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Dye sublimation colour fastness


Robtulloch

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G'day everyone. <br />With winter coming into full swing and the high winds that come with a storm, I have to ask those that know a quick question. <br />How colour fast is dye sublimation? <br />I have a PoloVTD and am super keen to put it through its paces in the high winds but can't find anywhere a definitive answer if the printed sail colours will run if they get wet. Now, I'm talking not just a LE dipped into some water, I'm talking a full on winter rain storm. <br /><br />Thanks<br />Rob.

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I've had them rained on before and they get washed (submerged) at home after a beach fly.

So far I've not observed any running of colours.

The first time one got wet (full vent, sudden downpour) I wiped it down when I got home with paper towels and saw there was a little colour on the towel.

I've since switched to letting all my kites hang in the shower and air dry.

With my Pro sails I've never observed any colour run or transfer under any condition I've experienced. I'm not sure if what I saw with the Polo was colour run or just some kind of residue from the print process, but with the bath wash and hang to dry method I am not seeing any problems so far.

That said, I have not had to wash my Polo that often so I don't know the results longer term, so your mileage may vary.

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The kite itself is colorfast. Be careful what the bridle touches when it is wet, the dye from bridle lines does bleed frequently, especially red. Don't roll up a light-colored kite if it is wet and has a dark bridle until you check with your fingers or paper towel or cloth to test colorfastness. (Is that a word?)

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All coloured Icarex will leach colour if you get it wet then roll it up, put it away and forget about it. The printed sails are no different. They are perfectly colour fast in the wet so don't worry about that (how else could we fly them in England!) just remember to dry them off before rolling up and then hang them out to dry when you get home. That way you will have years of happy flying together.

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