Wondering if it’s possible to do high quality die sub prints on metal (aluminum). Like you see all the good photographers selling at craft shows. Is it possible with existing equipment?
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Sublimation requires a special polymer coating for the inks to bond. So your metal sheet will need to be bought with the coating already applied.
I am certain people have done sublimation on metal at and using the Space’s equipment.
More information can be found in this thread:
@CaryF300 is one of our local area residents on all things Dye Sublimation and will probably have more information.
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So supposedly you can dyesub straight to polyester. Powder coating is mostly polyester (there are other types but polyester is the standard).
In theory you could powder coat your metal sheet at DMS and then dye sub to it.
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I have DS’d on metal. If you recall the old metal Band-aid or Saltines tins, that’s essentially what it looks like. Here are some examples. You can’t tell from the photos, but the panels are glossy. Each panel is about 10" squared.
However, like @TSki says, you can’t DS onto bare metal.
You can buy prepared metal in a couple thicknesses; in white, silver-colored “clear”, or gold-colored. The prepared metal is prepared on one side only. JDS Industries is a good source for that. Those metals can easily be cut (or punched) in Metal Shop.
Remember that DS has no such thing as white so if you want light colors/white in your image you will need the white substrate.
@Mrholthaus has an interesting suggestion about powder coating as a substrate. Worth a try … HOWEVER … DS temp on metal is 385F. If you test powder coat, make sure your powder cures at 400 so it doesn’t melt/get gummy in the heat press. Some powders cure at 375.
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Dye sub on powder coating isn’t just theory. I have helped another member dye sub onto an item that was powder coated at the Space. The smoother the coating the better.
EDIT: @mikea59 You can buy aluminum sheets that are already coated for sublimation. The high quality ones that you have seen are most likely ChromaLuxe blanks. They are used by a lot of photographers for archival prints due to their durability and the quality of the coating. There are a couple of JDS Industries 2024 Sublimation Products catalogs floating around the dye sub area. Check out pages 54-61 for the ChromaLuxe standard sizes.
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