Beer League Jerseys: What to Know Before You Order

Ordering beer league hockey jerseys sounds simple… until you realize how many ways it can go wrong.

In this episode, we break down what every beer league team should know before buying custom hockey jerseys. From choosing the right jersey material to understanding the differences between screen printing and dye sublimation. This guide will help you avoid common issues like bad sizing, poor durability, long lead times, being stuck having to order extra jerseys, and ending up with jerseys your team regrets buying.

Whether you’re starting a new beer league hockey team, upgrading your current sweaters, or just trying not to be the person in the gray jersey at pickup, this episode will help you make a smarter jersey order.

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Speaker 1
0:00

Last

time

out,

we

talked

about

creating

a

beer

league

team

from

scratch,

picking

a

name,

coming

up

with

a

logo,

finding

your

players.

But

once

you've

got

all

that

figured

out,

you

run

into

the

next,

and

honestly,

sometimes

the

most

complicated

question

where

do

I

get

jerseys

from?

Talking

all

about

jerseys

on

this

episode

of

the

Beer

Leaguer

Podcast.

Hockey

jerseys.

Seems

like

a

simple

thing

to

solve,

but

man,

when

you

get

into

it,

there's

so

many

little

details

and

stuff

to

think

about

that

if

you

haven't

ordered

jerseys

before,

if

you

haven't

had

to

figure

out

getting

jerseys

for

your

team

or

for

a

new

team,

you're

probably

going

to

get

screwed

by

some

of

these

things.

So

in

this

episode,

I

want

to

break

down

on

how

to

actually

choose

beer

league

hockey

jerseys

from

suppliers

to

materials

to

the

different

types

of

printing

methods.

And

more

importantly,

what

matters

when

you're

out

on

the

ice

wearing

them?

Because

having

just

a

little

bit

of

knowledge

about

what

some

of

these

things

mean,

like

the

different

types

of

printing

methods,

can

go

a

long

way

to

helping

you

make

sure

you

get

jerseys

that

not

just

you,

but

the

rest

of

your

team

is

happy

with.

Okay,

so

first

things

first,

you

should

already

have

a

design

for

your

Have your design ready

Speaker 1
1:19

jerseys.

Reference

the

previous

episode

that

I

talked

about,

talking

about

different

ways

to

come

up

with

designs

and

logos

and

colors

and

all

that

kind

of

stuff.

All

sorts

of

different

ways

you

can

do

those

types

of

things.

You

know,

and

if

you're

getting

jerseys

for,

you

know,

a

full

season

team

and

up

to

the

tournament,

you

know,

you're

gonna

want

to

have

probably

a

white

jersey

and

then

some

sort

of

color

jersey,

usually

a

darker

colored

jersey.

That's

kind

of

the

standard

to

have

for

stuff.

Then

also

you're

gonna

want

to

know

how

detailed

do

you

want

these

things?

You

know,

when

you're

coming

up

with

your

jersey

designs,

you

gotta

decide

do

you

just

want,

you

know,

logo

on

the

front,

name

on

the

back

with

a

number?

Do

you

even

want

names?

Just

want

a

number

and

a

logo.

Do

you

want

shoulder

patches?

Do

you

want

numbers

on

the

sleeves?

Are

you

gonna

try

and

get

sponsors

and

have

sponsors

somewhere

around

on

your

jerseys?

Do

you

want,

you

know,

tied

collars

or

do

you

want

just

this

kind

of

standard

generic

hockey

jersey

collar?

Do

you

want

little

details

inside

the

jersey

collar?

You

can

get

all

this

stuff.

A

lot

of

these

places

that

make

jerseys

will

do

different

things

for

you,

but

you

have

to

know

to

ask

for

them

and

you

have

to

have

them

designed.

Because

manufacturers

of

the

hockey

jerseys

aren't

just

going

to

make

stuff

based

on

what

you

tell

them

you

want.

You

have

to

show

them

because

they

want

to

go,

okay,

this

is

the

mock-up

design,

everything

detailed

here.

Here's

how

everything

looks.

Is

that

what

you

want?

And

then

you

sign

off,

and

then

they

will

make

them.

Because

if

they

don't

do

that

and

they

just

go

off

of

what

you

said,

whatever

they're

picturing

in

their

head

might

not

be

what

you

said.

And

all

of

a

sudden,

those

20

jerseys

you

ordered,

you

want

to

return

because

oh

no,

when

I

said

I

wanted

numbers,

I

meant

I

wanted

like

black

numbers

on

our

jersey,

not

the

white

numbers.

But

if

you

didn't

tell

them

that,

they

don't

know.

So

they're

gonna

want

to

know

very

specifically

what

you

want.

So

make

sure

you

have

this

stuff

locked

down

as

much

as

you

can.

Now,

there

are

some

places

that

if

you

don't

have

everything

completely

done

for

you,

they

will

help

you

out

to

some

degree.

Some

of

these

places

that

make

jerseys

will

have

a

full-time

designer

and

they

will

help

you

make

one

from

scratch

if

you

really

want.

Again,

go

back

to

some

of

the

stuff

we

talked

about

using

AI

to

come

up

with

some

ideas

so

you

can

at

least

bring

some

ideas

to

the

table

to

show

these

people

what

you're

looking

for.

But

for

the

most

part,

a

lot

of

these

places

also

do

like

other

printing

things.

They

probably

also

do

like

t-shirts

and

hats

and

stuff

like

that.

So

they

have

people

that

know

how

to

manipulate

designs

and

they

will

definitely

help

guide

you

for

what

you

need

and

you

know

make

sure,

like,

hey,

these

are

the

types

of

colors

we

can

print.

Is

this

blue,

you

know,

okay

for

the

blue

that

you

asked

for?

Uh,

is

this

number

size

fine

and

give

you

like

mock-ups

to

go

off

of

and

help

go

that

way?

But

they

won't

completely

design

it

from

scratch

for

you.

So

that's

something

if

you

need

a

complete

design

from

scratch,

make

sure

you're

looking

for

when

you

are

picking

who's

going

to

be

printing

your

jerseys.

Number

two,

really

important

to

consider

when

you

are

looking

to

get

jerseys

made.

What

What are the Jerseys For?

Speaker 1
4:25

are

the

jerseys

for?

