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The best sublimation paper for Epson printer users is one that is labeled fast-drying and made for sublimation ink. As for weight, Epson printers can handle 105g through 125g and your design should be the deciding factor.
Coming up, we’ll introduce you to the different weights of our favorite sublimation paper: A-Sub Sublimation (link to product pricing) and how to choose between 105g, 120g and 125g.
First, let’s go over some other things to look for when trying to buy the perfect sublimation paper for your Epson printer.
What kind of paper do you use for sublimation printing?
Paper made specifically for sublimation has a special coating on one side. This special, sublimation-coated paper has three jobs:
- Accept the sublimation ink from the Epson printer
- Carry the ink from printer to heat press
- Transfer ink from the paper to the product
If your sublimation paper fails to perform in any of these areas, your end results will be compromised; usually observed as blurry, shadowy, ghosting, or inability to get deeply saturated color.
If the sublimation paper you choose for your Epson fails in all three areas, you’ll probably just give up before you even get started.
That’s why it’s so important to use paper that is made for sublimation vs. regular copy paper.
Using Regular Copy Paper for Sublimation
Can you use regular copy paper for sublimation? Some crafters do….until they begin ruining expensive blanks. Using regular copy paper for sublimation leads to inconsistent results and your designs often turn out less crisp or even smudgy.
Choosing regular copy paper over sublimation paper can be compared to using a cheap sponge over a good sponge. Let’s take a look:
Good Sponge vs. bad sponge
If you had to sponge up a water spill, would you want a sponge that accepts the water, carries it to a bucket without dripping, and then releases the water when you squeeze it? Or…
Would you choose a cheap sponge that; instead of taking up water, slides it around, and picks up so little of the spill that you cannot even wring it out?
Like a good sponge; sublimation paper performs its job.
Regular copy paper for sublimation is the equivalent of a bad, annoying sponge. We use it only for purging, testing etc., but it’s not worth a wasted blank if or when it doesn’t work. Now let’s move onto paper weights.
120g Sublimation Paper (vs) 125g and When to Use 105g sublimation paper
The numbers 105g, 120g and 125g, reflect the weight (in grams) per square meter of paper (before cutting to size). So that means that 1 square meter of 105g actually weights 105 grams. One square meter of 120g paper weighs 120 grams and so on.
After it’s cut to size for retail packaging…for instance: 8.5 x 11 size piece of paper, the difference between the three options of 105g, 120g and 125g …..is weight. And since the sizes are exactly the same, the difference is in the paper’s thickness.
- 105g is the thinnest
- 120g is thicker than 105g
- 125g is the thickest of all
What causes it to be thicker? The change in thickness has to do with both the paper itself and the amount of sublimation coating. And that coating, usually clay or resin based serves a purpose to you.
A thicker coated, more saturated, sublimation paper can handle heavy ink saturation more efficiently. While a thinner sublimation paper is ideal for your light ink saturation needs.
What do we mean by ink saturation needs?
Well, 2 things: the saturation of your design and the blank you are using.
To see a design saturation difference, look at the identical designs below. They are two people facing each other. One design will saturate the paper heavily and the other will saturate the paper very lightly.
Heavy Ink Saturation Design vs. Light
This is why it’s a good idea to keep stock in both a lighter paper like 105g and a heavier paper like 120g or 125g.
Absorbent blank vs. rigid blank
When it comes to the blank you are using: A polyester t-shirt is capable of penetrating all the way through to the other side (which is why we use blowout paper inside). However, an aluminum licence plate is not going to allow ink all the way through the plate…no matter how hard you press.
So what does it all mean? Well if you use high gram weight when designing licence plates, it’s perfectly fine, but don’t be surprised if you see more ink left behind on the paper. The ink simply has nowhere to go…and so it stays on the paper. We’ll talk more about finding the balance later…
How Much Does Sublimation Paper Cost?
Sublimation paper prices are all over the board and we love A Sub. Luckily, it just so happens to be one of the cheapest sublimation papers on the market.
Below are links to the A-Sub paper sold on amazon which is exactly where we buy ours.
A-Sub 105g – best for designs that have light to medium ink saturation.
A-Sub 120g – best for medium to slightly heavy-saturated ink designs
A-Sub 125g – best for when you print designs that have very heavy ink saturation.
How to Tell If You’re Using the Correct Sublimation Paper.
If things are going well for you and your designs are crisp, then surely you have the right paper. But, if any of the following issues are happening, try changing paper as follows:
My Paper Always Curls – Try going up in gram weight. If you are using 105g go up to 120g and if you are using 120g, bump up to 125g.
Contant Blue Speckles on Finished Product – If you are using regular paper, understand it is not made to be “lint free.” If you are using sublimation coated paper, make sure you are storing it covered. Blue specks are lint or dust that made it all the way to your heat press.
My Paper Always has Wheel Marks – go in the opposite direction. If you’re using 105, bump up to 120g and if you’re using 120 or 125g, switch to 105g. If the problem continues, perform a thorough cleaning of your printer.
Variable Saturation Designs – If you are often printing designs that include both light ink saturation and heavy ink saturation, stay in middle at 120g. If you use 105g, the heavy parts of the design may travel, bleed or ghost.
My Hard/Rigid Blanks are ghosting – the ink has nowhere to go and there may be too much to handle. Go to the lowest gram weight.
My T-shirts look faded, but all the ink transferred – Go up in gram weight because it accepts more ink
Is Sublimation Paper the Same as Heat Transfer Paper?
Not necessarily. Some heat transfer paper is made for pigment ink and it can be very confusing for an Epson user to distinguish between the two types of paper.
That’s why you always want to look for the words “sublimation paper for sublimation ink.”
Let’s Summarize
Whether you are a hobby sublimator or looking to make money with your sublimated merchandise, you’ll want real sublimation paper going through your Epson.
Real sublimation paper does its job. It accepts the ink, carries the ink and then lets go of the ink better than regular paper. Copy paper is made for holding onto ink and it has not been engineered to allow transfer.
To make sure you are using real sublimation paper make sure your package says: “sublimation paper” or “for heat press transfer using sublimation ink.”
Then, look for the words “quick-dry” or “fast-drying” and read reviews.
Finally, unless you plan to sublimate just one design, stock up on both a lightweight sublimation paper and a heavy weight sublimation paper. Use the light weight paper when your design requires light saturation. Use the heavier sublimation paper when your design requires heavy saturation.
Here are links one last time to the paper that we love.
A-Sub 105g – best for designs that have light to medium ink saturation.
A-Sub 120g – best for medium to slightly heavy-saturated ink designs
A-Sub 125g – best for when you print designs that have very heavy ink saturation.
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For more info about starting your sublimation journey visit our introduction page