Mimaki UCJV-300 Reviews

[White Haus]

Anyone out there running one of these units? I've searched through the threads and still seems like there aren't many people out there using them.

Any success or horror stories? What are you using it for, and is there anything you haven't been able to print with it?

I'm seriously considering one to fit in between our Roland XR-640 and Oce Arizona flatbed. We would go with the LUS 170 CMYKLcLm and LUS200 White, and possibly the clear/varnish. I've heard clear/varnish can be a pain but I've also heard the same about white and it works great on our Roland/Oce.

I've seen the stock samples and have had Mimaki print some samples on our material and everything looks good so far. I just need to test out laminating some of the prints to make sure the laminate lays down nice without silvering.

Just looking for some real user feedback.

Thanks in advance.

 

[bigben]

I'm very interested in this printer too. So I will follow this thread.

 

[Solventinkjet]

With UV the white is a lot more manageable. The UCJV300 has a true re-circulation route that doesn't just agitate but actually moves the ink around the system. On solvent printers with white even with circulation routes they would clog a lot. I have a UCJV300 demo model in the warehouse that we only use for demos so it doesn't get used a whole lot. I have seen it go over a month just on auto cleanings and the white still prints 100%. That's been my experience. Full disclosure, I work for a Mimaki dealer but I work as a tech not a salesman. Just my 2 cents.

 

[equippaint]

The price is right on them. Id venture to say there are a lot more people out there running these than what it looks like on here too. Best guess is that they are pretty trouble free so you don't hear much about them.

 

[White Haus]

With UV the white is a lot more manageable. The UCJV300 has a true re-circulation route that doesn't just agitate but actually moves the ink around the system. On solvent printers with white even with circulation routes they would clog a lot. I have a UCJV300 demo model in the warehouse that we only use for demos so it doesn't get used a whole lot. I have seen it go over a month just on auto cleanings and the white still prints 100%. That's been my experience. Full disclosure, I work for a Mimaki dealer but I work as a tech not a salesman. Just my 2 cents.

Thanks for the feedback. I definitely appreciate it given that you're a tech. Do you know what the maintenance schedule is like? Do any of your customers have the clear/varnish yet? I don't know how recently that has been added - I know there were issues with the original white inks so I'm a little concerned about beta testing the clear.

 

[White Haus]

The price is right on them. Id venture to say there are a lot more people out there running these than what it looks like on here too. Best guess is that they are pretty trouble free so you don't hear much about them.

The price is definitely very attractive. It also helps that we can get over $6k trade in for a 11 year old Roland......

I'm debating whether or not I need to fly out to check this thing out and play with it for a day before committing or just pull the trigger already. I'm almost trying to find a reason not to get it but coming up short.
I guess the thickness of the ink could be a concern if we need to be laminating the prints...so there's that. The ink is fairly scratch resistant (better than our Oce ink) but I don't think I'd do big solid coverage panels unlaminated.

 

[ProColorGraphics]

When I was looking at them, I was told if you want white and clear, you can only do CMYK. You have to have 2 channels dedicated each to white and clear

 

[bigben]

I've heard a rumor that the next generation of the HP latex printer will have white ink. It's the only reason why I'm waiting to change my printer. But the mimaki if the first contender for now.

 

[Solventinkjet]

Thanks for the feedback. I definitely appreciate it given that you're a tech. Do you know what the maintenance schedule is like? Do any of your customers have the clear/varnish yet? I don't know how recently that has been added - I know there were issues with the original white inks so I'm a little concerned about beta testing the clear.

The maintenance is the same as solvent printer. Clean the cap tops and head surfaces once in a while. I don't have any customers using the clear so can't really speak to it. They all use white though and have had no issues.

 

[Taizen]

We are running the LUS170 CMYK WW VV configuration and have had a lot of success with it. My only complaint is that it won't print white under color and varnish on top all at once.

 

[White Haus]

We are running the LUS170 CMYK WW VV configuration and have had a lot of success with it. My only complaint is that it won't print white under color and varnish on top all at once.

