Sublimation Printer Epson ET-2862
| Sublimation Printer Epson ET-2862 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Manufacturer | Epson |
| Model | ET-2862 |
| Obtained | purchased (2024) |
| Location | Craft Room |
| Team | Craft & Textiles |
| Induction Required | No |
| Tools: all pages • list • Power Tools • Broken tools {{}} | |
The printer prints detailed images onto special sublimation paper or sublimation vinyl. The image can then be transferred by heat onto objects such as T-shirts or special sublimation mouse mats, slates and ceramic mugs. The ink sublimes from solid to gas and then infuses into the adjacent material and condenses again. If sublimation vinyl is used, the vinyl permanently adheres to the surface too.
Machine Setup
The printer is located in the Craft Room. It should appear on the network as EPSON ET-2860 SUBLIMATION It can be addressed as SUBLIMATION.local
If the printer has run out of ink, it is essential that only the special sublimation ink is used. Contact the Crafts team. Do not supply your own ink. Do not swap out the inks to do another kind of printing, as this will permanently affect the printer.
You do need to supply A4 sublimation paper or vinyl. Papers may only work on soft or hard materials, though some types work with both.
When preparing to print from a computer make sure the printer set up mirrors the text. High quality setting is recommended.
Cut out your design and apply printed side down onto your object. Use a heated press to transfer the ink. The object should have guidance about temperature and time. Temperatures of 180 to 200 C are common. Durations range from about 70 s for cloth to multiple minutes for ceramics.
Hints
Special heat transfer tape can be used to secure your design onto the object. This is a specially formulated sticky tape designed to resist the heat and not deposit a gluey mess.
The final colours on the object may differ from those printed, especially if the object isn't white.
If using pure cotton to transfer onto, sublimation paper seems to transfer poorly. Vinyl works better.
Other fabrics, like polycotton, usually work successfully with paper.
Special blank mugs for sublimation dyes are needed if you want to make a custom mug.
Heat presses for T-shirts and mugs are available in the Craft Room. An iron might work for small designs, but people have found they often don't heat evenly enough. See Mug_Presses for details of making mugs.
The Silhouette Cameo has a print and cut feature in its software which will neatly cut around printed images.