Hp315 or Roland vp540

[avogadro]

im looking at purchasing a new hp315 of used Roland vp540. What’s everyone’s preference or reasons not to. I’m fairly new to printing and have asked around, one swears by latex for everything and the other the eco solvent . Thank you in advance.

 

[Solventinkjet]

Solvent based machines were the main type of sign making printers for about a decade and are still about 45% of the market today. The technology that is taking over is the Latex and to some extent, UV inks but that is more in the flatbed market. I almost completely specialize in solvent printers but can see that I will need to move into other types to stay relevant. So even though I don't have any experience with the Latex, it is probably the better choice. Not only that but solvent based inks are just plain bad for you and the environment. Latex can do pretty much everything solvent can but it's down falls tend to be the machines are not built as tuff and tend not to last as long which I think is just planned obsolescence. The heads don't last nearly as long but they are much cheaper as well. A well cared for solvent head will last 3 - 5 years+ where a latex one lasts a few months. If you do the math they actually come fairly close to long term maintenance costs. But the latex takes more of your time having to change the heads so often. At the end of the day, solvent is on it's way out and Latex seems to be the replacement. That being said, Mimaki has come out with roll to roll UV machines and they seem to be choosing that route instead of Latex. Either way, solvent is being phased out for sure which I wouldn't have said 5 years ago.

 

[KaranGrewal]

We have been printing with Roland printers from last 9 years. Currently have 2 XR-640's . Like VanderJ said , we are also looking to add latex printer.

 

[nate]

it's down falls tend to be the machines are not built as tuff and tend not to last as long which I think is just planned obsolescence. The heads don't last nearly as long but they are much cheaper as well. A well cared for solvent head will last 3 - 5 years+ where a latex one lasts a few months. If you do the math they actually come fairly close to long term maintenance costs. But the latex takes more of your time having to change the heads so often.

You know you're comparing apples to oranges. Latex heads are designed to need replacing after X liters of ink (depending on being the 3000 series or the smaller machines). That is part of the ink system. It's a cost of doing business. There is nothing wrong with it. It doesn't take much effort on your part, either. Pop open the lid, pull out the old, put in the new, and the machine does a head alignment. Take a few minutes. No technician needed.

Also, I had 14 or 15 of the L25500 units at one time. We'd run them at 4 pass for 16 hours a day. That's full speed. They never failed me. Since then I've continued to invest in latex. To say these machines are any less in "tuff"ness than a Roland/Mutoh or Mimaki is simply not true. I'd take these things any day over any of the Rolands I used to have, and not just because of the fumes of the solvent.

 

[avogadro]

I just want to say a quick thank you to everyone that took a minute of their time and gave me an opinion, very helpful.

 

[shadi75]

I been using a Roland vp for 8 years now and its been working great. But with that said this is what do i hate it about it?
1- The fumes
2- having to let prints cure overnight when making wraps.

The roland vp is an old printer Roland have made new advances. With the new roland truevis inks there are much less fumes and the prints are ready for lamination. I haven't tried that out my self yet but that's what i been reading on this site.

With all that said i do understand that latex is still safer and better for the environment, more important safer for us.

For all the latex users in here i do want to ask about wraps. When the wrap is heated and stretched are there any issues?
Does the printer head degradation effect the print quality? If i print a wrap will i be able to get the same quality and colors next month if i replace a piece for a job?

Let us know.

Thanks

 

[BigfishDM]

I been using a Roland vp for 8 years now and its been working great. But with that said this is what do i hate it about it?
1- The fumes
2- having to let prints cure overnight when making wraps.

The roland vp is an old printer Roland have made new advances. With the new roland truevis inks there are much less fumes and the prints are ready for lamination. I haven't tried that out my self yet but that's what i been reading on this site.

With all that said i do understand that latex is still safer and better for the environment, more important safer for us.

For all the latex users in here i do want to ask about wraps. When the wrap is heated and stretched are there any issues?
Does the printer head degradation effect the print quality? If i print a wrap will i be able to get the same quality and colors next month if i replace a piece for a job?

Let us know.

Thanks

Latex inks are excellent for wraps, the inks are very stretchable, more stretchable than any other inks. The print heads are always degrading just like any machine, there is much shorter head life in these units for that reason. Once you notice degradation, just pop in a new one. No tech is needed and they are very cost effective.

 

[Gene@mpls]

I have looked at Latex and decided they would not work for our workflow. If you are printing the same material all day long, they look like a great deal. We print a lot but it is on different materials and we need to be able to switch back and forth easily [quickly]. The newer Rolands are not amenable to this workflow so we leave the material we use 60% of the time on the Roland feed and I built another roller system behind it that feeds over the main roll from rollers from a scrapped printer that we use to switch between other materials as needed. I have never noticed the smell from ecosolvent inks, altho I have only used Triangle Inx.

 

[jadrewitz]

I can speak to both. My first machine was the Roland SP300V that I bought used, invested some money into it to get it working. For a machine that is now about a decade old its prints awesome! As long as you do the routine maintenance which really can take all of 10 minutes a week the machine will keep running for you. Rolands are very well built. The negatives would be the dry times, really not a huge deal depending on your workflow but it is a disadvantage. If you print then cut right away through a printed part of the image expect the vinyl to curl in those areas. The head replacements are costly, last one cost me about $1800 but that also included wipers and squeegees. I decided in Oct last year to upgrade to a larger machine and I looked at the HP's. I decided to go with the 115 print/cut combo. Its been a learning curve. Had a few head crashes early on and felt that I couldn't fully trust it so I kept the Roland as well. I forced myself to learn the ins and outs of the HP and now I absolutely love it. It prints fast and prints come out ready to cut or laminate or sell. The prints are more scratch resistant. Really the main downfall is it does require 2 separate 220 volt outlets. I think the prints aren't quite as glossy looking as the Roland but they do look great. The cutter that came with it isn't the greatest but it does the job. I would send both Roland and HP a test file and have them print it and send it to you and you can judge the difference. It's really a tough choice but I don't think you can go wrong either way. Feel free to ask me any specific questions and I will try and help answer them.

 

[player]

I will not go Roland next time.

 

[philip]

I will not go Roland next time.