FLASH-CURING
Most screen printing on garments is done with wet ink going on wet ink. Certain jobs and most dark garment prints need to have key colors (such as white) dried or cured before another color can print on-top of it. On an automatic press a flash-curing heater replaces one of the print heads. Some jobs also need a short cool-down period before the next color is printed. Therefore, what appears to be a simple six color with one flash-cure would need a minimum of eight printing stations - six for the colors, one for the flash heater and one for the cooldown.
UNDERBASING
When printing on dark shirts, the print normally needs a white layer of ink under the colors to allow the colors to be bright on the garment. This layer of ink is called an Underbase. Most underbases are white and need to be flash-cured before another color can be printed on top. Some designs have more than one white underbase.
SPOT COLOR
Solid and halftone dot printing of specific ink colors. Generally used for cartoon type designs with broad coverage of inks.
PROCESS COLOR
Process printing uses the four pigment colors of Cyan Magenta, Yellow and Black - called CMYK. On garments, many "simple process jobs are actually more than four colors. Designs with lots of specific color matches and heavy text need separate "spot colors". If the shirt is a light or pastel color, white is also needed. Good process color is much more difficult to than normal spot colors.
SIMULATED PROCESS COLOR
Real process color only works successfully on light shirts. Simulated process color is a photorealistic look on dark garments. They usually are a minimum of six colors and generally eight. Most designs require one or two flash-cures and the artwork is separated specifically for this process since designs separated for light shirts will not work on dark without extensive medication. This process in more expensive for the art and separations and more difficult to print correctly.
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Most screen printing on garments is done with wet ink going on wet ink. Certain jobs and most dark garment prints need to have key colors (such as white) dried or cured before another color can print on-top of it. On an automatic press a flash-curing heater replaces one of the print heads. Some jobs also need a short cool-down period before the next color is printed. Therefore, what appears to be a simple six color with one flash-cure would need a minimum of eight printing stations - six for the colors, one for the flash heater and one for the cooldown.
UNDERBASING
When printing on dark shirts, the print normally needs a white layer of ink under the colors to allow the colors to be bright on the garment. This layer of ink is called an Underbase. Most underbases are white and need to be flash-cured before another color can be printed on top. Some designs have more than one white underbase.
SPOT COLOR
Solid and halftone dot printing of specific ink colors. Generally used for cartoon type designs with broad coverage of inks.
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PROCESS COLOR
Process printing uses the four pigment colors of Cyan Magenta, Yellow and Black - called CMYK. On garments, many "simple process jobs are actually more than four colors. Designs with lots of specific color matches and heavy text need separate "spot colors". If the shirt is a light or pastel color, white is also needed. Good process color is much more difficult to than normal spot colors.
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SIMULATED PROCESS COLOR
Real process color only works successfully on light shirts. Simulated process color is a photorealistic look on dark garments. They usually are a minimum of six colors and generally eight. Most designs require one or two flash-cures and the artwork is separated specifically for this process since designs separated for light shirts will not work on dark without extensive medication. This process in more expensive for the art and separations and more difficult to print correctly.
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