In phase 558 of WB/DC ink development around here we have conceded to start using additives aside from water in our mixes. Currently we use Matsui Softener XA-1, CCI Retarder in place of the water we used to add for thinning and we've seen great improvements on press using this in the CCI WB and DC and Sericol DC inks.
Now I'm thinking about adding fixer to the DC mixes, maybe WB too. We use the CCI W-Base for WB and D-Base for DC so we're already doing all we can there with the bases. Long term wash tests with WB/DC have been strong on most garments but I'm seeing fibrilation on the very tips of the fibers with certain fabrics after 10-20 wash/dry cycles. It really just appears to be happening on the fiber tips and I know there's no perfect print here that has it all but damned if I won't try and develop it anyway. Oddly enough, it doesn't seem to be related to penetration.
I'm wondering if anyone has used fixer, such as Matsui Fixer N, successfully to combat this. My understanding is that using fixer is essentially putting in additional binder? Does it put a shelf life on the ink when used? And, has anyone been able to use Fixer N to increase dryer throughput when it's desperately needed?
