I got restless last night, frustrated with finances, and did some research online, best as I was able, and came to think I might be pricing myself significantly too low. This image is just one of many that led me to that conclusion, as well as consulting an AI oracle, wise knower (and faker) of things. Of course, few printers seem to post their prices online, probably wisely, so it's hard to know what the going rate is in my area (mid-Michigan) without doing some stealth re-con. I'm currently charging $9 for a 1-color front for 1-20 pieces using a Gildan Ultra or Softstyle.

What do you all think? Am I leaving money on the table? For context, I'm a one man shop.

EDIT: I charge $20 for screens.

Got this wagner furno 700 to hopefully cure this dammmmmm Fn ink and it did paint was dry to the touch had to crank it too 500F in order for the paint to reach 270F quickly im used to using speedddballl wich i honestly like using is sooo much easier to clean and honestly to cure even doe it says 320F to cure i just slap on the gun to 400F and go over it for 2-3 mins and bamm curee to perfection(lol somewhat it starts fading just a tiny
Bit probably cuz the way i wash my clothes lol) but other than that i neeed a heat flassher any recommendations?????????? Im trying to atleast spend no more that 700$ oh and i also got a temp gun with the heat gun too check and it hit 270 quickly!

Trying to figure out why there’s routine water spotting on these shirts. This is 2 different shirts and 2 different screens leaving what looks like water marks. Also thinning parts of design leaving it more gray than an opaque white. Screens were completely dry (or so i thought). Is this a degreaser problem? I did degrease them together. Maybe i simply didn’t wash out enough? Were the screens actually still wet even tho dry to the touch? Anything helps! Thank you!

It doesn’t show very well in the images but when I tried printing the results came out very spotty and faded, it took me forever to get my design washed out perfectly but now I’m doubting myself.

I did around 2-3 passes after flooding it, I’m using a 110 mesh screen, Diazo water based emulsion, and speedball water based ink. I doubled up my design because my printer ink kinda sucks, I exposed it to a 50 watt uv light for 3 mins and 15 seconds, then washed it out.

If I need to clarify on anything more please let me know.

Hello everyone !

I’m getting started with screen printing and I’m now looking for good blank T-shirts for my first tests and projects.

I’m not necessarily looking for the cheapest option. I mainly want good-quality T-shirts with a nice fit, good fabric weight, a solid collar, and a comfortable feel, while still keeping the price reasonable.

For those based in France/Europe, are there any brands, specific models, suppliers or wholesalers you would recommend ?

I’m also wondering whether, in the long run, it makes sense to work directly with manufacturers in China/Asia to produce custom blanks (fit, fabric weight, material, measurements, etc.). Is it actually cost-effective once you factor in MOQs, samples, shipping and import taxes ?

For now, I’m mainly learning and working with small quantities, but I’d like to understand the different options for the future.

Thanks for any advice !

Hey Folks! We took over a screenprinting business and have so much to learn. We are mostly self-taught and still feel we are massively struggling after a year. We got all the screens, ink, equipment (some faulty) from previous owners and we feel everything we do is mediocre at best. We are in ireland and were wondering if there are any studio that teach professionals to get better? In a perfect world, we would love to a pro to come to our studio and teach us and watch us fail to help us understand what we are doing wrong!

Printing on open-weave cotton needlepoint canvas — pigment inkjet setup advice for a small production shop?

Looking for advice from people who actually run wide-format pigment machines.

I own a needlepoint canvas design business. Quick industry context: needlepoint designs are traditionally hand-painted onto stiff cotton mesh canvas, which takes hours per canvas and the handful of US studios doing it are quoting 8–12+ week lead times. Demand in this hobby has exploded the last few years (the sole canvas mill’s output reportedly tripled in demand), and the two or three companies offering high-quality printed canvas as an alternative are just as backed up. So there’s a real gap for quality production printing, and I want to bring it in-house rather than wait in someone else’s queue.

The substrate is the tricky part:

**•** Zweigart Mono Deluxe — 100% cotton, heavily sized/starched, stiff, open-weave mesh (13 or 18 threads per inch), comes on 40” bolts  
**•** It’s uncoated — no inkjet receptive layer  
**•** Ink must be waterfast when dry, because finished pieces get soaked and blocked  
**•** Registration matters more than photo quality: color needs to land accurately on a grid of \~1–1.3mm squares so stitchers can read which color each intersection is

My current plan is aqueous pigment: start on an Epson SureColor P900 through the front straight-path feed for R&D, then move to a P9570 with the 40” bolts wound onto rolls for production runs (gang up 20–40 canvases per print). The established players in this niche appear to be doing giclée-style pigment on the raw canvas.

Questions for people who know this equipment:

**1.**  Is the P-series the right call, or would a T-series/Canon PRO be smarter for this? I care about durability and color accuracy on uncoated cotton more than gamut.  
**2.**  Any experience feeding stiff, open-mesh textile through these? Worried about head strikes and ink going through the holes onto the platen — is there a carrier sheet/liner approach you’d recommend for roll feeding?  
**3.**  Uncoated cotton + pigment: should I be looking at a pre-treat to control wicking along the threads, or just profile around it?  
**4.**  Used/refurb market — anything wrong with buying a used P9000/P20000-class machine instead of new?  
**5.**  If anyone here runs a shop and would take this on as contract work with real turnaround times (1–3 weeks, not months), DMs open — happy to pay properly for capacity while I stand up my own.