So you're running the LUS 170 White and Varnish? Have you had any issues with the cracking/failing of the white? Our dealer and Mimaki rep have suggested running LUS 200 white as it's supposedly better.
I personally don't care about the 3M MCS Warranty as we're not a wrap shop so the LUS 170 inkset for cmyk makes sense. (Apparently 25% more for LUS 200 ink to get the MCS warranty)

So other than not being able to layer like you mention, you're happy with the white and varnish? Does it slow down to a crawl if you're using cmyk + W or cmyk + V?

Are you happy with the take-up system and tracking? Print any banners or fabrics on it?

Have you tried any rigid roll stock materials on it? We had Mimaki test .010 polycarbonate and it looks really good, I just don't know how it tracked on their end. They did say it went well and didn't have any buckling issues.

 

[White Haus]

The maintenance is the same as solvent printer. Clean the cap tops and head surfaces once in a while. I don't have any customers using the clear so can't really speak to it. They all use white though and have had no issues.

Good to know, thank you!

 

[Taizen]

So you're running the LUS 170 White and Varnish? Have you had any issues with the cracking/failing of the white? Our dealer and Mimaki rep have suggested running LUS 200 white as it's supposedly better.
I personally don't care about the 3M MCS Warranty as we're not a wrap shop so the LUS 170 inkset for cmyk makes sense. (Apparently 25% more for LUS 200 ink to get the MCS warranty)

So other than not being able to layer like you mention, you're happy with the white and varnish? Does it slow down to a crawl if you're using cmyk + W or cmyk + V?

Are you happy with the take-up system and tracking? Print any banners or fabrics on it?

Have you tried any rigid roll stock materials on it? We had Mimaki test .010 polycarbonate and it looks really good, I just don't know how it tracked on their end. They did say it went well and didn't have any buckling issues.

For the most part we print to a vinyl then mount to folding carton or plastic, or print to flexible packaging materials. The white and varnish work great. Only on some shrinkable material do we have any issues where the lus 200 would probably work better. It doesn't crack but it isn't as flexible as we need sometimes.

 

[Taizen]

For the most part we print to a vinyl then mount to folding carton or plastic, or print to flexible packaging materials. The white and varnish work great. Only on some shrinkable material do we have any issues where the lus 200 would probably work better. It doesn't crack but it isn't as flexible as we need sometimes.

Also mimaki recommends printing white or gloss at 600x1200 on 32 pass, which is pretty slow.

 

[White Haus]

For the most part we print to a vinyl then mount to folding carton or plastic, or print to flexible packaging materials. The white and varnish work great. Only on some shrinkable material do we have any issues where the lus 200 would probably work better. It doesn't crack but it isn't as flexible as we need sometimes.

Thanks for the info, much appreciated!

Anyone else out there running one of these units?

 

[Firstex]

I am about to purchase one and I would like to have c,m,y,k,lc,lm, w, clear but the tech is finding out if this is possible.

It looks like you might have to drop the lm and lc to have both white and clear. I am quite new to this and previously have had 12 colour on a canon 8400ipf. Does any one have an opinion on loosing these two and if it will adversly affect image quality?
WE print a wide variety of exhibition (event) graphics and the white/ gloss effects look great.

 

[Sophie]

Anyone out there running one of these units? I've searched through the threads and still seems like there aren't many people out there using them.

Any success or horror stories? What are you using it for, and is there anything you haven't been able to print with it?

I'm seriously considering one to fit in between our Roland XR-640 and Oce Arizona flatbed. We would go with the LUS 170 CMYKLcLm and LUS200 White, and possibly the clear/varnish. I've heard clear/varnish can be a pain but I've also heard the same about white and it works great on our Roland/Oce.

I've seen the stock samples and have had Mimaki print some samples on our material and everything looks good so far. I just need to test out laminating some of the prints to make sure the laminate lays down nice without silvering.

Just looking for some real user feedback.

Thanks in advance.

Hi there!

