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View Full Version : Direct to Garment Printing - I've gone and done it!



Stitch Up
12-02-2010, 08:55 AM
Morning guys

As some here will already know, I've been interested in DTG (Direct To Garment) printing for quite a while. I visited many demos in the early days but thus far, have resisted the temptation.

HOWEVER, following many conversations with the developer, I've now 'bitten the bullet' and jumped right in, I've placed my order for one of the latest printers to hit the streets.

Over the past month or so, I've been reading up on the various offerings, learning the ups & downs of the various brands - I very nearly got myself an eBay bargain a couple of weeks back!

This is what I've ordered: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwPd4UxlC6g

More exciting developments very soon

John

bms
12-02-2010, 09:08 AM
Looks great!

Presumably you still need to pre-treat the garment with this machine? Is it a spray or a roll on? Would be interested to head how the white ink goes - does it need stirring/ aggitating every so often to prevent settling?

John G
12-02-2010, 10:36 AM
Now that looks head and shoulders above the machine you nearly got from ebay - signage too!

It really does look fantastic, please let us know how you get on.

Stitch Up
12-02-2010, 11:14 AM
I did compose a lengthy reply to Martin's post but it appears to have gone astray! Grrrrrrr

I'm 57 now and if I wait any longer for white ink technology to be entirely problem free my kids will inherit it before I get delivery!!!

To answer Martin's question. Yes, one still has to pre-prep the garment prior to printing the white underbase, this is common to all white ink printers. The prep method is the traditional spray method although, I have seen some people use both spray and then roller to ensure a good even coverage. No prep is required for printing on white shirts though, except the normal heat pressing to remove moisture prior to printing and of course it helps if the shirt lays flat :).

White ink still needs to be treated in the same way as before but the sealed cartridge system is not so labour intensive. I hope to elaborate further on this soon.

I, like many entering the DTG printing arena have to make the decision whether to print dark shirts or just whites. From what I can gather, 30% of the T-shirt industry is whites and the remainder is dark. Even if it was 50/50, would I wnat to turn away 50% of the business? Would you?

Prior to seeing the NeoFlex I was drawn to the Brother GT-541. The Brother printer will only print white or light coloured shirts but it's one of the very few DTG printers designed soley for the purpose. Consequently it doesn't suffer the common issue of ink clogging that's been such a problem in the past.

Neoflex have improved the situation by using a sealed ink system, a programmable cleaning routine and the use of the teflon coated Epson 4880 printhead. As with all these DTG printers, cleaning and maintenance procedures are key to avoiding downtime. Anyone involved in DyeSub will already know the problems of printhead clogging.

The NeoFlex appealed to me for various reasons:
1. The designer has created a system where the issue of white ink clogging has been addressed.
2. The printing area surpasses that of most of it's competitors. See the video.
3. The platen remains stationary as it's the printhead that moves along the substrate. This allows me to remove printed items and locate items to be printed while the printer continues to print.
4. I can convert the printer between solvent and textile in about 3 minutes.
5. The variety of substrates I can print to is vast, again, see the video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwPd4UxlC6g.

There are many other features I've considered but at the moment, my brain is frazzled and I can't remember them all :D

I've had quite a few conversations with the designer of the printer and asked lots of questions. The main issue for me was that there are no NeoFlexes in the UK so I can't go and see one working. fortunately, we've overcome this issue.

Hopefully soon and when I've got up to speed with the printer, anyone who wants to see it in operation will be welcome here. I can also produce some videos on any aspect of use and post here.

Like a kid with a new toy, I'm quite excited about it's arrival, okay, I'm bloody excited :D

To me it looks fantastic but the proof of the 'pudding will be in the eating' and I'll keep you all informed. I'm confident.

Cheers

John

Andrew
12-02-2010, 11:33 AM
Wow I am jealous. Looks great and always wanted to go down that route...... just was never prepared to spend the pound notes. I have an old Epson 4000 which is what seems to be an older version of the printing unit so I am looking at it now and visualizing t-shirts going through it.

Keep us updated as I would be interested to know how you get on and what else you can print at a decent cost.

Good luck,

Andrew

bms
12-02-2010, 01:14 PM
I did compose a lengthy reply to Martin's post but it appears to have gone astray! Grrrrrrr

What the post above a cut down version of the lengthy post? ;)

Stitch Up
12-02-2010, 01:45 PM
How do you spell précis? Coz that's it :D

Justin
12-02-2010, 01:53 PM
Now that is a very useful looking machine John! I'm sure we'll all think of many things you can do for us! LOL

Keep us informed, I'm sure you will. I'll sit through the video later.

Justin :D

theemmanewman
13-02-2010, 08:50 PM
I'm sure we'll all think of many things you can do for us! I'll sit through the video later.



The list is growing - also pencilled video in for later, can't quite face it on a Saturday night!

chongsta
26-02-2010, 09:41 PM
Oh dear Lord !

Watta piece of kit...can you seem my green envious eyes!!!???

You must let us know how this works for you. $18,000xx about £11k yes? whats the shipping etc, ink cart prices...can you tell us all the rest of it.

I WAAAANT ONEEEE :)]

Dave (green?!")

p.s. im only in swansea....expect a visit, your only 5 mins up the M4

chongsta
04-03-2010, 05:36 PM
Hi John,

Any news on this yet? whens it due into the Uk?

cheers
Dave.

Stitch Up
04-03-2010, 06:19 PM
All being well, I'm hoping to collect it at the SignDigital show in April :)

Hoping to offset transport costs and a bit more.

chongsta
04-03-2010, 11:48 PM
cheers...cant wait to see it in action!

just curious, will you be taking in work as well? I expect the printer will be red hot when you first get it but im sure that any other printing work will be welcome yes? no?

I know that i would take you up on an offer to print my designs that simply wont goto vinyl, screen or sub-dye!

Just another thing as well, ive read a lot over at the t-shirt forum about designs fading after 2 or 3 washes, what sort of guarantee did the company give you or indeed did they send you some samples that you could road test yourself? Ive read that all garments need pre-treatment (not sure about polys) but there is a 'fade' issue. with some designs the fade is good i think because it adds that 'worn' effect, but of course you wouldnt want to lose a lot of colours after a few washes.

Im seriously watching how this comes off for you and i really wish you well with it. Its a huge purchase but if the output is good, then im working extra paper rounds to get one :) :geek: :ugeek:

cheers
Dave.

Stitch Up
05-03-2010, 08:38 AM
Morning Dave & all

I'm sure if you've researched these machines you'll know they need to be kept busy and the best way to keep them busy is by printing shirts :) We'll be doing retail & wholesale so will be taking in orders and they'll be welcome of course. Sods Law of course, I've just had an order for 300 printed shirts and I don't have the printer yet!!

I took a look at all the other DTG printers at the Printwear show on Tuesday. There were more brands there than I expected.The 2 that caught my eye were the Anajet Sprint and the DTG Viper & K3, the DTGs had the edge over the Anajet as it has the WIMS system of stirring and circulating the white inks.