Uh,

like

are

these

just

some

kind

of

like

a

practice

jersey

that

you're

gonna

have

that

you

know,

maybe

you

wear

to

like

a

pickup

skate

or

something

like

that,

or

you

and

your

buddies

have

the

same

hockey

jerseys,

or

maybe

it's

not

even

for

playing

hockey,

maybe

it's

hockey

jerseys

for

like

wearing

out,

so

it's

you

know,

something

that

matches

with

stuff.

Or

is

it

for

actual

games?

All

very

different

things,

different

sizing,

uh,

different

needs

for

the

stuff

that

you

have.

This

will

come

into

a

play

later

on.

The

stuff

is

building

on

itself,

so

stick

with

me.

And

if

they're

using

for

actual

games,

is

this

like

a

one-off

for

tournaments?

Or

is

this

for

like

a

team

that

you

have

that's

hoping

to

be

around

for

multiple

years

and

these

jerseys

need

to

last

multiple

seasons?

Again,

very

different

kind

of

setups

of

what

kind

of

jerseys

you

want

and

maybe

how

much

you're

willing

to

spend

on

them.

And

also,

along

with

that,

that

kind

of

goes

into

what

we

talked

about

before

is

do

you

need

two

sets

of

jerseys?

You

know,

if

this

is

for

just

a

tournament,

you

can

probably

get

away

with

one

set

of

jerseys.

You

know,

if

it's

a

unique

color

or

something

like

that,

you

can

probably

do

that.

If

it's

for

like

pickup,

sure,

you

know,

get

like

one

white

jersey

or

one

dark

jersey.

Again,

don't

be

the

person

with

a

gray

jersey

or

a

yellow

jersey.

You

can't

play

for

both

teams.

You

are

just

an

ass.

That's

fine.

But

if

it's

for

a

you

know,

regular

kind

of

regular

season

thing

that

you

have,

that

you

know,

you

play

a

certain

number

of

games,

you

probably

need

to

have

home

and

away

jerseys.

Uh,

some

leagues

I

know

do

designate

teams

for

a

color,

you

know,

and

that's

okay.

But

most

of

them

don't.

Most

of

them

is

you

have

your

jerseys,

you

need

a

light

jersey,

you

need

a

dark

jersey

for

home

and

for

away.

So

find

that

stuff

out.

Because

again,

this

is

gonna

add

up.

If

you're

getting

jerseys

just

for

one

offer

tournament

and

you're

getting

everybody's

getting

one

single

color

jersey,

that

is

a

way

different

price

than

if

everybody

that

you

have

for

your

league,

everybody

has

to

get

two

jerseys.

Different

stuff.

What

this

does

is

it

really

helps

you

figure

out

how

cheap

you

can

go.

I

mean,

you

can

always

go

expensive

for

whatever

you

want

and

go

over

the

top

for

whatever

you

need.

That's

totally

fine.

But

this

really

helps

kind

of

give

you

the

floor

of

where

you

can

be

for

what

you're

looking

for

for

a

jersey.

All

right,

number

three.

Now

we're

getting

into

the

factors

that

really,

really

will

determine

the

cost

of

your

jerseys

and

what

you

really

need

to

look

for

in

your

manufacturer.

So

all

these

things

kind

of

work

together.

They

really

don't

work

independent

of

each

other.

So

keep

that

in

mind.

All

these

factors

really

work

together

to

figure

out

the

kind

of

jersey

you

want.

It's

not

really

a

pick

and

choose,

it's

more

of

a

trade-offs

versus

what

you

really

want

kind

of

thing

to

go

with.

It's

also

different

places

offer

different

combinations

of

these

or

don't

offer

any

of

these

at

all.

So

try

and

figure

out

which

of

these

are

important

to

you

and

what

you

want,

and

then

find

someone

that

makes

jerseys

that

fits

that

for

you.

All

right,

so

number

one,

jersey

material.

Jersey Materials

Speaker 1
7:34

So

going

from

kind

of

the

most

expensive

to

least

expensive,

which

is

also

going

to

be

the

most

durable

to

least

durable,

which

you

might

not

think

is

a

big

deal,

but

durable

is

important

for

you

know

just

washing

the

jersey.

Uh,

especially,

you

know,

if

these

are

going

to

be

for

league,

you're

gonna

be

washing

these

jerseys

at

some

point.

More

durable

is

gonna

be

holding

up

to

better,

holding

up

better

to

multiple

washings.

It's

also

gonna

hold

up

better

for

rips

and

tears

and

holes

and

things

like

that.

And

it's

also

what

what

stuff

is

going

to

hold

smells

versus

not

hold

smells.

Uh,

the

least

durable

jerseys

honestly

tend

to

usually

not

hold

smells

as

much,

but

they're

a

lot

less

durable,

so

they

don't

hold

up

as

well.

Whereas

the

more

durable

ones

do

hold

smells,

so

they

need

to

get

washed

more,

which

is

good

that

you

can

wash

them

more

so

they

don't

stink.

Hopefully

you

followed

that.

All

right,

so

starting

off

with

the

most

durable,

like

the

most

heavy-duty

jersey

material

you

can

get

is

really

heavyweight

jerseys.

There

are

jerseys

out

there

that

are

really

like

an

actual

sweater.

It's

wearing

like

a

sweater.

They

are

very

thick,

they

are

very

warm,

uh,

but

they

are

very,

very

durable.

You

can

kind

of

do

any

kind

of

customization

on

them,

usually,

uh,

but

they

are

usually

kind

of

expensive,

but

they

do

hold

up

great.

They

take

a

washing

really

well.

But

yeah,

they're

pretty

heavy

and

they

are

pretty

hot

usually.

Uh

slightly

a

tick

below

that,

you

have

what's

kind

of

called

the

pro-weight

jerseys.

That's

what

I

think

you

see

in

a

lot

of

places

when

they

have

hockey

jerseys.

This

is

kind

of

usually

what

they're

talking

about,

is

pro

weight.

These

are

usually

super

durable,

uh

almost

as

durable

as

kind

of

these

heavyweight

jerseys.

You

don't

really

have

a

ton

of

color

choices

a

lot

of

times

with

these,

because

these

are

usually

based

on

pro

team

color

options.

So

for

like

the

stripes

and

stuff

that

are

on

them,

these

are

usually

based

on

that.

