signgirl67
New Member
We have a Roland sc500 - we bought it used/reconditioned a few years ago from some good folks in ohio. It's not the newest or fastest machine but it prints great and was the right price to allow us to transition from a cut vinyl and hand paint shop. 1 major ongoing pain in the butt though....every so often the heads return to the capping station, does a cleaning cycle and continues. But when it does, there is a light streak through the print in that spot, as if it didn't print a full pass or advanced with out printing. There is some ink, but it looks like the overlap pass was skipped. (it does/looks the same way when an ink cartridge gets replaced - during a pause for an empty cartridge - in the print.) .....Additionally, the error repeats: so let's say we're printing a 48" by 96" on fine2 (540dpi), this light streak that coincides with a cleaning cycle, will occur about 39 inches deep into the print and then again at about 78". the band or light streak is about the thickness of a head. (3/8" thick or so). If we do the same print on normal (360dpi) it will repeat at appox 44 to 47 inch intervals. If we do it on a higher 720dpi setting - as expected it happens earlier - about 28" intervals. so basically it reaches a certain amount of data points and it pauses for a clean, etc. or there is a problem with it missing a printing pass when it stops to clean in the middle of the print. My computer friends tell me it's not the cable - because of the way it repeats. A few more things - luckily it is hidden more in photo image files, but when trying to print dark solid color backgrounds of a design - that light streak jumps off the page. It happens on all materials (but banner material hides it more (I think because of the texture). Not only does it happen when an ink cartridge needs and gets replaced in the middle of the print - but that resets the cycle of the streaking. Meaning if the 1st cleaning/light streak happens at 40", then the cyan needs replaced at 50" in (10" later) - we get a streak there - then the next cleaning light streak happens at 90" in (40'" in from ink cart. replacement/streak.) ...... so any ideas?
