Guide & Infos
Everything you need to know to print well with our inks: curing, mesh and squeegee setup, printing on paper, water-based vs plastisol vs BI-EPOXI, frequently asked questions, and safety.
1. Curing & Fixing Water-Based Inks
The short version: print, dry, cure. Two separate stages. Skipping the second one is the single most common reason prints wash out.
Stage 1, Drying. Right after printing, the water needs to leave the ink film. Let the print air-dry, or speed it up with a heat gun or flash dryer, until it feels touch-dry (no longer tacky). This is not fixing. A touch-dry print will still wash out if you stop here.
Stage 2, Curing (polymerising). Once the water is gone, the ink has to reach 150 to 160 °C for 2 to 3 minutes so it bonds permanently to the fibre. How you get there:
Tunnel dryer: 150 to 160 °C, 2 to 3 minutes (ideal for runs).
Transfer/heat press: pre-press about 10 seconds to let residual steam escape, then press 30 to 45 seconds at 150 to 160 °C.
Heat gun or iron (DIY): possible but less reliable. Iron inside-out with baking paper over the print, keeping the whole area at temperature for 2 to 3 minutes.
The cold-fix alternative (no oven needed). If you don’t have a dryer or press, add 5 to 10% TEXPRINT Catalyst Extra to the ink before printing. The print then fixes at room temperature within about 72 hours and is washable to 60 °C, with no heat. Two things to know: catalysed ink has a short pot life (use it within a few days, it thickens), and mix it in a separate cup, not the original tub.
Always wash-test first. Before a production run, print a sample, cure it, and wash it. If the ink rubs or washes off, the cause is almost always under-curing (too low a temperature or too short a time), not the ink.
Washing finished garments: turn inside-out, 30 to 60 °C.
2. Mesh & Squeegee Guide
Mesh count is about how much ink you lay down. Lower mesh means a thicker ink deposit and more opacity. Higher mesh means finer detail and a thinner deposit. The trick with water-based inks is matching the two.
Mesh by job (threads/cm):
- Dark fabrics, strong opacity, white base: 43 to 55. Coarser mesh deposits more ink, which is what covers dark garments, and it also keeps water-based ink from drying in the mesh too fast.
- Light fabrics, standard colours: 55 to 61. You can thin with up to 5% water for a softer hand.
- Fine detail, halftones, CMYK process: 77 to 90 (TEXPRINT CMX prints up to 90; CMYK process 80 to 90).
- Coarse glitter or heavy metallic: 32 to 43. The effect pigment is large and needs an open mesh to pass.
Squeegee:
- Hardness: 65 to 70 Shore is the all-round recommendation for TEXPRINT. Softer deposits more ink (more opacity), harder gives sharper, thinner prints.
- Angle and pressure: keep the squeegee fairly upright and use the least pressure that clears the screen in one pass. Too much pressure thins the deposit and loses opacity.
- Off-contact: set a small gap between screen and garment so the mesh snaps off the fabric cleanly. This sharpens the print and improves coverage.
Coverage reference (TEXPRINT): about 250 g prints 40 to 60 mid-size T-shirts; 1 kg prints roughly 160 to 240, depending on motif size and mesh.
3. Printing on Paper
TEXPRINT is built for fabric. For paper and card, the right ink is PAPYRUS, a water-based ink made for absorbent surfaces. The two are different products for different jobs, and they cure differently, so don’t swap one for the other.
What it’s for: postcards, greeting cards, posters, art prints, packaging, gadgets, and other work on paper, card and absorbent stock. Satin finish, soft to the touch.
How it’s built: PAPYRUS comes as bases (Opaque and Transparent) that you pigment with TEXPRINT Concentrated Pigments to the colour you want. Add up to 6% pigment to the base. The Opaque base gives covering colour; the Transparent base gives translucent, overprintable colour.
Printing:
- Screen mesh: for paper, finer meshes are generally an advantage. They lay down less ink, dry almost immediately, and hold finer detail. AMEX rates PAPYRUS for up to 90 threads/cm, and on paper it is common to print finer still (up to around 120) for sharp, high-resolution work. The trade-off is that water-based ink dries in the mesh faster at high counts, so print with plenty of ink, work quickly without long pauses, re-flood the screen after each stroke, and add PAPYRUS Retarder if needed. Coarse textile meshes (43 to 55) are not ideal for paper, as they release too much ink.
