Chapter 21
General Recommendations For Mixing Inks
This chapter will help you learn how to mix inks to create colors and it will teach you how to deal with additives like nylon bonding agent or other additives. Find out how to mix basic colors and learn about mixing inks by weight and volume.
Subtractive color theory is that of mixing inks, paints, dyes, or other natural pigments to make colors which absorb and reflect wavelengths of light. When you see a red box, you are seeing the red light being reflected off the object, meaning that the object reflects the red wavelength in the electromagnetic spectrum and absorbs all the others. So even though we add inks together we are subtracting reflected light, hence, subtractive color because we see the reflected color not being absorbed or subtracted.
Color could be said to be absolute if we are referring to the electromagnetic spectrum and the wavelength associated with each color of light. But when it comes to human perception, which is ultimately most important, color is not absolute. Each of us perceives color differently. This is something that is good to keeping mind when dealing with customers in screen printing.
In basic color theory where we mix paint for painting via the brush, we use the 3 primary colors; red, yellow, and blue. We can mix these 3 colors to mix any of the secondary or tertiary colors in the color wheel. This is more about what color is being reflected in the end.
In printing we use cyan, magenta, and yellow as the primaries. Black is added for various reasons most importantly because cyan, magenta, and yellow do not produce a "pure" black. This is called four color process, process color or CMYK. K represents black. This system is based on what light is being absorbed.
This is so that the amount of any color showing in the final print will depend on the amount of ink laid down for each or the 3 primary colors. Cyan is the opposite of red. Magenta is the opposite of green. Yellow is the opposite of blue. The amount of blue in the final print will be directly related to the amount of yellow ink that is printed. The same is the case for the other primaries respectively.
Some General Tips On Mixing Plastisol Inks
Mixing plastisol inks can be an easy way to create a particular color that you do not stock already. Perhaps you need a burnt orange for a 2 dozen shirt order. Now burnt orange is probably not a color you may use often. So, in this case it is perfect for mixing the color needed for the job.
Orange is a common color to stock and if you have any "regular orange", you can start with that. If not, you can add equal amounts of red and yellow. Using more yellow will create a lighter orange. Using more red will make a red orange. Once you have the base orange you want to start with, add some black or even brown to make a burnt orange. If you use brown, it will be a warmer, dirty burnt orange. If you use black it will be a cleaner darker burnt orange. Be careful when adding black ink to any other color. Use very small amounts and add more as needed. Black is very powerful and can overwhelm your color before you realize it.
White can be added to most any color to create a pastel or light shades. Adding white to blue will make light blue all the way to powder blue. With red, adding white will make pink or rose. White is also a color you should be careful with when adding to another color. Make sure to mix the ink thoroughly between additions of white. White can take some time to mix through but it is weak in comparison to adding black to other inks.
Depending on how light you intend to go, you may want to start with a volume of white ink and add the color to that. Sometimes trying to lighten a color by adding white ink will make you end up with more ink than you need.
It is best to mix your plastisol ink for screen printing on a nonabsorbent surface. If you use something like a piece of cardboard, over time the ink will solidify due to the absorption of its constituents into the cardboard fibers. This can happen as quickly as a few hours to overnight. I use an 11 X 14 piece of Plexiglas to mix small amounts of ink. For larger quantities, you may wish to use mixing cups or buckets of various sizes.
It is suggested that you use plastic or metal spatulas and mixing sticks. Wood sticks like the ones used for painting are very absorbent and can leave wood fiber debris in your ink. You can use plastic or metal tools for applying the ink to your screen as well. Just make sure there are no sharp, square edges that could puncture your mesh accidentally.
Mixing ink can be a cost-effective way to supplement the color spectrum of your ink stock. However, if you do it in excess you can end up wasting ink. The best general rule is using ink straight out of the bucket as often as possible. Avoid mixing ink unless you are buying into a sophisticated computerized software system. That is the best way to make ink mixing economical and practical. Ink mixing software based on volume or weight is the most efficient ink mixing tool. Many ink vendors offer ink mixing software for use with a particular line of their ink.
Mixing Color Plastisol Inks: Creating Basic Colors
Mixing plastisol inks to create different colors can be a handy tool in any shop. Sometimes a small job that you do not print often may require a color of ink that you do not normally stock. Or maybe you have a one-time job in which you need a color that is not on hand. You can effectively mix this ink and fulfill the job without having to order special colors.
