Is it possible ot overcure the ink?

[Denis Kolar]

Is it possible to over-cure the ink. Is it too much to read 360-370 degrees at the dryer's end. I have a small electric dryer, Atlas 824, 8' long with 4' chamber and 24" belt. I had to run some shirts 3 times, front print, back print and I noticed that they crack when stretched slightly so I ran them again (Only with the heavier deposit facing the IR panels). Now I have issues with the ink washing out when washed.

Thanks

[Fresh Baked Printing]

Other considerations for cracking too, like ink deposit thickness, etc. but generally, ink washing off is undercure. Ink cracking is overcure.
The entire ink deposit needs to reach cure temp, not just the surface. That can be the problem with IR temp guns, they only measure the surface.

[whitewater]

I have them coming out at around 400 ish...the tags get e lil' curl...

I am constantly checking the sides of the artwork to make sure it doesn't crack...the middle of the shirt gets hotter than the sides when going through so I adamant about checking the sides.

[blue moon]

not an expert here, but I would say not under those circumstances. How long are they at those temperatures? How thick is the ink deposit?

It would be nice to hear something from the manufacturers though!

[Denis Kolar]

This was 110 mesh P/F/P.
I noticed that is was funky after the first cure, so I ran them again trough the dryer.

BTW, how did this end up being a separate post? I thought I posted this a s reply to "Curing Ink" question I had before.

[Denis Kolar]

not an expert here, but I would say not under those circumstances. How long are they at those temperatures? How thick is the ink deposit?

It would be nice to hear something from the manufacturers though!

Pierre, you have seen my dryer. I do not know when they reach that temp, but they are in the dryer for a good 25-30 seconds.

[blue moon]

I moved it into a separate thread thinking it would get more answers (it did!)

from what I am seeing, that looks undercured to me. 25-30 sec in the dryer is not the measurement, it is how long is it at temperature. Get your temp gun and see how long is the shirt in there and above 300 deg. If it is only a sec or two, you will need to slow down your belt. If they are getting out at 380 right now, they might be even hotter when slower, so I would drop the temp too so they are still getting out at 375 or so. I know that is hot and you will have problems with 50/50's but for most jobs, I would imagine it should do. For bleeders, you might have to slow down and drop the temp even more.

'not an expert, just my observations, so I could easily be wrong. Some of the gurus here can you please confirm or correct me?

pierre

[Frog]

They appear to not be cured sufficiently.
Especially with small dryers you may find that a few inches on the edges of the panels are not really useful, ie, don't plan on curing an 18" wide print on an 18" wide panel.

It is not uncommon for shops with big prints and small panels to run shirts through multiple times, each either rotated or shifted to one side or the other. When you find yourself at that point too often, it's time for a bigger dryer.

Drafts can add to this problem.

In answer to your first question, yes, you can over cure plastisol, but you aren't doing that here.

[Denis Kolar]

They appear to not be cured sufficiently.
Especially with small dryers you may find that a few inches on the edges of the panels are not really useful, ie, don't plan on curing an 18" wide print on an 18" wide panel.
It is not uncommon for shops with big prints and small panels to run shirts through multiple times, each either rotated or shifted to one side or the other. When you find yourself at that point more too often, it's time for a bigger dryer.
Drafts can add to this problem.
In answer to your first question, yes, you can over cure plastisol, but you aren't doing that here.

This one has 2 24" panels, 2 exhaust fans and 2 fans that are pushing the air in.
I have exhausts on, but should I have the other two fans on to push the air down or that is for water based ink only?

No draft, I'm in a basement without any windows that can open.

I thought that these are undercured, but I was told differently   Also, another thing, it seams that the other design on a black shirt printed with 156 mesh feels a bit better, I still need to do wash test.

[mk162]

110 is a pretty thick ink film, it would be hard to get that cured all the way through, not impossible, but it does take longer than a 230 or 156.


I run most of mine at 156 or 230, I like a little thinner ink film.

[Dottonedan]

Also, another thing, it seams that the other design on a black shirt printed with 156 mesh feels a bit better, I still need to do wash test.

You will notice a difference between curing a black tee and a white tee. Black/darks absorb heat (curing easier) while white tees reflect heat more.

I like the look of that washed out cracked print. You can tell them it's part of the trendy process only seen after it's cured like discharge. In this case, you need to wash it first to get the full effect. (but will cost an additional .50 per shirt.)  HA HA.

[JBLUE]

Thats definitely under cured. When I had a smaller dryer I ran mine just under the blistering point of the ink. Never had any issues with washing out or cracking. If your shirt is cracking even if it is cured I would take a look at using a higher mesh. A 110 is like laying down a coat of drywall mud on the shirt. When the ink is that thick its going to crack no matter how long you cure it.

[Denis Kolar]

I did the washout test on the black shirts that were printed through 156 mesh, nothing washed out. I do not like how the print looks, and the pull test does not pass, but at least they do not wash out.
How do you guys do the cure test, do you try to pull the ink apart to see if it cracks (slight pull) and do you do the scratch test?

[Frog]

I pull a bit to check stretch without cracking, but have always been taught that multiple washings are the only sure way.

There is also a solvent test, but I'll be darned if I even remember what was used.

Now, you say that you don't like the look, they "pass the wash test" but not the pull. Does that mean that a gentle stretch makes it crack?   How does it look? Is it blistered, did you really toast it? Or is the look you don't like a lack of opacity?

How about a pic of it as well?

We also may need some of our ink folks to explain some technicalities here.

[MrBreeze]

If your electric dryer has a scrub air feature normally used for water based inks, it will help to keep it running at all times.  The circulating air helps to equalize the temperature in the dryer and minimize hot spots near the center of the belt.