Looking to purchase a new solvent printer and cutter 54" + and laminator near the same size. Have been the used route and also have a china special and both seem to be more of a headache than they are worth. I need equipment that i can depend on to get the job done every time which is why i'm thinking of biting the bullet and buying all new. does anybody have any suggestions of what new equipment would be the best value for my dollar without totally breaking the bank? and also what dealers offer better customer service and pricing than others? thanks for the input!
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Advice on purchasing new equipment needed!
- Thread starter Josh H
- Start date
BigfishDM
Merchant Member
Lol ok right on glad we got to meet out there! Is their any specific reason for solvent? I deal both solvent and latex but think latex is a better for fit for the wrap guys, I know plenty of pros and cons to either so any questions feel free to let me know.
petepaz
New Member
don't know much about the latex printers but we have had roland print/cut machines for over 10yrs now and the solvent printers have been very reliable also easy to use.
the machine it self is pretty easy to maintain. clean it once a week and that's about it. versawork is easy to use as well and comes with the machines as already mentioned.
the machine it self is pretty easy to maintain. clean it once a week and that's about it. versawork is easy to use as well and comes with the machines as already mentioned.
KaranGrewal
New Member
We have two Roland XR-640 printer cutter, very happy with them. I m personally not a fan of Versaworks. We run all our printers with Colorgate. But I have read lots of good things about new latex printers. If you do wraps I would go with Latex. Also find out about your local printer dealer and service.
Correct Color
New Member
Josh,
I've seen and worked with and profiled just about everything out there, and here's my opinion:
If I had an unlimited budget, I'd probably buy a Seiko M64S. It's a seriously fast, seriously beefy, seriously well-built machine, that prints very well. And priced accordingly. I think you could probably get two HP 360's for the price of one M64. But then again, the M64 will probably out-produce 3 360's.
If I was on more of a budget, I'd probably go with an 8 color Epson Sure Color. I like the Sure Color because it has orange in its inkset -- a distinct advantage if you need to hit Home Depot Orange, or AT&T Orange, and Pantones such as 165 or 021. And it's worth noting that the Seiko does not.
Both the Seiko and the Epson do come with light black, which I consider to be of critical importance on Eco-solvent machines -- which of course, both of these are.
For my money, I'd steer clear of white or metallic, unless you've already got a market for them that will pay for the cost.
Right now, I'd also steer clear of the HP 360. The way its contone generation and onboard calibration and media-making are set up, it's got graininess deficiencies and color inconsistency built right in. Maybe they'll fix it in time... but they haven't done it yet.
Also note that there's a Roland out there with light black -- the XR 640 -- but it's not configured in Versaworks to take much advantage of it, so it takes another RIP to really even make it worth having.
Also as far as Rolands go, it seems one of their main advantages is "print and cut" but if you want to go that route, I'd ask myself two questions: First is how much you cut that doesn't get laminated first, and second is if you really want to tie your printer up as a cutter.
Good luck.
Mike Adams
Correct Color
I've seen and worked with and profiled just about everything out there, and here's my opinion:
If I had an unlimited budget, I'd probably buy a Seiko M64S. It's a seriously fast, seriously beefy, seriously well-built machine, that prints very well. And priced accordingly. I think you could probably get two HP 360's for the price of one M64. But then again, the M64 will probably out-produce 3 360's.
If I was on more of a budget, I'd probably go with an 8 color Epson Sure Color. I like the Sure Color because it has orange in its inkset -- a distinct advantage if you need to hit Home Depot Orange, or AT&T Orange, and Pantones such as 165 or 021. And it's worth noting that the Seiko does not.
Both the Seiko and the Epson do come with light black, which I consider to be of critical importance on Eco-solvent machines -- which of course, both of these are.
For my money, I'd steer clear of white or metallic, unless you've already got a market for them that will pay for the cost.
Right now, I'd also steer clear of the HP 360. The way its contone generation and onboard calibration and media-making are set up, it's got graininess deficiencies and color inconsistency built right in. Maybe they'll fix it in time... but they haven't done it yet.
Also note that there's a Roland out there with light black -- the XR 640 -- but it's not configured in Versaworks to take much advantage of it, so it takes another RIP to really even make it worth having.
Also as far as Rolands go, it seems one of their main advantages is "print and cut" but if you want to go that route, I'd ask myself two questions: First is how much you cut that doesn't get laminated first, and second is if you really want to tie your printer up as a cutter.
Good luck.
Mike Adams
Correct Color
Get Lucky
New Member
Epson is an okay entry level printer the only problem I know of is Print heads. Depending on the volume of printing you are planning on doing you could be replacing print heads up to every six months to the tune of 3-4k every time. If you do go with epson I would buy the longest warranty you can.
I will say they have some of the best print quality I have seen.
ProColorGraphics
New Member
I picked up a new S70 a few months back and love it!! It does have all of the updates that the new ones have. I'd recommend it. Is it perfect, no, but overall a great printer.
I think that there are two areas that can be overlooked, service and cost of ownership. I'd would look for a dealer that can send a service tech to the shop if a failure occurs. Yes, most of the time phone/web support can correct some issues. But, if you run into a problem that can't be phone/web solved your machine could be down for an extender period.
I would not recommend the 54" Mutoh if you plan on running very much 54" vinyl thru it. The feed carriage is maxed out at 54" and some rolls need to have the core cut back 1/16" of an inch. This machine is really a 48" printer that was modified.
I would not recommend the 54" Mutoh if you plan on running very much 54" vinyl thru it. The feed carriage is maxed out at 54" and some rolls need to have the core cut back 1/16" of an inch. This machine is really a 48" printer that was modified.