Sublimation Tumblers: Everything You Need To Know!

Tumblers are pretty popular drinkware. It’s portable and easy to carry and comes in different sizes. It is also very common to customize such items and what better way to make your tumbler look even more impressive than sublimation. A lot of people love to get sublimation tumblers. It brings this extra look of satisfaction to the product and makes it more desirable.

Sublimation on tumblers is not a complicated process, and with the required equipment and proper guidance, you can easily sublimate tumblers with stunning prints. We have pieced together this article to give you an overview of sublimation tumblers, so let’s begin.

What You Need: For Tumblers Sublimation Process

The required equipment and material for sublimation on tumblers is not a lot, and most of it is similar to what you need in all kinds of sublimation.

1) Sublimation Printer:

⭐ Your sublimation begins with the best sublimation printer. You get the print from the printer, and the quality of the print is definitely affected by the quality of the printer—the speed, resolution, work rate, etc. A sublimation printer is what you need for any sublimation job.

2) Convection Oven Or Mug Press:

Instead of the standard heat-press, you need either a convection oven or a mug press when sublimating on tumblers. They are the more recommended heat transfer equipment for the proper transfer of the print onto the tumbler.

3) Tumblers:

As the topic mentions, we are sublimating on tumblers, so obviously, you will be needing one. Tumblers are easily available in different sizes, but the most common and recommended size for sublimation is 20.oz skinny tumbler size or the 16.oz tumbler. Also, check the quality of the material and whether they are compatible with sublimation and high heat.

4) Sublimation Ink & Paper:

⭐ Sublimation ink and sublimation paper are just like sublimation printers in terms of necessity. You need special ink and paper for sublimation, and their quality also plays its part in making your final product look beautiful and worth the effort.

5) Heat Tape:

Heat tape is such a valuable accessory in sublimation. The tape keeps all the things involved in the main subject together in their place to make sure the final print is proper. In tumbler sublimation, it helps create a high pressure between the print paper and the tumbler. So you definitely need the tape.

6) Extra Accessories:

This includes heat gloves to protect your hand, a shrink-wrap sleeve that you can use to create even more pressure on the tumbler, a heat gun to make the wrap tighter, and the software you require to adjust the image size on the paper according to the tumbler.

Where To Buy The Equipments For Tumblers Sublimation:

When you are purchasing such equipment, which does require some good investment, you need to make sure you are buying them from an appropriate website to get the genuine product with a valid warranty.

Mentioned below are some of the best websites to purchase the required equipment, especially tumblers.

Amazon:

⭐ What better place to purchase online than amazon. You can find a good collection of tumblers and other sublimation items you may be looking for to start your sublimation on tumblers.

HeatPressNation:

HeatPressNation is a well-known sublimation website. The site has a great range of both 20.oz and 16.oz tumblers plus other ceramic mugs. Sublimation printers are also available at Heatpressnation.

Etsy:

Etsy is another great website if you are looking for a good tumbler collection to choose from. Other than tumblers, a lot of other incredible sublimation-related products are part of the e-commerce website.

Johnson Plastic Plus:

Johnson Plastic Plus or JPP gives you access to great sublimation and other printing products. This includes tumblers of both 20.oz and 16.oz sizes and similarly other items on which you may be looking to sublimate on.

The Process Of How To Sublimate On Tumblers:

Let’s now discuss how you can do sublimation on your tumblers. The process is relatively not that complicated. However, there are a few things that you need to pay attention to for the print to be transferred properly. So let’s dig in;

➡ The first thing is to adjust your print size according to your tumbler. The most popular sizes of tumblers are either 20.oz skinny tumblers or 16.oz tumblers. If you have a 20.oz tumbler, you need to adjust the print size on the paper to adjust to the tumbler properly without any overlapping that can cause indentations or white borders.

A print paper size of 9.3 x 8.2 inches is suitable for a 20.oz tumbler, but you can still check the perfect size before the final process. Keep a paper cutter or scale or whatever you like to the paper if you need to with the correct dimensions. You can also download a ready-made template available on websites such as Johnson Plastic Plus. On them, you will just need to print the image, and you will be ready.

➡ Once you have your printed image paper, you need to take your tumbler and wrap it with the print paper with the image facing the tumbler. Clean the tumbler and keep it completely dry before this. Now, you need to keep in mind that you want to wrap the print paper around the tumbler as tightly as possible. Put as much pressure as you want and tape the paper where it finishes after the wrap as tightly as possible.

The more tight the wrap is, the better the print. There should not be any space or bump between the print paper and the tumbler surface. Create the seam as cleanly as possible so that the chances of a white line appear less.

Also Don’t Forget To:

➡ Tape the endpoint throughout the length to create a good pressure. Now tape the tumbler in a parallel direction of the height on opposite sides. Using more tape, even tape the upper and the lower end of the tumbler in a full circle. All this taping helps in creating the proper pressure with the print paper tightly wrapped around the tumbler.

For more pressure, you can also use a shrink wrap sleeve of a tight size around the tumbler.

➡ Once you are done with the taping of the tumbler and the print, you need to set your convection oven or mug press. If you are using a convection oven, set the temperature to around 400 degrees, and the timer should be about 6 minutes. Also, If you have a double-door oven, you can put it in standing up. If you have a single door, you can put it lying down and then, after 3 minutes, change the direction.

You can also do it for 9 minutes by changing the tumbler for 3 different sides with 3 minutes for each side. If you are using a mug press, settings need to be the same. If the tumbler does not fit in the same, you can use folded paper to cover the empty spaces.

➡ Once you are done with the heat process, please take out the tumbler very carefully as it is hot. You can put it in cold water to cool it down. Looking closely at the tumbler will show you whether the print got sublimated or not, as you can tell through the paper, especially near the seam. Remove the paper properly, and you will have your beautifully sublimated tumbler.

FAQ’s:

Conclusion:

Tumblers are such an excellent item for sublimation. They have the design, space, and use that makes them great for sublimation prints. People actually love to have such customized products. Sublimation tumblers are not really a wonderful personal accessory, but it also makes for a great gift. You can also start a small business of tumbler sublimation as they are quite a popular item among the general public.

I hope this article will help you in understanding the art of sublimation on tumblers.