Gaming is probably one of the highly engaged sectors among youths. And with new awesome games like PUBG coming to the market, the demand for getting custom-designed dye sublimation keycaps has also increased. Gamers today what their PC, keyboard, and keycaps customized. And if you are a gamer turned into an entrepreneur or you know a lot about games, then you can make customized keycaps using keycaps blanks and be the initial sellers in the market.
Materials You Need:
Dye-sublimating keycaps are pretty much the same as the normal sublimation process, you just need a special type of heat press to execute. Let’s have a look at it distinctively.
● Sublimation Printer:
For greater results, you must use a sublimation printer that is specially made for carrying out the sublimation process. However, you can also use a converted sublimation printer to make dye sublimation keycaps. But make sure it is of high quality to give a vibrant print.
● Sublimation Inks And Papers:
The sublimation inks and papers you use for this sublimation process must be compatible with the printer. Always try to get the inks from the same brands as the printer as the prints will be in a very small space so the colors must be vibrant and of high resolution to look attractive.
● Blank Keycaps:
While purchasing blank keycaps, always remember to get them from a trusted site where you always find high-quality materials. As the keycaps are very small in size so a little overheating may result in the melting of the keycaps. Also, always purchase keycaps that are light in color.
● Special Heat Press Machine For Keycaps:
As keycaps are very small in size, so sublimating on a regular heat press will result in the damaging of the keycaps. For this purpose, you will need to purchase a special heat press machine that sublimates small objects and also has higher pressure and heat control.
Custom Dye Sublimation Keycaps Process:
Dye sublimating keycaps are similar to the normal sublimation process, you only need some special equipment to carry out the process. And these are the steps you should follow to complete your custom keycap done
● Step 1:
Purchase good quality keycaps from trusted sites and also use high-resolution sublimation ink and paper for better reflection of the print.
● Step 2:
Get the designs printed in the same way as you would print for any other sublimation process and then allow it some time to settle down.
● Step 3:
After the printing process is completed, cut out the small pieces of prints that need to be printed on the keycaps. Place it upside down on the special heat press and allow an ample amount of pressure for the prints to get embedded into the keycaps. Make sure the picture lies in the center of the keycap.
● Step 4:
After the successful sublimation process is done, let the keycaps cool down a bit, and then you will have your custom-designed keycaps.
The prints on the keycaps are now permanent and vibrant. You can easily place it on your computer, adjust your settings and enhance your gaming experience a lot.
Best 5 Place To Buy Blank Keycaps:
You can check out these sites to get the best blank keycaps.
1. Mechanical Keyboards:
Mechanical Keyboards is a dedicated site for cool keyboards and keycaps manufacturing. If you are a gamer and you are searching for your new keyboard or keycaps or keycaps blanks then you must visit this site. This site offers you all products related to keyboards at a very reasonable price with a free shipping facility.
2. Amazon:
Searching for a product and not visiting Amazon is a big NO today. Amazon has a seller base larger than any other e-commerce site in the world. Each day thousands of new products get listed on Amazon and if you want to look at the reviews of the products before actually purchasing them then you must visit Amazon.
3. eBay:
eBay has got a large seller and purchaser base for about two decades today. This is a site where you will find many new and old products listed by thousands of people. You must visit this site for keycap blanks as you may find them at a very cheaper cost with free national and international shipping on some products.
4. Etsy:
Etsy is an e-commerce site that focuses mainly on vintage products but it also has a variety of sublimation products that are of high quality. This is a site that provides you amazing products and their open craft fair is a perfect time as you will get products at a much-discounted rate.
5. KBDfans:
KBDfans is a site that deals with all kinds of keyboard products. This is a one-stop solution for keycap blank requirements. The most important thing that they focus is on quality. On this site, you will get all sorts of keyboards, switches, and designed keycaps, also you will get good quality keycap blanks for sublimation.
Tips To Perfect Sublimation Process:
- Sublimating keycaps needs patience but the first tip will be to do smart print. You can print all the images on one single sublimation paper and then cut it to sublimate separately on the keycaps.
- Secondly, you will have to use a special type of heat press to sublimate keycaps, you can also make this small heat press at home using wood and small heating plates.
- Lastly, if you use homemade heat-press, and while performing heat-press if you slightly peek into the print and notice that the colors are not much vibrant then you can place it back and reheat it to get the vibrant print.
FAQs: Dye Sublimation Keycaps:
dye sublimation keycaps are specially designed keycaps that are particularly used by gamers and designers to print some specific function on a keycap of the keyboard.
The dye sublimation method uses heat to embed designs on keycaps. After successful printing, the dye gets embedded and becomes a part of the keycaps making it a permanent print that does not fade away.
You might think as the image is printed on the keycaps so the final result might not be very vibrant and good but the fact is that this print is permanent and is highly durable and reliable.
Generally, ABS is the highly used material in keycaps but other materials result in durable keycaps such as PBT, Polycarbonate, PVC, Tenite, etc.
Dye sublimating keycaps means printing on the surface of the keycaps. However, if you want to completely dye the color of the keycaps, then it can only be done if your keycap is light in color as you can dye only from light to dark colors.
Final Words:
Gamers understand the importance of dye-sub keycaps and how they enhance their gaming experience. And if you are a person with some influence in the gaming community and you are searching for new ways to penetrate the gaming equipment market then you must go with the keycap blanks and start a new venture in the sublimation market.