So

this

is

when

you'll

see

teams

that

have

like,

you

know,

our

home

jerseys

are

the

you

know,

Los

Angeles

Kings

home

jersey

blank,

and

our

away

jersey

is

say

uh

the

Seattle

Kraken

away

jersey,

you

know,

that

dark

blue

color

uh

with

the

lighter

blue

stripes.

So

that's

you

kind

of

get

those

kind

of

color

combinations

versus

having

some

of

the

more

exotic

ones

that

you

can

get

with

some

of

the

uh

ones

we'll

talk

about

in

a

moment

here.

Um

so

that's

kind

of

your

your

downfall

there.

But

with

these,

this

is

where

you

can

start

getting

some

of

these

nice

things

like

the

uh

the

ties

for

the

jersey,

like

the

nice

lace

up

jerseys.

Big

fan

of

those

with

the

old

school

look.

These

are

also

the

ones

that

are

more

likely

to

have

stuff

like

being

able

to

get

stitched

on

nameplates

that

can

be

replaced

because

they

are

a

little

bit

more

heavyweight,

they

can

kind

of

take

that.

So

this

is

where

you'll

see

things

like

that

usually

and

more

commonly

offered

regularly

with

it.

Your

next

here

down

below

that

is

your

lighter

jerseys

that

are

usually

used

for

dye

sublimation

jerseys.

Now,

these

are

going

to

be

a

little

bit

lighter

than

your

pro

weight

jerseys.

They

are

uh

a

little

bit

more

of

a

less

breathable

jersey,

but

they're

lighter,

so

that

kind

of

makes

up

for

it.

Uh

because

they're

very

uh

it's

like

a

very

uh

I'm

trying

to

think

of

the

way

to

say

it,

like

a

closed

knit

jersey,

uh,

because

you're

you

know

dyeing

on

them

and

printing

on

them

uh

right

away

versus

sewing

everything

on.

With

the

Pro

8

jerseys,

you're

probably

sewing

things

on.

These

ones

are

taking

dye,

so

they're

a

lot

more

think

of

almost

like

a

thick

t-shirt

somewhere

along

that

or

a

thin

sweatshirt

kind

of

material

that

you

have.

Uh

again,

usually

pretty

durable.

Uh,

these

are

usually

fairly

durable

jerseys.

Uh,

this

is

where

you

start

getting

the

stuff

that

is

super

versatile

for

color

combinations,

because

these

are

going

to

be

blanks

that

are

just

like

a

white

or

a

slightly

off-white,

or

maybe

some

places

they

will

use

like

a

black

blank

jersey,

and

then

everything

is

printed

on

them.

So

this

is

where

you

can

get

into

crazy

color

combos,

crazy

printing

and

stuff

on

them

for

whatever

you

want.

Uh

generally,

it's

harder

to

find

with

these

kind

of

jerseys

to

have

things

like

the

lace

up

necks

and

stuff

like

that.

Uh,

but

this

is

also

where

you

can

start

getting

maybe

not

nameplates,

but

you

can

get

stuff

printed

like

inside

the

collars

or

have

like

printing

custom

collars

and

stuff

like

that

because

everything

is

printable

on

it.

Now,

within

these

like

lighter

die

sub

material

jerseys,

the

range

on

quality

can

be

a

lot.

Uh,

there

are

ones

that

are

great

quality

and

hold

up

wonderfully.

I

also

have

had

ones

that

are

a

little

bit

cheaper

and

they're

great

for

a

little

bit

for

a

couple

of

wears,

but

then

the

uh

the

printing

and

stuff,

it

starts

to

everything

starts

to

pill

up

on

them

and

they

just

they

don't

last

as

well.

Uh

like

not

like

the

printing

goes

bad,

but

the

jerseys

themselves

uh

can

start

to

break

down

on

some

of

the

cheaper

ones.

So

that's

something

to

watch

out

for.

Again,

going

back

to

if

you're

looking

for

these

for

like

a

one-off

tournament,

if

these

are

for

like

a

weekend

tournament

where

you're

playing,

you

know,

three,

four,

five

games,

very

different

versus

if

this

is

for

your

league

and

you're

gonna

have

to

get,

you

know,

20,

25

games

out

of

them.

So

look

at

kind

of

the

quality

on

those

materials

of

which

one

you're

you're

sort

of

getting

there.

And

then

finally,

at

the

very

bottom,

you

have

what

I've

I've

always

heard

is

like

an

air

mesh

jersey

or

almost

like

practice

jerseys.

Uh,

these

are

the

ones

that

are

super

thin,

uh,

a

lot

of

times

a

little

plasticky,

and

very,

very

cheap.

Uh,

these

usually

are

super,

super

limited

printing

options,

uh,

super,

super

limited

printing

options

on

them.

Probably

nobody's

really

sewing

on

them

for

the

most

part.

Uh,

you

aren't

gonna

have

kind

of

that

pilling

thing

that

you

have

with

those

die

sub

jerseys,

but

these

are

the

jerseys

that

are

probably

gonna

tear

really

easy

and

rip

up

very,

very

easy.

Uh,

they're

super

light,

which

is

great

if

you're

doing

like

some

kind

of

outdoor

hockey

in

the

summer.

Um,

these

are

a

lot

of

uh

roller

teams.

I

know

back

in

the

day

used

to

use

these

kind

of

jerseys

for

summer

teams

because

they

are

super

light.

They

they

are

kind

of

like

a

little

a

little

bit

more

mesh

than

other

jerseys,

so

they're

super,

super

breathable,

breathable

uh

for

playing

and

stuff

and

nice

and

cooling.

But

yeah,

they

are

not

very

durable

uh

for

things,

so

not

something

you

would

get

for

a

super

long

time.

Uh,

usually

it's

very

limited

color

selections

with

these

because

you're

not

printing

all

over

on

them

again.

Uh,

so

it's

kind

of

usually

like

one

color

base

for

the

whole

thing,

and

then

you

can

get

some

stuff

uh

printed

on

them,

and

that's

it.

But

on

the

upside,

these

are

always

the

absolute

cheapest

jerseys

you

can

get.

So

if

you

need

jerseys

for

a

one-off

thing,

Printing Techniques

Speaker 1
14:34

there's

something

to

maybe

consider.

So

you

think

you

know

what

kind

of

material

you

want

for

your

jerseys

to

be

made

out

of.

But

now

you

need

to

get

stuff

on

them.

Jersey

customization.