I've got a load of samples BUT, they specifically requested that I didn't carry out wash tests because at the show, many of the shirts aren't finished due to time constraints. Most weren't cured. Nearly all (with the exception of Brother I think) use Dupont inks, some manufactures label it differently but they are Dupont inks. This basically means that no matter what brand of DTG printer the wash results should be the same or similar any variance is down to the people who produce the shirt and the methods used - like what pre-treat and how much applied and the fabric mix of the garment etc.

There are inks designed for poly and some of the shirts were displayed on the Anajet stand - the vibrancy on white poly shirts was outstanding.

Pre-treat is only required for dark/black shirts where white ink is used, it's not required for the others - all have to be cured though.

I've been thinking about DTG printing for a long while. Four years ago I went to a demo locally and was most disappointed by the end result. Things have moved on a lot since then.

Probably doesn't answer all the points you raised so if you have any other questions, do ask.

John

chongsta
05-03-2010, 10:51 PM
Cheers John

Yeah you pretty much answered everything. I too have been looking at DTG and i found a chinese company through that t-shirt forum. Theirs was only 3k but it was marketed as a flatbed printer that can do DTG. I was willing to take a 3k gamble on it because a lot of my designs were white anyway, so even if there was a registration problem with colour overlay, at least i has a white printer for darks. Kinda loony i know but it wouldve saved a lot of time weeding intricate designs with vinyl.

Im surprised that they didnt have a heat press with them to cure the shirts when printed though! a little "suss" if you ask me but im sure theres a reason although if i was pushing a DTG i would make sure that expo customers could walk away with a finished garment to try out inthe wash. This is my concern and something that ive read about a lot. A few people in the U.S. went to the big show in Miami (i think!) and when they got their samples back and did the acid test, a lot were dissapointed with the amount of fade. Im familiar with the names you mentioned and these names were brought up at the t-shirt forum, but the yanks being yanks were being ultra picky and some were using calibration equipment to measure the colour loss! Ok i see their angle but does anything stay 100% fade proof? no! especialy when numptys boil their t-shirts coz mum aint washing them lol :)

Yup, du-pont are at the forefront of white inks and yes its all bottled with different names. I use Roland Eco-sol Max inks in my Versacamm, but upon ripping an old cart apart i see Epson with a very silly white sticker over it! Ok it might not be Epson ink (do they make ink?) but of course theres some rebranding going on somewhere. in defense of Epson, i do see that their carts for their machines are extremely similar to Rolands so perhaps its just the cart-build that theyre covering up - who knows?

Im also with you on the WIMS as well. After doing some geek-googling i found that white ink is in fact Titanium with a bonder mixed in and this is where the problem is, the titanium is the chief clogger of expensive heads, thus the bonder needs to be constantly mixed so that it fires well through the Epson heads. Yours has this constant mixing and i guess most of the price goes into this technology. The machine i was gonna get didnt have this which of course rang Big ben bells, i couldjust see it clog up or loads of head cleans to pull it through, which wastes way too much ink, and this white ink aint cheap.

I applaude you for getting this machine but i do think we're still a few years away from printers that we know now. And thats good! coz its stops tom, dick and harry getting in and undercutting the market. Perhaps we can charge just what the price should be and not 50p like on ebay! (no offense to ebayers...im one, but i charge proper prices for my work, im no mug - no self-pun intended lol)

I know its probably way to early to ask this, but have you thought of a trade price yet for full colour dark tee's? both chest logo and full frontal designs?

also, have you cured the samples you had? and washed them? its only nature that the full amount of colour wont stay on there because of the ruff and tumble of the washing machine and natural loss, but i really hope that they do keep at least 85-90% of their original colour.

Cheers John, all the best
Dave.

Stitch Up
06-03-2010, 07:58 AM
I can understand why YES weren't curing the shirts everytime. Their stand was so busy and a constant queue of people wanting to see the DTGs in action and then people like me, asking tons of questions and getting different designs printed. The curing process would have taken them to long and taken them away from what they were there for - to demo the printers. I think I would have had a 'runner' whose job was to take the printed shirts and press/cure them. They're sending me some in the post - ask for samples too.

I too believe DTG printers still have a long way to go and one day, one of the big hitters will come up with a white ink that exhibits none of the problems presently experienced, thing is, I've waited several years already and I hope it'll be several years more :)

Weeding - tell me about it! Angie does all our weeding, she has more patience than me and find it therapeutic :roll: thank God!

I've not thought of a wholesale price just yet, there are gonna be so many variables to take account of and I know it's not gonna be 'out the box' plug in and off to go, so I have a little time to dwell on that.

You're right on branding, a lot of the stuff out there is re-branded. Take a good close look at the Neoflex & then compare it to the Epson 4880 printer! Similar?

The white ink blocking issue is/has been a major problem as I'm sure you know if you've been reading the T-Shirts forum. Even those who use the bulk ink systems on this forum experience blocking of the colours! To be honest, I couldn't be bothered with that and purchased the Ricoh Gels Printer 7000. I have NEVER had a single issue with it, it prints first time, everytime even if it's been left for weeks. Thats how I want it to be :)

I've read a few posts where people have used ultra sonic vibrators to unclog heads with great success - my worry would be that it could destroy the head, hmmmm.

I've often thought of getting a Versacamm, which do you have? I have the Gerber Edge FX vinyl printer and so far it's worked well. The ability to print white & metallics is great for specialised work and means it can do stuff others can't. Hideously expensive though especially when combined the Gerber cutter.

I'll take some pics of some of the DTG shirts I have later & post them here.

All good stuff.

John

Kaz
06-03-2010, 10:02 AM
Sorry to butt in here, but can someone explain weeding to me, I've seen it mentioned a few times.

Thanks

Stitch Up
06-03-2010, 10:20 AM
This is weeding Kaz.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqtBc8hJRRI

Kaz
06-03-2010, 10:46 AM
Thanks for that :)

I take it the process is the same for clothing, i.e instead of putting on transfer tape, you just put it on the garment and heat press it?

Stitch Up
06-03-2010, 10:51 AM
Exactly that. I can print to the vinyl, then contour cut in mirror and heat press on the garment.

Kaz
06-03-2010, 10:55 AM
That was my next question :lol:

Can you print on coloured vinyl? And do you need a specialist printer to do it?

Maybe I should start a thread about this somewhere :?

Stitch Up
06-03-2010, 11:16 AM
Yes, you can print to coloured vinyls - white being the easiest of course.

You do required a solvent printer or one of the other types now hitting the streets - like the new HP latex printer, BUT, you're talking a lot of money.

John

Kaz
06-03-2010, 11:28 AM
Thanks John, maybe something to consider for the future.

I'm just starting out, but my head is bursting with different ideas and questions. I did say on my welcome thread that I would have lots of silly questions :lol:

Stitch Up
06-03-2010, 12:42 PM
'm sure there are a lot on here who benefit from 'silly' questions as you call them - not silly at all, if you need to know something, ask away.

John

Kaz
06-03-2010, 12:48 PM
Thanks, will do :D

Oh, and have you seen this on ebay?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... K:MEWAX:IT (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=180476572623&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT)

Stitch Up
06-03-2010, 12:58 PM
I'd have to learn to be a dressmaker with that!! No plans :)

Kaz
06-03-2010, 12:59 PM
Ah, so that's different to what you're getting then?

