Impressions - September 2014 - 69
press do its job, and then it will open automatically after heating is complete.
Some operators use the swing-away
heat press option, but these are better
suited to applying rhinestones, positioning
vinyl graphics or other applications where
you need an open area to work on the shirt
while it is on the heat press. These swingaway heat presses can be heavy to work
with and are not necessary when curing
DTG printed images.
Pretreating your shirts
whenever you print white ink can be
accomplished in the same room with your
printer if you use an automatic pretreat
machine. It is the more expensive option,
but it enables consistent laydown of
pretreatment solution from shirt to shirt
to shirt.
MAINTENANCE IS CRITICAL
When white ink was first introduced to
the DTG process, it was difficult to work
with and caused lots of issues with print
heads. Today, the white ink is suspended
well, so the clogged print head issues have
shifted a bit. Nearly every case of a DTG
printing problem comes down to poor or
no maintenance on the equipment.
Maintaining a DTG machine is surprisingly easy to do, but you would be
shocked at how many people simply
choose not to do it. The maintenance can
be done in just a few minutes a day and is
critical to your success.
Daily maintenance involves using a
swab to clean around the capping station and print head. There also is a wiper
blade on most machines (it looks like
little windshield wiper) that needs to be
cleaned. Do that, along with printing,
daily and you'll be good to go. Machines
will vary, so consult your manufacturer or
distributor for specific daily and weekly
maintenance instructions.
Terry Combs is a 35-plus-year veteran
of the garment printing industry, and has
managed production shops large and small
across the United States. He currently is in
sales and training with Equipment Zone,
Franklin Lakes, N.J.. His recent books,
"Screen Printing: A Practical Guide" and
"Direct-to-Garment: A Practical Guide" are
available on amazon.com. For more information, visit terrycombs.com.
Suggested
Reading
Like this article? Read additional
direct-to-garment articles at
impressionsmag.com.
* "Can You Make Money with
DTG?"
* "DTG Vs. Dye Sublimation"
* "Shopping the DTG Scene"
Use Info*Action #26 at impressionsmag.com/infoaction See us at ISS Orlando & Ft. Worth
impressionsmag.com
September 2014 | Impressions
69
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Impressions - September 2014
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Impressions - September 2014
Impressions - September 2014
Contents
First Impressions
From the Show Director
FYI
Product Gallery
ISS Conferences
Outerwear Amounts to Lucrative Layers
Top Tips to Improve T-Shirt Print Quality
How Green is Your Green?
Social Work
Shop Spotlight
Embroidery Technique
Embroidery Design & Digitizing
Screen Printing Production
Screen Printing Technique
Digital Decorating
Online Directory
Tech Tips
Classifieds
Ad Index
Impressions - September 2014 - CT1
Impressions - September 2014 - CT2
Impressions - September 2014 - Impressions - September 2014
Impressions - September 2014 - Cover2
Impressions - September 2014 - 1
Impressions - September 2014 - Contents
Impressions - September 2014 - 3
Impressions - September 2014 - First Impressions
Impressions - September 2014 - 5
Impressions - September 2014 - From the Show Director
Impressions - September 2014 - 7
Impressions - September 2014 - FYI
Impressions - September 2014 - 9
Impressions - September 2014 - 10
Impressions - September 2014 - 11
Impressions - September 2014 - 12
Impressions - September 2014 - 13
Impressions - September 2014 - 14
Impressions - September 2014 - 15
Impressions - September 2014 - Product Gallery
Impressions - September 2014 - 17
Impressions - September 2014 - 18
Impressions - September 2014 - 19
Impressions - September 2014 - 19a
Impressions - September 2014 - 19b
Impressions - September 2014 - ISS Conferences
Impressions - September 2014 - 21
Impressions - September 2014 - Outerwear Amounts to Lucrative Layers
Impressions - September 2014 - 23
Impressions - September 2014 - 24
Impressions - September 2014 - 25
Impressions - September 2014 - 26
Impressions - September 2014 - 27
Impressions - September 2014 - 28
Impressions - September 2014 - 29
Impressions - September 2014 - 30
Impressions - September 2014 - 31
Impressions - September 2014 - Top Tips to Improve T-Shirt Print Quality
Impressions - September 2014 - 33
Impressions - September 2014 - 34
Impressions - September 2014 - 35
Impressions - September 2014 - 36
Impressions - September 2014 - 37
Impressions - September 2014 - How Green is Your Green?
Impressions - September 2014 - 39
Impressions - September 2014 - 40
Impressions - September 2014 - 41
Impressions - September 2014 - 42
Impressions - September 2014 - 43
Impressions - September 2014 - Social Work
Impressions - September 2014 - 45
Impressions - September 2014 - 46
Impressions - September 2014 - 47
Impressions - September 2014 - 48
Impressions - September 2014 - 49
Impressions - September 2014 - Shop Spotlight
Impressions - September 2014 - 51
Impressions - September 2014 - Embroidery Technique
Impressions - September 2014 - 53
Impressions - September 2014 - 54
Impressions - September 2014 - 55
Impressions - September 2014 - Embroidery Design & Digitizing
Impressions - September 2014 - 57
Impressions - September 2014 - 58
Impressions - September 2014 - 59
Impressions - September 2014 - Screen Printing Production
Impressions - September 2014 - 61
Impressions - September 2014 - 62
Impressions - September 2014 - Screen Printing Technique
Impressions - September 2014 - 64
Impressions - September 2014 - 65
Impressions - September 2014 - Digital Decorating
Impressions - September 2014 - 67
Impressions - September 2014 - Online Directory
Impressions - September 2014 - 69
Impressions - September 2014 - Tech Tips
Impressions - September 2014 - Classifieds
Impressions - September 2014 - 72
Impressions - September 2014 - Ad Index
Impressions - September 2014 - 74
Impressions - September 2014 - Cover3
Impressions - September 2014 - Cover4
Impressions - September 2014 - ISS1
Impressions - September 2014 - ISS2
Impressions - September 2014 - ISS3
Impressions - September 2014 - ISS4
Impressions - September 2014 - ISS5
Impressions - September 2014 - ISS6
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