CJ--line of printers

[anozira02]

I contacted a Roland seller in Phoenix, to see if they happen to have any trade ins of any CJ printers, he told me he didn't have any of this time and even if he did,,,, he wouldn't sell it to me cause they are so out dated. He told me it wouldn't be too long before Roland will stop supporting those line of Printers Right now that's all I can afford to buy.....would this be a mistake?

 

[Gino]

Probably, unless you're very mechanically inclined and know your way around digital printers and their components.

 

[FatCat]

I pondered that question long and hard for the past year while I researched and learned about many different printers and their strengths and weaknesses. Basically, after all was said and done, the money spent on an older Roland didn't make sense to me. I settled on a used VJ-1204 and couldn't be happier.

-IF- you already had the machine and had to pay the $2000-$2500 to convert it to solvent then yes, I would agree it would be worthwhile to do. However, if you have to buy one of those older machines for say $1500-$3000 and then pay another $2,000-$2,500 to convert it to solvent, then not so much.

I've talked to several guys that run these, and for the most part they do a good job and you can make money with them. However, there are a lot of shortcomings, and a lot of experimentation you'll have to do if you decide to go down this road.

Do your homework and run all the numbers. Good luck to you.

 

[Pro Signs & Graphix]

Your best bet is too look for a newer trade-in. Used printers are not bringing anything close to what they did in the past. As a matter of fact many dealers will not take a trade unless they already have a buyer. Check with a couple vendors close to you, give them your budget and tell them to keep their eyes open.

As for the CJ, it is a tank but there is too much other stuff to learn. Why add repair to the list?

 

[sfr table hockey]

One plus on a Cj is the price for some of the parts you end up replacing. Like a printhead.... for (2) you can do it for under $300 usd and you can do it yourself. As for the conversion again you can do it yourself but you have to be some what mechanically inclined. If you don't like fooling with how things work then it would not be for you. My conversion was about $1000 usd for new parts and the home made heater plates. Also made a take-up reel for less than $20 and it works great.

One major issue might be down the road when main board parts are not available. As for print heads and pumps and capping stations, there are other units that use these parts and will be around for a while.

You could get a 54" printer cutter and have it for a couple years (or more) and make enough to buy a new printer after that.

If you think that you will be doing a heavy load of work right off the start then the speed might be an issue. Then you might want to look for new and factor that into the amount of work you need be doing to pay the monthly payments.

 

[anozira02]

There is a CJ-500 available to me with added heater, take-up reel and already converted to eco-solvent ink. I have seen the print test and it looked good. The seller wants $5K for it. I would be using this printer until I can afford a new one.....maybe a year or so!

 

[sfr table hockey]

I would say if it's already converted and with heaters (most likely not home made heaters which would be even better) that is a very good price. Make sure you have the software that will let you design stuff and print out of. Illustrator will work with the Roland colorchoice that comes with it, but flexi or such, would be even better.

Any idea of the ink they are using?

If eco sol max the profiles should not be an issue. I have 11/10 and they are working good.

I don't think you would go wrong if it already up and running and even if you had to replace the heads, that would still be cheap.

 

[deegrafix]

CJ

I'm using a CJ converted to 1110 Ecosol Inks and am very happy with it. It does a great job. One long-term issue is that it is a legacy type machine and can't be driven with anything newer than Windows XP, and the choice of RIP is limited.

Even though Roland won't support it, it's basically identical to the Roland SC, and parts are available and much less expensive than most solvent machines. Also it works as a stand alone plotter and is very precise. I regularly cut lines of copy 48" x 280" with no issues. For 5K you're in business both printing and cutting and can bank the cash it makes you to buy something newer a couple years down the road. I know of one recently that sold for $9,600.00.

 

[anozira02]

As far as I know...it uses eco solvent ink!