There's

a

couple

different

ways

to

do

this,

but

you

need

to

think

of

how

intricate

are

your

designs

that

you

have

on

them,

or

how

intricate

do

you

need

them

to

be.

And

things

like

are

you

gonna

have

sponsors?

Do

you

want

those

to

be

on

there

permanently?

Do

you

want

those

to

be

removable?

Do

you

want

to

have

names

that

are

removable?

Or

is

this

somebody

buys

a

jersey,

that's

it.

There,

there,

that's

theirs

permanently.

You

know,

no

questions,

that's

kind

of

thing.

So,

alright,

you

have

a

couple

of

options

for

getting

stuff

onto

your

jersey.

You

have

stitching.

They

can

stitch,

hand

stitch

everything.

Usually

what

you

get

is

more

of

like

they

embroider

something.

Uh

so

usually

you'll

see

like

the

front

logo

will

be

a

large

embroidered

patch,

basically,

that

gets

stitched

onto

the

jersey.

Same

thing,

names

and

numbers

are

basically

large

patches

that

get

stitched

onto

the

jerseys.

Uh,

these

are

very

much

pro

style.

That's

how

pro

jerseys

are

done.

So

that

means

they're

gonna

look

great,

but

they're

probably

gonna

be

really

expensive

because

you

need

to

get

things

like

the

logo

made.

You

know,

there's

not

stock

logos

for

your

team

logo,

so

they've

got

to

make

those,

then

stitch

those

to

the

jersey.

So

there's

like

multiple

parts

here

with

numbers

and

letters

for

like

the

names

and

all

that

kind

of

stuff.

It's

usually

just

the

stock

versions

of

those.

You

can

get

custom

stuff

that

gets

super

expensive.

But

generally,

if

you're

getting

stitched

on

everything,

they're

gonna

use

like

kind

of

the

stock

uh

styles

for

those

things,

stock

sizes

and

stuff.

And

that's

something

that

they'll

have

that

they

don't

have

to

make,

but

it's

still

expensive

because

it's

a

very

manual

process

for

things.

Uh,

usually

the

stitching

stuff

will

last

a

super

long

time,

it's

usually

super

durable.

If

there

is

any

problems

with

it,

it's

pretty

easy

to

repair.

Uh,

if

usually,

if

you

have

problems,

it's

something

just

starts

to

come

up

because

you

know

it's

worn

out,

stitches

broke,

you

can

just

restitch

it,

you

know,

by

hand

or

with

a

sewing

machine.

So

that's

usually

all

that

happens.

Or

for

something

like

drastic

happens

to

the

logo

and

it

gets

completely

messed

up,

you

know,

say

you

take

a

skate

to

it

or

something

and

it

gets

slashed,

you

can

always,

because

it's

stitched

on,

cut

the

stitches

off,

take

that

off,

sew

on

a

new

logo,

boom,

you're

good.

Stitching

stuff

can

generally

be

done

in

any

of

the

types

of

jerseys

that

we

talked

about.

Maybe

not

the

air

knit

ones,

depending

on

how

cheap

you

go

with

those,

but

generally

you

can

do

that

on

any

of

those.

Um

kind

of

the

downside

with

these

are

like

I

said,

they

are

expensive,

but

they

can

also

be

kind

of

stiff

and

make

the

jersey

heavy

because

you're

adding

stuff

onto

there.

So

if

you

have

you

know

a

front

logo

patch

and

you

do

uh

shoulder

patches

on

both

sides

and

numbers

on

the

sleeves,

and

you

have

a

name

and

number

on

the

back

and

stuff,

that's

a

lot

of

weight

you're

adding

in

the

jersey.

Uh,

and

those

parts

are

gonna

be

double,

triple

material

on

that,

so

it's

gonna

make

them

warmer,

it's

gonna

make

them

heavier,

it's

gonna

make

them

a

little

less

breathable.

So

that

can

be

a

downside.

Also,

these

can

take

a

while

to

make,

depending

on

what

kind

of

place

you

go

through,

because

it

is

such

a

manual

process.

Like

I

said,

they

have

to,

even

just

for

a

center

logo

that

you

have,

that

has

to

get

made.

Those

are

like

basically

giant

patches

that

have

to

get

embroidered

for

every

jersey,

and

then

all

that

stuff

has

to

get

sewn

on.

And

even

if

you're

using

a

sewing

machine,

it's

still

a

very

manual

process

to

sew

those

things

on

uh

for

stuff.

So

it

can

take

a

long

time.

So

you

need

a

long

lead

time

to

get

those

jerseys.

So

that's

kind

of

one

of

the

bigger

downsides

for

those.

Now,

your

next

option

that

you

have

screen

printing.

This

has

been

around

forever

for

jerseys.

Um,

this

is

generally

the

cheapest

way

to

get

stuff

onto

a

jersey.

Most

places

that

do

like

custom

t-shirts

and

stuff

can

put

it

put

stuff

on

hockey

jerseys.

Usually

it's

super

quick

turnaround,

but

doesn't

generally

hold

up

to

wear

and

tear

very

well.

Um

because

this

is

really

just

basically

painting.

If

you

don't

know

what

screen

printing

is,

is

it's

basically

like

painting

on

your

logos

and

your

numbers

and

everything

like

that.

It's

basically

painting

that

stuff

on

to

the

jersey.

Um,

it

can

look

nice.

Um,

it

looks

very

much

like

a

t-shirt

uh

would

look

uh

for

something

like

that.

Like

most

t-shirts

have

screen

printing

on

them,

so

it

looks

a

lot

like

that.

But

you

know,

wear

and

tear,

it

can

get

scratched

off.

It's

just

ink

on

there.

It

doesn't

really

embed

itself

generally

great

into

the

jerseys,

uh,

so

it

can't

over

time

uh

wear

off

with

it.

Or

just

wear

off

from

washings

if

you

wash

it

a

decent

amount.

Not

a

great

way

to

repair

if

something

like

that

happens.

If

some

of

the

paint

comes

off,

you

can't

really

re-screen

print

accurately.

So

it's

just

something

you

kind

of

have

to

deal

with,

you

know.

And

once

it's

on

there,

there's

no

way

to

take

that

stuff

off

well,

because

it's

printed

on

there,

basically

painted

onto

it.

But

this

is

you

know

a

good

choice

if

you

have

simpler

designs.

Uh,

you

can't

get

super

intricate

with

this.

