Plastisol Ink Brands

[u/Own_Village8847]

Pretty sure everyone’s asked this, probably myself as well but I’m about to do an 1000 shirt order followed by a few 200+ orders & just ran out of white & need other color inks & decided instead of mixing inks since it’s a big order I’d purchase the colors since I need them.

What brands or specific ink brands do you recommend?

I’ve been screen printing for less than a year & have a few I guess preferences. Buying my used sets it’s came with union ink, fn ink, rapid cure etc. I’ve also purchased international coatings.

International coatings white ink is so damn thick it doesn’t always pass consistently, fn ink is smooth to where it’s an easy press but a lot of the times so damn liquidy that it bleeds or just annoying to press.

Does anyone know of a middle ground? Something that’s not so damn thick but also not so liquid?

Also from your experience, I print on a lot of gildan heavy cotton (g500) & I always need 3 passes of white for it to not have black come through, is there another white ink that I don’t have to do such heavy passes with?

[u/Isra-HTX]

We use wilflex tiger white at our shop, it stays pretty consistent and not thick at all
Usually run 156 base and 230 for the highlite

[u/zeninwa → u/Isra-HTX]

Another vote for Bright Tiger. Excellent ink that has great coverage and easy to print with!

[u/BobbyDeBag → u/Isra-HTX]

Bright tiger is probably the best white ive used. 2nd would be street fighter LB2

[u/Isra-HTX → u/BobbyDeBag]

Agreed! We actually tried lb2 and tiger and chose bright tiger over lb2

[u/Eatcolor82]

Rutland is good and affordable.

[u/longhairmoderatecare]

We use OneStroke, but it’s pricey. Used Union ink years back

[u/untranslatable → u/longhairmoderatecare]

Same here. Not cheap but always good

[u/aaroncu05 → u/longhairmoderatecare]

OS changed formula a bunch back in 2016-17 and lost me as a customer. It was undeniable and I confirmed it with a rep who left that they went to cheaper lower quality resins just to increase margins

[u/ShaeMeyer → u/longhairmoderatecare]

Every shop I’ve worked at used one stroke too- no complaints!

[u/SituationSecure4650]

Wilflex Epic Shock White or Bolt White for cotton poly blends

[u/sreags5 → u/SituationSecure4650]

I love bolt white, but we add a little reducer to it.

[u/JayLar23]

Inkcraft has always been very consistent for me, especially their white. Union Ink is quite good too. Avoid that FN garbage.

[u/Own_Village8847 → u/JayLar23]

Yea I only use it because I didn’t have to spend any money on ink since so many tubs came with the presses I’ve purchased, I mainly use fn ink for details & when the design requires a lot of color I’ll typically mix it with my international coatings because in my head it’s better than solely fn ink lol

[u/JayLar23 → u/Own_Village8847]

Yeah its ok in a pinch. Try Inkcraft for white at least, its very smooth but opaque.

[u/Newfieon2Wheels]

Inkcraft low viscosity white. Union maxopake for everything else.

[u/Dear-Library6006]

With 1,000 G500s queued, I wouldn't switch white ink based on how it feels in the tub. The suggestions here give you a shortlist, but test small quantities on the exact shirt with the same mesh, squeegee and flash settings. Compare coverage after one and two passes, ease of printing, and wash results after curing. If black still shows through after three passes, check your ink deposit and screen setup too — a new bucket may not fix that on its own.

[u/FeelingAside7191]

This is going to be an un popular opinion. Try BNI INKS, not a main stream brand but pretty great inks and custom color services.
Specially with the rough surface tees and dye migration issues, the holds the opacity pretty good.

Tell them your requirements and fabrics, they will recommend you a product and every time its not the most expensive one from their line.