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General => Manufacturer's section => Union Inks => Topic started by: JohnMageeUnionink on July 07, 2016, 05:11:29 PM
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Let me know if I can help out with Union ink questions. I also represent Rutland and QCM.
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Over the years I have not found a better white as far as opacity, smooth matte finish and very soft hand especially how cheap it is in Wilflex LB Quick White. I have never used Union Inks so I do not know what would compare.
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can you add a dealer in GA that stocks and represents your inks? Impossible here, is it because this is Wilfex's backyard?
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Was gonna say the exact same about the West Coast. Some of my favorite inks but not
well represented out here.
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Over the years I have not found a better white as far as opacity, smooth matte finish and very soft hand especially how cheap it is in Wilflex LB Quick White. I have never used Union Inks so I do not know what would compare.
In a side by side test the new union eclipse white kicked the crap out of the wilflex quick white. Back in the day I found the union whites to be horrible but whatever changes they have made seem to have worked. We haven't done much printing with the new union whites but the testing we have done with them showed very promising results.
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About time, I stop using union's white inks long time ago but stayed with there color inks which I like, I do my seps and color by there pantone color chart makes work and color selection easy.
darryl
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can you add a dealer in GA that stocks and represents your inks? Impossible here, is it because this is Wilfex's backyard?
Lett me look into that for you and I will let you know what I find out.
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Was gonna say the exact same about the West Coast. Some of my favorite inks but not
well represented out here.
Yeah, you got going too late to have had Tubelite as our supplier of choice
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About time, I stop using union's white inks long time ago but stayed with there color inks which I like, I do my seps and color by there pantone color chart makes work and color selection easy.
darryl
I think you will be impressed by the new whites- it was a long time coming!
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Was gonna say the exact same about the West Coast. Some of my favorite inks but not
well represented out here.
We should have you pretty well covered on the West coast. I cover the bay area on up north to Vancouver. Near Oakland you have Midwest Sign and Supply in Hayward. There are also Midwest branches in Portland and Seattle. I will have to ask Javier Posada which suppliers represent us in SOCal.
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Over the years I have not found a better white as far as opacity, smooth matte finish and very soft hand especially how cheap it is in Wilflex LB Quick White. I have never used Union Inks so I do not know what would compare.
In a side by side test the new union eclipse white kicked the crap out of the wilflex quick white. Back in the day I found the union whites to be horrible but whatever changes they have made seem to have worked. We haven't done much printing with the new union whites but the testing we have done with them showed very promising results.
Thanks Danny! I'll be in Denver all next week if you need anything.
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Over the years I have not found a better white as far as opacity, smooth matte finish and very soft hand especially how cheap it is in Wilflex LB Quick White. I have never used Union Inks so I do not know what would compare.
Here is a quick (long) blurb I typed in response to 3 deep concerning our new Stellar series inks. In addition to what I outline below, we have an amazing Silicone White and of course our EKO inks.
The new whites are pretty exciting. The information I'll provide you below is a mixture of our corporate message and my impressions as a printer.
The theme of these inks would be that they have a satin style hand, print with lower pressure and clear the screen better than most inks of this opacity. On an M&R your average pressure is between 25-35 PSI. We have found that a 60/90/60 or 55/95/55 squeegee will produce the best finish. These inks are also priced to be more competitive while still providing the quality that our customers associate with Union.
The Lunar Cotton white PADE1040 is optically brighter and does not have that yellowish tinge to it in the bucket.
The Eclipse Low Bleed PLHE1060 is a go-to low bleed that clears the screen easier than Diamond White. Diamond white will still be a must have tool to have in your back pocket for nightmare garments but Eclipse is more of your day-to-day workhorse. This is my favorite ink to do side by side print tests with. It clears the screen better than any of the traditional low-bleeds of similar opacity that I have tested so far.
Mercury Low Bleed PLHE1050 is a really interesting product that I feel is another important tool for any custom shop. This is a non-traditional low bleed in that it has a different chemistry that does not utilize blowing agents. The hand and matte down are amazing. When printed properly you can get a hand and opacity that could pass for a high end water-base. We refer to Mercury as our "boutique" style ink.
Speaking printer to printer, I have customers that love this ink on tri-blends because of it's fiber matte down and fast flash. I also have customers that have replaced their athletic white with Mercury- but I cannot yet verify the success of that choice. It is not as strong a dye blocker as Eclipse or Diamond, but this product definately has value to custom shops.