- Drying and curing: this is where paper differs from fabric. PAPYRUS can simply air-dry at room temperature, or you can force-dry at 80 to 90 °C for 2 to 3 minutes. No high-temperature curing, no press. That makes paper work much simpler than textile work.
- Cleaning: with water while the ink is fresh, same as the textile range.
Keeping the screen open: on long runs add PAPYRUS Retarder (up to 5%) to slow the ink drying in the mesh.
A note on substrates: uncoated and lightly coated stocks absorb the ink and give the best satin result. Heavily coated or glossy stocks are less absorbent, so always test first and allow more drying time.
Storage: sealed, 10 to 25 °C, shelf life about 1 year.
4. Water-Based vs Plastisol
Two different philosophies. Neither is “better”, they suit different work.
Water-based (TEXPRINT and the AMEX water range, our main stock):
The ink soaks into the fibre, so the print feels soft, often you can barely feel it. Best for a vintage, breathable, “part of the fabric” look.
Solvent-free, low-odour, vegan, OEKO-TEX® certified, washes out of the screen with plain water, no harsh chemicals.
It dries in the screen if you let it, so you clean up promptly and keep the mesh open during long runs.
Needs proper curing (see section 1). This is the part beginners underestimate.
Plastisol:
The ink sits on top of the fabric as a film. Bright, very opaque, easy on dark garments, forgiving for beginners.
Doesn’t dry in the screen, you can leave it open all day.
Requires solvents to clean up, and cures around 160 °C.
The print has a heavier hand-feel and is less breathable.
We stock plastisol (PLAST-PF) as a full range in the shop, alongside our water-based inks.
Quick guide: if you want soft hand, eco profile, and easy water clean-up, go water-based. If you want maximum opacity on darks with minimum fuss and don’t mind a plastic feel, that’s plastisol territory.
5. Printing on Glass & Metal (BI-EPOXI)
BI-EPOXI is a different family entirely: a two-component epoxy ink, solvent-based, for surfaces none of our other inks are made for — glass, aluminium, steel, wood, and pre-treated polyethylene or polypropylene. Think bottles, jars, signage, metal parts.
It must be catalysed before use, always: 25% BI-EPOXI Catalizzatore for colours and metallics, 50% for transparent and CMYK, or 10% BI-EPOXI Catalizzatore S in place of the standard catalyst when printing on plastic. There is no ready-to-use version.
Printing: mesh 77 to 120 threads/cm. Dilute 5 to 10% with Diluente 301R (fast, for high speed or cool rooms), 302M (medium, general purpose) or 303L (slow, for low speed or warm rooms). On long runs, BI-EPOXI Ritardante 304 extends open time.
Curing: oven at 150 °C for 20 minutes, or air-dry at room temperature for 48 hours if you don’t have an oven.
Cleaning: with Solvente 105 — plain water does nothing here. This is the one line in our catalogue that needs solvent handling: work ventilated, gloves on, and see the Safety section below before you open a tin.
6. FAQ
Do I need an oven to use these inks?
Not necessarily. With a dryer or heat press you cure at 150 to 160 °C for 2 to 3 minutes. Without one, add 5 to 10% TEXPRINT Catalyst Extra and the print fixes at room temperature in about 72 hours. (Paper inks, PAPYRUS, don’t need this, they air-dry.)
Why did my print wash out?
Almost always under-curing. The ink didn’t reach 150 to 160 °C long enough, or it was only dried (touch-dry) and never cured. Always wash-test a cured sample before a run.
Can I print on dark garments?
Yes. Use an opaque/white base or a coarser mesh (43 to 55) for a thicker, more covering deposit. The semi-opaque CMX colours need a white base printed first on darks.
Can I print on polyester or blends?
Yes, TEXPRINT works on cotton, polyester, synthetics and blends. On blends that aren’t 100% cotton, adding Catalyst Extra improves wash-fastness.
Can I print on paper?
Yes, but use PAPYRUS, not TEXPRINT. See section 3. PAPYRUS air-dries and doesn’t need heat curing.
The ink is drying in my screen, what do I do?
That’s normal for water-based ink. Add TEXPRINT Retarder (1 to 3%, or PAPYRUS Retarder up to 5% for paper ink) to slow drying on long runs, keep the screen flooded, and clean the mesh with water before the ink sets.
How do I thin the ink?
Up to 5% water (or TEXPRINT Thinner in hot weather). More than that reduces opacity and can weaken adhesion.
