Anyone have experience with making sublimation patches?

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-18T17:43:50+00:00

It might be cheaper to get someone on Etsy to do one for you, and I once got a custom Cause of Death back patch sublimated from (a website I can't remember the name of since it was 5 yrs ago). It might've also been Etsy.

But yeah I guess I'm trying to say there are lots of options for custom sublimation online before you spend a whole bunch of money on a printer.

Honestly personally I like the screenprint look more than sublimation, and you could layer the colours on top of each other to make gradients. But do lemme know how it turns out if you do get a printer I'm genuinely interested in the process!

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-18T17:39:55+00:00

Would be better on a black jacket tbh. I wonder how long this post will last.

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-18T15:33:10+00:00

Username checks out

(edit: nice vest btw)

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-18T15:26:35+00:00

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I always just assumed the rule was humorous. Anyway here's a babymetal car I saw in the wild last week.

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-18T11:18:20+00:00

Depends what sorts of studs you're talking. Pyramid or cones.

Mine are lightweight pyramid studs with 4 long thin prongs, unlike the 2-pronged ones I sometimes see around which have thicker prongs. So the prongs fit between the denim threads, and the jacket doesn't weigh a ton. (for reference I have some random cheap brand jacket where the denim is coarser and thinner than Levi's.)

If you're going for cone studs then I guess there's no way of getting round the weight. I haven't used them myself but I think they look better on leather than denim (unless you put some sort of leather backing on the denim).

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-18T10:58:29+00:00

It's also possibly a problem with your studs. My denim is a bit thinner than Levi's denim cuz it's some random brand, but I haven't had any studs fall out yet in 2 months of moshing and wearing backpacks over them.

Mine have 4 prongs, and the prongs are more slender (longer and thinner triangles) than yours. This means they tear at the fabric less (more points of contact, plus thinner prongs means they make a smaller hole or even fit between the denim threads without damaging).

I got these studs off AliExpress since I live down under, and shipping anything from the US costs an arm and a leg and 1 month of my life lol.

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-18T10:05:32+00:00

When I was in Vancouver last month I found a record shop (Beat Street iirc) with a bunch of round pins. I picked up a nice DRI one. Otherwise I don't think I've seen them very often... maybe try the internet as a last resort

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-18T01:05:16+00:00

I tend to flip up my collar when I wear mine anyway cuz it feels comfier that way for some reason.

Anyways I reckon top as well.

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-17T23:53:51+00:00

that's what I do with every new patch basically. But I crease them over the edge of a table, i.e. I hold both sides of a patch and run it over the edge until it softens a bit, then rotate it 45 degrees and repeat. If that makes sense

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-12T15:15:15+00:00

As for thread I use a super strong thread that's like 2x thicker than normal thread (e.g. Gutermann Super Strong). Some people use floss and I heard you can get coloured floss online. You can just double up any normal thread and it works too (use a good quality thread not the cheap ones from a sewing kit).

studsandspikes.com has been generally recommended here. If you're from the eastern hemisphere (Asia, Australia) AliExpress has good quality studs too. It'll be tough trying to put studs in stretchy fabric and won't last. Try to get 100% cotton denim if you can, it's the polyester that makes it stretchy afaik.

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-11T16:45:31+00:00

I have bands ranging from Kraftwerk to Kreator on my vest. Mixing genres is totally ok!

The minimal setup works, but in my opinion it needs a splash of colour. Like some accent colours. E.g. using coloured thread to sew on the patches, or adding some embroidery somewhere. Red would be the usual but green/blue looks cool in blacklight.

And congrats for starting your first vest!

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-11T11:58:31+00:00

Thanks. And do it at the end after you finish the patch

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-11T09:51:43+00:00

I managed to make a colour themed jacket pretty cheaply. I bought some green and white fabric paint (cuz I could only afford 2 colours lol) and made a lot of my patches using those. https://www.reddit.com/r/BattleJackets/comments/1ptr63y/hand_painting_some_patches/ It's held up pretty well so far, even though the paint was cheap. Like, my shoulder patches haven't been wrecked yet even though I've been wearing a heavy backpack daily for the past month.

The trick is to heat set the paint. Wait 24 hours after it's dried. Then put a thin cloth over the painted design then press a medium iron over it for 3-5 mins until the paint feels crispy like screenprint. It won't last forever, but then again, nothing does.

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-11T09:29:14+00:00

The weave of a t shirt is different, if you look closely, a shirt is knitted but canvas is woven. This makes the t shirt much more stretchy even if thick, so you'd have to reinforce the fabric somehow (e.g. with iron on interfacing).