I'm running a Mimaki UCJV300-160. I love love it!! We use it primarily for decals, we have specialty materials that cannot use solvent inks and the UV ink made for a perfect solution. The ink is matte and has a texture to it, so if you're looking for a smooth ink application, it definitely does not do that. However, I have had that noted as a plus when customers have received their stickers and decals saying the textured ink makes it feel more expensive, but it ultimately comes down to personal preference I think. Nothing will scratch that ink off though!! It's amazing for outdoor application.

In terms of your question about printing, I've had nothing it couldn't print. So far, the detail this machine prints is amazing.

Positives: No drying time, the print/cut feature is incredibly helpful, and overall the detail on this printer is insane.
Negatives: Not many people have this machine, so it feels a little lone soldier-y when things go wrong. Of course my distributor and mimaki are both companies that I can reach out to and get help from, but when it comes to the decal/sticker category, they don't have many exact notes and answers on how to fix things! Clearly everyone is sort of learning at the same time.

My main issues have come from the cutter. I use reflective materials, so I have to use a pretty heavy weight blade and overall the contour cut is amazing - so detailed and incredibly quick, but the halfcut to cut through material and liner has proven to be a bit of a problem. However, from what I have heard of other machines, this machine truly cuts like a dream. Once you find the right weight and setting, it's pretty much smooth sailing.

I have been questioning if a flatbed cutter would make cutting the decals easier as I think a lot of the issues come from the roll of material having a curl and getting stuck in the plotter every so often.

Happy to answer any specific questions you may have! Also, if you want me to run a sample for you, I'm always happy to!

 

[White Haus]

Hi there!

I'm running a Mimaki UCJV300-160. I love love it!! We use it primarily for decals, we have specialty materials that cannot use solvent inks and the UV ink made for a perfect solution. The ink is matte and has a texture to it, so if you're looking for a smooth ink application, it definitely does not do that. However, I have had that noted as a plus when customers have received their stickers and decals saying the textured ink makes it feel more expensive, but it ultimately comes down to personal preference I think. Nothing will scratch that ink off though!! It's amazing for outdoor application.

In terms of your question about printing, I've had nothing it couldn't print. So far, the detail this machine prints is amazing.

Positives: No drying time, the print/cut feature is incredibly helpful, and overall the detail on this printer is insane.
Negatives: Not many people have this machine, so it feels a little lone soldier-y when things go wrong. Of course my distributor and mimaki are both companies that I can reach out to and get help from, but when it comes to the decal/sticker category, they don't have many exact notes and answers on how to fix things! Clearly everyone is sort of learning at the same time.

My main issues have come from the cutter. I use reflective materials, so I have to use a pretty heavy weight blade and overall the contour cut is amazing - so detailed and incredibly quick, but the halfcut to cut through material and liner has proven to be a bit of a problem. However, from what I have heard of other machines, this machine truly cuts like a dream. Once you find the right weight and setting, it's pretty much smooth sailing.

I have been questioning if a flatbed cutter would make cutting the decals easier as I think a lot of the issues come from the roll of material having a curl and getting stuck in the plotter every so often.

Happy to answer any specific questions you may have! Also, if you want me to run a sample for you, I'm always happy to!

Thank you Sophie for the detailed review!

We pulled the trigger and should have it up and running within the next couple of weeks. We ended up going with CMYKLcLmWW.

Can't wait to get this thing up and running! I'll be sure to keep everyone updated once we're set up and printing.

 

[Sophie]

Thank you Sophie for the detailed review!

We pulled the trigger and should have it up and running within the next couple of weeks. We ended up going with CMYKLcLmWW.

Can't wait to get this thing up and running! I'll be sure to keep everyone updated once we're set up and printing.

Awesome!! If you ever have questions, never hesitate to reach out! I've spent a lot of time toggling this machine. I think you're gonna love it!

 

[White Haus]

Awesome!! If you ever have questions, never hesitate to reach out! I've spent a lot of time toggling this machine. I think you're gonna love it!

I might just take you up on that! Thanks again!