I have received some fun products to review, but this Handheld Heat Press that I was sent from Advanced Machinery aka AM.co.za, is one of the coolest products that I have received to review!
The Heat Press is a handheld device that you can use to print on T-shirts or Jerseys (and potentially other clothing items) at home and it takes very little skill to use.
Watch below as I set up the heat press and print on some t-shirts and even a jersey!
Getting Started:
To get started, you first need to set up the base where the Heat Press rests while it warms up. This is to make sure that the underneath, which gets hot, is not sitting on a surface. The base comes in 4 parts which clip together as well as use screws to ensure that it is secure. Once the base is in one piece, the heat press sits on it and can be plugged in using the three-prong plug.
The heat press comes with a fluffy material pad that can be placed under the base to protect your surface while the heat press is warming up. Then there is a foam pad that is placed under your garment. This ensures that you have something soft to press down against and not ruin your surface.
The heat press has 6 buttons and a display that shows the temperature and time for each print operation. The buttons are: Power on/off, Temp, Timer, + & – and a start/stop button. There is also a handle which is used to lift the heat press and also hold it during operation to keep it still.
Printing:
To print, all you need to do is turn on the heat press, set the temperature that you require and the time for each print. Then wait till the display shows the desired temperature. Once the temperature is correct for the printing that you are doing, you can then place the heat press on top of your print application and garment, and press the start button. It is best to hold the heat press via the handle to ensure that it stays still whilst printing as it does vibrate.
How my prints turned out:
I received a vinyl print and a paper-style print (this is sublimation). The sublimation print was done on a polyester t-shirt and came out really well!
I then tried the Vinyl provided on a t-shirt and a jersey, both made of cotton. I did find the print to be a bit dull compared to how the Vinyl looked before application but I did notice after use that I left a piece of plastic on the underneath of the heat press which was meant to be removed. So this could have caused this issue. That being said, I really like the Homer Simpson Doughnut print and have worn it out 🙂
What is in the box:
- The Heat Press (H-PRESS/P1)
- Plastic Base
- Fluffly Pad
- Foam Pad
- Instructional Manual
Price:
The Heat Press (H-PRESS/P1) sells for R3086.65 on the Buy This website (This site is owned by Advanced Machinery which I wrote about here). I expected the heat press to sell for more money, so was surprised at how affordable it actually is.
Verdict:
The Handheld heat press is an affordable way to print on fabric at home. Setting up and using the heat press is also really easy, and it is also loads of fun! I can’t wait to make some new t-shirts!
Checkout my feature in the Advanced Machinery video!