How much can I print with one tub?
Roughly 40 to 60 mid-size T-shirts per 250 g, or 160 to 240 per kilo.
How should I store the inks?
Sealed, dry, at room temperature. Avoid frost and anything above 30 °C. Shelf life is about 1 year sealed.
How do I wash printed garments?
Inside-out, 30 to 60 °C.
Do you sell plastisol?
Yes — PLAST-PF is a full range in the shop, in 400g, 1kg and bulk sizes.
Do you sell inks for glass, metal or plastic objects?
Yes, BI-EPOXI — see section 5 above. It’s a different, solvent-based system: it needs catalysing before use and cleans up with solvent, not water.
7. âš Safety & Datasheets
Most of what we sell is water-based, low-odour and risk-labelling free. A few of the screen-reclaiming chemicals are more aggressive and need proper handling, and BI-EPOXI is a solvent-based, catalysed system that needs the most care of anything in our catalogue. Please read this before using them.
âš General good practice:
- Work in a ventilated space.
- Wear gloves and eye protection when handling reclaiming chemicals.
- Keep products in their original, labelled containers, sealed.
- Keep all products out of reach of children.
- Never let reclaiming chemicals dry on the mesh: rinse them off before they dry, or residues can lock into the screen.
- Don’t pour concentrated chemicals down the drain; follow your local disposal rules.
Products that need extra care:
Anti-Ghost. Removes ghost images (the colour shadow left in the mesh fibres after stripping). Apply the product through a sponge on the areas of the screen that are to be treated. Apply it on both sides, it is suggested to let it act for about 15-20 minutes. The action duration is related to the conditions of the mesh: the higher are the marks, the longer must be the action time. However, it mustn’t be absolutely higher than 60 minutes. Then rinse off with a strong water jet (a pressure washer is ideal). Two practical notes: anti-ghost is more aggressive than normal stripper and slowly corrodes the polyester mesh over time, so use it only when you actually need it. Low mesh counts (43 to 77) rarely have ghost-image problems; it matters most for high mesh counts and fine detail. Wear gloves and eye protection. The screens, that have been treated with SCREEN-CHEM ANTIGHOST must be subsequently degreased through specific cleansers (SCREEN-CHEM DEGREASER) before using them again.
Strip Concentrate. Emulsion remover for reclaiming screens. Dilute with water (about 1:10). Apply with a spray and sponge or brush to the screen held flat, leave to act a couple of minutes, then rinse off with a strong water jet. Don’t let it dry on the mesh. Avoid skin and eye contact; rinse splashes immediately.
Degreaser. Prepares the mesh so emulsion adheres evenly. Use it before coating a screen with emulsion, and again after using anti-ghost to clean the mesh before re-coating. Dilute up to 1:10 with water, apply to both sides, then rinse. Risk-labelling free, but still avoid prolonged skin contact.
Extra Tack Flash (spray). Aerosol pallet adhesive. Keep below 50 °C, away from heat and open flame, and use with ventilation.
SCREEN-SOL emulsion and diazo. Work under yellow safelight when sensitising. Avoid skin contact with the sensitised emulsion.
BI-EPOXI (colours, catalysts, thinners, retarder). Solvent-based two-component epoxy ink — the one product line in our catalogue that needs genuinely careful handling. Work in a well-ventilated space, wear gloves, and keep away from open flame while catalysed ink is curing or drying. Clean up with Solvente 105, never water. Mix only as much catalysed ink as you’ll use within its pot life; dispose of leftover catalysed mixture and solvent according to local rules, never down the drain. Keep the catalyst and hardener components separately labelled and sealed. If you need the SDS before you buy, ask us and we’ll send it over.
Water-based inks (TEXPRINT, CMX, CMYK, Neon, Special Effect, PAPYRUS, Concentrated Pigments): non-toxic, solvent-free, vegan, no hazard labelling required. Standard hygiene is enough: wash hands after use, avoid ingestion, keep away from children.
PLAST-PF (plastisol): phthalate-free and not hazard-labelled, but cleans up with Solvente 105 rather than water — work ventilated when cleaning screens and squeegees.
Safety Data Sheets (SDS): official SDS and technical datasheets are issued by the manufacturer, AMEX S.r.l., for each product. If you need the SDS for a specific item (for your workplace records, a school, or public-administration purchase), contact us and we’ll provide the current document.
