head itself, must match the size of the media that is being printed on. Furthermore, only especially coated paper or specific plastics can accept the sublimated ink. This means that dye-sublimation printers cannot match the flexibility of inkjet printers in printing on a wide range of media.
There are two types of dye sublimation inks for piezo inkjet transfer printers available in the market. The most popular one is aqueous dye sublimation ink for use in both desktop and large format printers. The other is solvent dye sublimation ink that can be used in XAAR, Spectra, and some Konica printhead-wide format printers.
Desktop-size standalone dye-sub photo printers are also used by photographers in event photography. The technology allows photographers to produce and sell lab-quality prints immediately during the event they are attending, with a minimal amount of hardware.
Print speeds for large-format piezo inkjet printers using aqueous dye sublimation ink continue to increase. Speeds range from 18 square meters per hour in a smaller 44 in wide printer to over 3,000 square meters per hour in a high-speed industrial textile printer.The result of the sublimation transfer process is a nearly permanent, high-resolution, full-color print. Because the dyes are infused into the substrate at the molecular level, rather than applied at a topical level (such as with screen printing and direct to garment printing), the prints will not crack, fade or peel from the substrate under normal conditions. The fabric is permanently dyed so it can be washed without damaging the quality of the image. Advantages of dye-sublimation over other methods of textile printing: images are permanent and do not peel or fade, the dye does not build up on the fabric. Colors can be extraordinarily brilliant due to the bonding of the dye to the transparent fibers of the synthetic fabric, truly continuous tones can be achieved that are equivalent to photographs, without the use of special techniques such as half-screen printing, and the image can be printed all over the entire item, with no difficulty in printing all the way to the edges.
The images are first printed onto coated heat-resistant transfer paper as a mirror-image of the final design, which is then transferred from the transfer sheet onto the substrate using a heat press.
Can all frosted glass be sublimated?
If you’re wondering “Can I sublimate on frosted glass?” the answer is yes…but. It’s possible to do sublimation on frosted glass tumblers, as long as they are sublimation ready tumblers and you have the right equipment, time, and temperature.
Several corporations market desktop-size units as stand-alone printers and for print kiosk and photo booth applications. Some of these units are based on generic printers. Some manufacturers, offer software development kits with their printers, suggesting that these companies hope to attract system integrators as a potential market.Early large-format printers used for printing transfer paper were modified electrostatic plotters using toner, but now are generally large-format inkjet printers using special inks. For small-format printing, inkjet has also become the dominant technology, though special dye-sublimation transfer laser printers are also available.
The sublimation name was first applied because the dye was thought to make the transition between the solid and gas states without going through a liquid stage. This understanding of the process was later shown to be incorrect, as there is some liquefication of the dye. Since then, the proper name for the process has become known as dye diffusion, though this technically correct term has not supplanted the original name.
The term was later also applied to the indirect sublimation transfer printing process, which uses a standard printer to deposit sublimation-capable toner or ink onto a transfer sheet. The printed transfer sheet is then pressed with the substrate with heat, transferring the dye to the substrate, such as plastic or fabric, via sublimation. Thus, this process is indirect, since the final substrate does not pass through the printer, and the sublimation step occurs separately. In this type of digital textile printing, an inkjet printer is used to print dye-sublimation inks directly onto the fabric. The fabric is then heated in an oven or on a calender to diffuse and set the dyes. Dye-sublimation printing (or dye-sub printing) is a term that covers several distinct digital computer printing techniques that involve using heat to transfer dye onto a substrate.Traditionally, the advantage of dye-sublimation printing has been the fact that it is a continuous-tone technology, where each dot can be any color. In contrast, inkjet printers can vary the location and size of ink droplets, a process called dithering, but each drop of ink is limited to the colors of the inks installed. Consequently, a dye-sublimation printer produces true continuous tones appearing much like a chemical photograph. An inkjet print is composed of droplets of ink layered and scattered to simulate continuous tones, but under magnification, the individual droplets can be seen. In the early days of inkjet printing, the large droplets and low resolution made inkjet prints significantly inferior to dye-sublimation, but many of today’s inkjets produce extremely high-quality prints using microscopic droplets and supplementary ink colors, producing superior color fidelity and sharpness to dye-sublimation.
