Time to get ink.....

[spotcolorsupply]

We are ready to bring on an ink line..... Before we do this I would love some feedback from some end users.

What line should we consider..??

There are many manufacturers out there, and I’m not even sure who will work with us, but this is the list of possibilities.

Wilflex

Rutland

Triangle

One stroke

Excalibur

WM Plastics

International Coatings

Any input would be appreciated. This is a big step for our company, and I don’t want to F this up... 

[Nation03]

I'm a fan of Wilflex. We use to use a lot of Triangle, but I heard they are discontinued now?

[Fresh Baked Printing]

Any reason Union wasn't mentioned on your list?

[jsheridan]

Good question..

After working with just about every system out there in the last 20 yrs, I'm going with Wilflex MX Epic series.

It's a choice that comes with shipping costs as theirs no supply of it here in San Diego.. meaning I can't drive to a supply house in SD and buy it off the shelf, i have to have it shipped. The shelves around here are loaded with rutland, IC, and triangle.

When I was back in Boston and the northeast, I could take my pick from about 5 supply houses fully stocked with Wilflex but this time had to have the Rutland shipped in.

It all comes down to region and where your printers are based.

[spotcolorsupply]

We use to use a lot of Triangle, but I heard they are discontinued now?

Really?? Didn’t kno that. Thanks for the info 

[Denis Kolar]

OK.
I'm new to screen printing and as far as look at the ink (so far) I look to find the white I'm going to use and after that it seams that all other colors will be from the same mfgh. I have received and pint of WM white that I liked and I'm going to place an order for a gallon, I have already tried a few other WM colors and they all printed good. If that gallon prints good, they will have all my business.

What I'm trying to say is, get contract with the company that has a nice printing white ink and the rest of the colors should not be a problem to sell.

That is how I look at it (at least I hope that is a correct way to look at it )

[Frog]

Well, are you looking to be another dealer for an already widely distributed line like Wilflex, IC, Rutland (or now their subsidiaries, Union and QCM), or filling a need for someone with a small network, like;
One Stroke has a fan base but I don't even know if they sell through dealers. I know that they dropped distribution to my part of the world, California Bay Area.
Another, Excalibur impressed me but has nobody closer than SoCal, or maybe even Arizona. Are they already readily available in your area?

I see WM and Triangle pop up in white ink discussions, but I've never seen or tried any of their products and have no idea of their distribution situation.

[spotcolorsupply]

Any reason Union wasn't mentioned on your list?

Union, Rutland, and QCM are all the same company now. But you are right they should be included bc I’m not sure if they come as a package or if we can only rep one at a time..??

[spotcolorsupply]

OK.
I'm new to screen printing and as far as look at the ink (so far) I look to find the white I'm going to use and after that it seams that all other colors will be from the same mfgh. I have received and pint of WM white that I liked and I'm going to place an order for a gallon, I have already tried a few other WM colors and they all printed good. If that gallon prints good, they will have all my business.

What I'm trying to say is, get contract with the company that has a nice printing white ink and the rest of the colors should not be a problem to sell.

That is how I look at it (at least I hope that is a correct way to look at it )

I have also found that printers tend to follow the white they like. Colors seem to almost be a non issue; white is always the barrier to getting into a shop....

[spotcolorsupply]

Well, are you looking to be another dealer for an already widely distributed line like Wilflex, IC, Rutland (or now their subsidiaries, Union and QCM),

That is the thing.... We are not sure. I sold Wilflex into the Atlanta market for years with 3 other distributors within 100 miles and did really well... But bringing a new product to market is appealing.... I would rather not be the "Me To" guy... Seems like price is all that matters at that point...

or filling a need for someone with a small network, like;
One Stroke has a fan base but I don't even know if they sell through dealers. I know that they dropped distribution to my part of the world, California Bay Area.
Another, Excalibur impressed me but has nobody closer than SoCal, or maybe even Arizona. Are they already readily available in your area?

I think you are right about One Stroke... And no Excalibur isn’t readily available at all... I personally like Rutland/Union, but I’m not sure they will show us any love... 
There are a few distributors of Rutland products in surrounding states, but they have not penetrated Atlanta at all. Hell there is a Rutland/QCM dealer in Atlanta, but I am not sure who they are selling to...

I see WM and Triangle pop up in white ink discussions, but I've never seen or tried any of their products and have no idea of their distribution situation.

Same here, I rarely see anyone using their color line.

[spotcolorsupply]

Good question..

After working with just about every system out there in the last 20 yrs, I'm going with Wilflex MX Epic series.

It's a choice that comes with shipping costs as theirs no supply of it here in San Diego.. meaning I can't drive to a supply house in SD and buy it off the shelf, i have to have it shipped. The shelves around here are loaded with rutland, IC, and triangle.

When I was back in Boston and the northeast, I could take my pick from about 5 supply houses fully stocked with Wilflex but this time had to have the Rutland shipped in.

It all comes down to region and where your printers are based.

Wilflex is an awesome ink.... I am not sure if they will work with us tho. It sux to be the new guy on the block sometimes..!!! Atlanta is flooded with wilflex distributors. I put in a call to Rob Coleman today. We will see what they say...

[Homer]

I have heard wilflex is dumping every line of ink and going to just the epic line. . .I hope not because it is stupid expensive.

[spotcolorsupply]

I have heard wilflex is dumping every line of ink and going to just the epic line. . .I hope not because it is stupid expensive.

Yeah I heard the same thing.... In the past epic was 20% more than GNS... Not sure if that is still the case, but still a pricey ink line..

[Shawn (EIP)]

OK.
I'm new to screen printing and as far as look at the ink (so far) I look to find the white I'm going to use and after that it seams that all other colors will be from the same mfgh. I have received and pint of WM white that I liked and I'm going to place an order for a gallon, I have already tried a few other WM colors and they all printed good. If that gallon prints good, they will have all my business.

What I'm trying to say is, get contract with the company that has a nice printing white ink and the rest of the colors should not be a problem to sell.

That is how I look at it (at least I hope that is a correct way to look at it )

I have also found that printers tend to follow the white they like. Colors seem to almost be a non issue; white is always the barrier to getting into a shop....

I would agree with that... colors are pretty much the same no matter what brand it's the white inks that set one company apart from the other.

[jsheridan]

I have heard wilflex is dumping every line of ink and going to just the epic line. . .I hope not because it is stupid expensive.

Not dumping, rather they just aren't going to make certain lines anymore. This applies to every ink manufacturer that makes 'classic' plastisol. It's not entirely up to them, the raw material that is used to make conventional inks, is no longer made by 2 major petroleum distillers and being removed from production by another 2 in the coming yrs. The cost for that raw product has increased 300-500% in the last 5 yrs as the demand for phalate compliant/free inks has finally reached a demand that outweighs conventional inks. As this shift of cost moves towards compliant inks and more demand arises for the product, the cost will come down.

In the end, you don't have a choice to switch inks so start doing it now. The new Epic line mixes right into your existing MX line so there is nothing to do but just buy ink like you already do.