With

the

stitching,

you

can

get

more

intricate.

With

this,

you

can't

get

as

intricate,

but

it's

usually

the

quickest

turnaround

and

it's

the

cheapest.

Uh,

this

is

something

that

you'll

see

a

lot

of

times.

I

was

talking

like

the

super

cheap

air

mesh

jerseys.

This

is

something

you'll

see

like

that

done

for

people

at

a

tournament.

So,

like,

hey,

it's

gotta

last

you

know

four

games.

You

know,

we

put

a

funny

logo,

we

have

our

names

on

it,

or

whatever.

Don't

care,

it

was

super

quick

to

get,

they

were

cheap,

just

needed

for

a

couple

of

games.

So

that's

where

you

kind

of

get

that

combo

of

of

things

working.

Uh,

then

finally,

the

last

type

of

jersey

customization

that

you

have,

and

this

is

really

the

newest

one

that's

out

there,

is

die

sublimation.

And

what

that

is,

is

basically

it's

printing

on

a

jersey,

it's

printing

all

the

colors

on

it,

but

it's

really

like

dyeing

the

jersey.

So

where

a

screen

paint

so

where

a

screen

printing

is

like

kind

of

painting

on

and

it

can

kind

of

get

scratched

off,

dye

sublimation

actually

dyes

the

jersey,

it

dyes

parts

of

it

to

have

that,

so

you

can't

scratch

that

off

and

out

of

there

because

it's

dyed

fabric,

so

it

is

a

much

more

longer-lasting

solution

for

it.

I

would

say

in

the

last

three,

four,

five

years,

this

has

become

the

most

popular

way

to

have

jerseys

get

done.

Because

there's

a

lot

of

ways

to

do

this,

there's

a

lot

of

ways

to

make

these

jerseys,

and

the

freedom

it

gives

you

is

it

lets

you

print

all

over.

You

know,

the

stitching,

you

have

to

manually

attach

whatever

you

want

onto

the

jersey.

Screen

printing,

it

doesn't

give

you

great

detail,

and

it's

a

very

um

laborious

manual

process.

Whereas

die

sublimation,

kind

of

once

you

set

it

up

and

have

your

printers

ready

to

go

to

print

these

jerseys,

you

can

just

basically

print

on

the

jerseys

like

you

have

like

a

computer

printer.

You

can

do

it

that

way,

uh,

which

you

know

takes

a

little

bit

to

set

up,

but

you

can

print

a

ton.

Them

like

that.

Also,

where

that

helps

is

it

can

be

super

cost

effective.

A

lot

of

times

die

sublimation

jerseys

are

as

cheap,

if

not

cheaper,

than

screen

printing

jerseys

nowadays

because

people

have

kind

of

the

shops

set

up

for

it.

So,

you

know,

that's

that's

a

nice

win

right

there.

You

know,

you're

not

making

the

screens

for

screen

printing,

you're

not

having

to

make

the

embroidered

logo,

so

it's

obviously

gonna

be

cheaper

than

that.

And

you

have

the

widest

variety

and

choices

for

colors

and

designs

and

kind

of

how

crazy

you

want

to

get

with

stuff

for

it.

You

know,

you're

not

not

stuck

to,

you

know,

whatever

uh

embroidery

thread

they

can

get

or

whatever

they

can

do

for

that.

And

you're

not

stuck

for

things

like

screen

printing,

how

many

screens

you

have

that

you

can

put

on

a

jersey

and

how

many

times

they'll

go

over

something

to

get

multiple

colors.

So

it

really

gives

you

a

lot

of

choices.

Uh

also,

most

places

can

get

very

detailed

with

their

die

sublimation.

You

can

get

very,

very

detailed

for

it.

That's

where

you're

seeing

if

you

go

to

any

tournaments

or

even

if

you're

playing

in

a

league

now

and

you

see

it,

teams

that

have

just

crazy

wacky

jerseys

that

have

uh

goofy

designs

all

over

the

place,

they're

probably

die

sub

jerseys

because

that's

an

easy

way

to

do

it.

And

it's

the

cheapest

way

to

do

it.

That

used

to

be

super

expensive

to

get

done.

Now

it's

not.

So

that's

kind

of

become

the

most

popular

option.

And

finally,

you

can

get

hybrids

of

all

these.

Uh,

usually

you

don't

really

see

hybrid

with

screen

printing

anymore,

but

you

can.

But

there

are

definitely

places

that

will

die

sublimate

your

whole

jersey,

but

then

give

you

like

a

stitched-on

front

logo

to

kind

of

have

that

pro

look

on

it.

But

you

can

definitely

get

places

that

will

do

multiple

types

of

customization

options

on

a

single

jersey.

But

again,

that's

probably

gonna

cost

you

more

than

just

getting

one

type.

So

something

else

to

think

about

for

it.

So

kind

of

pick

and

choose

what

you

think

is

most

cost

effective

and

gets

you

the

jersey

the

way

you

want

it

to

look.

And

also

makes

a

jersey

comfortable

because

you're

gonna

be

wearing

these.

All

right,

number

Choosing your Jersey Supplier

Speaker 1
24:06

four.

Choosing

your

supplier.

So

hopefully

you

have

kind

of

an

idea,

or

at

least

a

somewhat

of

an

idea,

of

what

you

want

for

design.

You

think

you

know

how

you

want

your

jerseys

to

be

customized,

which

way.

That's

also

helped

you

pick

out

what

type

of

jersey

material

you

think

you

want.

Now

you

gotta

find

a

supplier.

All

right,

most

places,

just

to

kind

of

get

this

out

of

the

way,

most

places

will

charge

you

an

initial

startup

fee

or

setup

fee

or

something

like

that

right

off

the

bat,

because

they

have

to

either

input

this

stuff

into

the

computers

for

the

you

know,

for

printing

them,

or

they

have

to

make

the

screens

for

them,

or

they

have

to

set

up

the

embroidery

machines

to

make

this

stuff.

So

most

places

will

do

some

kind

of

setup

fee

for

it.

That's

kind

of

a

universal

thing.

Some

places

wave

it

if

your

jersey

order

is

big

enough,

but

don't

be

shocked

when

that

happens.
Other

things

to

consider

when

you're

looking

at

where

to

get

your

jerseys

from.

What

is

the

minimum

order?

That's

a

big

one.
Is

that

a

minimum

just

for

the

first

order?