Due to the fast development of digital textile printing, dye sublimation inks are becoming more and more popular in digital inkjet printing on fabrics.For environments that print confidential or secret documents, a dye-sublimation printer is a potential security risk that must be handled carefully. Due to the mechanism of printing, a perfect color-separated negative image of the printed page remains on the spent ribbon panels, and the “waste roll” of dye panels can be unrolled to see everything that has been printed with the printer. For such environments, the waste roll should be shredded or incinerated onsite rather than simply being discarded in the trash. Also, for home users, the waste roll from a photo printer can be similarly recovered from the garbage and used to see everything that has been printed. Since the supply roll is plastic, the lifespan of a used roll can be years or decades long, permitting image recovery long after disposal.
The term direct dye sublimation is sometimes applied to a variant of digital textile printing using dye-sublimation inks printed directly onto fabric, which must then be heated to set the dyes, without the use of a transfer sheet.
For ID card printing, sharp text and bar codes are necessary, and they are printed by means of an additional wax-based black panel on the (YMCKO) ribbon. This extra panel works by thermal transfer printing instead of dye diffusion: a whole layer, instead of just some of the dye in the layer, transfers from the ribbon to the substrate at the pixels defined by the thermal head.Using a mechanism which is a variant of the thermal-transfer printer, the most common direct process lays down one color at a time, the dye being stored on a polyester ribbon that has each color on a separate panel. Each colored panel is the size of the medium that is being printed on; for example, a 4×6 in (10x15cm) dye-sub printer would have four 4×6 in (10x15cm) panels.Previously, the use of dye-sub printing was limited to industrial or high-end commercial printing. Dye-sub photo printing has been used in medical imaging, graphic arts proofing, security, and broadcast-related applications.Also, dye-sublimation papers and ribbons are sensitive to skin oils, which interfere with the dye’s ability to sublimate from the ribbon to the paper. They must also be free of dust particles, which can lead to small colored blobs appearing on the prints. Most dye-sublimation printers have filters and/or cleaning rollers to reduce the likelihood of this happening, and a speck of dust can only affect one print as it becomes attached to the print during the printing process. Finally, dye-sublimation printers fall short when producing neutral and toned black-and-white prints with higher density levels and virtually no metamerism or bronzing.
The amount of wasted dye per page is also very high; most of the dye in the four panels may be wasted for a typical print. Once a panel has been used, even to just print a single dot, the remaining dye on that panel cannot be reused for another print without leaving a blank spot where the dye was used previously. Due to the single-roll design of most printers, four panels of colored dye must be used for every print, whether or not a panel is needed for the print. Printing in monochrome saves nothing, and the three unused color panels for that page cannot be recycled for a different single-color print. Inkjet printers also suffer from ‘dye wastage’ as the ink cartridges are prone to drying up with low usage (without ‘heavy use’, the cartridge nozzles can become clogged with dried ink). Dye-sublimation media packs, which include both ribbon and paper, are rated for an exact number of prints which yields a fixed cost per print. This is in contrast to inkjet printers where inks are purchased by volume.
During the printing cycle, the printer rollers will move the medium and one of the colored panels together under a thermal printing head, which is usually the same width as the shorter dimension of the print medium. Tiny heating elements on the head change temperature rapidly, laying different amounts of dye depending on the amount of heat applied. Some of the dye diffuses into the printing medium. After the printer finishes printing the medium in one color, it advances the ribbon to the next color panel and partially ejects the medium from the printer to prepare for the next cycle. The entire process is repeated four or five times in total: the first three lay the colors onto the medium to form a complete image; there may or may not then be a (wax ink) black thermal transfer process; the last pass lays the laminate over top. This layer protects the dyes from UV light and moisture. The dyes diffuse a small amount before being absorbed by the media. Consequently, prints are not razor-sharp. For photographs, this produces very natural prints, but for other uses (such as graphic design) this slight blurriness is a disadvantage.
