Simple spot color requiring an underbase...what mesh's to use?

[Mark @ Hurricane Printing]

I am printing this design on black shirts and black tank tops. It will require an underbase. The colors are white and red (i know the image attached is black and red...but the black text will be white when I print). What mesh counts should I use for the underbase and the red to get the "softest hand" possible? I will have to hit the white twice...and then throw the red on last and I'm afraid this will make the red portion of the design really really thick. The image goes across the chest as big as possible...and it's 60 shirts.

ALSO....will the underbase have to be 100% solid before i put the red on or will one pass be good enough for an underbase for the red? I'm thinking if I only have to put one underbase layer down then I will make 3 screens instead of 2....one total image underbase.....then a highlight white for the top image to give it that second hit....and a red screen...this keeps the total number of passes for each word at 2.

[Inkworks]

It depends on how opaque and bright you need the finished print to be, but you could easily go with 230's or higher if the tank tops are plain cotton and not mini-rib or the like. You could also run the base white as a 75-80% tone rather than a solid spot colour to help keep the finished print softer. Cutting the ink with softee base/soft hand clear or the like also is a big help not only in keeping the print soft-hand, but will also help you get the ink through the higher mesh counts.....at the risk of lowering opacity of course.

Ultimately if you really want it soft, you want water based/discharge.

[screenxpress]

I think I would use 158 for both screens.  I'd make the top text 100% and the bottom text about 65% and hit the white twice to print the top and the underbase of the red.  Flash and print the Red twice.

Just my 2c.

[Gilligan]

158 myself and I'd do 3 screens like you described.

underbase total image, flash, print red then print white WOW.

[Inkworks]

156-160's is what I'd have suggested if he hadn't stated that he was looking for "the softest hand possible".

[Gilligan]

To me, if you are going for softest hand possible and gonna go through all that trouble, just go to discharge/wb.  If you want a soft hand and not a ton of trouble go with 156.

personally I'd suggest, since it's only 60, I'd suggest discharge underbase.  Even if you haven't done any before it shouldn't be hard to knock out a discharge underbase with some CCI-D and then print a light plastisol top coat.

But it's all a balancing act.

[JBLUE]

Because the text is already distressed you can use a 230 or higher and hit it twice and the red last. Because the graphic does not have a large ink area you do not need to use a 160. I would even throw a little soft hand in the white to get a little better hand. If you print it right it will be just as opaque as a low mesh bullet proof print job.

[Gilligan]

If you can talk them into a "vintage" faded look (beyond the distressed and works well with that distressed) you could REALLY add some soft hand or curable reducer and probably get away with just a one hit UB and then just hit the red on top.


Could get higher up on the mesh count as well.

this would be soft and "trendy".

[mk162]

you could also go 160 with an 80/20 white/curable reducer and print the red on top of that.  it really gives you the vintage look.

[Screened Gear]

If you want a vintage look then do like they did back then. No flash one red screen and one white screen. make 2 passes on each color (if one pass is not enough) and call it a day. Vintage is Vintage. I would guess one pass on the white would be fine but 2 passes on the red will make it look red and not reddish brown because of the black shirt. As for mesh I would be at 156 for a non flashed print. I maybe wrong here.  For one of my customers I do a vintage print and I just use 20% white to curable reducer and do 2 hard passes on my auto. It comes out great. Its very easy. I have never done this with red ink. So not sure how that will look on black shirts with a ton of reducer in it. It may not even show up.

[Gilligan]

But we are getting away from "soft hand" again now.

The way Brad suggested is possibly the best of both worlds.  You'd definitely learn something, I know I did when I did it. (I learned I could have used a LOT more reducer (I think I did maybe 10%)

[inkman996]

At the end of the day it's still plastisol and will not have a "real" soft hand.

Me personally
200 base one hit
Flash
200 hi lite white one hit
260 red one hit

[screenxpress]

I just use 20% white to curable reducer and do 2 hard passes on my auto.

Do I read that as 20% white ink and 80% reducer?

[Dottonedan]

@screenxpress.  Yes, that's how I read it also.  To me tho, any "need" to hit twice is an indicator that it could have been done differently to avhieve a one hit only. Maybe 30-35% white.

Then, I would have suggested to do that print just as Inkman had described.

[screenxpress]

I just had no idea you could go anywhere near that heavy of reducer percentage and maintain opacity.