What

about

reorders?

Some

places

have

a

minimum

first

order,

and

then

you

can

reorder

however

you

want

after

that.

You

know,

if

you

order

16

jerseys

the

first

time,

but

then

next

season

you

need

two.

Will

they

let

you

do

that?

Or

do

you

need

to

order,

you

know,

12

jerseys

every

time?

Uh,

some

places

will,

you

know,

let

you

order

one

jersey

or

two

jerseys.

You

know,

if

you're

going

to

a

tournament

and

there's

only

eight

of

you,

you

don't

want

to

have

to

order

12,

14,

16

jerseys

just

to

be

able

to,

you

know,

get

the

eight

that

you

need.

So

minimum

order,

super

important

to

look

at

for

jerseys.

Every

place

does

a

little

bit

different,

and

it

depends

on

your

situation,

what

you

need,

but

that

is

a

very

important

thing

to

look

at.

Next,

how

fast

can

you

get

them?

You

know,

usually

when

you

get

to

end

of

September,

October,

that

is

when

these

places

are

slammed.

And

that

is

when

it's

just

gonna

be

tough

to

get

jerseys

fast.

That's

when

these

places

are

the

busiest.

You

know,

they

are

probably

cranking

out

jerseys

24

hours,

getting

these

things

going

as

best

as

they

can.

But

if

that's

when

you

decide

to

order

them,

just

know

that

it's

probably

gonna

be

a

super

long

lead

time.

Whereas

if

you

need

them

over

the

summer

or

say

November,

December,

when

leagues

have

started

and

kids'

hockey's

been

going

and

all

this

stuff,

probably

they

can

get

that

out

a

lot

quicker

because

there's

not

as

much

stuff

going

on.

So

if

you

have

a

deadline

that

you

need

to

have

jerseys

by,

if

you

have

a

tournament,

if

your

league

has

a

deadline

for

when

everyone

has

to

have

jerseys,

something

like

that,

that

can

play

a

big

factor

in

who

you

go

to

and

when

you

can

when

you

order

jerseys.

You

know,

if

people

can't

get

them,

do

you

when

you

need

them?

You

can't

get

your

jerseys

from

there.

So

definitely

something

you

need

to

find

out

and

ask

about.

Do

you

need

uniform

Uniform Accessories – Socks and Shells

Speaker 1
27:03

accessories?

Things

like

socks

or

shells

or

anything

like

that.

Do

you

need

them?

Do

you

want

them?

Do

they

provide

them?

Uh,

a

lot

of

these

places

will

provide

some

kind

of

socks.

You

know,

you

can

usually

either

get

the

like

wool

socks

that

are

like

NHL

style

socks

uh

in

NHL

colorways

without

much

problem

from

most

of

these

places,

or

you

can

order

them

separately

uh

as

well.

But

if

you

want

really

custom

ones,

you

probably

have

to

go

with

die

sub

socks.

Does

the

place

you're

getting

jerseys

from

do

that?

Do

you

care?

Do

you

need

shells?

Do

you

want

some

goofy

die

sub

shells?

Do

you

want

some

of

those

full

uniforms

where

the

jersey

and

the

shell

all

make

one

continuous

look

on

it?

Not

a

lot

of

places

will

do

shells,

so

you

have

to

find

a

place

that

does

if

you

want

those.

So

something

else

to

look

out

for.

If

you

need

those

things

and

want

those

things,

that's

something

you

have

to

look

at.

That's

going

to

cut

down

who

you

can

get

stuff

from.

Like

Tip: Get a Mock-Up

Speaker 1
28:06

we

talked

about

in

the

very

beginning

of

all

this

stuff.

Will

they

help

you,

if

you

need

it,

get

your

design

into

whatever

format

they

need?

Some

places

will

do

some

of

this

for

free.

Some

places

will

do

the

whole

thing

for

free

if

you

just

kind

of

give

them,

hey,

here's

our

logo,

here's

the

colors

we

want,

come

up

with

something.

Some

places

have

this

as

a

whole

separate

business

that,

you

know,

they

can

charge

you

a

decent

amount

of

money

to

have

this

done.

Some

places

will

not

do

this

at

all,

and

they

go,

hey,

here

is

our

format

that

we

need

stuff

in.

That

is

all

we

accept.

So

finding

out

how

far

you

can

take

stuff

to

make

sure

stuff

looks

good

and

making

sure

that

it

can

convey

to

them

what

they

need

to

do

and

what

you're

expecting

from

them,

and

how

much

help

you

need

from

them

goes

a

long

way

in

choosing

who

you

are

gonna

get

jerseys

from.

If

you

need

a

ton

of

help

with

it,

it's

really

gonna

limit

your

choices

for

who

will

you

know

really

sit

down

and

take

time

with

you

to

figure

this

stuff

out

and

also

drive

the

price

up,

honestly.

Along

with

that,

will

you

get

a

mock-up?

Most

places

will

give

you

a

mock-up

design

before

you

uh

okay

the

jerseys

getting

printed.

Definitely,

if

you're

using

them

as

designers,

they

should

be

doing

that.

But

that's

something

to

ask

and

make

sure

that

they

will

have.

These

mock-ups,

they

help

make

sure

that

what

they

are

going

to

print

is

what

you

are

expecting

from

them,

which

is

super

important.

But

also,

this

is

something

you

can

take.

And

if

you

have

to

go

to

someplace

else

to

get

jerseys

done,

make

sure

that

things

match.

On

here

will

be

things,

not

just

a

detailed

design

of

what

all

the

parts

of

the

jersey

look

like,

it

will

give

you

what

every

single

color

is

that's

on

the

jersey.

Usually

they'll

use

something

called

pantone

colors,

which

you

don't

really

necessarily

need

to

know

what

all

those

are,

but

it's

how

design

people

pick

exact

colors

and

shades

and

stuff

like

that.

So

if

you're

gonna

have

to

get

jerseys

from

somebody

else,

it's

important

to

have

like

the

colors

and

stuff

on

there

uh

set

up

so

you

can

take

these

to

whoever.

So

this

is

an

important

thing

to

get

this

mock-up

and

have

those

designs

for

you

because

they're

your

designs,

so

you

can

take

them

somewhere

else

if

you

need

to.

Finally,

Tip: Jersey Sizing

Speaker 1
30:18

what

brands

of

jerseys

or

jersey

blanks

are

they

using?