There are many very sophisticated systems to mix ink. Some textile ink vendors even sell complete lines of ink with computerized mixing software. It is designed so that any color may be mixed from a small stock of certain colors. These programs and inks make it possible to mix specific ink colors with great accuracy. This avoids wasting ink due to over mixing or incorrectly matching a color. It is important to be precise and only mix as much as you will need to avoid excessive waste ink.
For the most part, it is easy to over mix and mix incorrectly to the point of ruining ink. Especially if you are doing it by eye. It may take some experience for you to learn how to mix by visual reference only. But it is possible to conservatively mix inks for special jobs by eye. For this method we may use any ink straight out of the bucket that has the color hue and intensity that we need for the new color. Knowing which colors will give you what you want when mixed is where experience comes into play.
The following instruction is a general guide of which colors to use to get other colors. You should be able to extrapolate from this information and color charts to make more colors. When referring to a color like red, we shall assume it is primary. It is not an orange-red or a maroon. We shall need to be specific when it comes to verbally identifying colors of ink.
As you know in four color process printing, we use the subtractive method of mixing ink. The primary colors there are cyan, magenta, and yellow. But in the shop when using and mixing inks to create colors for spot color jobs, we will deal with inks of all colors. Here are some charts to act as a guide. Please note the colors depicted in these charts are for illustrative purposes only.
It is nice to know process colors mix to create common colors used in the shop every day. These are additive primary colors, sometimes called RGB. Mixing primary colors of process printing gives you red, green, and blue. But remember, process inks do not have any opacity.
Red, yellow, and blue are known as primary colors of the subtractive method when mixing paints. Since many of our inks are used as spot colors much like paint, we may use these primary colors to mix other colors. When you mix any primary colors, you will get what are known as secondary colors. These are also known as complementary colors. Red and yellow makes orange. Blue and red makes purple. And finally yellow and blue makes green. Orange, purple and green are secondary colors.
When you mix a primary and a secondary color you will create what is known as a tertiary color. These are the colors that begin to fill the full range that we print with on a regular basis. For example, green and yellow make a lime green. Orange and yellow will make a pumpkin color or yellow orange. Red and purple make a rose or cerise. Blue and green create aqua or turquoise. Red and orange make a scarlet. Purple and blue will create a lavender or blue purple.
Brown inks may be made by mixing a primary and a secondary. Purple and yellow will create browns that are a bit yellow or mild which are very common browns for objects. Red and green will make a very warm, earthy brown great for natural themes. Blue and orange will make a neutral brown nice for stone type looks.
Left over ink that is too brown or an unusual color can be reclaimed. You can mix any number of color inks together to create a dark brown which can be tinted black with a plastisol tinting base. Black is generally made by mixing all colors together. This is what is known as a color rich black. But using a black tint will make a great usable black ink from all other waste inks.
Adding white to the primaries also creates some very common colors. Adding white to any color will make a pastel of sorts. It is often easier to add the color to a base amount of white. Avoid adding white to a color to make another. You will end up with a lot of extra ink.
Adding black to colors will make what are known as "burnt" colors. For instance, orange and black make a burnt umber. Mixing a bit of black with red will make a brick like color. Add the black to a base amount of color. Black is very potent and will tint colors quickly.
How To Mix Screen Printing Inks By Weight And Volume
When you are involved with any type of screen printing it will eventually become necessary to mix inks at ratios. Sometimes the mix will determine the color of an ink and other times we are mixing in an activating additive or a catalyst which will affect the inks performance. In these cases, the mixture can be very critical. If the mix is off it may cause problems for your finished product. For working with colors, we often use our eyes as a gauge in comparison to color charts to estimate a visual quantity to mix. However, being precise in either situation will make the job easier and more easily repeatable.
When you mix the chemicals used in screen making for screenprinting tee shirts you already use liquid measurements of volume for mixing. You can also use this system for inks. This type of ratio will be seen in different formats. For example, when you need one part substance A mixed with five parts substance B you can see it written out in a sentence such as this. Or you could simply see it denoted as a number ratio like this, 1:5. In both cases a particular measurement of volume is used to represent the "part."