Cosmic White ATHP1060 is our low temp poly ink. It cures at 280 degrees. Really nice hand, terrific low temp dye migration resistance and I feel it clears the screen better than any true poly ink I have tested so far. There is a companion under base grey that prints with a much lower profile than your regular under base greys. It's much smoother as well. Many of my customers choose to print with out the UB grey while a couple of my athletic printers have made it S.O.P. I think everyone should have at least a quart on hand to solve problems when you are up against deadlines.
Again, Printer to printer- the only thing I would caution you about is that these inks need to be stirred up in the bucket before you load your screen. It's not a separation issue- they just need sheer to get started. Some customers have reported that Mercury and Eclipse will climb the flood bar right out of the bucket during cold weather. This is why we suggest a good stir or even allowing the bucket to warm up on top of the dryer if your shop conditions allow for it.
Let me know if there is anything more I can provide you.
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can you add a dealer in GA that stocks and represents your inks? Impossible here, is it because this is Wilfex's backyard?
Your local supplier would be Texsource. Let me know if you need anything else. Your Rutland/Union rep for Ga would be Max Price.
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Was gonna say the exact same about the West Coast. Some of my favorite inks but not
well represented out here.
We should have you pretty well covered on the West coast. I cover the bay area on up north to Vancouver. Near Oakland you have Midwest Sign and Supply in Hayward. There are also Midwest branches in Portland and Seattle. I will have to ask Javier Posada which suppliers represent us in SOCal.
That's good to know that you are out here. Midwest does carry some Union inks but stock can be iffy.
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Was gonna say the exact same about the West Coast. Some of my favorite inks but not
well represented out here.
We should have you pretty well covered on the West coast. I cover the bay area on up north to Vancouver. Near Oakland you have Midwest Sign and Supply in Hayward. There are also Midwest branches in Portland and Seattle. I will have to ask Javier Posada which suppliers represent us in SOCal.
That's good to know that you are out here. Midwest does carry some Union inks but stock can be iffy.
I've been using Beckmar lately http://www.beckmar.com/ (http://www.beckmar.com/)
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I'll have to check with Tubelite here and get a qt of each white you talked about and try them out, Diamond white years ago just didn't cut it with me, I might have a half gal stack somewhere in the shop, I'm betting it's hard as a rock now more than it was when I first bought it.
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I've been using Beckmar lately [url]http://www.beckmar.com/[/url] ([url]http://www.beckmar.com/[/url])
I'd completely forgotten about them. A recent nightmare with McLogan has me gunshy with SoCal.
(they sent me the wrong particle size glitter, which, thanks to your suggestion, the IC tech suggested
I check. They then replaced it with right size wrong color.)
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Over the years I have not found a better white as far as opacity, smooth matte finish and very soft hand especially how cheap it is in Wilflex LB Quick White. I have never used Union Inks so I do not know what would compare.
In a side by side test the new union eclipse white kicked the crap out of the wilflex quick white. Back in the day I found the union whites to be horrible but whatever changes they have made seem to have worked. We haven't done much printing with the new union whites but the testing we have done with them showed very promising results.
That Eclipse white is a poly/cotton white that cures at around 284F if I remember that right. Tested it a while ago and was well impressed, as well on how well it holds up on 100% poly shirts.
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Was gonna say the exact same about the West Coast. Some of my favorite inks but not
well represented out here.
We should have you pretty well covered on the West coast. I cover the bay area on up north to Vancouver. Near Oakland you have Midwest Sign and Supply in Hayward. There are also Midwest branches in Portland and Seattle. I will have to ask Javier Posada which suppliers represent us in SOCal.
With out trying to speak for Midwest, not knowing what they would like their message to be- I feel comfortable sharing that Inventory issue are being addressed aggressively.
That's good to know that you are out here. Midwest does carry some Union inks but stock can be iffy.
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I have to echo this sentiment. While Midwest may well be addressing their inventory issues today, it was yesterday that soured me on them.
In this business, one needs suppliers on which they can depend. eb and I are neighbors and we have seen our local, and semi local folks let us down often enough that we now often either deal directly with manufacturers like CCI or venture out of our area to folks with better grasp on keeping stock.
Bottom line, I miss Tubelite.