This

can

be

super

helpful

for

figuring

out

sizing,

because

sizing

can

be

really,

really

tough.

Uh,

some

places

will

not

use

the

same

types

of

blanks

all

the

time,

and

they

will

kind

of

change.

And

that

can

be

super

confusing

and

it

can

be

really

frustrating

if

you're

doing

reorders

of

jerseys

because

they

will

not

be

sized

the

same.

If

you

know

a

kind

of

blanks

that

they're

you're

using,

what

the

base

of

them

are,

you

can

look

up

sizing

charts

online

if

they

don't

offer

you

one

and

compare

them

with

existing

jerseys

that

you

have

to

at

least

get

a

close

approximation.

Because

even

though

hockey

jerseys,

some

places

will

use

regular

clothing

sizing,

like

large,

extra

large,

um,

there's

always

a

goalie

cut.

Some

places

will

use

it

like

that,

some

places

will

use

like

jersey

sizing,

which

is

like

46,

48,

54,

stuff

like

that,

which

you

know

should

be

all

the

same.

But

I

mean,

if

you've

ever

bought

clothes

before,

you

know

that

everyone's

size

large

t-shirt

is

not

the

same.

Hockey

jerseys

exactly

the

same.

I

have

seen

hockey

jerseys

that

are

supposedly

the

same

size,

but

some

places

have

like

a

super

slim

body

that

you

can

barely

get

over

pads.

I

have

seen

places

that

do

super

huge

arm

cuts,

like

the

the

arms

are

massive

on

the

jerseys.

I've

seen

ones

that

are

super

long.

I

have

seen

ones

that

have

super

short

body

jerseys

and

ones

that

are

super

long

body

jerseys.

So

it's

important

to

find

out

what

kind

of

blanks

they're

using,

get

the

sizing

information,

hopefully

from

them.

If

not

from

them,

look

it

up

online.

Like

I

said,

compare

to

other

jerseys

that

you

have.

If

you

have

the

same

brand

jersey

or

someone

else

on

your

team

does,

great.

That's

a

great

starting

point.

If

you

don't,

get

out

of

tape

measure,

try

and

figure

it

out.

Because

ill-fitting

jerseys

are

one

of

the

most

annoying

things

when

ordering

jerseys,

because

you

think

you've

ordered

all

the

stuff

right,

everything

else

has

come

out

right,

but

all

of

a

sudden

everyone's

jersey

is

you

know

a

little

too

short,

or

everyone

should

order

to

size

up

or

a

size

down,

or

you

know,

the

goalie

ordered

whatever

size

and

it

doesn't

fit

over

his

goalie

chest

protector

or

something

like

that.

So

it's

very

important

to

know

that

so

you

can

get

proper

jersey

sizing.

Because

a

lot

of

times

when

you

order

custom

jerseys,

unless

they

messed

up

something,

like

they

messed

up

the

printing,

you

know,

they

have

wrong

names

or

they

screwed

up

something

like

that,

usually

you

can't

return

them.

So

really,

really

try

and

nail

this

down.

And

this

is

why

it's

kind

of

important

to

go

to

a

more

reputable

place

that

is

hopefully

using

the

same

types

of

jerseys

year

after

year

after

year.

So

if

you

have

to

order

multiple

jerseys

over

the

course

of

many

seasons

that

you're

playing,

you

know

what

you're

getting

into.

All

right,

Final Checklist

Speaker 1
33:12

so

there

you

go.

Hopefully

that

gives

you

all

the

questions

you

need

to

ask

and

things

to

make

sure

that

you

know

before

you

are

ordering

jerseys.

Making

sure

you

have

all

the

design

stuff

down,

determining

how

you're

gonna

use

them,

when

you're

gonna

use

them,

what

you're

using

them

for.

With

that,

picking

appropriate

jersey

materials

and

a

proper

printing

method

based

on

that

stuff

and

pricing,

and

then

going

through

different

jersey

suppliers

and

finding

ones

that'll

do

all

the

stuff

you

want

so

you

can

have

nice

jerseys

that

you

and

your

team

enjoy

wearing

and

think

that

you

look

super

cool

out

there

with.
Hopefully.

So

you're

probably

going,

hey,

who

have

you

used

to

get

jerseys

from?
Honestly,

I

haven't

used

Who I have Used

Speaker 1
33:55

a

lot

of

different

places

because

I've

generally

had

good

luck

with

the

places

that

I

have

used

uh

for

jerseys.

So

a

couple

of

places

that

I

have

actually

designed

jerseys

and

sent

them

to

and

gotten

jerseys

back

from,

not

just

ones

that

I

own,

but

I've

gone

through

kind

of

the

whole

soup

to

nuts

process

with

them.

Uh,

I

have

used

uh

a

place

called

Men's

League

sweaters

men's

league sweater
s

uh

for

this,

and

their

jerseys

are

really

nice.

Um

I

have

found

them

to

be

a

little

bit

smaller

sizing

than

some

of

the

other

places,

but

not

real

significantly

so.

Um

little

slim

fit

uh

for

some

of

the

sizing

on

it,

but

the

jerseys

last

very

well.

Um

they

have

all

been

good

quality

for

me.

Uh

they're

ones

that

I

have

worn

for

more

tournaments

and

then

subsequently

like

worn

them

for

like

pickups

and

things

like

that.

So

I

haven't

really

beat

them

up

super

bad,

but

they've

been

really

nice.

Um

they

have

some

of

the

niceties,

they're

they're

die

sub

jerseys.

I've

gotten

them

with

the

lace-ups.

I

really

like

having

the

lace-up

jerseys.

I

think

those

look

cool.

Uh,

and

those

have,

like

I

said,

they've

lasted

pretty

good.

Um,

the

printing's

real

nice

on

them,

it's

very

clear.

Uh,

I

have

noticed

some

ones

that

I

have

from

years

and

years

ago

started

to

have

some

of

that

pilling

effect,

like

on

the

collar

and

things

like

that.

But

on

newer

ones

that

I

have

that

are

only

a

couple

years

ago,

uh

have

no

issues

with

that.

So

I

think

they've

gotten

a

little

bit

better.

Um,

while

they've

also

gotten,

frankly,

a

little

bit

more

expensive.

Uh,

but

I

think

it's

been

worth

it.

Uh,

another

place

I

used

to

use

way

back

in

the

day,

you

can

see

one

behind

me

here,

actually.

