How to Easily Use a Shin Guard Press

A press that combines protection, sport and style

In the world of sport, shin guards are essential equipment, especially for contact sports such as football, hockey or rugby. However, beyond their protective role, these accessories are increasingly used to express one's personality and stand out on the field. Imagine wearing a unique shin guard, in your image, that no one else has. It's possible thanks to sublimation!

Sublimation is an innovative printing technique that allows you to transfer high-quality images, logos, patterns and even photos onto specific materials. Initially used in the textile industry, this method has become popular in many other fields, including sports equipment. In this article, we explain step by step how to personalize your shin guards using sublimation printing, from choosing the materials to tips for achieving a professional result. Whether you are a DIY enthusiast or a professional, discover how to use our shin guard press.

Using my shin guard press

First of all, we would like to clarify that this article explains how to personalize shin guards using the Shin Guard Sublimation Press that we sell.

We'll walk you through step-by-step how to easily customize your shin guards.

1) Before you start, turn on your press and set it to reach a heating temperature of 210°C and a heating time of 300 seconds.

2) Using Illustrator or Photoshop, print your visual. If you are not yet equipped, you can buy your EPSON Sure-Color SC-F100 printer from us, shipping is free! Regarding the printing of your visuals, we advise you to leave a minimum of 0.5mm of bleed on each side so that your printing is carried out on the entire shin guard.

3) Follow these steps step by step:

A - Position your sheet with the printed visual on a flat surface. Print your visual in mirror mode so that your print is in the correct direction.

B - Position your shin guard in the center of the sheet. Make sure that your design extends beyond the shin guard on both sides so that the ink soaks into the entire shin guard.

C - Use high temperature sublimation tape to securely attach your sheet to the shin guard. This step is essential to obtain a clear and uniform print on the support. Do not hesitate to "wrap" your shin guard.

D - Here is the result once your sheet is securely fixed.

E - We recommend that you cut off the excess paper to make it easier to handle your sublimation media. In our workshop where we do sublimation printing every day, we do this step every time. This prevents the paper from wrinkling when we slide it under the heat press.

F - Here is the result once your sheet is well fixed and the excess paper removed.

G - Now position your shin guard under the heat press. The support must be positioned well in the center. Do not worry if your shin guard does not have the same shape as the cylinder of the press. This is completely normal, as you can see in our example. Thanks to the heat of the press, the shin guard will take the shape of the press, you do not risk breaking it by pressing with heat (if you respect the heating temperature of 210° Celcius).

H - Bring the top of the press towards the base of the shin guard.

I - Make sure to turn the wheel at the top of the press before pressing your media. This wheel ensures that you have sufficient pressure, and therefore, a more uniform print.

J - Close the press using the handle.

K - Press "OK" to start the Timer. Wait 3 minutes 30 and lift the press once the time has elapsed. Remove your support from the press.

L - Wait for your shin guard to cool down for a few moments. Once at temperature, remove the paper from your shin guard.

M and N - Once your paper is removed, inspect your support. The print has taken up the entire shin guard.

O - Your shin guard is now finished. You can now stick the foam part to the inside of your protection. To do this, remove the "3M" sticker from the foam part and take the time to apply it to the back of the support. Our advice for installing the foam part is to start by positioning it correctly in the center of the shin guard. Once you are positioned from edge to edge, you can spread the rest of the foam towards the outside. If you mess up the installation at the very beginning, when you position the foam in the center, you have a few seconds to reposition it.

Express your style on the field with sublimation

Customizing shin guards with sublimation printing is a great way to transform a simple piece of protective equipment into a unique piece that reflects your image. Whether you want to display your number, your team colors, or even an original pattern, this technique offers almost unlimited design possibilities, while ensuring a durable and resistant finish.

By following the steps outlined, you now have all the keys to creating a shin guard that looks like you and sets you apart on the field. So why settle for standard models when you can wear something that inspires and motivates?

Want to get started?

We have everything you need!

You can order our press , the printer needed to print your sheets to be sublimated , our high temperature tape and of course the shin guards available from size XS to size L.

You can contact us at hello@coque-sublimation.fr to ask us all your questions!