Historically, “dye sublimation” referred to page printers that use a thermal printhead to transfer dye from a ribbon directly onto the print media via sublimation. While it originally was used in creating prepress proofs, today this technology survives in ID card printers and dedicated photo printers, often under the name dye diffusion thermal transfer (D2T2).
Dye sublimation offers some advantages over inkjet printing. For one, the prints are dry and ready to handle as soon as they exit the printer. Since the thermal head does not have to sweep back and forth over the print media, there are fewer moving parts that can break down. The whole printing cycle is extremely clean as there are no liquid inks to clean up. These factors make dye-sublimation generally a more reliable technology than inkjet printing.ACG is a small company with big-time financial resources, and they are in your corner. No ivory tower bankers looking down on you just real people – hard-working equipment finance experts who fight to get your deal done…time and time again.Getting the right financing for your equipment and/or supplies is important and we’d love to help you make the best decision. If you have additional questions on financing options, please give our Customer Success Team a call at 800-562-7760 or email us at [email protected]. * If secondary financing is required, a hard pull on credit may be neccessary with your approval. The average shot glass might not leave you with many memories, but our sublimatable ceramic shot glass certainly will! These shot glasses make the perfect personalized gift for party animals! Celebrate 21st birthdays, promote your restaurant or bar, or create a personalized collection for unique tipplers. Clicklease specializes in equipment lease-to-own financing for companies of all sizes. They provide their partners with more capital flexibility to help ensure their success in the demanding world of business. Fast notification of approval – generally within 2 minutes.Affirm offers simple and transparent financing on equipment and supplies. With Affirm, there are no late fees, no hidden fees, and zero impact on your credit score. Simply choose Affirm at checkout on your order of $250 and up and get approved in seconds.
Many custom shot glasses found at bars are customized using the sublimation process. Similar to our sublimation coffee mugs, the 1.5 oz. ceramic shot glasses are coated with a special layer of polymer to allow for sublimation. They can permanently hold sublimation transfers, are both hand and machine washable, and leave no surface feeling when sublimated.
Let’s turn on the mug press and set it to press at 385° Fahrenheit for 190 seconds. Once it reaches temperature, put on some heat-resistant gloves and carefully place the shot glass inside the attachment. The best placement for shot glasses is to have the paper side facing the heating element, and the tape side facing upwards. Placing the shot glass in any other way tends to pinch the transfer on the side above the heating element. Since we’re doing the tape trick, this will be pretty easy to avoid as the tape side needs to stick out for the extra grip anyways. Go ahead and place the shot glass inside, press it, then stick the tape to the mug press.
Now if you’ve transferred onto a mug before, you’ll know that the process is straightforward. All you need to do is find or create the image you’d like to transfer, print it on your sublimation printing system, then transfer it using a mug heat press with a shot glass attachment. If you’ve purchased the Signature Series 2-in-1, 4-in-1, or 6-in-1 mug press from us, an attachment for shot glasses is included, which is also available on its own. Just disconnect and unscrew the default mug attachment from your machine, position the shot glass attachment to the center screw holes and fasten it, then connect it to your machine. Before we power on the mug press, let’s adjust it to be as firm as possible, which will help us with the tape trick. This neat trick essentially holds the shot glass in place inside the attachment, as the rest of the tape will be attached to the mug press itself. This not only reduces the chances of ink ghosting and/or fading when pressing shot glasses, it also prevents them from popping out when closed. These Shot Glasses and more Sublimation Drinkware are available at HeatPressNation.com. If you have any questions about sublimation shot glasses or sublimation in general, please free call us at 800-215-0894, or email [email protected]. Thanks for reading and drink responsibly!Let your shot glass cool away from the machine for about 30-60 seconds. Then peel the transfer to reveal your beautiful results. You should have an awesome sublimated shot glass with rich, vibrant colors. Whether you’re preparing them for a local bar or a special occasion, these ceramic shot glasses are gonna look fantastic.