need flatbed UV recommendation

[Rmurray321]

I have an LEJ-640 currently and it got nailed by a brownout , so I'm in the market for a new one.

I am currently looking at a Ricoh TF6251 and it seems to fit the bill of high end production and quality. but it's expensive as hell....at least for what the insurance company will be getting me to do this.

Are there any units out there I should take a look at that are in the 20+ boards/hr and fairly readily available (within 30 days). Most of our work is yard signs, and general signage, and rarely any "fine art"

There seems to be a pretty wild divide from 2-10 boards an hour and then in the 30+ range.

Thanks all!

 

[CMYKENGINEERING]

What is your price range?

 

[greysquirrel]

Ricoh is a terrible company to do business with. So many other options out there.

 

[Smoke_Jaguar]

How large are your 'boards'? Have a budget in mind, what kind of RIP do you want to use? Just wanting to do CMYK, or want white/gloss. The LEJ's are decent, but insanely slow, so lots of upgrade potential from lots of models.

 

[greysquirrel]

Vanguard, OCE, Fuji, hp r1000 Epson

 

[Rmurray321]

How large are your 'boards'? Have a budget in mind, what kind of RIP do you want to use? Just wanting to do CMYK, or want white/gloss. The LEJ's are decent, but insanely slow, so lots of upgrade potential from lots of models.

I’d prefer to be around the 100k mark, and a board is usually just your standard 4x8 board stock. I do Mostly CMYK with the occasional gloss/white project. With the current Roland I tended to shy away from them because it takes a business week to do anything in white or gloss.

The Ricoh all in with rigging and startup is at 120k, so it’s close, but still a bit out there for me

 

[Smoke_Jaguar]

Got lots of familiarity with Mimaki's lineup, but everything I run is in the realm of the used (we mod/fix stuff to fit our needs). But seen some really good results from some of the CET printers. The Gen5/6 printheads are great for flinging UV ink and tend to be really reliable.

 

[Rmurray321]

Got lots of familiarity with Mimaki's lineup, but everything I run is in the realm of the used (we mod/fix stuff to fit our needs). But seen some really good results from some of the CET printers. The Gen5/6 printheads are great for flinging UV ink and tend to be really reliable.

this time I'll probably stick with new, we're at that awkward growth part of the company where I usually work on my own shit, but it's becoming a drain on sales when I have to attend to a machine giving me shit.

CET was on my radar but apparently where I am at their support network is very thin and not up to par with the rest of them.

Mimaki is on my list, they're not the fastest unit, but it may be within the acceptable range. Ideally I'd like to keep this next unit for 10+ years

 

[Smoke_Jaguar]

The JFX200 line is nice, the EX is only 3 Gen5 heads, but they are easy to keep running in my experience. Just make sure, whatever you're running, climate control is your friend. Support is everything if you're using a machine to pay the bills. I am in Oklahoma, so we're underserved on pretty much every brand. Gone out to sites where people are waiting 3-4 weeks before finally giving up and reaching out to me. But I am a weirdo who likes working on printers.

 

[MarkSnelling]

Fluid Color is a great option. You can get a 4x8 with Ricoh Gen 6 heads CMYK+W for right around $100K. 2 year warranty. You can take a class to learn most of the basic fixes (they are very easy) and then for the big problems you'd bring in the real technicians. With just one row of CMYK+W you'd be looking at 4pass speeds of around 305/hr2. The machine has room for three rows of print heads, so a dual row machine would get you to 459/hr2 and triple row would be 521/hr2. As mentioned, the single row (with white) is around $100K. A dual row (with white) is around $120K and a triple row (with white) is $135K'sh. You can add rows of print heads in the field as needed. If white ink is of no value, then you can take about $7K off. They also have 5x10 units for a few more bucks. I'll happily run you more specific numbers. Also, if you are really just doing yard signs, then you'll likely be quite a bit faster at 2 or 3 pass.

 

[ProColorGraphics]

this time I'll probably stick with new, we're at that awkward growth part of the company where I usually work on my own shit, but it's becoming a drain on sales when I have to attend to a machine giving me shit.

CET was on my radar but apparently where I am at their support network is very thin and not up to par with the rest of them.

Mimaki is on my list, they're not the fastest unit, but it may be within the acceptable range. Ideally I'd like to keep this next unit for 10+ years

I Have had great luck with my Epson V7000. I have had mine for ~3.5 years now. Call IT Supplies and ask for Will.

 

[signheremd]

I second Fluid Color. The company started out refurbishing old flatbed printers, and when they started offering their own they beefed up some of the parts that can be an issue. The Ricoh Gen 6 heads are a great balance between quality and productivity and reliability - just awesome combination. Plus Fluid Color is very reachable if you were to have any problems. We sent one of guys to a workshop they had and he came back with the ability to fully calibrate and change heads; well worth the time. We have CMYKW on ours and it is pretty fast. If we had it to do again I would have pushed for a 5x10 as we now do more larger format signs than we had previously. FWIW

 

[Smoke_Jaguar]

Ricoh Gen5/Gen6 heads are some of the best I have messed with when it comes to UV, followed by Kyocera and Toshiba.

 

[MarkSnelling]

Ricoh Gen5/Gen6 heads are some of the best I have messed with when it comes to UV, followed by Kyocera and Toshiba.

I liken the Kyrocera heads to an Australian Shepherd. If you don't run them, they are a big pain in the ass. But if you do, they are awesome.

 

[Smoke_Jaguar]

If I can ever find a dang JFX200 that is actually dead, I want to put a new set of controllers in it to try the Kyocera heads. But the stupid things keep being easy fixes.

 

[Rmurray321]

Fluid Color is a great option. You can get a 4x8 with Ricoh Gen 6 heads CMYK+W for right around $100K. 2 year warranty. You can take a class to learn most of the basic fixes (they are very easy) and then for the big problems you'd bring in the real technicians. With just one row of CMYK+W you'd be looking at 4pass speeds of around 305/hr2. The machine has room for three rows of print heads, so a dual row machine would get you to 459/hr2 and triple row would be 521/hr2. As mentioned, the single row (with white) is around $100K. A dual row (with white) is around $120K and a triple row (with white) is $135K'sh. You can add rows of print heads in the field as needed. If white ink is of no value, then you can take about $7K off. They also have 5x10 units for a few more bucks. I'll happily run you more specific numbers. Also, if you are really just doing yard signs, then you'll likely be quite a bit faster at 2 or 3 pass.

This is what I'm running up against now. I think Ricoh is cutting me a nice deal since I'm at about 120k with 12 heads. 1281/sqft/hour in draft. about 600 in standard mode.

they seem to have a good price for what it is, but my wallet is very sad, haha

 

[MarkSnelling]

This is what I'm running up against now. I think Ricoh is cutting me a nice deal since I'm at about 120k with 12 heads. 1281/sqft/hour in draft. about 600 in standard mode.

they seem to have a good price for what it is, but my wallet is very sad, haha

well if we can be a part of the opportunity, we'll be here.

 

[Bxtr]

We have a Vanguard VK300D-HS, it's nice because you can add heads as needed. We've had ours for 3 years with very few issues that have been able to be fixed over the phone quite easily.

 

[Smoke_Jaguar]

But how many heads can you add?
*stares longingly at the crate of 75 Gen5's*

 

[Rmurray321]

But how many heads can you add?
*stares longingly at the crate of 75 Gen5's*

Just slap some on the side for good measure!