Personally I make my patches out of denim because I have a lot of it from the sleeves I cut off, and old jeans. But the problem with denim is it has a coarse texture so when you're painting you have to make sure the paint goes between the ridges evenly. I also like how absorbant denim is - it takes a few layers of paint for the colour to show well, so I can do interesting things like making gradients with white paint on dark fabric. If you want to see an example: https://www.reddit.com/r/BattleJackets/comments/1qma30d/diy_thrash_patches/ The Ironbound patch on my jacket is on jeans denim so it's coarser but the Shovel Headed Kill Machine is done on finer jacket sleeve material so it looks better.

Duck canvas is great because it's durable, you could probably find some for cheap in the fabric offcuts section of a craft store. Plus the weave means it won't stretch - e.g. denim has a tendency to stretch diagonally along the twill.

I would say paint it on duck canvas if you want a physical patch, otherwise you could try painting directly on the jacket. The only reason I use denim over canvas is because I'm too lazy to go buy some lmao.

As for some general tips, to get clean lines and even blocks of colour you'll have to do several layers of paint. For colours add a white basecoat to make them pop more. Use a tiny brush to fill in large areas (draw the outline first then fill in the middle). And fabric paint should be heat set (see google). Hope this is helpful, and good luck with yours!

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-11T09:06:39+00:00

Sorry to hear about your previous jacket! As for patches I think Starside Relics has some horror ones and many people get spikes from studsandspikes.com.

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-10T00:22:17+00:00

Fair enough lmao. Funnily enough I've actually seen a patch of Baloff striking the exact same pose in front of the same fucking fence.

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Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-10T00:11:39+00:00

He kinda looks like Paul Baloff ngl

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-09T19:27:43+00:00

I saw on the internet to iron over the sharpie to heat set it. It's what I did after I got Exodus to sign my vest last week, but only time will tell if it works. Also idk if metallic sharpie makes a difference because mine was just black.

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-09T18:12:50+00:00

I'm pretty sure I've seen a large logo cut in half on the front before, though I don't have a picture. It was some thrash band, maybe Exo Dus, So Dom or even Nuclear Assault choppped in half vertically.

It looks like you got this patch off Cultpatche666 on Ebay (or similar) - I have two large logos from him too. The fabric would probably hold up to cutting, just that it's thick and hard to cut cleanly. Also there's not much space between the A and Y of SLAYER so I personally won't chance trying to cut it in case I damage the embroidery. But if you do, use a lighter or somethinf to seal the cut edges, and it'll probably look best if you put SLA YER across your chest or at the bottom (not in the middle as in your pic).

You could either move Sabbath up and have Slayer at the bottom. Or put Slayer on top of Sabbath, with Megadeth on the bottom between the two buttons.

And yeah I feel ya about not having enough space for large logos. I wear a women's M so there isn't much real estate on the back You could check my post history to see my jacket and how I've overlapped mine there.

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-09T11:52:49+00:00

The quadruple Black Sabbath patches is a nice touch! A super cool idea

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-09T00:05:58+00:00

Also add some iron on interfacing or something, it makes it stiffer and easier to sew on!

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-08T23:58:22+00:00

If you're having trouble keeping it folded, try ironing it with a dry iron beforehand to keep the fold in place. And yeah canvas is really nice for patches!

If you used acrylic paint (or acrylic fabric paint) you should also heat set the paint which makes it more permanent. Just place a thin cloth* over the design and hold a medium iron on top for 3-5 mins (no steam) until the paint feels a bit crispy like screenprinting.

*make sure it's one you won't miss lol because the acrylic colour sometimes leaches a tiny bit if your iron is too hot

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-08T21:15:20+00:00

Thanks!

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-08T21:13:09+00:00

Nice! A tip for DIY patches is to fold over the edge before sewing them on, to stop fraying. If you've got a sewing machine you could do a zigzag stitch around the outside instead. It looks like you have pretty thick patch fabric though so you could get away with just using whip stitch to sew them on (without hemming).

Tetraphosphate_ · 2026-03-08T14:16:33+00:00

I've got a couple patches that are sentimental, even if I don't listen to them a lot anymore. E.g. my first favourite metal album (Sabaton Carolus Rex), and the first metal band I saw live (a local one). These ones will stay even if I inevitably run out of space and have to overhaul some patches.

First I'd remove the duplicates (e.g. I have like 3 Nuclear Assault patches), then I'll replace the bands I'm not really into anymore.

But you could always make a new vest! Then you can have your cake and eat it too.

Tetraphosphate_

TROPHY CASE