A local outfit (All-American T-Shirt Company) custom makes T-shirts in batches of at least ten, for sports teams and such. Presumably they’re using a machine that puts ink (or vinyl or whatever they use) to fabric according to some design that’s inputted into a computer.
How much does such a machine cost, and where would you buy one anyway?
My googling skills are sorely lacking, as I was able to find several companies similar to the local one I mentioned, but no factories that actually make the presses.
Ryan Screen Supply
Beginner packages start at $1,495
Unless the technology has really leapt forward since I last dealt with screenprinters on a regular basis, nobody’s printing direct to fabric. You still have to make separations (film, possibly vellum), expose and process the screen, and then apply ink one color at a time. That’s why the link that Fear provided shows ‘printers’ with multiple stations. You mount the t-shirt and rotate it from one station to the next, applying a different color at each.
Thanks. Are you familiar with the Scren Printing biz, or just a good googler?
Back in 9th grade art class, we made our own screen printing equipment from scratch. All you need is a wood frame with silk stretched over it. You cut the patterns out from thin paper like blank newspaper paper. Apply the ink with any kind of wood-and-rubber squeegie that is cut to fit the frame. Our T-shirts turned out great. The paper patterns lasted for about 10 shirts; if you wanted them to last longer you could make them out of plastic film.