Stitch Up
06-03-2010, 01:01 PM
This is what I've ordered: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwPd4UxlC6g

Kaz
06-03-2010, 01:11 PM
Looks very interesting, but not something I'm going to be in the market for for a very long time.

I'm working out of my spare room doing this :lol:

chongsta
07-03-2010, 04:07 AM
Hi John,

I have the Versacamm sp300-v on Eco-sol Max inks.

I bought it about 5 years ago new from Grafityp in Stafford, fantastic company to deal with, i cant big them up enough. Theyve helped me so much its unreal.

i originally bought it because when i started in business it was making stained glass mirrors. If you think of double glazing units with designs on them, i did that but onto mirrors. We used to sell to football clubs but like some people will know, footie clubs are notoriously bad payers of invoices! we also had issues with delivery because no couriers would handle 50 mirrors, even though they were super bubblewrapped and boxed, we had to deliver ourselves. Luckily my brother works for Sinclair-volkswagen in swansea so we always managed to wangle a van for the day as long as we left it with diesel. but of course you cant rely on and expect this every time and its not an ideal business way to do things. Sadly the business went bust last year, i admit it was bad management on my behalf and theres a rather long and sad story behind it involving death, burgulary, loss of life savings, my house being repossessed, liquidation and then finally bankruptcy! but hey...im still here! :shock: and after all that Im now restarting things up on the 5th april.


Boy did i digress there!

anyhoo, yes the printer has paid itself off 10 times over and its still kicking strong. I made a fatal mistake of using 3rd party inks in an economy drive and ended up paying nearly 2k to replace the heads. The heads never clog up and even if a couple of bars are missing on the test print, they soon reappear. i really wish i had got the 54" version but we didnt see that far into the future at the time. it was quite by accident that we realised it could print onto canvas, things changed and the mirrors were soon a thing of the past! canvas was faster and much more profitable. Im not one to blow my own trumpet but many photographers i do canvases for are more than pleased with the output, it took a lot of learning about CMYK to get good results as im sure any printer will tell you. Its nice to speak with fellow printers who have been in the trade for 20 years and to give them tips that they never knew lol.

I do have some slight issues with the cutlines though, they can be a millimeter out sometimes, doesnt sound much but its bloody annoying when you print something - cut it out - and you get a white "shadow" from the white vinyl!

I believe the Versacamm has now been upgraded twice now, the VP version and the Art version, both are nearly twice as fast at printing and if im in the market for a new printer then Ill stick with the Versacamm VP or Art. I was offered a 12 colour Cannon before christmas for 5K but for me this is overkill! 12 carts to replace, no thanks. i dont do fine art repro so theres no need.

...cant wait to see your DTG mate! get the kettle on and ill bring up some cockles and Welsh cakes from Swansea market :)

cheers
Dave.

Stitch Up
21-03-2010, 02:48 PM
Just a few pics I took this morning of the sample shirts from two of the DTG printers at the Printwear Show.

The first 2 were printed with the DTG Kiosk 3 in a single pass - hence the 'One Pass' in the design.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Finished%20Products/Shirts/DTGKiosk35.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Finished%20Products/Shirts/DTGKiosk32.jpg


The next two shirts were printed on the Brother GT-541. This printer has limited possibilities as it doesn't have white ink.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Finished%20Products/Shirts/Brother1-1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Finished%20Products/Shirts/Brother3-1.jpg

John

Kaz
21-03-2010, 06:39 PM
They're brill :)

I'm soooooo jealous, but hopefully me wee business from my spare room will bring in enough money to consider a DTG printer in the future :)

chongsta
26-03-2010, 11:30 PM
Indeed these are well sweet!

The Kiosk 2 is available for about $5k from china. I asked about them in the t-shirt forum and got quite a direct reply of "DONT GO NEAR THEM", the reason theyre so cheap is because the makers made so many mistakes that they cant shift them, you either get a good one...or a bad one! simple as that.

Ive not priced up the Kiosk 3 yet but this time a few people on the t-shirt forum are happy with them! Theres so many threads on DTG over there that its hard to make a decision either way but at least if a few people are happy with the Kiosk3 then it might be worth a look. I still wouldnt buy one from the UK though, its like e.g. £8K (lets just add £3k for fun) and hey presto its £11k. You can get far far cheaper from china and the chinese are offering all sorts of deals as well.

To be honest im just waiting to see your piece of kit in action mate, it really does look the dogs nads.

btw have you washed those samples yet? in fact have you given them a good "wearing"? The white looks very sharp indeed.

cheers
Dave.

Andrew
27-03-2010, 12:23 PM
Love that Maori print on black. Superb finish.

Stitch Up
03-04-2010, 09:51 AM
Love that Maori print on black. Superb finish.

Yes, that one is quite impressive and the butterfly simply demonstrates the accuracy of the print registration although in both case above (DTG One-Pass) the printing was done in one pass.

My Neoflex is going to be delayed a little! One because the supplier can't make the Sign Digital show and two, because there is an upcoming change to the firmware & RIP software enabling the Neoflex to also print in one pass. It really is such a time saver and would allow us to produce both white & dark shirt printing at events & shows etc. Previously, dark shirt printing would have been a no no for waiting customers - particularly if there was a queue :D

John

Flash
29-04-2010, 08:32 PM
Hi John, I sent you a PM earlier but it appears that most of my questions are answered in this thread :? Have you got your D.T.G yet? I see there are a couple of Kiosk 1 machines on Ebay right now, are these worth considering?

Phil

GoldRapt
30-04-2010, 08:48 PM
John,
I will be totally jealous here and say "I envy you your bank balance" :D

Stitch Up
18-05-2010, 10:39 PM
Collecting the Neoflex & Neotex on 27th June from FESPA, Munich :)

Stitch Up
26-05-2010, 09:47 PM
Well, I've landed myself a job at FESPA :) Hall B2 stand 170.

If anyone plans a visit, please come and say hello.

John

GoldRapt
27-05-2010, 08:40 AM
Congrats, your other emoployer giving you a holiday or is this a change in direction mate?

Stitch Up
27-05-2010, 06:53 PM
Congrats, your other emoployer giving you a holiday or is this a change in direction mate?

I have a week off from the day job and I going to collect my Neoflex from the show. I spending the duration of the show on the Neoflex stand for training but they're also paying me :) Great guys.

Cheers

John

Stitch Up
29-06-2010, 11:26 PM
Well, what a tough week at FESPA!

I arrived at Munich Airport on Monday 26th the day before FESPA started . I got a taxi to the Messe Munchen (Exhibition Centre) and found the guys from All American at their stand. Spent the whole day helping them get things together and of course got a peek at the Neoflex :lol: Never seen one in the flesh before.

Anyway, I spent the rest of the week dealing with visitors to the stand, to say it was hectic is an understatment. The AA stand was certainly one of the busiest. The Neoflex textile printer was busy continually churning out dark shirt after dark shirt with amazing colour vibrancy - I was not disappointed :D

I've taken stacks of pictures and video and when I get a spare moment, I'll post some here.

