Best bang for my bucks

[ThatGuysCSP]

Hello all! First time poster her at the signs101 forum...

I've been looking at some vinyl plotters on eBay and they are all around the 300 or 400 dollar range. That is the affordable budget price, but from reading some reviews it may not be worth the purchase.

USCutter and Vinyl Express plotters seem to have hit or miss reviews. "Once I got my cutter dialed in, it worked great" were a few and I have no clue what dialed in means. "My cutter arrived DOA. had to send it right back for a new one."

$1200 for a Roland or Graphtec is out of the question at the moment. I'm contemplating saving the extra money for a quality product, however I have no clue how long it will take to save it.

I would like to expand my services and the plotter would help greatly.

Whats the best choice to go with at the moment. I am heavily leaning towards the $300-4400 dollar range even up to $600, just not sure what to go with.

Any help would be much appreciated!

Thanks

 

[Locals Find!]

Sub out work till you have enough to afford to buy the right piece of equipment for your business.

Better to save and wait then jump the gun and put out a garbage product because of bad equipment.

 

[Dave Drane]

A penny saved today may as well be a big dollar loss tomorrow. Wait till you have the money to buy a new one with a proper warranty. $2,300 for a Roland maybe??

 

[ThatGuysCSP]

Both posts are valid points...I had the same intention in my gut but impatients may be trying to get the best of me. Thanks for the input guys

 

[SignManiac]

Or look into a good used Roland or graphtec. Many small guys who attempted to do what you're trying to do have gone out of business already. Their loss is your gain.

 

[Mosh]

C-C-C-CRICUT, YO man, dat wat I iz tocking BOUT C_C_C_C_Cricut
U be down WIT dat CRICUT U be busting out them mad vinyl licks in
KNOW TYME. PEACE TWO YO MODER!!!

 

[Mosh]

If you are serious I will sell you a plotter-software and two weeks training here in Nebraska for $9,999. NO JOKE just PM me, been making vinyl signs since 1988, so not a joke.

 

[Mosh]

Uh oh....Mosh is in the sauce again....!

Yeah, I justs deposited my first check from our harvest...so I am pretty wide open. BUT, the offer still stands on the plotter and training...THAT INCLUDES TRACING TRAINING...sorry VEC Doc!!!

 

[SignManiac]

Don't let the mosh man teach you pricing whatever you do.

 

[Locals Find!]

Don't let the mosh man teach you pricing whatever you do.

Unless you own a whole lot of soybeans & corn. Then you can do whatever you want like the mosh.

 

[visual800]

what adtechia said!

 

[ThatGuysCSP]

Haha some funny stuff gentleman! Mosh thanks for the offer but 10K is way out of the price range. However, I will keep you in mind maybe later down the road we can talk about some serious biz.

I have seen some Rolands on youtube that also have a laser or inject printer within the plotter? ...I wasn't seeing things was I? If all my sanity was there, does anyone know what model(s) Roland offers with that sort or technology? Or if any other company's have the same thing?

Not sure how the ink on the vinyl would be for outdoor sign or decal application but It would sure come in handy for some heat pressed shirts! As well as possible saving time on some layering...

But anywho ...can't over indulge in the fantasy world. That type of technology has an unforeseen arrival. Best to take baby steps...

I conduct business on the side..SHHHH! lol so the next step would be finding the right place to go to get a good deal on pricing since I wont be elligable for "contract",wholesale. dealer etc, pricing. I did get some 4" x 4" stickers made for myself a couple years ago. 1 to 2 colors for a dollar a piece for 50 of them. The color looked like foil or something layered over white vinyl. I know it wasn't two layers of vinyl because it wasn't thick enough. The color seems to last though...two have been on my friends car for sometime now, 2 years I would say and they look great. So either I just answered my own question or is that something I should stick with? Keep going back to this guy Eh?

Thanks again for the posts! This forum seems to be very welcoming

 

[Locals Find!]

Haha some funny stuff gentleman! Mosh thanks for the offer but 10K is way out of the price range. However, I will keep you in mind maybe later down the road we can talk about some serious biz.

I have seen some Rolands on youtube that also have a laser or inject printer within the plotter? ...I wasn't seeing things was I? If all my sanity was there, does anyone know what model(s) Roland offers with that sort or technology? Or if any other company's have the same thing?

Not sure how the ink on the vinyl would be for outdoor sign or decal application but It would sure come in handy for some heat pressed shirts! As well as possible saving time on some layering...

But anywho ...can't over indulge in the fantasy world. That type of technology has an unforeseen arrival. Best to take baby steps...

I conduct business on the side..SHHHH! lol so the next step would be finding the right place to go to get a good deal on pricing since I wont be elligable for "contract",wholesale. dealer etc, pricing. I did get some 4" x 4" stickers made for myself a couple years ago. 1 to 2 colors for a dollar a piece for 50 of them. The color looked like foil or something layered over white vinyl. I know it wasn't two layers of vinyl because it wasn't thick enough. The color seems to last though...two have been on my friends car for sometime now, 2 years I would say and they look great. So either I just answered my own question or is that something I should stick with? Keep going back to this guy Eh?

Thanks again for the posts! This forum seems to be very welcoming

You need some serious sign education. My suggestion besides reading everything you can here. Is try and get a job of some kind (full time, part time, volunteer) in a sign shop and just be a sponge for a while (years).

 

[Pat Whatley]

You can't afford a decent plotter but you're already in the market for a printer? By the way, sign design software costs a lot more than the plotter.

 

[Locals Find!]

Pat, I think the OP is in way over his head. He really doesn't know what he needs. From reading his posts he wants to get into the game, but doesn't have a clue yet as to whats what. He is sincere but uneducated on the industry.

 

[wildside]

by reading your post, you have no clue of what you are getting into

take a step back and rethink your whole scenario you are trying to embark on

maybe work for a established shop for 4-5 years to start an understanding of what you are capable of

$300-400 budget for a machine? a proper setup to get going, in my opinion, will not cost any less than $15,000, and you shouldn't even consider a printer or laminator

just out of curiousity, what is your day job now?

 

[MikeD]

you weren't seeing things; there are several manufacturers that make print/cut devices...Mimaki, Roland, Mutoh, Summa....
The decals you purchased for $1 a piece sound like thermal resin prints

 

[royster13]

Can you sell?.......That is the most important part of any business.....Focus on sales......

Even if you work on a part-time basis you do not need to bring much production in house.....There are 1,000s of wholesale printers out there.....Some will give you a hard time if you have a small volume but others will welcome you with open arms....You just have to keep looking until you find the right ones.....

Good luck....

 

[Mosh]

Can you sell?.......That is the most important part of any business.....Focus on sales......

NOT TRUE!!! In fact this morning I turned down two jobs cause they didn't look like they would be fun to do....Good work sells itself, if you have to be a salesman, go sell cars or insurance!

 

[Baz]

NOT TRUE!!! In fact this morning I turned down two jobs cause they didn't look like they would be fun to do....Good work sells itself, if you have to be a salesman, go sell cars or insurance!

Easy to say when it's the time of year where you are collecting moneys from your other business. For some people, signs are their only means of income year round.

 

[The Big Squeegee]

Welcome from OK

Good luck! I'd farm out the graphics both in printing and cut vinyl until I was familuar enough about the business to know what I needed for my area.