Heat transfer with Wide format printers.

Printing on textiles is becoming more popular now that people realize you can do this with a normal inkjet printer. For example, the Hewlett-Packard DesignJet printers will print nicely on silk, cotton, or canvas. For this kind of simple textile printing you need textiles that are pre-coated to receive the inkjet ink. It also helps if the textiles are paper backed.

If you are doing commercial proofing of textile designs, or mass production of textiles with inkjet printers, then you need printers which can handle textile inks. The ColorSpan textile printer can handle textiles up to 72" wide.

A commercial grade printer for textiles is the RasterGraphics PiezoPrint 5000tx. Since it uses Xaar printheads its resolution is rather low, 309 dpi.

To save you searching the search engines, here is one article to check in a trade magazine, in Digital Graphics, Vol, 3, No. 9, Sept. 1999.

For additional information and for help making your decision, ask for the "FLAAR report on inkjet printing of textiles" (specify whether for home-hobby, for business, or whether you need dye sublimation heat-transfer textile printers).

Since there are differences between the various classes of textile printers, you might wish also to ask for for the FLAAR report on "Piezo vs Thermal printheads, fact vs fiction, pros and cons of each kind of inkjet printhead."

If this will be your first printer, then we have a special report that holds your hand and leads you through all the basic questions that will assist a first-time buyer of a large format printer. Purchase the FLAAR report on "RIP + Help." This explains what RIP software is, why this is useful, and includes tips, warnings, information, and help for a wide range of matters for a newbie. Here you will really appreciate that FLAAR is based at a university; Professor Hellmuth has plenty of experience writing in a manner that explains what you need, and why.

UPDATED: August 02/2001