Equipment thoughts

[PMG]

Im going full boar with a new shop and wanted to get others opinions on what would be the best equipment....and the best prices..been looking at Business Packages at Lawson/Printa and really been looking at the Riley Hopkins Pro 2 for the manuals setup.... whats your opinions on different set up and cost.....wanting to stay at or under 20 grand.

 

[tomence]

http://www.digitsmith.com/m-r-chameleon-8-8-a-30972.html check this one out, this is a steal at that price if it is in working condition.
http://www.digitsmith.com/3140-nuarc-vacuum-exposure-table-30915.html this is a very good exposure unit for that price again this is a steal, brand new i think this was selling for over $4K

My 3 top choices are M&R Chameleon, Anatol Thunder and Vastex V2000. If i was to buy another manual press i would buy a used one, never buy new screen printing equipment it's not worth it. All this presses are built like tanks to last forever.
For 20K grand you can get a whole lot of equipment, everything that you need to start printing.

 

[neato]

I would run fast from the Lawson and Printa. Both are entry level units that you will grow out of fast. And the customer support from Lawson is frustratingly horrid.

The Riley Hopkins has a lot of loyal users. Sounds like a pretty good press.

The main thing is you want a press that holds tight registration while printing hundreds of shirts. You will hate your life if you get one that doesn't. The M&R, Anatol and Vastex mentioned above are all excellent machines as well.

 

[PMG]

thanks for all the input...im leaning towards the Hopkins set up....it has the longest warranty so far at 10yrs ...but still looking and doing some more research.

 

[Mosh]

+M&R Chameleon, M&R equipment is the Cadillac or screen equipment.

 

[tomence]

It's not the warranty you should be looking at, since all this presses are made to last forever and i mean forever, i have 25 year old Rototex 6 color 4 station still in perfect condition, you need a press that will finish any work you throw at it from start to finish and i guarantee you its not gonna be a lawson or riley hopkins. Why? Becacause none of this two presses will hold tight registration of a 4 or 6 color job in a long run and the joystick registration on the riley hopkins is a joke.

 

[FireSprint.com]

+1 for M&R. Their support is pretty good too. We're on the graphics side, but it's the same company and same general concepts.

 

[southpawP8NTR]

PMG...I have a Lawson trooper xl 8 c/ 10s automatic and their support is very helpful for me. They have always helped me correct a problem over the phone. Even converting my 3 phase Omega dryer over. Plus they are in your backyard for ease of parts and access. They all have their pros and cons..been my experience. Good Luck

 

[www.esigns.com]

another vote for M&R having worked with them on the sales/service end at another point in my career, I have nothing but good things to say about their equipment.
dan@esigns.com

 

[Pixels Are Bad Mmmkay?]

M&R is who we will likely get all of our future equipment from. We started with a Lawson press and it's certainly disappointing in many aspects. We have m&r dryers though and we love them. M&R seems to have great support. Lawson, on the other hand, not so much.