“156 mesh count is "the standard" / "go-to" screen for plastisol ink on t-shirts.”

156 is stated as a general standard for plastisol only by ScreenPrinting.com, and even there it is bounded: the same page directs 200-305 mesh for soft hand feel, above 200 for detail, paper and heat transfers, and higher mesh over an underbase. Atlas Screen Supply's mesh chart never lists 156 at all, assigning 110 to bold plastisol prints and thicker white underbases and 160 to general garment printing. ScreenPrinting.com is the better authority for the specific figure because it names 156 for plastisol explicitly, but neither source presents it as a universal go-to for t-shirts — it is a default only for direct-to-fabric, lower-detail plastisol work.