I guess if there's one thing I regret it's not having the tme to get around the show, we were just flat out all the time. But, the show was so vast, I could hae spent the week looking around.

Cheers

John

Oh, my Neoflex sysem will be here soon - arrived in the UK today, I think!

Stitch Up
01-07-2010, 04:25 PM
A couple of pictures

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/FESPA%20Show%20June%202010/P1000762.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/FESPA%20Show%20June%202010/P1000740.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/FESPA%20Show%20June%202010/P1000761.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/FESPA%20Show%20June%202010/P1000753.jpg

Printson untreated wood
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/FESPA%20Show%20June%202010/P1000735.jpg

and golf balls
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/FESPA%20Show%20June%202010/P1000736.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/FESPA%20Show%20June%202010/P1000738.jpg

..... and a couple of videos

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5Ge92AyN3s

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAdcfFHXOQY

John G
01-07-2010, 05:10 PM
Hi John,
Does the ink key onto the golf balls or would it scratch off/wear off during play.

Cheers John

Stitch Up
01-07-2010, 05:19 PM
Hi John

There are in fact 2 printers, the textile (NEOTEX) and a solvent (NEOSOL) - I've purchased both and they have totally different applications.

The golf balls were printed using the solvent printer and the result is very hardy. We tried scratching the print off with our nails but couldn't make any impression at all.

The solvent printer has a built in heater which open the microscopic pores of the surface ad then lays down the ink which gets trapped in the pores. That's the theory anyway. :)

John

GoldRapt
01-07-2010, 05:24 PM
Cool, Thanks for the update

Paul
01-07-2010, 08:11 PM
http://trzebuchowscy.com/MMH/images/ezk8e49xob8g8pyt8yi.jpg

Andrew
02-07-2010, 10:43 AM
Love that bit of kit. I'd spend all my time playing with it and bever get any real work done.

When you get your pricing worked out I might be able to send some work your way.

Stitch Up
02-07-2010, 11:03 AM
Will do Andrew, when I've got it all set-up and got over my initial fright of the beast - I'll need to keep it busy :)

Stitch Up
04-07-2010, 12:07 PM
Not sure whether you need to be brave or stupid to wear this one!!!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/DSC03044.png

Paul
04-07-2010, 05:24 PM
:D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
:D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
:D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
I WANT ONE!!!! :P

Stitch Up
04-07-2010, 09:26 PM
I'll do one for you but don't tell anyone :)

Paul
05-07-2010, 02:38 PM
great stuff john! how much for xl?

Stitch Up
20-07-2010, 04:25 PM
After 3 weeks held up with British Customs I'm glad to say that my Neoflex system has finally arrived :)

All very solidly packed.

Just a few of the boxes
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/Neoflex%20Unpacking/NeoflexDelivered19thJuly20102.jpg

Before unpacking I did an unusual thing for me - I thoroughly read the build instruction :) and had a good night's sleep.

I did plan on building the Neoflex system in the sunshine on the pato but, the good ole British summer let me down - we've had torrential rain all day. So I took over the conservatory, a bit cramped with all the other printing equipment but it was okay.

The structural parts of the base
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/Neoflex%20Unpacking/NeoflexUnpacking20thJuly20105.jpg

The brains of the unit - The base mainframe, the heaviect single component.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/Neoflex%20Unpacking/NeoflexBuilding20thJuly201010.jpg

Shows the Neosol & Neotex
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/Neoflex%20Unpacking/NeoflexUnpacking20thJuly2010.jpg

The process of assembling the base is quite straightforward, follow the instructions and you'll be okay. The one thing that's very evident is the good strength of the assembled base.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/Neoflex%20Unpacking/NeoflexBuilding20thJuly20102.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/Neoflex%20Unpacking/NeoflexBuilding20thJuly20106.jpg

Ready for the base mainframe
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/Neoflex%20Unpacking/NeoflexBuilding20thJuly20107.jpg

More later - when I can find someone strong enough to help me lift it on :)

Stitch Up
20-07-2010, 09:42 PM
Finished and switched on :)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/Neoflex%20Unpacking/FinalAssembyPowerOn2.jpg

Loading the inks tomorrow

smartarts
20-07-2010, 10:02 PM
Congrtulations John, it looks fantastic. :o

Kaz
27-07-2010, 01:23 PM
How's the printing going?

GoldRapt
27-07-2010, 02:04 PM
Is it epson then?

Stitch Up
28-07-2010, 10:15 PM
Hi Tony

Most of the latest DTG printers are based on Epson printers & printheads. They are heavilly modified to suit DTG.

As DTG inks are thicker than the usual inks the Epson printheads were designed for, there's a strict maintenance regime to ensure the printhead doesn't get clogged up.

I haven't even loaded the inks yet as things have just been so hectic in work! This weekend should see the first printed shirts :)

John

Stitch Up
30-08-2010, 06:15 PM
It's another uphil climb on the old learning curve but here's one we printed earlier and Angie 'blinged it up' with a couple of rhinestones.

The white ink
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/ButterfliesFlowersintheMakingSmaller.jpg

The colour ink
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/ButterfliesFlowersintheMaking7Smaller.jpg

The bling!!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/ButterfliesFlowerssmaller.png

Kaz
30-08-2010, 07:18 PM
Oh WOW!!! That's really good, I'm sooooooooo jealous :lol:

GoldRapt
30-08-2010, 09:42 PM
Nice

Ian M
30-08-2010, 09:55 PM
John, that is just so amazing. :mrgreen: :D

Stitch Up
30-08-2010, 11:17 PM
Thanks guys for the thumbs up. It's always nice to get such support. :D

It's been a struggle to get to this point, stacks of trashed shirts and no doubt many more to come! There are so many influencing factors and variables i.e. %ages of each colour and white ink and even the humidity of the working environment.

I'm reasonably okay with artwork I develop but I'm still struggling with colours on supplied artwork but, it's here to be mastered and I'm determined to work it through. In addition, these printers need daily maintence to keep them working. Having spent so much on the system and ancillaries, I'm pretty anal about the maintenace and probably spend a lot more time than is really necessary.

We're already picking up work, both retail & wholesale. Pricing is always a struggle to get right. When I was contracting this work out I was happy to pay £7.50 for a black shirt with DTG printing. That was a wholesale price and I'm planning on getting below this.

Cheers

John

AdamB
31-08-2010, 12:40 AM
The shirts look brilliant John - very impressive ................ and very jealous! (but hey, in a few months I will hopefully invest in one also - hopingly).

Let me know when you can take work on John, I would love to get some designs done with the DTG for myself and other clients.

:-)

bms
31-08-2010, 08:41 AM
I would love to get some designs done with the DTG for myself
Me too! I'm out in Singapore later in Sept and the F1 night time race is on whilst I'm over there. Would be great to get something for the race if at all possible...

Stitch Up
31-08-2010, 06:53 PM
I'm more than willing to take on work and would only supply a finished item if I thought it was good enough.

I could do a wholesale price for 10 or more shirts. I'll do 'one offs' but can't offer wholesale pricing on these as there's so much involved to produce one shirt :shock:

White shirts are easier to do than darks. Dark shirts require pretreatment and longer curing times.

Email me if you have any questions or want to send me artwork.