Uh,

an

example

of

this,

is

that's

a

pretty

cheap

jersey

uh

that

is

kind

of

close

to

that

air

knit

quality

uh

jerseys

almost,

and

it

has

uh

just

uh

screen

printing

done

on

it.

And

I

got

these

from

uh

a

place

called

Perani's,

that

is

a

chain

of

hockey

stores

uh

through

the

Midwest.

People

probably

know

them.

Uh

soon

to

be

uh

pure

hockey

uh

that

they're

getting

bought

out

by.

Uh,

but

they

did

those.

They

were

super

cheap,

done

super

fast.

Uh

what

we

used

them

for,

they're

great.

Uh

they're

screen

printed,

so

there

are

times

that

stuff

has

worn

away

on

them

and

kind

of

basically

chipped

off

from

it.

But

that's

what

you're

gonna

get

with

screen

printing.

Uh,

but

yeah,

they're

real

nice.

But

that's

all

at

the

time,

that

was

all

they

did

for

printing.

They

wouldn't,

they

didn't

have

any

other

options

uh

for

them.

And

I'm

sure

that

has

changed.

But

this

is

I

mean,

this

is

going

back

like

20

years

ago,

uh,

buying

these

jerseys.

Uh,

but

they

were

real

nice,

like

I

said,

super

cheap

and

super

fast,

was

which

was

big

things

for

us

at

the

time.

And

the

place

that

I

currently

get

all

my

jerseys

from

for

anything

they

do

is

just
hockey
jerseys.com,

which

is

actually

the

people

that

also

do

all

black

hockey

sticks.

Uh,

same

people

for

it.

And

that's

where

I

currently

get

all

my

jerseys

from.

All

die

sub

jerseys.

Uh,

very

nice

quality

uh

for

them.

They

are

very

good

about

helping

you

with

your

design.

Um,

I

don't

think

they'll

fully

design

stuff

for

you,

but

if

you

have

a

design,

they'll

help

you

kind

of

manipulate

it

so

it

works

out

uh

for

the

jerseys

for

them.

Super

friendly

people

to

work

with.

Um,

they're

a

smaller

place,

so

sometimes

the

lead

times,

if

you

go

kind

of

peak

season,

uh,

can

take

a

while.

Uh,

but

the

pricing

is

amazing

uh

on

them.

The

pricing

there

is

super,

super

cheap.

And

for

the

quality,

it

really,

really

doesn't

get

a

whole

lot

better

than

that.

So

that's

who

I've

been

using

the

last

couple

years

to

get

jerseys

from.

Also,

they

let

you

after

we've

done

like

initial

orders

with

them,

after

you

have

that,

they

do

let

you

in

subsequent

years

buy

small

amounts

of

jerseys,

which

for

my

league

is

great

to

have

that.

Uh,

it's

great

to

have

that

for

my

team

because

you

know

we

need

every

year

two,

three,

four

jerseys

for

new

people

that

are

joining

us

uh

for

it.

So

that's

a

really

nice

uh

thing

to

have

there

to

be

able

to

have

that

ability

for.

So

those

are

kind

of

three

places

I

have

worked

with

the

most

and

done

the

most

buying

from.

And

I

think

I'd

recommend

all

of

them.

Uh,

I've

had

good

luck

with

all

of

them

with

their

options

and

things

like

that.

Uh,

like

I

said,

just

hockey

jerseys

is

who

I

currently

use

and

have

had

the

most

kind

of

interaction

with

over

the

years,

because

I'm

talking

with

them

at

least

once

a

season,

sometimes

multiple

times

a

season

to

order

more

jerseys

for

things.

Wrap-Up

Speaker 1
38:13

Alright,

so

at

the

end

of

the

day,

the

best

Beer

League

jersey

isn't

necessarily

the

most

expensive

one.
Hopefully

I've

pointed

that

out.

It

is

the

one

your

team

actually

wants

to

wear.
So

that's

one

that's

comfortable,

one

that

looks

good

on

the

ice,

one

that's

actually

gonna

hold

up

for

the

usage

that

it

needs

to

have,

and

still

matches

when

you

bring

in

new

players

onto

your

team

so

you

actually

look

like

a

team.

Because

the

jersey

is

one

of

the

few

things

in

Beer

League

that

lasts

and

will

last

beyond

playing,

hopefully.

Because

players

can

come

and

go,

you

can

change

teams,

but

jerseys

stick

around.

You

know,

you

see

behind

me,

if

you

watch

the

video

of

any

of

these

episodes,

I

have

a

rack

of

jerseys

that

are

all

things

that

I've

played

in,

tournaments,

teams

I

used

to

be

on,

all

kinds

of

stuff.

That

stuff

lasts

beyond

the

team.

So

jerseys

are

important.

So

if

you're

in

the

process

of

building

a

team,

or

maybe

you

guys

are

just

upgrading

your

jerseys

or

getting

a

new

set

of

jerseys

for

a

different

design.

Hopefully,

this

episode

has

given

you

a

little

bit

clearer

idea

of

things

that

do

matter

and

the

things

that

don't

matter,

and

the

stuff

that

you

kind

of

need

to

know

before

actually

going

out

there

and

trying

to

get

jerseys

made.

And

if

you

haven't

listened

to

the

episode

on

building

a

beer

league

team

yet,

where

we

talked

about

choosing

a

name,

creating

a

logo,

putting

all

this

stuff

together,

definitely

go

check

that

out.
This

episode

really

kind

of

built

off

of

the

stuff

we

talked

about

there.

This

is

one

of

the

subjects

I

would

really

love

to

hear

from

you

about.
What

kind

of

jerseys

has

your

team

used?

What's

worked,

what

hasn't

worked,

what

will

you

do

differently

next

time

you

get

jerseys?

Drop

a

comment,

let

me

know.

As

always,

the

best

way

to

get

hold

of

the

show,

or

check

out

past

episodes,

or

leave

voicemails,

or

get

links

for

any

of

the

stuff

that

I

talk

about

in

any

of

these

things,

head

on

over

to

TheBeerLeaguer.com.

It's

the

best

place

for

all

this

stuff.

Let

me

know.

Love

to

hear

from

you

guys.

Appreciate

whenever

you

give

feedback

for

things.
Thanks

a

lot

for

listening.

Catch

you

in

the

next

one.


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