Nine technical parameters to guide your choice of paper
Our popular Ultra Thin transfer paper offers a desirable thickness of only 40-50-65 g/m2. This is half of the thickness of comparable transfer papers.
The technical performance of Ultra Thin supports your choice of transfer paper. Ultra Thin performs perfectly on almost all parameters. With perfect, we mean the perfect print – not only on paper, but also perfect transfer to fabric.
A perfect print has no blurring, no shades, but sharp lines and precise patterns 100% true to the design.
01. Outline sharpness
It goes without saying that the outline sharpness on paper is essential to the sharpness of the print on fabric. The challenge of this parameter is always the shift between pale and dark colours. A poor outline sharpness will appear as blurry edges like for instance on the letters in a design text, or repeated dots may turn into a simple line.
02. Ink distribution
You need an even ink distribution to avoid mottled surfaces.
Ultra Thin performance: OK/perfect
03. Release
We want the ink to be fully absorbed by the fabric in the heat transfer process and therefore, the paper’s release ability is very important.
The environmental impact has constant focus when we work with colourants, paper and a production cycle in general. A good release means no excess ink and clean paper. Ultra Thin Paper has little or no trace of ink after the heat transfer process and may be recycled.
A poor release, on the contrary, will cause higher consumption and waste of ink.
The release of Ultra Thin Paper is perfect and stands out from papers with the label “good” because of its ability to handle darker/stronger colours.
Ultra Thin performance = Perfect
04. Cockling
Cockling is a problem related to the printing itself. Cockling may appear when the paper gets damp and expands during printing when water based ink is added from the print heads. Cockling appears as a wrinkle, a lump, or a bulge.
When the paper bulges the ink drops may miss the precise targets causing just a minor misprint on most occasion, but at high quality printing, this is of course not acceptable.
Ultra Thin performance = Perfect (no cockling)
05. Dimension stability
This parameter shares the issues of cockling. Whereas cockling appears on the width of the paper, dimension stability is a problem appearing on the length of the paper. The moisture from water based ink does the impact and in this case causes the paper to stretch. When the paper is dried afterwards, it is likely to shrink and end up shorter than the original length, which of course jeopardise the accuracy of the entire print.
Ultra Thin performance = Perfect
06. Weight
Pulp is traded in tons. Thinner paper weighs less and provides more meters per ton and therefore a lower price per square meter.
Ultra Thin performance = OK price
07. Strength
The tearing resistance of paper is important in all aspects of handling the paper.
Ultra Thin performance = Perfect
08. Ghosting
Printed paper is firmly rolled up and stored for a period of time. Ghosting appears when the print comes off on the backside of the paper when stored on the roll. During the subsequent heat transfer process the rub-off of colour may be traced on the fabric as ghost prints.
Ultra Thin performance = Perfect (no ghosting)
09. Migration
Migration from the print surface through the paper is serious. The ink will often disperse to the sides and lower the contour sharpness significantly.
Ultra Thin performance = Perfect (no migration)