Cheers

John

Kaz
01-09-2010, 11:12 PM
John

Hoe long did it take to print that design, and did you have to wait long between the white and the colour pass?

Kaz
x

Stitch Up
02-09-2010, 07:40 AM
That design probably took 1.5 mins for the white ink layer and 1 minute for the colour. I've set the printer to stop in between the white and colour layers so I can ensure the white layer is dry. For this design I probably waited 30 secs or so. BUT, when I get it right, as soon as the white ink has printed the colour layer will print immediately - that's how things were when I was in Munich FESPA using the printer all day long.

Kaz, I'm very much still in learning mode. Although the rip software seems quite simple to start with, there are a lot of adjustments one has to make to get best results. Because these printers are affected by the environment, you have to make many adjustments. Then there's the ICC profiles :shock:

Kaz
02-09-2010, 10:34 AM
Thanks John :D

I don't envy you the learning curve that comes with that piece of kit, struggling with what I'm trying to do just now, and you do all that on top of a full time job, I take my hat off to you :D

Stitch Up
18-09-2010, 10:30 AM
As many of the pictures have disappeared from this thread, I thought I'd post them again. I always enjoy seeing what other people are doing as it inspires me and often gives me new ideas.

NOTE:
I've not produced these shirts for sale, they were produced as part of the huge learning curve! For each good outcome there have probably been 3 trashed!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/RedBullShirt1Smaller.png

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/LogoonBlackTSmaller.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/LlandowCircuit2.jpg

Angie loves rhinestones :)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/ButterfliesFlowerssmaller.png

Practicing with white ink. DTG printers do not print any area in a design that's pure white C:0 M:0 Y:0 K:0
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/JackDanielsShirts1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/JackDanielsBack.png

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/5D8E9074.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/Dolphins.jpg

Adam, I made this design BIGGER and printed it again.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/SecondtoNoneT-Shirts1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/ESPTShirts1.jpg

White shirts are so easy to print on, also very easy with sublimation too. DTG needs to be cotton (no polyester more than 50%) sublimation needs polyester! DTG printers can print on polyester if you use the inks designed for use with poly.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/P1000924.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/SeasideDolphins.jpg

... and one for the forthcoming Six Nations
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/WashtheShitShirt.png

We're making progress but still a long way to go.

John

John G
18-09-2010, 11:02 AM
You've got to check your designs first John - you've got the shirts the wrong way round. :lol:

Stitch Up
18-09-2010, 11:17 AM
Hahahaha, not sure I understand John :twisted:

Paul
18-09-2010, 03:40 PM
You've got to check your designs first John - you've got the shirts the wrong way round. :lol:
:lol: :twisted:

Stitch Up
18-09-2010, 03:59 PM
I've checked again & again, they're definately the right way around :)

Paul
18-09-2010, 04:18 PM
what about last one John?? :D

Stitch Up
18-09-2010, 04:24 PM
Not unsurprisingly, that was the only one I checked :)

smartarts
18-09-2010, 06:05 PM
I agree with the others, definitely the wrong way round and I'm sure Ann Robinson would agree with us :lol: :lol: :lol:

Stitch Up
18-09-2010, 06:22 PM
Well, if I do change the dolphins around, it'll look stupid as they'll ne swimming toward the beach!

smartarts
18-09-2010, 09:31 PM
Pity you couldn't sell those Ariel shirts John, they have so many possible options. Might cause a riot or two of course, but you would sell a load. That machine might take some learning but I think you have certainly made the right investment.
Congrats,
Alan :mrgreen:

Stitch Up
19-09-2010, 12:52 PM
Pity you couldn't sell those Ariel shirts John, they have so many possible options. Might cause a riot or two of course,

Alan :mrgreen:

Cardiff City host Milwall in a few weeks :)

smartarts
19-09-2010, 02:34 PM
Cardiff v Millwall that's a friendly compared to Leeds v Millwall, oh! happy memories :twisted: :lol: :twisted: :lol:

Stitch Up
03-10-2010, 08:41 PM
You've got to check your designs first John - you've got the shirts the wrong way round. :lol:

I did this one wit my eyes shut!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/WalestoEngland.jpg

John G
03-10-2010, 08:45 PM
now thats more like it :D , even better - if it was a Sunderland shirt, sorry - spit spit, turning into a newcastle shirt i'd have one like a shot. :lol:

Stitch Up
06-10-2010, 07:39 AM
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/SunderlandtoNewcastle.jpg

mrs maggot
06-10-2010, 08:32 AM
now they are funny shirts - very very good

Stitch Up
09-10-2010, 05:18 PM
Our first B&W image printed on a Gildan shirt.

I don't know why but skull designs seem quite popular!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/SarnGirtsRock1.jpg

Yes, I made a mistake with the text layer and of course, only noticed it after the shirt was printed!! Corrected now!


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/HendrixPurpleHaze.jpg

AJLA
09-10-2010, 05:36 PM
Thats really good John.

Stitch Up
09-10-2010, 08:00 PM
Thanks Mandy.

I feel I've been to hell and back learning this printer. I'd been warned to expect it so ......

Stitch Up
17-10-2010, 08:34 PM
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/Skulls2BrightnessDown.jpg

Ian M
17-10-2010, 08:38 PM
John,

Everytime you post a new photo it blows me away even more than the last one. These shirts your doing are just so amazing.

Ian :D

Kaz
17-10-2010, 08:45 PM
I agree with Ian, they are fabby :D

John G
17-10-2010, 09:02 PM
I asked John to do the Sunderland to newcastle shirt and am blown away with the quality of the print. I screen print t'shirts for a living and would struggle to replicate the coverage, especially the yellow, and the quality. In fact I couldn't take the job on, for one offs, as the cost of 4 screens would make it unfeasible.

Cheers John

Ian M
17-10-2010, 09:16 PM
I asked John to do the Sunderland to newcastle shirt and am blown away with the quality of the print. I screen print t'shirts for a living and would struggle to replicate the coverage, especially the yellow, and the quality. In fact I couldn't take the job on, for one offs, as the cost of 4 screens would make it unfeasible.

Cheers John

So, John when are you getting a DTG machine? :D

Ian

John G
17-10-2010, 09:23 PM
Love one - but for that price you have to keep them busy, i'd prefer to farm my full colour work to John at Stitch up.

Cheers John

Ian M
17-10-2010, 11:21 PM
Love one - but for that price you have to keep them busy, i'd prefer to farm my full colour work to John at Stitch up.

Cheers John

John, I have around 11,000 reasons why I can't buy one :lol:

Ian

Stitch Up
20-10-2010, 08:24 PM
Sorry for not replying sooner guys, I don't seem to be getting the 'usual' notifying emails!

Anyway, thanks for the comments and at last, I can say the Neoflex is becoming enjoyable to use :D Believe me, it's been a struggle to get to grips with. Don't believe the garbage some distributors put out when they say it's easy - like everything, it's easy when you know how. To give you some idea, I've probably trashed 100 shirts and I hate waste.

I have to commend All American for their support - it's been amazing. I recall telling them when I was at the FESPA show in Munich, that I had an order for 50 shirts as soon as I got the Neoflex back home. Their comment; "You'll never do it"'. They were right - I subbed it.

