Printing White Text

[gm280]

Okay I have been reading and looking for a few days now on how you can print white text on dark of black paper....or for my needs, clear sheets. Seem there is zero ink (at least reasonably available as a decent cost) to print white text.

Here is my issue. I am redoing a couple old 6 gallon Johnson and OMC gas metal tanks. And I wanted to make the labels/decals/whatever to do the white typical graphics on the side of them. So my initial idea was to have a stench made via vinyl and then use white paint to spray over the stencil. Problem with that is vinyl cutters can't make the fine print on those tanks. It is too small to cut out and use correctly.

So next idea was to use water-slide decal clear paper and simply print on them and use them as we did with the old model car water slide decals. The problem doing that is you can't print white on any printer. White is assumed the background color of the paper you print on. But I am trying to use clear sheets.

I have seen some unique companies offer white printers ink, but at unbelievable prices that are not ever going to happen. $600 plus dollars is not coming from my pocket to make a four decals. I also see there are some places that sell decals. But in each one the mixing directions are missing and only the larger graphics are there. And their cost rise pretty quickly as well. I have visited a lot of places that do offer some decals that look nice. But they are vinyl decals and not sure you can spray clear over any of them. So that option is out as well. I really want a paint replacement option so I can clear coat them to be impervious to oil, gas and other chemicals.

I was wanting something that looks exactly like the originals. I even read up on silk screening to see if that would work. And at this time, that maybe the only alternative, unless someone has an idea how to print white text. :noidea:

Any ideas from the iboaters? :help:

 

[thumpar]

Dymo and Brother label printers can print white on clear. I have a Brother I use it for info on black computers. It may not be able to do exactly what you want but maybe get you rolling in the right direction.

There are companies that make white toner cartridges for printers that would normally just take standard toner. We have a local company here that manufactures aftermarket toners using their own parts. You might try someone like them. If they were able to get white toner and put it in the cartridge for a printer you have access to you could then just print on any media that would go through a laser printer.

 

[StarTed]

Back in the day (middle 60's) I took a regular typewriter and typed a message on wax paper. Then I painted a clear coat over it. After it dried I pealed off the clear coat with the letters and placed them on a fresh white painted surface. It worked well.

Just a thought you might work around with.

 

[MTboatguy]

My Brother in Law has been in Charge of Bridgetown Printing for over 20 years now and he was telling me one thing you have to remember about printing "White" is you are really not printing. White print is a subtractive print, in other words when you want white letters, you print all of the other colors and it leaves the white letters because there is no color in that area, when you print black or any other color letters that is an additive print to get to the color you want.

Printing "White" is actually one of the most complicated printing jobs there is.

 

[jbcurt00]

@gm280
Check your PMs

 

[gm280]

jbcurt00, I tried to respond to your PM, but it wouldn't allow my response. But yea, I have seen those decal offerings. And that is what makes me scratch my head. If others can make them, there has to be a way. And I want to learn that way.

MTboatguy, I have read a lot in the last couple days abut white ink. Seem that white ink is hard to manufacture because the white pigment will not stay in suspension like other inks do. So the pigment will settle out and clog the tiny jet holes in the ink cartridges. But that is funny to me. We can send man to the Moon multiple times, and even have robotic rovers exploring Mars for years on end. But we can't make white ink. Now that is amazing to me. ound:

I will find a way yet. It now has become a goal for me to figure out. And presently, I am back at the very fine mesh silkscreen method. :noidea:

 

[southkogs]

The problem of "white" ink is actually one of the printing process more than anything. Most output systems are additive ... and that means that the way you get "white" is to output nothing. As you add the colors cyan, magenta and yellow + some black you get the range of millions of colors we typically print. Newer technologies are allowing white output, but they're all still with limitations.

Plenty of white inks and paints available, but it's how you get them applied that's the tricky side.

Vinyl cutters may be able to do very small print (depending on the cutter and the operator), but weeding out the decal can be a real challenge. Check with a couple of local sign shops and see if they can do print that fine.

 

[GA_Boater]

I wonder if you can print negative? :noidea:

 

[southkogs]

I wonder if you can print negative? :noidea:

You can invert color digitally prior to output, but the same limitations apply to the machine doing the output. White is typically created by using the base color of the media you're printing on.

Short version = "no"