Is sublimation inconsistent?

[AGS]

I've worked in the printing industry all of my working life (40 years) and have a lot of experience in screen printing, large format vinyl and large format flat beds etc....

I've been considering sublimation for some time now and thought I was aware of a lot of the pitfalls regarding buying cheap unreliable equipment with little or no backup but I've recently just joined a sublimation Facebook group which appears to have a sprinkling of a few long term, experienced users in amongst a large splattering of new hobbyists

The amount of posts regarding inconsistent results was a bit concerning

Obviously I fully understand that printing creates an amount of waste / spoils but in the main this can be put down to machine or operator error but the picture I was getting from the FB group was that there is inconsistency in the substrates

So to get to my question - is sublimation inconsistent even if you have got a reliable setup - can these inconsistent results be put down to cheap equipment, cheap blanks and lack of knowledge?

[UK Printed Mugs]

Personally we find once you've nailed finding the best substrate from a supplier for your needs and got the time/temps right then we work to around 5% wastage. This though is usually down to the artwork being printed and getting something like a large area of solid colour printed uniformly (for instance on glass or placemat) is tricky and often we turn down artwork for this reason. Most substrates from different suppliers are not normally the same. For instance we print a lot of glass coasters and have found at least three different variants of the 100mm glass coasters on the market. All have different results. Therefore we try and stick to buying in just one type from a certain supplier even though they may be more expensive. This goes for mugs (depending on method of press or oven) and coasters. Experience in which times, temp and pressure to use on items is the most important but we are happy with 5% waste. We do have expensive equipment for the heat presses but in recent times have dumped the expensive Adkin mug presses for cheaper mug presses (MDP) which actually give better results!

[pw66]

It shouldn't be inconsistent, but any change to the variables can change the result significantly - far more so than most other print methods.
Variables include file, software, settings, paper, ink, press, temperature, time and substrate. Once you have the correct settings for each job stick to them.
Substrates make a major difference from one brand to another. Even printing onto white polyester t-shirts can show a massive difference between different garments.
A lot of the wastage comes while trying to get the results right in the first place. If you are printing one off designs then you have very little scope to experiment, so you need to be sure of your parameters.

[JMugs]

I find very little variation and would agree with the 5% wastage. However, I keep everything consistent. By everything I mean everything. Software, paper, ink, printers, suppliers, storage. Room temperature can really mess with timings for things like mugs. If a mug is sat in an outisde shed that is 2 degrees in winter and 32 degrees in summer, the print will be very different.
A lot of the problems I see on FB come from "Where is cheapest for...." this is followed a few weeks later by "My images are wrong".
I also see "I am having problems with my colors".... I used to ask "Have you set up your ICC correctly?". The response said it all "I don't need one / I have a mac so it's not required / my Chinese Ebay ink supplier says blah blah...".

I guess you get the picture. A professional approach, with the right equipment, quality blanks, and consistency nail the issues. No knowledge with " I know best", what's cheapest, lack of professional approach and it's "moan time".

Your time in the printing industry should put you in a good position.

Janners

[AGS]

Thanks very much all

great information, much appreciated

[Andrew]

You will have a far better advantage starting off than others with no printing experience. I have employed a few screen printers and all understood far better on what we are after and why/when things don't go correctly. It is just stacking up the knowledge.

[AGS]

Thanks Andrew

I think that was where my concerns kicked in - I'd like to think that my learning curve wouldn't be as steep as someone with no print knowledge or experience but then I started to wonder whether sublimation was a bit of a lottery rather than a science....

[JMugs]

Sublimation is very much a science. Record every change, change only 1 factor to a time. The " I increased the temperature, the time and I used different paper and I have a bad print...Why?" brigade are out there in abundance. Be methodical, record and anotate everything. This will result in you quickly dialing everything in.

I do chcuckle at the "I have printed 3 mugs and they are all crap I can't afford to go on like this".

You know what is required and if you do it, it'll come good.

Janners.

[harlequeen]

I think there are a few FB groups for sublimation which encourage users generally, but many also have a number of people who 'de-stash' sublimation items which I wouldn't give the time of day to. They buy in bulk and sell on. Therefore there are many different quality items doing the rounds in some of these groups. Also, some people think that they will be making top quality items straight away, with no concept of ICCs, substrate quality, ink types even, so there are bound to be a large number of failures in the 'hobbyist' community.