How do I print on polyester with a blocker base?Updated 2 years ago

The best way to create your Barrier Black carbon blocker base is to duplicate your base white. Do not create a new trap/choke. You’ll want the white base to print directly on top of the Barrier Black.

You do not want any of the top colors, like the white or colors, to overlap and touch the fabric. For example, if the Barrier Black base was choked and the white ink overlaps and touches red polyester fabric, you will see red slowly creep up the ink layer where it touched and begin to halo into the rest of the ink.

It’s important to have a thicker ink layer when printing with low bleed or dye-blocking inks. Having a large volume of dye-blocking ingredients is important when it comes to stopping stubborn, unruly polyester fabrics. You’ll see the best results with a lower mesh screen and/or a heavier ink deposit. A 110 mesh coated 1x2 or a 157 thin thread mesh coated 2x1or 1x2 for a thicker stencil will do the trick.

Flash at 180°F-200°F for 2-5 seconds, depending on conditions and ink deposit thickness. 

Barrier Black will be fast to flash. Be careful to not over-flash. Too much heat will excite the dyes under the Barrier Black, reducing the ink’s ability to stop dye migration.

Keep temperatures in your conveyor dryer as low as possible while still hitting cure temp of 260°F. Keeping the temp low won’t excite the dyes, which will stop the extreme blocking power of the FN-INK™ Barrier Black.