Advice on application tables

[amw]

Looking for some advice on application tables. Who makes the best one for the money? Anything we should be looking for or brands to avoid?

What about ordering from China?
Any experience with the Chinese ones?

Thank you greatly for your help/advice!

 

[victor bogdanov]

100% get a Chinese one, will be way cheaper, Lefu is great. Get bigger than you think you need.


Check this out

 

[jfiscus]

I've put my hands on 3 or 4 of them and seen them used in sign shops.
I think they're a scam and every one I've seen had issues and ruined lots of prints.
If you have prints to mount, just use a cheap laminator.
They DO look nice at the shows, but that is not the real world.
YMMV.

 

[victor bogdanov]

I've put my hands on 3 or 4 of them and seen them used in sign shops.
I think they're a scam and every one I've seen had issues and ruined lots of prints.
If you have prints to mount, just use a cheap laminator.
They DO look nice at the shows, but that is not the real world.
YMMV.

I use my application table daily, tranfer tape, laminate, mount prints etc.

Can't imagine being without it.

Mounted 10 4x8 coroplast sheets double sided the other day in about 30 minutes thanks to application table.

Takes practice but once you know how to use it its amazing

 

[JBurton]

I think they're a scam and every one I've seen had issues and ruined lots of prints.

This is the first I've seen as far as someone talking trash on app tables. I don't have one, but at the rate we are doing stupid little ACM panels, I'm considering one more than ever. Vic's right, 10 coro sheets double sided would take far more than half an hour with a laminator, plus now you need 2 tables on each side of the laminator, that 'need' to be 8' long, whereas a mounting table can be nominally larger that the panel itself.

 

[CanuckSigns]

I've put my hands on 3 or 4 of them and seen them used in sign shops.
I think they're a scam and every one I've seen had issues and ruined lots of prints.
If you have prints to mount, just use a cheap laminator.
They DO look nice at the shows, but that is not the real world.
YMMV.

I've had an application table for 10 years now, it's the most idiot-proof machine in the shop, I routinely have our bookeeper/office manager mount graphics with it without issue.

 

[JBurton]

I routinely have our bookeeper/office manager mount graphics with it without issue.

I'm going to say either they love the chance, or I can imagine this kinda worker running an app table.

 

[parrott]

Just bought one from Seal. Haven’t used it enough to give a detailed review but it works great. As mentioned above, idiot proof and extremely easy to use. Was able to reduce our mounting area from 24’ down to 12’. Love the additional floor space and ease of use.

 

[Splash0321]

I have a rollsroller and it’s exactly what I needed. It has been one my best investment decisions to date.

 

[tulsagraphics]

Back in 2016-2017 I tested out every applicator table I could get my hands on, multiple tradeshows, with a wide range of prices. I decided against the modular frames (which all of them had) because I didn't want to deal with things falling out of level and other B.S. The most durable table was also the one with the best features, by Rolls Roller (built on a solid steel frame - ships from Sweden, full assembled).

I have no idea what the applicator table market looks like now -- nor do I care -- because my R.R. is solid and I crank out tons of work with it (sometimes 2,000-3,000 sq.ft. in less than a day -- by myself -- without breaking a sweat). Definitely the most useful tool in my shop.

Yes, $30k for a 5.5' x 13' is pricey,(TBF: this included the electric legs add-on to raise / lower the bed, a $4.4k addon at that time). Worth every penny. I'd buy another R.R. in a heartbeat.

 

[astro8]

Same experience here with our RollsRoller. I think it’s 6metres x 1.8 metres, has laid down thousands of prints. Multiple users, it just keeps working without any hiccups for the last 10 years or more. We’ve replaced the cutting mat once.

 

[MarkSnelling]

Looking for some advice on application tables. Who makes the best one for the money? Anything we should be looking for or brands to avoid?

What about ordering from China?
Any experience with the Chinese ones?

Thank you greatly for your help/advice!

I very rarely sell multiple brands of anything, but for flatbed application tables I sell the Colex and CWT. The Colex is for people who don't want to mess around with assembly and have a truck-height loading dock and no problem moving the unit into place. The CWT takes some cost out because you assemble it (easy...takes like 3 hours and a little heavy lifting) and the CWT can get through small spaces. I'd always say to avoid the cheap chinese tables only because if something does go wrong, you will likely be out of luck.

I'm not a fan of a lot of the automation some of the companies are putting into the tables. To me they are just things that will break and need repair. A good standard table from CWT or Colex will get you up and running for a decade or more. There's not much that can go wrong with these unless you threw a bowling ball on the glass top.

I'd love to send pricing as we are based in Cleveland and I live in Grand Rapids. Please let me know if I can! Mark@HascoGraphics.com

 

[Notarealsignguy]

We bought a Fayon smart table direct from the manufacturer in China, these things are pretty basic and didn't see any need in blowing a pile of money on one. Nobody liked it at first but it's invaluable once you get the hang of it, it gets used every day. I've never had an issue getting parts from China either.

 

[danno]

I have used RollsRoller, Kala, and Rollover. I would recommend the RollsRoller and the Rollover any day. Both have been sturdy and solidly built. The Kala was a little shaky and didn't have the sturdy feel.

 

[Bxtr]

We have the Kala applikator, the reason we went with Kala is because we had their laminator already with little to no issues.
We use it everyday, not as much as after getting a Vanguard flatbed printer. It's a pretty fool proof machine, you can lay a 4x8 by yourself in a no time at all.

 

[amw]

Thank you everyone for the info, it is appreciated!

 

[rydods]

We have a rollover table and absolutely love it! With very minimal training, anyone can apply graphics to boards or apply transfer tape. We do try to laminate small prints with scrap laminate and sometimes it doesn't go well but that's mostly on the user, not the machine.
My advise is stick with one of the popular ones others have spoken about and avoid going cheap. I look at these tables as any other machine or tool. Some are just build much better and you'll have less issues and a much better experience owning it.