Impressions - March 2023 - 47

STAHLS' Ultra Color
Max DTF heat transfer
being applied to a six-panel
cap over the seam. Photo
courtesy of STAHLS'
Printing over the seam on the front of
a six-panel structured cap can also be a
challenge. For printing this style of hat,
machine manufacturers offer a lower platen
with a groove down the center into which
the seam fits thereby providing an even
print surface.
Embroidered Hats
fers in-house using the same plastisol inks
they're already working with to print on
garments. It's a low investment for screen
printers to add custom heat transfers to
their arsenal, since all they need to add to
their operation is a vacuum platen to hold
the transfer paper in place while printing,
heat transfer paper, adhesive powder and
a cap heat press.
It's important to use a cap press that comes
equipped with a Teflon hold-down strap
positioned between the upper heat platen
and lower cap platen, that or some other
kind of clamping mechanism. A nice thing
about a Teflon strap is that in addition to
allowing the machine operator to easily
align the transfer prior to heat pressing, it
also applies light pressure against the back
of the transfer after the machine is opened.
This in turn provides a second or two for
the heat-transferred graphic to cool down
before fully opening the press.
Note: Opening a cap heat press too rapidly
after heat pressing can cause the edges
of the transfer to lift and not adhere to the
cap surface since the ink is still very hot
and fragile on the edges.
A cap heat press also must have an adjustment
knob to increase or decrease the
platen pressure to accommodate for different
material thicknesses. Some hat presses use
a simple timer, requiring the operator to
open the press manually at the end of the
pressing cycle. There are also higher-end
models available that open automatically
at the end of the transfer cycle time.
Direct Screen-Printing
There are two main techniques for direct
screen-printing on caps: printing the cap
flat and printing on a curve.
Screen-printing a cap flat is an oldschool
method that works. However, it is
also somewhat limited in terms of the image
size that can be printed. Finding a good
way to hold the cap secure to the platen
can also be a challenge. One solution is to
use a spray adhesive to hold the cap to in
place. More sophisticated machines often
employ a mechanical cap hold-down device.
It's important to be aware that printing
large logos on caps via the flat screen-print
method will often cause distortion when
the hat is removed from the platen. For
example, screen-printing a round circle
design flat on a cap front can cause the
image to distort into an oval shape when
taken off the platen.
By contrast, screen-printing caps on
a curve is the far better choice for reproducing
larger graphics and avoid image
distortion when removing the hat from the
platen. On the downside, there is a slight
learning curve with this method in order to
achieve a clean, crisp image. I recommend
using a somewhat coarse 86 or 110 mesh to
allow the ink to clear the screen on the first
squeegee pass, thereby avoiding the need
for multiple passes and possible misprints.
In the early years, embroidery machines
were not designed to stitch over a curved
surface. This all changed when embroidery
machine manufacturers began modifying
select machines with a " drop table " that
allowed a cap to be loaded on a hold down
mechanism on the machine. Today there
are a wide range of hat embroidery systems
available from such equipment manufacturers
as Melco (melco.com), Ricoma (ricoma.
com), brother (brother-usa.com), Avancé
(avance-emb.com), Barudan (barudanamerica.com)
and Tajima (tajima.com) to
name a few.
Not surprisingly, these kinds of embroidery
machines became a total game changer
in the cap market. Today, many decorated
caps sold in retail stores are embroidered.
As a side note, these kinds of embroidery
machine upgrades have not only allowed
cap decorators to offer embroidery on hats,
they've solved the problems inherent in
direct screen-printing on a curved surface.
Ultimately, adding customized headwear
to your business is a great way to bring in
new customers and to stay ahead of the
competition. The slower winter months
are a perfect time to gear up for customizing
headwear just in time for spring and
summer. 
James Ortolani has 40 years of experience in the decorated
apparel industry, specializing in hands-on, direct
screen printing and heat-transfer production. For more
information or to comment on this article, email James
at jamesort12@yahoo.com.
Choosing the right embroidery machine
can increase production effi ciency.
March 2023
P.47
http://ricoma.com http://www.melco.com http://ricoma.com http://www.brother-usa.com http://www.avance-emb.com http://www.barudanamerica.com http://www.barudanamerica.com http://www.tajima.com
Impressions - March 2023

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