John, I was amazed at the vibrancy of the yellow on that shirt too - it's like it's flourescent! I wasn't so happy with the feel but I'm working on that and getting far better results.

I just did an interview for www.Images-magazine.com (http://www.Images-magazine.com), never heard of it myself but the article will be in the November issue - I'll try and get permission to post it here.

I'll keep posting my pics here - only the good ones :oops:

smartarts
20-10-2010, 10:06 PM
Well done John, glad to read that you have nearly mastered the DTG printer, I hope also that you have managed to wash the SH** out of the designs of your football shirts. :lol: :lol: :lol:

Stitch Up
01-12-2010, 06:49 PM
Wish I could say I had mastered the art of DTG printing!! And just when I was making some headway, All American produce a full featured RIP for the Neoflex and so the learning curve starts all over again :)

Anyway, here are a few shirts printed using the new RIP software. These images were not processed in anyway other than automatically by the RIP software. The black in the image was a black fill and not a transparent layer, the RIP did it all. The detail and blending is amazing!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/DSC03487.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/DSC03488.jpg

and a close up - it feels warm just looking at it :)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/DSC03490.jpg

The important thing for me is that I'm no pro when it comes to preparing artwork for the Neoflex and any manual processing does take up valuable time.

I've been away with work for 3 weeks, hence my absence from the boards.

John

PS For some strange reason, I no longer get any notifiations when someone sends me messages or replied to my posts! If you need me to reply to anything, do give me a prod to my email address john@stitch-up.biz

smartarts
01-12-2010, 08:29 PM
AB-SO-LUTE-LY mind blowing, I am sure I won't be the only one who is so JEA-LO-US.... :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

Ian M
01-12-2010, 08:56 PM
John,

:o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o I'm just gob smacked :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o

I'm sat here just saying WOW! & I'm really lost for words as it is so amazing.

Ian :D

Paul
01-12-2010, 09:49 PM
:o :shock:

Justin
01-12-2010, 11:17 PM
Incredible John ;)

AdamB
01-12-2010, 11:52 PM
what can I say ................. here's me been weeding all day and being quite chuffed with the results ........... then I see this - OUTSTANDING!

It really does look the dogs dangles John - asstounding in fact. The colours are so vivid and it actually looks like real flames. It would be impressive enough to get this onto paper, but to get it onto clothing - well ............... as they say on e-bay:

A++++++++++++

;-)

Stitch Up
02-01-2011, 04:43 PM
Many things are better with vinyl

Stitch Up
03-03-2011, 10:08 PM
Today, I filmed the printing of this shirt:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/DSC03487.jpg

For those interested .....


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weuP10nOJNc

John G
03-03-2011, 10:16 PM
Impressive, is it dry when it comes out or does it need pressing?

Mugsman
03-03-2011, 10:21 PM
lol its me on the phone answer it please m8

AdamB
03-03-2011, 10:58 PM
I WANT ONE ............... he says with arms folded very tightly, and with lip overturned like a 7 year old!

Stitch Up
03-03-2011, 10:58 PM
Impressive, is it dry when it comes out or does it need pressing?

As wet as ink can be when it comes out John - so pressing to cure the inks is definately required :)


lol its me on the phone answer it please m8

Twas my son wanting money!!!!!

smitch6
03-03-2011, 11:43 PM
i know it kinda makes you feel jealous when you see what it can actually do
but soooo much money unfortunately

i suppose if you have the customer base and the premises etc all set up then it's worth it but when your still fairly new and don't have many orders unless you win the lottery thats a no-no :(

DREAMGLASS
04-03-2011, 09:02 AM
You can actually build your own dtg Steve if you have a suitable donor printer. I built one around an Epson 1160 printer following some generic plans that were put on a t-shirt forum. In its most simplistic form you are replacing the paper feed on the printer with a platen assembly that feeds the garment about 8mm from the printheads.

The practical problems are that light coloured garments need two passes of the print head to get enough ink onto the garment so you need to get the registration (alignment) right and if you want to print onto darks you need an Epson with eight 'cartidges', four containing white for the underbase and four for the colours as well as specialist software called RIP that controls the process and fires the colour in a two phase sequence.

Type DIY DTG into YouTube and you'll see a few examples.

AdamB
04-03-2011, 10:02 AM
You can actually build your own dtg Steve if you have a suitable donor printer. I built one around an Epson 1160 printer following some generic plans that were put on a t-shirt forum. In its most simplistic form you are replacing the paper feed on the printer with a platen assembly that feeds the garment about 8mm from the printheads.

The practical problems are that light coloured garments need two passes of the print head to get enough ink onto the garment so you need to get the registration (alignment) right and if you want to print onto darks you need an Epson with eight 'cartidges', four containing white for the underbase and four for the colours as well as specialist software called RIP that controls the process and fires the colour in a two phase sequence.

Type DIY DTG into YouTube and you'll see a few examples.

Let's not fill Steve with false hopes mate eh!

YES - you can build your own DTG machine and plans have been around for many months - but, as you say, it's a case of getting the registration SPOT ON that is the problem.

I built my own go kart as a kid - it was good but no way near as good as the lad next door whose parents bought him one from the catalogue!

If these things were really 'that easy' to build then surely people (such as yourself that has already built one) would be building and selling them on fleabay for a fraction of the cost.

smitch6
04-03-2011, 10:05 AM
i'm not very engineering minded so for me to even contemplate something like that wouldn't happen anyway lol

Stitch Up
05-03-2011, 09:30 PM
reopen now :)

I thought I'd posted an 'improper' picture or something :redface:

I have to agree with the many comments about the cost of these DTG printers, it really is quite some investment and believe me, I thought long & hard before I put the cash up!

Anyway, a couple of shirts I printed today

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/SkullwithRoses1.jpg

Thanks AdamB ;)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/blindTiger1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/RockyHorrorShow.jpg

Stitch Up
05-03-2011, 09:58 PM
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/MerchAsylum.jpg

Earlier in this thread (I think) I mentioned that just when I had got used to the software, All American came up with a much more powerful RIP. The 4 pictures above were all produced with this new RIP - it's simply amazing how easy it is to use!

Paul
06-03-2011, 01:04 AM
John! you are artist! you know that?!

accdave
06-03-2011, 09:53 AM
Everytime he posts a picture up he should provide us all with the t-shirt to ease the pain of envy :)

smitch6
06-03-2011, 10:01 AM
lol now that would be nice
i want to know if Stitch will adopt me so he can leave it to me in his will :)

Andrew
06-03-2011, 10:51 AM
Hi John. Just out of curiosity, what type of customer base do you target with that machine? Is it one off's or multiple prints etc?

mrs maggot
06-03-2011, 11:14 AM
i love the printed coat hanger labels - nice touch

danlad
06-03-2011, 04:38 PM
What does it cost to print a single t, does it use allot of ink per print? What sort of ink is it?

Stitch Up
11-03-2011, 10:40 PM
..... and finaly,

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/Meerkat.jpg

Simples :)

Paul
11-03-2011, 10:46 PM
its a meerrrrrrkaaaat! not! its marrrket! meeeerrrrrrrkaaaaat :) lol. love it :D


SIMPLES!

