hot flex t shirt vinyl not heating properly

[Richard Urquhart]

most garment films need to cool before removing backing
Rich

[Martin Parker]

yeah i would have thought that myself but there instructions said to do it when it was hot

[Caroline Ingram]

Hi Martin,

I find that with most of them even if it says hot or cold, if you gently remove when it is warm they will come off without any problems.

you generally know with the first letter when your peeling whether to wait until its cold.

It takes practice and patience.

Rgds

Caroline

[Martin Parker]

hi i found that out when i tried to peel it and the vinyl started to come off too so i left it till it was cool and peeled it off and the image was fine but is the paper backed clothing vinyls better than this or is it just a preference

[Steve Underhill]

If its very sticky backing its hot peel ultracut, duracut etc, which should be peeled hot.
If it is not so sticky then its normal flex that is cold peel.
You should be able to peel hot flex as soon as you lift the press up, I press for 10 seconds @ 160 degrees on medium pressure, If its cold peel flex I peel after wafting the shirt about for a bit to cool it down a little but still quite warm the same as mentioned above.

Not sure what you mean about paper backed clothing vinyls, textile vinyls are invariable plastic backed, apart form some Printable T shirt transfer materials.

[Martin Parker]

thanks for the reply well the vinyl i used is the hotflex but it doesnt peel off without taking the vinyl with it as i was told it had to be peeled when its hot but i found it peels better cold for some reason

[Steve Underhill]

Ok theres an easy way to tell, when you weed it, can you see the cut lines easily or are they hard to see, as in you have to look carefully for them and also is the material shiny or matt on the cut side.

[Martin Parker]

matt on cut surface gloss on finished vinyl and can see cut lines easily

[Steve Underhill]

That sounds like cold peel flex to me.
With ultra cut or dura cut its a lot harder to see the lines and has a a kind of matt patchy appearance to it, its also a lot harder to tear compared to normal vinyl.

If you are having problems peeling even when still slightly warm, try rollling the plastic backing backwards against itself, at about 45 degrees, this ensures its pulled across the surface of the flex rather than pulling it up off the garment.
This usually works just fine, then you just re press for an extra 10 seconds.]
I also only ever press for 10 seconds at a time, not 15 as the heat can buckle the flex it also make it harder to peel.

[Martin Parker]

cheers mate i will try it and let u know how i get on thanks for the help