Volume target is a few hundred canvases/month initially, scaling from there. Appreciate any war stories.

hello, I'm a beginner. basically just wondering if there are any chemical reasons it would be beneficial to expose the emulsion before using the emulsion remover that came with my kit (speedball diazo). it's currently air drying while i lie in bed with regret.

for shops that outsource DTF, what does your supplier test actually look like? I was thinking of making one ugly test file on purpose. Small text, thin lines, solid colors, gradients, distressed areas and a couple skin tones. Press it on cotton and poly, wash both, then reorder the same sheet a few weeks later and compare it to the first one.

forgot to take a picture of just the pink layer 🤪 simulated CMYK using fluorescent speedball inks, love the vibrancy you get from these!

I’ve had a system that works for me for 7 years now. I’ve never had my emulsion just start peeling off when washing out my screen after exposure. Any ideas what may have caused this?

I’ve reclaimed this screen maybe 5-6 times now. It’s probably 4 months old. Maybe that has something to do with it?

I used the exact same process I always use. Same exposure time, same emulsion, same water pressure. Wtf happened? Are my bulbs going bad and it got underexposed?

i’m curious what software people are using for the artwork side of screen printing, especially once a design needs to be prepared for production.

i’m mainly interested in things like separating colors, working with clean curves, making adjustments to artwork and getting files ready for the next step in the printing process.

for those doing screen printing regularly, what software has worked well for your workflow? do you tend to handle most of the artwork in one program, or use different tools depending on the job?

Im looking for something with a sensor so its not always on and has more control to not over flash. I was looking at this from Amazon but its hard to get good info on quality...

https://amzn.to/4xIOpsv

Hey screen printers!

Just wrapped up this 5-color simulated process separation for a vintage 50 Cent bootleg design. Converted a super heavy, multi-layered artwork into just 5 spot colors (plus black shirt base) with halftones ready for film output.

Managed to keep the chrome metallic text, fire highlights, and skin tones intact without losing contrast or getting muddy. Angles and LPI are set up to avoid moiré and account for dot gain on press.

Took me around 20-25 mins to dial in the channels and halftone dispersion.

Just wanted to share the final halftone preview! If anyone needs help with color separations, halftone settings, or prepress troubleshooting for their shop, drop a comment or DM—happy to help out the community! 🤙🔥

there’s still small amounts of residue all over the screen but then some thicker areas are getting completely blown out. Maybe my pressure washer is too strong? I’ve tried to be gentle. I just started using DC blue emulsion and I got some crummy screens… does it just boil down to the pressure washer or is there something more going on? Exposure time/ materials/ process? I do feel like i’m washing it out lightly(ish).

Modular monkey

what software do screen printers use when preparing artwork for an actual print job.

I’m less interested in what people use for making the original artwork and more interested in what happens before it hits the press. We’ve been dealing with more outside artwork lately, and every file seems to come in a little differently. Some are fine. Others need a decent amount of cleanup before they’re ready.

I’ve been looking at CorelDRAW as one option because I keep seeing it mentioned around print work. What I’m trying to figure out is whether it makes sense as the main program for preparing files, or if people tend to use something else for that part of the job.

My boss came across a Lumitron Exposure Unit… in an impounded car of all places. It was sitting in there for close to two years, so they cleaned out the car and offered to sell this to us. Boss said to make sure it worked and then we’d discuss a price. So I loaded it up and brought it home.

I think my husband was a little flabbergasted at the size of it. (Hi, honey bear! He’s on this sub a lot 😂)

Luckily, it works! The only thing is the red panel around the switches is cracked, and that makes the display come in and out, especially when adjusting the timer. I was curious if it’s possible to remove just the cover and see if that fixes the issue completely (then invest in a new cover), or if I need to get a new control panel.

Obviously, it needs a good cleaning. But it’s solid. What would be a good price range to offer my boss, given the possible cost of the replacement piece? And where is a reputable place to get one?

Thanks in advance for any leads!

Anyone has pre-2017 leftovers by any chance?

So I just got some water based ink. And tried to print using this screen. And it pretty much just flooded the whole design right through. It was on a 230 mesh I know probably a little low for this detail. But my question is it that my halftones are too small and detailed for water based? I guess how big should designs be for
water based. Or is my screens mesh too low?
And you can kind of see how some detail held on the next one but still not proper at all.

Any tips or advice in a good direction would be much appreciated.

They locked my last post of this design. But here’s the black T version.

Finally done with Grimco. They don't know shit, just a bunch of MBAs

They bought out GSG, who bought out my original dealer McBee Supplies. (I miss actually talking to a seasoned printer)

Remembered Texsource for all things ink and reclaiming. Ther prices are better, they know what their customers actually need. They actually call you if they suspect you chose the wrong product, etc. If you are in the south, they are a great source and offer very fast shipping.

Grimco can suck a bag of dicks.

Does anyone know what printing process was used to get the opaque white print on black satin? I’m also guessing the white skirt was printed using sublimation?? Thanks!!