Kaz
12-03-2011, 01:36 PM
Still green with envy here

Stitch Up
17-09-2011, 03:14 PM
I haven't been on here much lately, in fact, due to work committments I haven't been on any forum much lately! The upshot of all this is, I haven't been printing much lately either, the upshot of that is my NeoFlex has been standing idle for more than I wished and the upshot of that is - ink clogs!!

So I removed the printhead and manually tried to release the clogs! I spent literally hours without success :( . Now I purchased a unit called the Jet Genie for just this event, but guess what, parts on that failed before I'd even used it once! I'd removed the parts and returned them to the USA for replacement but I had some shirt to print and just had to buy a replacement printhead - what a trial that was too! Anyway, £350 lighter the printhead arrives and fitted and hey presto, printing again :)

A few days later, the replacement parts for my Jet Genie arrive and I assembled the unit, filled it with 3 litres of cleaning fluid, placed the old blocked head in the float. I programmed the Jet Genie to run for 12 hours - acoustic vibration, irrigation, pumping, sucking. I stared in amazement at first as I saw the ink being dislodged from the head and 12 hours later, a printhead that looked brand new :)

The Jet Genie with all fluid lines attached.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Stitch-Up/Hardware/JetGeniewithLabels2.jpg

......... and from the front - the surface of the printhead is about 2mm below the surface of the fluid.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Stitch-Up/Hardware/JetGeniewithLabels.jpg


Fitted the old printhead back in my printer - absolutely perfect :)

£350 lighter but I have a spare printhead, so I'm happy.

50 Ts to print today so I'm off.

John

AdamB
17-09-2011, 03:18 PM
Good to see you back with the fold John - 50 Ts .................. should take you all but an hour with the 'monster'!

JOSI74
25-09-2011, 01:05 AM
WOW looks fantastic, would love to know how you get on

Stitch Up
25-10-2011, 09:21 PM
Well, I recovered the printhead and fitted the new. Printed a few shirts and they came out great. Then, I printed some shirts with a lot of detail and there was a problem!!

The image below was taken on my camera phone & magnified somewhat and, if you look at the small text you'll see it's printed twice with a gap of about 1mm between!! Looked bloody awful., the camera phone doesn't help either!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/Problems/PrintshiftinX-Axis3.jpg

So, I contact the tech guys at All American and they instantly know what the problem is and how I should rectify it - BiDirectional Alignment!! And it takes an age!

Time is something I don't have in abundance so I didn't get round to carrying out the adjustment until last Saturday! Never having done these alignments before, I took my time to make sure I got it right. Nearly 6, yes SIX hours later, I'd cracked it and achieved a perfect alignment pattern. All that was left to do was to save the new settings and then I pressed the WRONG button and lost the lot :rolleyes: Good job there wasn't a mallet nearby!!!!

I left work early today and started the whole process again, this time it took me just 90 minutes and this time I DIDN'T press the wrong button.

First test shirt printed and here's the result printed on a Gildan T.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/WatchSkull.jpg

I'm back, just need the time :)

John G
25-10-2011, 09:56 PM
That top image is astounding - love it.

Ian M
25-10-2011, 10:13 PM
John, I'm always lost for words when I see the work you do. Hope it goes ok from now on.

AdamB
25-10-2011, 10:29 PM
HATE IT!

Let's be honest, it takes a lot to beat a bit of ebay transfer paper ran through my inkjet and you think you've got any chance in my league with an image of a watch and a halloween skull with flowers!

I mean come on - this is a Gildan t-shirt and you've printed it to look like leather (see watch strap), is this possible - NO - I think not, and you must have sold your soul to Satan to be able to achieve such things.

YES - I AM JEALOUS ........... YES I AM BITTER.

Well, at least I put my money to good use and got a craft robbo!

On a serious note John - BREATHTAKING - I didn't think that the image of the flame guitar could be improved, I was wrong - the watch is amazing and I can't quite believe that's it's been printed on a t-shirt that someone could wear, looks like it should be on a canvas or something :-)

Good Skills Sir, Good Skills indeed!

sarahjayne
25-10-2011, 11:02 PM
ditto that man.
The watch image is astounding.

HATE IT!

Let's be honest, it takes a lot to beat a bit of ebay transfer paper ran through my inkjet and you think you've got any chance in my league with an image of a watch and a halloween skull with flowers!

I mean come on - this is a Gildan t-shirt and you've printed it to look like leather (see watch strap), is this possible - NO - I think not, and you must have sold your soul to Satan to be able to achieve such things.

YES - I AM JEALOUS ........... YES I AM BITTER.

Well, at least I put my money to good use and got a craft robbo!

On a serious note John - BREATHTAKING - I didn't think that the image of the flame guitar could be improved, I was wrong - the watch is amazing and I can't quite believe that's it's been printed on a t-shirt that someone could wear, looks like it should be on a canvas or something :-)

Good Skills Sir, Good Skills indeed!

Stitch Up
25-10-2011, 11:02 PM
Sometimes it astounds me too Adam. Here's a closer shot.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing and Dye Sub/Neoflex/DTG Examples/Watch-1.jpg

Stitch Up
25-10-2011, 11:12 PM
John, I'm always lost for words when I see the work you do. Hope it goes ok from now on.

Ian, I just wish i had more time, my day job is just hideous at the moment and most of the problems I experience with DTG machinery is the consequence of lack of use.

PS. I don't get notifications of replies anymore - so if I'm slow in responding .......... and when I edit a post, I can't save the changes! Has something gone quirky?

AdamB
25-10-2011, 11:12 PM
Sometimes it astounds me too Adam. Here's a closer shot.......

One word John - ASTOUNDING!

I can honestly say I haven't seen anything like that before ................ now, where's my pen -

"Dear Santa ..............."

Paul
25-10-2011, 11:21 PM
Your pen...?
...where is my credit card?!

Justin
26-10-2011, 12:15 AM
PS. I don't get notifications of replies anymore - so if I'm slow in responding .......... and when I edit a post, I can't save the changes! Has something gone quirky?

I've sent you a test email John, if it fails it should come back with an error message of sorts. What happens when you try to edit and save? What browser are you using?

Stitch Up
26-10-2011, 12:27 AM
Hi Justin, email received no probs. I've not received any notifications of replies made to this thread tonight. Checked my junk & deleted folder.

When I edit a post and click the Save button, nothing happens. I can see the Save button is being clicked but nowt! All very starnge, seems to be okay on other forums.

Using IE9 with all updates.

Cheers

john

Stitch Up
01-11-2011, 09:31 PM
John, I'm always lost for words when I see the work you do. Hope it goes ok from now on.

So do I BUT ..... the brand new printhead I fitted in September is now knackered! Oh joy, another £360 down the drain.

Ian M
03-11-2011, 02:56 AM
Ian, I just wish i had more time, my day job is just hideous at the moment and most of the problems I experience with DTG machinery is the consequence of lack of use.

PS. I don't get notifications of replies anymore - so if I'm slow in responding .......... and when I edit a post, I can't save the changes! Has something gone quirky?

