Simulated Process Screen Printing Guide

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Quick answer: Simulated process is a way to screen print photo-realistic art — especially on dark shirts — using opaque plastisol spot colors and halftone dots instead of transparent CMYK process inks. A typical job uses a white underbase, 4 to 8 spot colors and a white highlight, printed through 156–230 mesh with halftones around 45–65 lpi. It is more forgiving than 4-color process and works on any shirt color.

Simulated process vs 4-color process vs spot color

	Spot color	Simulated process	4-color process (CMYK)
What it prints	Solid colors, logos, text	Photos and gradients built from spot-color halftones	Photos built from transparent cyan, magenta, yellow, black
Ink	Opaque plastisol	Opaque plastisol spot colors	Transparent process inks
Shirt colors	Any	Any — best known for dark shirts	White and light shirts
Typical screens	1–6	6–12 (underbase + colors + highlight white)	4 (plus underbase/highlight on darks)
Difficulty	Easiest	Medium — separations do most of the work	Hardest — tight registration and dot control

For CMYK work on light shirts see our 4 color process ink page.

A typical simulated process print order

White underbase (halftone, choked slightly) — then flash. WM Plastics Brite White plastisol, quart ($24.00) is a good, bright, easy-printing white.
Dark-to-light or the most important colors — for example black/grey, red, flesh, gold, blue — wet-on-wet through finer mesh.
Highlight white last, for the brightest points.

Some printers flash before the highlight white; others print every top color wet-on-wet. Your separation software or separator will give a print order with the films.

Mesh, halftones and films

Screen	Common mesh	Buckets of Ink
White underbase	156–160	20" x 28" screen, 160 mesh ($35.50)
Top colors	200–230	20" x 28" screen, 200 mesh ($36.50) · 20" x 28" screen, 230 mesh ($39.00)
Highlight white	156–200	20" x 28" screen, 160 mesh ($35.50)

Halftones around 45–65 lpi are typical for simulated process on garments; output at a consistent angle (often 22.5° or 25°) for every screen to avoid moiré.
Print films on waterproof inkjet film, 11" x 17" sheets ($69.95) with solid, dense dots.
Keep the mesh tight and the emulsion thin and even so small dots hold — see how to make a screen and the mesh count chart.

Equipment that makes sim process easier

A press with enough heads and solid micro-registration — a 6-color job needs at least 6 screens plus a flash station. See 4 color screen printing presses and the Vastex V-2000HD 4-color 4-station press ($5,587.00).
A fast flash such as the Vastex F-100 flash cure unit ($1,007.00) for the underbase.
Good registration — every halftone screen has to line up. Our registration guide covers marks and pin systems.
Proper cure through the full ink film — see the plastisol cure temperature chart.

Frequently asked questions

What is simulated process screen printing?

It is a method of screen printing photo-realistic images with opaque spot-color plastisol inks printed as halftones, usually over a white underbase. The halftone dots of several spot colors blend visually to simulate the full color range of the original art.

What is the difference between simulated process and 4-color process?

Four-color process uses transparent CMYK inks that blend best on white or light shirts. Simulated process uses opaque spot colors, so it works on any shirt color, including black, and is more forgiving on press.

How many colors is a simulated process print?

Most simulated process jobs use 6 to 10 screens: a white underbase, 4 to 8 spot colors and a highlight white. Simpler art can be done in fewer.

What mesh count is used for simulated process?

A 156–160 mesh for the white underbase and highlight white, and 200–230 mesh for the halftone top colors, is a common starting point.

Do you need special software for simulated process separations?

Separations are usually made in Photoshop with channel-based techniques or with a separation plug-in. The output is one halftone film per color with matching registration marks.

Setting up for photo-real prints on dark shirts?
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