New To Signs And Buying A Used Printer Warning 10,000 Questions Coming Soon!

[Forevercamismom]

Hello, my name is Rachael. My husband and I own a small screen printing business. We also offer vinyl signs and sublimation products.
We recently agreed to purchase a used needs TLC mimaki JV 3 54" that came up for sale locally.
I feel so in over my head, I can't explain it!
We have an appointment to pick up the printer tomorrow. So the 1st step will be figuring out why no cyan and fixing that issue. But once we are up and printing...That is where I am clueless!
Our intention is to be able to print HTV and sign vinyl possibly some banners.
Please point me in the direction of read and research I should of done before buying a large format solvent printer and how to do the basics!
Thanks

 

[Jburns]

I would spend a lot of time searching the specific topic you have - example "mimaki head problem" etc.

Lots to learn.

 

[tomence]

If you are clueless about it, I would stay away from buying that printer or any other used printer that comes without some kind of a warranty. I don't know how much they are selling it for but if that printer is not in good printing condition you will be spending quite a bit to fix it. I mean few thousand at least, You could probably buy a brand new one for the same money that will take you to fix this one.

 

[oksigns]

I will second tomence's comment. It is extremely beneficial to have some kind of warranty and a local tech, above all else, to help you in those early stages.

It may be appealing to have something so close to your finger tips, but you have to look down the road; your learning curve on the particular printer, and maintenance need to be seen as commitments.

 

[ikarasu]

As other mentioned...

Techs are expensive. If a head isnt working, you could be looking at dropping an extra $5-10,000 (Seriously) To get it fixed, depending on what it is. You could need a whole new pumping station, capping station, new head, etc.

Not to mention if magenta hasnt been working... I doubt theyve been keeping up with maintenance, so you could be looking at every head being clogged... so that 5-10k could turn into 15-20k to fix it. Unless you know what your doing, or buying from a reputable dealer... never buy a used printer, especially if theyre already admitting its having problems.

 

[Gino]

Even though you're only on the other side of the state, ya might as well be a million miles away when buying something you have no clue about. Like others have said, not knowing why something that is supposed to be printing IS NOT doing it's job can be quite expensive and exhausting. Sub out what your needs are, until you can afford one in complete working condition or a new one.... especially for your first one.

I'm sure you're getting it for a steal, but it ain't gonna be worth it, unless the seller is willing to foot the bill to fix it. Otherwise, now it's your junk and you hafta pay to have it hauled away.

 

[Forevercamismom]

wow awesome and quick responses! I am no tthat worried about fixing the actual unit. The guy selling it has it plugged in and desonstrated it for us. Also his replacement was just delivered on yesterday. He had been working/trouble shooting with his authorized rep and just couldn't have the downtime as he only has 1 printer. We have the list of what to check and what order of check and replace to follow. I have researched the parts and costs. Printhead is $650+sh if it comes down to it.
For our shop this printer won't even be 25% of our business so, not crippling to have time invested into "restoring and maintaining" a printer. Also the husband is very talented at fixing things so worst case this will be written off as hobby expense and he will have learned more about mimaki printers. Yes the purchase price is EXTREMELY worth taking a gamble on it.

Where I am lost is printing vinyl, lamenating. countour cuting. steps, tips, tricks. Do you countour after lamenating? Print a banner, cool, how do you finsih the edges? my sewing skills suck.

That kind of stuff

 

[papabud]

the simple process is, print lam cut. use a vinyl lam combo that is made to work together for the application you need it for.
with banners, you have a few options. you can get an old sewing machine and run that route or you can even use a good quality tape product to bind your edges.
a small grommet press is easier to work with than a hand punch/hammer combo
i have worked on and helped rebuild many printers, its not always easy. so i wish you luck in that area

 

[shoresigns]

Where I am lost is printing vinyl, lamenating. countour cuting. steps, tips, tricks. Do you countour after lamenating?

Yes. If you contour cut first, then laminate, your laminate won't be cut.

Print a banner, cool, how do you finsih the edges? my sewing skills suck.

Most shops use banner tape for hemming. No need to sew.

 

[Forevercamismom]

Yes. If you contour cut first, then laminate, your laminate won't be cut.

Most shops use banner tape for hemming. No need to sew.

For some reason I was thinking the laminate would lift or peel if cut after. Much to learn!

Ok banner tape, add to list of things to investigate. Check

 

[AKwrapguy]

Rachel,
Congratulation on expanding your business. I hope you guys succeed. My first printer was a used mimaki JV3 160s with a bulk ink system, I too had no idea were to start and was thrown in to the fray when my boss bought it and told me to lean how t use it. From my experience with those machines, if it's not working properly from the get go don't buy it... it can very quickly turn into a can of worms. It might be best and cheaper to outsource the large format printing at first till you can see if it's something that you even want to get into. If you are hard set on that machine the best advice I can give you is to make sure that it is properly ventilated..... like in it's own room with temperature/humidity control and air handling. The fumes that come off that thing are no joke.

Power is also a consideration. While it will use a standard 110, it has to be on 24/7 so that it can cycle ink through the machine so it doesn't dry in the lines or heads. When cleaning the heads and capping station make sure you wear gloves and eye protection (learned that the hard way) as solvent flush is pretty nasty as well.

As far as workflow with the JV3, you would have to print, allow the print to off gas for about 24 hours than laminate, than you can plot/cut. If your printing heavy saturated colors such as solid blacks, dark blues, it will stick to the back of the material on the take up reel so you will have to adjust the speed to allow more dry time. You can also look at additional drying units that will help with it.

Make sure you keep the machine well lubricated or it will throw up X axis errors.

As far as everything else, there are thousands of video's on Youtube on just about everything. Do google search and it should answer most of you questions.

 

[Signchief]

You'll also need a laminator to laminate the vinyl although that should come after the printer is running. There are liquid laminates you can apply manually and I've seen posts here about a big squeegee that can be used in place of a machine you can look into. I would start by spending time helping hubby with research on fixing the printer before getting into how to finish the items you eventually ( hopefully) will print.

 

[Graphics@ToysForTrucks]

welcome!!!!! feel free to message me with any questions! I also started not knowing much and just learning as I went, I have always had interest in the field, bought a business with "training hours" but those never happened, so I was on my own!.. I will gladly help!