So sorry to hear about all your problems at the moment John & hope things turn a corner for you soon. I get the impression that you need to be running the Neoflex every day to avoid the problems you've had.

Stitch Up
30-04-2012, 07:25 AM
Who said DTG printing is trouble free? :)

After a month of downtime, we're back up and running again :) Had a weird error popping up on the display each time we switched on. I'm getting to be an expert at DTG problem solving and, in a way, it gives me some confidence in sorting out any problem. As always, All American were spot on with their diagnosis.

Anyway, here's the first printed shirt off the press :) Not my design but very colourful:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/ExtremeDance7.jpg

The RIP software is such an important component.

Stitch Up
06-05-2012, 07:15 PM
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/Shirt6thMay20123.jpg

Stitch Up
09-07-2012, 12:20 AM
And when your embroidery machine breaks down, the NeoFlex comes in handy :)

Not a good pattern as I was only messing. This is a print on a shirt not embroidery.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/P1030520.jpg

Just a little better
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Embroidery/Rover21onGrey.jpg

WorthDoingRight
09-07-2012, 03:08 AM
Well very impressive, the eye sees embroidery and not a flat print.

AJLA
09-07-2012, 07:54 PM
Great pics stichup!

Stitch Up
27-01-2013, 02:55 PM
As any of you will know, I have ZERO flair for design. I sometimes question if I really know what I actually like and don't like!!!

So, with St. Patrick's Day on the horizon I wanted to produce a t-shirt to commemorate the occasion. Several other owners of the NeoFlex DTG printer are really good at design and one of them created what I think is a nice design :)

Here it is, printed and 'modelled' by Angie - I might put it on eBay!!!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/StPatricksDay-1.jpg

I'll try and take a better picture :)

Ian M
27-01-2013, 03:06 PM
John, as always that looks amazing & I think you could be onto a winner selling them on Ebay. :biggrin:

viccar
27-01-2013, 03:12 PM
Great irish design and love the embroidery style ones, they look very realistic.

FairyD
27-01-2013, 03:33 PM
Brilliant design John, and I agree with what's already been said about the 'embroidery'...that looks brilliant!!

JMugs
27-01-2013, 06:20 PM
Wrong post .....
Janners is not in today!

Stitch Up
28-01-2013, 06:57 PM
Just getting ready for the Six Nations Rugby

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/EnglandtoWales3.png

harlequeen
28-01-2013, 09:54 PM
Let#'s hope so, eh

Stitch Up
01-03-2013, 08:14 PM
Nice metallic effect :)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/GibbsPerformance2_zps6b4c251b.jpg


and a close up. A little focusing problem I'm afraid - that's my camera, the print is much crisper.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/GibbsPerformance3_zpsb0283866.gif

Paul
01-03-2013, 08:16 PM
very nice! is that actual metallic ink? or is just such a nice mix of grey? :)

Stitch Up
01-03-2013, 08:50 PM
very nice! is that actual metallic ink? or is just such a nice mix of grey? :)

Just a mix of grey Paul.

Ian M
01-03-2013, 10:25 PM
Looks brilliant John.

socialgiraffe
01-03-2013, 10:49 PM
They do look the nuts and these machines have come a long way since I threw (yes threw) away mine. It was woeful but seeing your work makes me wonder if I should look at them again, even though I do not do garment printing and have no real intention of starting :-)

By the way, you may want to delete your six nations tee. You have not got a chance against us and I do not want you to embarrass yourself (even though I would prefer us not to do the grand slam) :biggrin:

Renniwano
01-03-2013, 11:14 PM
WOW.. totally in awe of what these can do.. and looks fab..

steve 1
01-03-2013, 11:21 PM
look superb A++++

Stitch Up
30-03-2014, 05:15 PM
And my latest, just for fun :)

Great stuff Johnny - inspiring :)


I've been busy printing this morning and this image came out quite well.


Kate Bush


At the beginning the printer might seem not to be printing anything but, as those who own a NeoFlex will know, the lo-lite detailing is just amazing from an amazing RIP. The white underbase is hardly noticeable but is there :)


http://youtu.be/_hL8F562_M4


Here's a pic of the print - hot off the printer and ready for the press :) I'm going to 'bling it up' later :) and I'll post another picture.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/datasafe/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/KateBushPrinted30thMarch20144_zps1fafd8fd.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/datasafe/media/Printing%20and%20Dye%20Sub/Neoflex/DTG%20Examples/KateBushPrinted30thMarch20144_zps1fafd8fd.jpg.html )

DS Designs
30-03-2014, 05:30 PM
great stuff as usual John!

spongerobinson
30-03-2014, 07:20 PM
just went to watch, and looks like your Youtube video got blocked John!

Stitch Up
30-03-2014, 09:49 PM
just went to watch, and looks like your Youtube video got blocked John!

Anyone else getting blocked?

FutureProject
30-03-2014, 11:04 PM
yup.. music rights I guess.

guarddog14
30-03-2014, 11:23 PM
im not joking that youtube video was like porn to me , sad i know! can only dream for now though!

Stitch Up
31-03-2014, 12:05 AM
yup.. music rights I guess.

Yes - Never added a music track before, but that's causing the problem.

NikGrey
31-03-2014, 01:06 PM
It's a shame as I was excited to see that video on offer.. I know its a pain to re edit a video.

I have always used music I could get away with for that reason, there is some great stuff available if you use a Mac to make your video's.

Anyway, I am trying not to read this thread fully as it makes me feel inadequate :( that machine is the dogs..

pisquee
31-03-2014, 04:51 PM
There's a load of music from Google/YouTube you can download and use for free.

cybalokz
01-04-2014, 12:51 PM
try this link to watch video ( uses a proxy bypass the country restriction )>>> watch here (http://uk.proxfree.com/permalink.php?url=yx%2BhnYCyg4s24iThgBXg7eD%2BgixM %2BhdmOP7qE3TZgUO39JE1X9PmWP1RmVZRyXHBIBLV%2B7hGjH Svw1owdWQq3%2BrUGO1hKqb0aBm9y%2F%2BreJ1WySPMEH9o6N kRjDwDZezn&bit=1) <<<

James990
01-04-2014, 03:39 PM
Still blocked for me!

logobear
14-02-2016, 09:51 AM
any update on your DTG ? - Are you thinking of additional capacity, - and given your experience, - what machine choice would you make now?

Dean Jones
20-03-2017, 01:35 PM
Screen printing and Direct To Garment will call this DTG for short, to spare my fingers some writing are two altogether different strategies for imprinting onto shirts. In this article I will clarify the contrasts between each of these techniques, the upsides and downsides of each, and how to choose which one is appropriate for you.

webtrekker
20-03-2017, 01:51 PM
Screen printing and Direct To Garment will call this DTG for short, to spare my fingers some writing are two altogether different strategies for imprinting onto shirts. In this article I will clarify the contrasts between each of these techniques, the upsides and downsides of each, and how to choose which one is appropriate for you.

........ ???

jools
20-03-2017, 01:56 PM
Thanks webtrekker ......... It's not just me then

Justin
20-03-2017, 08:08 PM
I think we had a spammer so I've banned ;-)