Skewed print

[TCT]

Hey guys looking for maybe a fix? Shirt below is a American Apparel Tri-blend shirt. The bottom text line is supposed to be level/straight. There was probably 15 in this order that got skewed like this. I'm assuming it happened when the shirt was pulled off the pallet, but I'm not sure.

Any ideas or anyone ever experienced this and  know of any type of a fix?

[mimosatexas]

too much tac mixed with pulling from the top only probably when removing the shirt.  Easiest fix is to lift the bottom of the shirt halfway up the pallet with even pressure from both sides 1/3 in from the edge of the pallet, then do the same from the top.  Could also happen when loading if the person is right handed and the shirt is catching at the top but they are sort of stretching it to flatten it rather than letting it settle evenly prior to smoothing.  This is just based on my own experience with skewing on thin fabric.

[Frog]

Does a stretch in the other direction yield any change?
I've had two jobs get kicked back. One was red ink crocking and transferring to the  white ink in the design, and the other was this same issue, but with a damn sqaure that of course showed similar distortion when pulled form a "too tacky" board.

[bimmridder]

It would probably look straight if I wore it, because of my fat gut. I suppose you sold these to skinny people?

[ericheartsu]

100% from the pull up from the press. We deal with this all the time. FUN STUFF.

[GKitson]

Hey guys looking for maybe a fix? Shirt below is a American Apparel Tri-blend shirt. The bottom text line is supposed to be level/straight. There was probably 15 in this order that got skewed like this. I'm assuming it happened when the shirt was pulled off the pallet, but I'm not sure.

Any ideas or anyone ever experienced this and  know of any type of a fix?

You might be able to fix it with a heat press, take the time to load and square up the image, heat press it and allow to cool a bit before removing from platten.  This changes the fabric memory, especially in a tri-blend fabric.

However the time associated with the process and the change in the ink hand probably mean your best and cheapest remedy is garment replacement with a bit of TLC on the load /unload.

However keep this in mind for the  print Friday night for a Saturday event solution.

My 2 cents....

[Colin]

Counter point.

I have seen this several times from my loader... cough...

He will load the shirt - then pull it straight - using the corners of the shirt...... pretty normal.

However - the shirt is stretchy.....  and the uneven pull makes the edges of the garment kinda arc like a smile.

Well.... when the shirt is allowed to relax after printing and going through the dryer... the smile turns into a frown.... and straight text is no longer straight.

[sqslabs]

For us, its usually a sign of too much tack, which is weird for a heathered blend since they usually don't stick as much.  Could also be a loading issue, but that's much more uncommon here. 

As far as fixing it, we usually stretch them in the opposite direction on dryer exit which helps but doesn't always work.

[Prince Art]

Yes, experienced more often than I'd like, mainly with triblend & other slinky/stretchy shirts.

Preventative: everything already said, the biggest being pull up from bottom of shirt halfway or so, then pull off from shoulders. If the tack is strong, go very slowly until the tack mellows out. Also, get the shirt on straight the first time, while it's loose; or pull it all the way off & try again - don't try to wiggle it into position if part of the shirt is stuck to the pallet.

Immediate fix: almost what sqslabs said, but stretch in opposite direction BEFORE it goes into dryer. Works sometimes, not every time.

Real fix: Talk to the customer ASAP. About half of my customers honestly wouldn't care; some don't even expect a slouchy shirt to look even. But more likely, give them the choice of pro-rated credit or "wait 1 more day while we redo the mess ups". (If they choose the latter, be glad it's a 1-color!)

[Dottonedan]

I have heard of spraying it with water after you've found these, go back and spray them  with water, and lightly pull to the other direction to straighten...and run through the dryer again. Kinda like Greg mentioned with heat press so there is something there.

The guy that told me this had this happen on all 500 shirts. Apparently that worked for them.

[ZooCity]

Have you thrown one on a person?  It might look fine when worn, even if the wearer doesn't have a big fat gut like Dave claims to have. 

Picky clients?  Just re-do it if the other tricks don't work. 

I feel your pain here, bad pulls are a hassle.  Even when our catchers catch them there's already 20 on the belt...fun times indeed. 

[Prince Art]

Have to say, I've never tried Greg or Dan's suggestions. But that's part of why I read this forum... good ideas found here have already helped me save an order or two. If you try either/both (before I have to!), let us know how it goes.

[Doug B]

Well.... when the shirt is allowed to relax after printing and going through the dryer... the smile turns into a frown.... and straight text is no longer straight.

Happened once to me for a dentist's office! They were not too happy with the "frown".
Definately from unloading/too much tack.

[TCT]

Thanks for the replies guys! I'll try then it and report back.
Think this one pisses me off so much because they are on American Apparel shirts and I hate American Apparel stuff, so I think subconsciously I want to blame them! 

[inkman996]

I had to teach my printer how to load these correctly, he was terrible with tri-blends whe loading. I showed him how to laod the shirt exactly like he always does but once he has it where he likes it lift up the majority of the shirt and let it fall down into its natural position. It is amazing to see how much skew a shirt can  have even when the hems all are lined up.