Low-Bleed Ink

Low-bleed ink is standard plastisol with extra dye-blocking resins and pigments mixed in — sometimes marketed as nylon-catalyzed or poly-white ink — engineered to resist the disperse dyes in polyester traveling into the print during a 320°F cure. It won't stop dye migration completely on every fabric, but it raises the temperature and time a shirt can take before pink or gray staining shows through a white print, and pairing it with a heavier underbase adds another layer of insurance.

Athletic brands like Next Level's poly-spandex tees and most 100%-polyester dry-fit jerseys are built around this ink for a reason — a plain white plastisol on a red poly performance shirt will often bleed within the first cure cycle, and we've watched a whole batch of team jerseys go pink before they ever left the dryer belt because someone grabbed standard ink off the shelf.

Shops spec low-bleed ink by default on anything poly-heavy, athletic, or moisture-wicking, and reserve standard plastisol for 100% cotton where migration isn't a risk. It costs a little more per pound and can print a touch stiffer than standard ink, so it's not the automatic choice for soft cotton tees where hand-feel matters more than dye resistance.

Buyers often assume any white ink will work on any shirt color, but on red, orange, or dark polyester that assumption is exactly how a clean order turns into a reprint — if the garment is polyester or a poly blend, ask specifically whether the shop is running low-bleed ink before approving the order.