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Mercury Low Bleed PLHE1050 is a really interesting product that I feel is another important tool for any custom shop. This is a non-traditional low bleed in that it has a different chemistry that does not utilize blowing agents. The hand and matte down are amazing. When printed properly you can get a hand and opacity that could pass for a high end water-base. We refer to Mercury as our "boutique" style ink.
Speaking printer to printer, I have customers that love this ink on tri-blends because of it's fiber matte down and fast flash. I also have customers that have replaced their athletic white with Mercury- but I cannot yet verify the success of that choice. It is not as strong a dye blocker as Eclipse or Diamond, but this product definately has value to custom shops.
Disclaimer: I am not the ink guru in the shop. That would be Mike the owner but I don't let him post LOL
We finally got a 5-er of Mercury in and printed a run yesterday using it (Gildan 8800's). Flood and opacity were extremely good. So far this looks to be our new LB white
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Mercury Low Bleed PLHE1050 is a really interesting product that I feel is another important tool for any custom shop. This is a non-traditional low bleed in that it has a different chemistry that does not utilize blowing agents. The hand and matte down are amazing. When printed properly you can get a hand and opacity that could pass for a high end water-base. We refer to Mercury as our "boutique" style ink.
Speaking printer to printer, I have customers that love this ink on tri-blends because of it's fiber matte down and fast flash. I also have customers that have replaced their athletic white with Mercury- but I cannot yet verify the success of that choice. It is not as strong a dye blocker as Eclipse or Diamond, but this product definately has value to custom shops.
Disclaimer: I am not the ink guru in the shop. That would be Mike the owner but I don't let him post LOL
We finally got a 5-er of Mercury in and printed a run yesterday using it (Gildan 8800's). Flood and opacity were extremely good. So far this looks to be our new LB white
Thank you for the feedback. The more I can hear back from users in the field the better!
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For my white ink, I only use Union White EF Brite Cotton PADE 102701. I prefer the thicker consistency, easier to control on the screen. I attempt to make a small mess in the screen and with Union EF I can do that, no problem.
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can you add a dealer in GA that stocks and represents your inks? Impossible here, is it because this is Wilfex's backyard?
Your local supplier would be Texsource. Let me know if you need anything else. Your Rutland/Union rep for Ga would be Max Price.
And that my friend is the problem! I would be willing to bet sales in our area show that. To bad for Rutland and Union down here.
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Was gonna say the exact same about the West Coast. Some of my favorite inks but not
well represented out here.
We should have you pretty well covered on the West coast. I cover the bay area on up north to Vancouver. Near Oakland you have Midwest Sign and Supply in Hayward. There are also Midwest branches in Portland and Seattle. I will have to ask Javier Posada which suppliers represent us in SOCal.
With out trying to speak for Midwest, not knowing what they would like their message to be- I feel comfortable sharing that Inventory issue are being addressed aggressively.
That's good to know that you are out here. Midwest does carry some Union inks but stock can be iffy.
I am in Western Colorado so Midwest is my Wilflex, Union rep, and there stock sometime is good not great, sometimes sucks. I will get better buy from Valley litho than Midwest but I have an account with Midwest. Or i can do Denco for International Coatings.
Shane
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John, please post details of Rutland whites, have they also been improved?
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I need some feedback.
Obviously this should have its own Manufacturers section, but the question is, with the amalgamation of three ink companies, should they be rolled together in one, or should there be a Rutland section, a Union, and a QCM each with their own?
In this instance, John's opinion will carry considerable weight, but all can contribute their two cents.
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I need some feedback.
Obviously this should have its own Manufacturers section, but the question is, with the amalgamation of three ink companies, should they be rolled together in one, or should there be a Rutland section, a Union, and a QCM each with their own?
In this instance, John's opinion will carry considerable weight, but all can contribute their two cents.
I think both I and the RG Group would prefer that they are 3 different categories, Union and Rutland are so mechanically different and QCM and Printop are pretty unique. But, I will go with whatever makes sense for the board. I can invite on a Rutland expert and Myself or another of my colleagues can field QCM.
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We actually already have a Rutland section
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For various reasons - I think having Rutland Group reps responding to Rutland Group products would be ideal. There are some product crossovers that may be better responded to with some group ink knowledge.
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I just switched to Union after using Green Galaxy as a newb. Seems Im growing up a little. And greeting from Vancouver on this dead thread.