-
I want to thank all the members that have upgraded your accounts. I truly appreciate your support of the site monetarily. Supporting the site keeps this site up and running as a lot of work daily goes on behind the scenes. Click to Support Signs101 ...
Comments on the Mimaki JFX200
- Thread starter PaPrinter
- Start date
Solventinkjet
DIY Printer Fixing Guide
I've been trained as a tech on the JFX200 and we also sell them so I do have a little bias but I'll throw in my 2 cents.
Mimaki worked directly with the head manufacturer to develop the JFX200 from the ground up. This is an important advantage because it allowed them to develop the ink specifically for the head and all of the components that integrate with it. This machine is not a consumer Epson technology Frankenstein conversion, it was built with a more industrial style head that is much harder to damage and clog. The biggest selling feature is the ease of use. I could train a new user on the operation of the JFX200 in less time than it takes to train someone on the CJV30 printer/cutter. That along with the nozzle recovery features and awesome output and speed for the price, makes it a great first flatbed or alternative to the $100,000+ machines out there. It's not the fastest machine out there but it is the fastest in it's price range at a max of 8 sheets per hour.
Feel free to give us a call if you want more information/quote. I can get you some customer testimonials and samples as well.
Mimaki worked directly with the head manufacturer to develop the JFX200 from the ground up. This is an important advantage because it allowed them to develop the ink specifically for the head and all of the components that integrate with it. This machine is not a consumer Epson technology Frankenstein conversion, it was built with a more industrial style head that is much harder to damage and clog. The biggest selling feature is the ease of use. I could train a new user on the operation of the JFX200 in less time than it takes to train someone on the CJV30 printer/cutter. That along with the nozzle recovery features and awesome output and speed for the price, makes it a great first flatbed or alternative to the $100,000+ machines out there. It's not the fastest machine out there but it is the fastest in it's price range at a max of 8 sheets per hour.
Feel free to give us a call if you want more information/quote. I can get you some customer testimonials and samples as well.
Thanks Vander J for your input and offer. I am already working with a vendor so we are pretty much spoken for. I have not seen one of these machines running at the (8) 4 x 8 boards per hour yet as the local machine is running only 1 head for cmyk. What is the quality at that speed? From what I had seen with 1 head, I believe it would be very good. Can I really get 8 boards an hour? What do you think?
Solventinkjet
DIY Printer Fixing Guide
Usually max speeds are over rated and impractical but on this machine, the quality at the lowest resolution is almost indistinguishable from the medium and high resolution profiles except for saturation. I haven't run a production run on one of these machine but I would say a good operator could blast out at least 6 to 7 sheets per hour with the only issue being how fast can you load the material and get it going again. Getting 8 sheets per hour would require someone watching the machine for the entire hour and getting on it as soon as the print finishes but it is doable. You have to set the machine up as CMYK x 2 to get those results so you wouldn't be able to use white or clear ink. Adding white and/or clear reduces the speed by a little more than half.
Signs Express
New Member
We have the JFX200. Had it installed in December. We have the CMYK WWCC set up and get about 4 boards an hour. That's running the fastest print mode and the prints do look great at that speed.
This is a great printer We have cmyk cmww. WE LOVE the device. We do not do volume production but we do high end custom applications and this printer adds so many possibilities...we are still coming up with ideas all the time. Add a nice cnc machine and a laser and the possibilities get even greater.
The only down side (other than typical adhesion issues of UV) is the ink expiration periods. The vendors we have used do not move enough ink to have fresh ink on the shelf at all times. With a one year life (Typically only 4-5 months left when it leaves the vendors shelf) One must be careful not to buy beyond the consumption rate of the shop.
On the up side the device is ink frugal. You will like this machine. We traveled to Dallas and Atlanta to look at other options and this was hands down the best option for the money.
The only down side (other than typical adhesion issues of UV) is the ink expiration periods. The vendors we have used do not move enough ink to have fresh ink on the shelf at all times. With a one year life (Typically only 4-5 months left when it leaves the vendors shelf) One must be careful not to buy beyond the consumption rate of the shop.
On the up side the device is ink frugal. You will like this machine. We traveled to Dallas and Atlanta to look at other options and this was hands down the best option for the money.
Still liking the Mimaki?
We are looking at true flat bed printers. Started with CET Q5, then Oce 460GT, we really liked that and are leaning that way. Then discovered that Mimaki actually has a true flat bed. We also do not do mass production printing by more high end themed entertainment stuff, i.e. entertainment theme parks, casinos, and also signs with small print and fine graphic detail with back light signs.
How would you rate this printer to fall into this category? What are some of your dislikes with the printer? How is the tech support side?
Any opinions on other printers?, this would be our first printer, whatever we choose.
Thanks for your time
We are looking at true flat bed printers. Started with CET Q5, then Oce 460GT, we really liked that and are leaning that way. Then discovered that Mimaki actually has a true flat bed. We also do not do mass production printing by more high end themed entertainment stuff, i.e. entertainment theme parks, casinos, and also signs with small print and fine graphic detail with back light signs.
How would you rate this printer to fall into this category? What are some of your dislikes with the printer? How is the tech support side?
