Well much of what you say is true in some ways. The funny thing is nearly every printer of any type has Chinese made components within it. Open the hood of your American made car, you’ll struggle to find parts that don’t have “Made in China” or another country stamped on it.
I will give you the service issue is without a doubt important, and has a huge price tag attached to it, but does it really cost 4 or 5 times more? With that being said I’ve read many posts here of people seeking help with name brand printer’s purchased here in the states and received horrible service. I actually reached out to a couple of name brand printer manufactures questioning their warranties or service contracts and the bottom line was you have to blindly trust what they tell you. Sure we can sue companies in the states much easier than in Europe, but I don’t believe any of us purchase something with that element in mind let alone who wants to go through that.
I did a lot of research on these printers. Nothing huge mind you as far are format, and they all basically have the same components, being that this technology (UV) is huge in China, most advancements are coming from China. Seems we jump onboard and add 4 or 5 times the cost of the machine and stick a brand name on it and ta da!!!
I’m not looking to start a war or a long drawn out conversation about Chinese products. My hope here was to tap into the expert minds of those using this format and obtain some help with what I believe to be a good quality UV printer. And yes for me its pretty much a toy, as I stated earlier, to make personalized things for friends and family. Not interested in starting a business with this thing, heck I’ve retired from one career and nearly finished with a second, so I’m no spring chicken! Saw something interesting, and wanted to try it out. My first UV was a small A3 format and it was so neat the things one could do with it. So I wanted to go a bit bigger. And so I sit taking the info I’ve gathered here, and some I found on my own, and hopefully can have a great time printing all sorts of amazing things.
PS...I did look at used machines, and what guarantees does one have in that? As for the ink....I didn't receive the purchased inks from China, they didn't send it, but I'm pretty sure I have a good grasp on what and where to purchase ink.