American measurements of volume include:
- teaspoon
- tablespoon = 3 teaspoons
- fluid ounce = 2 tablespoons = 6 teaspoons
- cup = 8 fluid ounces =16 tablespoons
- pint = 2 cups =16 fluid ounces
- quart = 2 pints = 4 cups
- gallon = 4 quarts = 8 pints = 16 cups
The metric system uses liters as follows:
- 1 milliliter = 0.001 liter
- 1 centiliter = 0.01 liter
- 1 deciliter = 0.1 liter
- 1 kiloliter = 1000 liters
- 10 deciliters = 1 liter
It is more likely that ink mixing systems sold by ink vendors will use weight as the measurement for mixing. Here you will need a decent scale big enough hold the quantities of inks you wish to mix. In this case you will use the measurements of weight to detriment how much of each ink or ink additive to mix with each other. This type of mixture ratio is denoted by percentages. For instance, an additive will be mixed into an ink base 6% by weight. This means you will want to start with a known quantity of the base to work with; for example, 100 grams. To mix 6% of the additive to 100 grams of the ink base you multiply 100 by 6% or .06 in decimal format. Therefore, we would add 6 grams of additive to the 100 grams of ink base to achieve a 6% ratio.
Common American measurements of weight are as follows:
- ounces
- pounds
The most common metric measurements used are:
- grams
- kilograms
You may also mix inks by formulas in which you simply add certain weights of each color. Pantone inks are often mixed this way. As you can see mixing inks by volume or weight is not as hard as it first appears to be. Taking a little time to prepare and gather your mixing tools before starting to mix will also help make things easier. And remember when it comes to metric to US conversions or anything related to weights or measurements, the internet is full of help.
Common Plastisol Ink Additives
There are several common plastisol ink additives that may be used in a screen printing shop on a regular basis. These are plastisol additives that are mixed into existing pigmented plastisol inks to achieve different performance characteristics. Some are simply designed to extend the ink and others are made to make it less tacky. Most of the additives today will be balanced or curable. This means the additive is formulated to cure the same way the plastisol ink is. That way any amount can be added without causing curing problems. Some additives do require specific mixing ratios. The following is a brief explanation of some plastisol ink additives.
Extender Bases - Extender Bases are used to increase the quantity of plastisol inks. When added to pigmented ink it causes the volume to increase. Most Extender Base additives are plastisol based and will not affect the cure process. Extender Bases will reduce the pigmented ink's opacity. Extender Bases can also be used as an under base in place of white for printing on polyester and cotton/polyester blends to minimize dye migration when a white under base is not the best solution.
Soft Hand Bases - Soft Hand Bases are clear plastisol base additives which reduce the ink's viscosity and make the ink penetrate the fabric more so than extender bases. The final print has a softer feel to the touch especially when the ink mix is printed with a higher mesh count. Most Soft Hand Bases are plastisol based and will not affect the cure process. It will reduce the opacity of the ink it is added to. Soft Hand Bases are not good to use in situations where opacity is needed or with low-bleed inks being printed on polyester or cotton/polyester blend fabrics.
Halftone Bases - Halftone Bases are a transparent type plastisol base additives used in process, (CMYK), printing. It makes the ink print very well wet on wet. It also helps control dot smearing and dot gain because the ink penetrates further into the garment. It is not meant to reduce the viscosity. Most Halftone Bases are plastisol based and will not affect the cure process. It does however; reduce the opacity of any ink it is added to quite a bit.
Metallic Clear Bases - Metallic Clear Bases are transparent plastisol base additives with a thicker consistency than other bases. It is designed to be used with glitter flakes and metallic powders. The heavier body of the metallic base helps keep the coloring agent in suspension. Metallic Clear Bases are plastisol based and will not affect the cure process.
Reducers Or Viscosity Reducers - Plastisol Viscosity Reducers are used with plastisol ink and have special de-tacking agents that help reduce the amount of ink that adheres to the bottom of the screens when printing wet on wet. They also decrease opacity. Curable reducers are plastisol based and will not affect the cure process.
VIDEO: Tips On Using Plastisol Curable Reducer
Flattening Agents - Flattening Agents such as suede additives can be added to reduce the high gloss of plastisol inks.
Thickener Pastes - Sometimes you may want to increase the viscosity of a plastisol ink. This plastisol additive will cause the ink to thicken. Most are plastisol based and will not affect the cure process.
Flow Control Additives - When printing wet-on-wet; ink buildup on the back of the screens can degrade the sharpness of the printed image. Flow Control Additives can reduce this problem. It lowers ink viscosity and reduces the amount of ink that sticks to the back of the screen. Most are plastisol based and will not affect the cure process.
Puff Additives - It is easier and less expensive to stock a transparent puff additive as opposed to buying puff ink in colors. Any plastisol ink in inventory can be quickly mixed into a puff ink with puff additive. These are plastisol based and will not affect the cure process. However, many puff bases will become white when cured. Therefore, it can affect the color of the ink added making it more pastel like.