Any opinions on other printers?, this would be our first printer, whatever we choose.
Thanks for your time
When I began looking I traveled to trade shows, then to CET and then across Atlanta to Mimaki. I spoke with people who had CET and worked through several issues. Some were happy, some were quite open about their dislike and distrust for CET. CET did some heroic efforts to please some of the customers who had trouble including swapping the printer. I could not get comfortable with them and they are definitely a small operation. I looked hard at the Canon 318 and think I would have been safe but the machine, though very good, was known for its slowness. When I went to Mimaki the president was there. He observed my personal demo. A man of few words indeed but the JFX 2515 so impressed me. It was night and day from my observations at CET.
Reaching techs is sometimes a little tough as they are servicing quite a bit of equipment. I have the 85th JFX200. They have many other printers so staff seems a little thin. They do have some very good techs in my area. The ink delivery system with its expiration warnings is the only real down side. The chips will let you print 30 days past expiration then they quit. You have to throw away the unused ink even though it is fine. Do not store ink on your shelf. Let your vendor do it. Be sure to get the exp. date when ordering. That was my mistake when I bought. I thought it wise to have back up ink before I knew my consumption rate. My Mimaki rep took care of me on this mistake and I am fully happy. Still hate the ink supply warnings and such but not a deal breaker. I would highly recommend the JFX 200. The head crash protection is amazing. It will not let the head crash period. Print quality is amazing. Easy to keep up and running. We love it and would buy another. Wish it was a 5x10 though. This is where CET has them. Their 5x10 is less than Mimakis 4x8.
hope this helps.
I would not call it a mass production machine. Especially if you get the white ink option. Its pretty quick as a CMYK printer because it has dual heads. Adding white adds great capability but cuts speed in half. Also the white ink does not stick as well as the others. As with all UV devices including screen printing UV has adhesion issues that must be carefully investigated. We are using the LUS 150 inks.
It seems like Canon had the best adhesion of the printers we looked at. It seemed almost like a hard rubber. Less ink for the money but a great printer.
Tech support...we are still finding out about. We had an ink leak last week in our white supply and it was almost a week before they got a tech out here.
You won't beat the high resolution and detail capability. They demo the unit printing 2pt type. That is more than we need. second surface photographs look like film.
I would buy another of these. In fact, I am looking into adding an all cmyk device also. You cannot get 8 boards/hr. The lowest res prints remarkably close to the saturation of the higher res options. However, the lower res output will show more streaking on certain substrates (Dibond, Aluminum, Acrylic) no matter how much cleaning. It is fine for coroplast. The streaks don't really show...and who cares anyway? The bulk of our business is not coro signage. HP has the best coroplast option in its FB series (More $$$ to be sure). It really pumps out the product. We just added an HP 360 Latex and love that also.
The JFX200 machine with white will have you doing things you never thought of...high profit margin things too. We paid 80K with an upgraded 3 phase higher capacity-more noisy vacuum pump. Not sure this was all that important. Like all devices there are a few bugs here and there. They are tweaking the firmware regularly. The rip works pretty well but it is no Onyx or Caldera. The main disappointment is the screen resolution of the interface. You would thing the developers could give you a print preview that is better than what one might have seen with Mac paint on an Apple IIe...yes I go back that far. Don't get me wrong; give it a PDF and it will print it just fine.
Jfx200
Thank you for the info. We currently have the older jf1631 that we are in the market to replace. This printer has served us well, but one of the main issues we have is the amount of ink it wastes. We do not do an excessive self cleaning, only daily manual cleaning and 1or 2 self cleanings to get fired up. However, it fills waste tank up every 2 - 3 months. Every time I empty it, I'm draining cash right from my wallet. I know this machine is completely different, so I wonder if you can let me know how many hours a day you print andhow often waste tank gets filled? Also, mimaki says lamps will last about 5000 hours, so that would mean we need to replace after about 2.5 years. Did you get a cost on replacement lamps from mimaki?
thanks
Thank you for the info. We currently have the older jf1631 that we are in the market to replace. This printer has served us well, but one of the main issues we have is the amount of ink it wastes. We do not do an excessive self cleaning, only daily manual cleaning and 1or 2 self cleanings to get fired up. However, it fills waste tank up every 2 - 3 months. Every time I empty it, I'm draining cash right from my wallet. I know this machine is completely different, so I wonder if you can let me know how many hours a day you print andhow often waste tank gets filled? Also, mimaki says lamps will last about 5000 hours, so that would mean we need to replace after about 2.5 years. Did you get a cost on replacement lamps from mimaki?
thanks
Last edited:
So you have the jfx200 and you are filling that waste tank a lot? How many times have you filled it this year? I find it hard to believe mimaki saying it costs .20/ sq ft if your filling that waste tank often. My old hp hardly ever wasted ink.
Well not sure exactly how much since I empty before it gets full, I do it more frequently. But so far this year maybe once? (we are on a slow season) which would be a gallon.
That is better than the JF1631, which is 2 - 3 gallons a year. But at a gallon a year, your still looking at $900+ in waste. I just still think that is a lot in my opinion. Not trying to be cheap, just hate throwing money away.