Overview
The Anvil 980 t-shirt is one of the more readily available options when you’re working with print-on-demand suppliers. All three of the vendors I’ve been using for this project – Printful, Printify, and Gooten – offer it in various colors.
Overall, the Anvil 980 is a solid t-shirt option for print-on-demand with the right printer. It’s competitive in cost with a very good color range. It offers a lightweight fabric in a wide range of colors and a looser-than-average fit.
This post is part of a research project into the best print-on-demand t-shirt options. I’ve summarized my findings elsewhere and am also providing more detailed reviews of the individual options.
I’ve sewed and enjoyed a variety of needlework for almost my entire life, having a solid background in textiles and garment construction. I’ve relied on this lifetime of experience as I evaluated each sample.
Methodology
In order to better compare all of the styles, I used the following approach:
- Unisex size XL
- Two colors: 1 black, 1 white (or closest equivalent)
- Same design file. I did have to resize for one or two shirts depending on the vendor, but I was starting with an Illustrator file and so could keep the same resolution.
- Measured 3 points on each shirt upon receipt:
- Center back from base of collar to hem
- Chest width just below the arm hole
- Sleeve length from shoulder seam to hem along the top center
- Washed each shirt twice using the label instructions and then remeasured along the same points.
I examined the construction and fabric quality of each sample. The print quality was part of this evaluation, but I considered it a secondary factor for this particular project.
Fabric and Construction
Content and Colors
The Anvil 980 is made from 100% ring spun cotton in a standard jersey knit. The fabric is soft, even before washing, but otherwise unremarkable – neither good nor bad.
It’s marketed as a “lightweight” shirt which is consistent with the slightly thin hand of the fabric.
It comes in as many as 25 colors, but only one of Printify’s (lower-rated) suppliers offers that many as of this writing. The more typical options among the three suppliers include basics such as black, white, gray, navy, red, and charcoal.
The black and white of the shirts are what I would call “true” shades. No heather or gray cast. The black is a cool version, no hints of brown.
Construction
The body construction is by a seamless, tubular method. This means the fabric for the body was knit in a tube of the desired circumference. The shoulders were then stitched together and the sleeves and collar attached.
A lot of people like seamless construction because there’s less on the inside of the shirt to irritate your skin. It’s a common method that even home sewists will use.
As I evaluated all of the t-shirts, however, I realized one downside when it comes to shirts you are printing on after construction: it’s harder to get the design straight.
When a shirt has stitched side seams, the printer has an easy reference point for lining up the design. Without those side seams, there’s less certainty in the placement. I definitely have more crooked print jobs on my samples that are made with this seamless method!
Styling
This t-shirt is one of the more generously sized in terms of chest width among those tested. It’s a straight, boxy style typical of a garment made with the tubular construction method.
Measurements – Before and After Washing
Note that these measurements are averages of two sets of samples. As I’ll discuss in the Print Quality section, this is the one model where I ordered a second set due to problems with the print job. Sizing was very consistent between the two lots of shirts.
All measurements in inches.
Before Washing
| Color | Center Back | Chest Width | Sleeve Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 29.5″ | 24.125″ | 9.625″ |
| White | 30.25″ | 23.75″ | 9.125″ |
After 2nd Wash
| Color | Center Back | Chest Width | Sleeve Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 27.938″ | 23.375″ | 9″ |
| White | 28.25″ | 23.375″ | 8.813″ |
Shrinkage After 2 Washes
| Color | Center Back | Chest Width | Sleeve Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 5.3% | 3.1% | 6.5% |
| White | 6.6% | 1.6% | 6.4% |
As it common with cotton knits of this type, the shirts shrank more in length than in circumference. Sleeve length and chest width shrank more than average within the test group while body length shrank right about on average.
Print Quality
As I’ve mentioned, I was focused on the shirts themselves in this project rather than the print quality per se. But the first set of these shirts that I received had such poor quality printing on both shirt colors that I decided to order a second set from another vendor.
BTW, I did have other shirts arrive with poor printing, but in those other cases one shirt would be fine and the other dodgy. In these situations, I put it down to poor quality control at the printer rather than something specific to the shirts. But with both samples being off, I wanted to have another comparison.
With the first set, the colors were faded, particularly on the white shirt. And I could see that the print was already starting to crack and peel on the black one before I even washed it once.
But the results on the second set were much, much better. Bright colors and greater integrity in the printing. So it’s clearly possible to get quality results on this POD option.
You can also see another difference in the print jobs when putting the white shirts next to each other (good on left, poor on right): the placement and sizing of the graphic are different on each. And I sent the same graphic file to each.
And this is why you always get samples from a new vendor!
Pricing and Suppliers
As of this writing, all three vendors I used during the research project – Printful, Printify, and Gooten – offer this style in various colors.
The Anvil 980 is marketed as a Unisex style although is commonly found under the Men’s sections on the vendor sites. The unisex sizing ranges from Small to 3XL, although Gooten only goes up to 2XL.
Without any volume or other discounts, the starting prices start just over $10 per shirt when checked on October 6, 2021, with Printify the lowest and Printful the highest. Some colors and the larger sizes cost more.
It fell about middle of the pack among the models I’ve tested in terms of cost.
Conclusion
The Anvil 980 is a solid t-shirt if you find the right printer. It’s competitive cost-wise with better-than-average range of colors.
It might be right for you if you’re looking for a light weight shirt with a looser fit.