Remember, it is always very important to read the technical data sheet, instructions, and warnings from the vendor of your plastisol ink additives. Use only plastisol inks and additives formulated for your specific application. Make sure the additive you are using is compatible with your brand of plastisol ink. Mix all your inks well and it is always a good idea to follow mixing instructions as closely as possible.
Mixing Nylobond With Plastisol Inks: Nylon Printing
Have you ever wondered how to print nylon jackets and sports jerseys? Printing nylon products can be a challenge but with the right knowledge, equipment, and supplies, you can print on nylon with relative ease.
The first thing you need to know about printing on nylon products is that standard plastisol inks will not bond properly to them. Plastisol inks need a catalyst additive that will make the ink bond with the nylon material. This will make the print wash and wear well. Without the nylon catalyst additive, the print will not last. It will rub off, peel, crack and scratch easily. Do not attempt to print any nylon product without the additive.
The most popular and well-known nylon catalyst additive is made by Union Ink. It is called Nylobond. You can purchase it through most screen print supply companies. It must be mixed with the plastisol ink, (which must not contain water), at a specific ratio. Mix in standard opacity plastisol inks at a rate of 1 part of Nylobond to 5 parts plastisol, (by volume). In high opacity plastisol inks mix at a rate of 1 part Nylobond to 4 parts plastisol.
Add 10-15% nylon bonding agent to the plastisol by weight. To obtain a 10% addition, the following is recommended:
To 1 qt. white add 6 oz. nylon bonding agent
To 1 qt. color add 4 oz. nylon bonding agent
For more effective bonding on more highly water-proofed garments use 15%:
To 1 qt. white add 9 oz. nylon bonding agent
To 1 qt. color add 6 oz. nylon bonding agent
Shelf life:
10 percent mixture: Up to 16 hours
15 percent mixture: Up to 8 hours
Curing:
The additive/plastisol mixture must be cured just like regular plastisol. Curing temperatures should not exceed 285-300°F (140 to 149°C). Over curing is not recommended as this may affect adhesion.
Adhesion:
If cured correctly, prints should be sufficiently dry for handling and light stacking when they exit the dryer. DO NOT TEST FOR ADHESION UNTIL 72 HOURS AFTER PRINTING. If prints do not resist scratching or digging with a fingernail, this may be an indication that insufficient additive was used. The more additive that is added to the ink, the faster prints will cure, but the mixture will also set up faster in the can and on the screen.
Wash-up:
Standard plastisol cleanup with screen opener to assist.
Other uses:
This additive is sometimes used in lower concentrations to ensure better adhesion on water-proofed nylon and may help to fully cure the ink on fabrics that will not withstand the normal cure temperatures needed for regular plastisol.
**Always perform testing before commercial use.
Nylon bonding agent is sometimes used for better adhesion on water-proofed nylon and may help fully cure inks on fabrics that will not withstand the normal cure temperatures needed for regular plastisol inks alone.
Curing your printed nylon products can be tricky for many reasons but if cured correctly, prints should be sufficiently dry for handling and light stacking a few moments after they exit the dryer. The nylon bonding agent mixed ink will be sticky right out of the oven and will even take a finger print if touched. Have someone catch your sports jerseys or jackets if they go through a belt dryer. After cooling the print will be soft and still fragile to scratching and rubbing but they will be completely hardened in about 72 hours. Higher ratios of nylon bonding agent will cause the ink to cure faster.
Remember that nylon products will shrink and melt under too much heat in the oven or from a flash cure unit. This is why many printers tend to do 1 color prints on nylon jackets. If multi color prints are done it usually is done with very little registration between the colors. The shrinkage of the nylon material and ink make it difficult to print fine registration multi color jobs. Jacket liners can also add difficulty. That is not to say it cannot be done. Just make sure you have the skill to pull off what you promise your customer.
You will want to mix your nylon bonding agent ink on or in plastic. Do not mix this on paper, wood, or cardboard. The mix will dry up very quickly sitting on porous materials. Also make sure to clean your screens completely of the nylon bonding agent mixed ink as soon as you are done printing with it. That goes for your spatulas, squeegees, mixing boards and other items that come in contact with this ink mix. It will be easier to clean up right after the job. If you wait, cleaning will require more effort and screens may get clogged or ruined.
Tips:
- Use a jacket hold down bracket for your pallet
- Pre-shrink the jacket with a flash unit
- Avoid excessive heat, the nylon will melt
- Use very quick flash cures between colors to minimize registration problems
- Sometimes wiping the nylon down with an acetone dampened rag before printing can help
VIDEO: Using Nylon Bonding Agent