How can you run magnet material through your printer?

[scene329]

Scene 329 maybe you need another printer....1 person watching 2 printers has to be better labour wise....

We've been in the works of looking at an Epson GS6000 my only concern is.. having a Mutoh and Epson..

How would that work? Some jobs printing on the Epson and some on the Mutoh? What about re-orders?

I'm thinking about selling our Mutoh when we get the GS6000. Advice?

 

[scene329]

First off, if what you're doing is going to be straight cut, just print vinyl, apply it to the mag and trim. Piece of cake. But if you need custom cut shapes and you've got a small volume, get the .020 DigiMag from Magnum. It's basically printable vinyl already laminated onto the magnet. I've successfully print/cut it through my VersaCAMM 300. You have to run the blade deep and slow and several times, but it can be done. Don't run more than a few feet at a time, though. Just a warning.

Steve

Seems way too time consuming... What about a steel rule die and a die cutter? Seems much more productive.

 

[flyingtroutworks]

I've run the .020 DigiMag through my VersaCAMM 300 for custom short run diecut jobs. If it's going to be straight cut I'll print vinyl, apply to mag and hand cut. But I can't hand cut complex shapes nicely Long print/cut runs are not recommended, though. The pinch rollers will slip if more than a few feet of the heavy mag is running out of the machine.

Steve

 

[firesignz]

In case anyone wants my 2 cents... I always print onto vinyl first and then run it through the laminator to attach to the mag sheet and then over to the cutter.

However, when I get to the cutter part, the metal base creates a bit of a problem since the mag wants to stick tight. I have found that dropping a sheet of brown kraft paper (the real stuff, not the garbage you get at retail stores) creates a perfect barrier to the mag to allow it to move on the cutter base.

 

[gnemmas]

It is more desirable to print direct onto mags, if it is doable as what Scene was try to research. Time & material savings, plus the weight reduced from an extra layer of 3ml vinyl.

We did have more problems with mags since digital printing. Not laying flat, edges tend to curved up. So we modified our process:

- not to laminated the prints.
- not to use laminator to mount the prints to mags. I suspect the pressure created tension between the printed vinyl & the mag to cause it to curved up.

So before we have a flatbed, I also like to see if anyone has a way to print direct to mag with roll fed printers. All negative comment please refrain from posting as they are well known, just any success stories on methodology or new mag material.

Some one posted on printing first then "Charge" to "magetize" it, please elaborate.

 

[royster13]

There is equipment available to magnetize material that has no charge....I know nothing more about it other than I have seen it done this way in a suppliers factory.....But I suspect you have to do volume to handle the cost of the equipment....

 

[Gino]

Ya know, rather than trying to re-invent the wheel.... it's far easier being orthodox about certain areas and use your imagination for better uses.

Some things have been tried over and over...... and unless you have the right tools or equipment.... there's no sense in trying to ruin something that 95% of the people have already tried to explain to you won't really work.

This is not a negative comment, but just plain common sense.

 

[StopSignGraphics]

Here's what magnum magnetics sent me when I tried printing on their printable product. It did work but the product didn't look as good as printing on vinyl and then mounting.


Tips for Mimaki JV33 and JV5 printers to facilitate the printing of Magnum’s DigiMag® VINYL magnetic sheeting:
•
We suggest that feed adjust/bi-directional calibration adjustments be made before running the magnetic sheeting which is thicker and heavier than other materials you may be printing. To avoid frequent adjustments we upped the pass count 1 feed setting from 8 to 16 on our printer profiles so that the media will pulled forward in shorter increments and therefore will make it much easier to dial in and keep the feed consistent. The pass count can always be switched back to 8, but this may require that the feed be adjusted during printing.

• Cover the pre-heater and dryer so that the magnetic media can travel through the printers. Stick a strip of magnet to the printers covering the pre-heat and dryer areas so that the magnetic sheeting will travel through these areas without issue.

Printers with a metal platen, shell, etc. to which the magnet may be attracted: We recommend the creation of an air gap to facilitate printing on the magnet. For example, a .020" clear sheet of polycarbonate cut wider that the width of the magnetic sheeting and as long as required. Apply adhesive-backed magnetic strip to the polycarbonate sheet. This will allow the polycarbonate to be affixed easily to the printer and removed quickly when not required.

 

[Edserv]

I stubbornly tried to (is stubbornly a word?) run magnetic material through our ValueJet 1204, and it simply gets stuck due to the magnetic material adhering to the dryer.

We have a really quick method to apply our printable vinyl or over-lam printable vinyl directly to our magnetic rolls (then corner-rounding it.) The trick is: as little "heavy lifting" of the magnetic rolls as possible, which can be done by building a wall unit that keeps the magnetic (and other) rolls from having to be lifted or moved with minimal effort.

Good luck!
Chris
Lets Go Banners