Which mild / eco solvent printer has the most durable ink?

[PrintItBig]

Hi,

I'm interested in knowing which mild / eco solvent printer uses the longest lasting and/or most scratch resistant ink?

Any opinions?

Thanks.

 

[MrSalumi]

it kind of depends on the ink you are running right? Depending on the heads you have there are many different types of ink that are usable. All with different durability.

 

[PrintItBig]

OK so which OEM ink?
And which 3rd party ink?

(Mainly interested in OEM but 3rd party would be good to know as well)

 

[Dakotagrafx]

The one that is laminated.

 

[PrintItBig]

Question still stands...

 

[Valentino]

I've been using a mutoh for almost 7 years, and I will comment that Mutoh ink looks great, but durability isn't the highest. I've tested some Mimaki Mild inks and they can withstand wiping with 91% Alcohol better than Mutoh.

 

[John Butto]

I tell my customers that my ink last longer than anyone else's.

 

[PrintItBig]

8 posts now and only one useful answer?

 

[SightLine]

Most will only have experience with the brand they use so it can be tough to really say which is the "most" durable. I'd say probably whichever is the most toxic solvent would probably be the most though. Eco and Lite solvent inks have less odor and tend to have less "bite" into the material, hence slightly less durability.

For outdoor use over a year (or with any sort of frequent contact like cleaning) any of them need to be laminated in which case the durability of the ink matters far less. For what its worth we have run Triangle JVV solvent inks for years. On certain things that have been outdoors with no laminate like some banners, I have some customer still with some out after 3 years which still look darned good.

 

[Letterbox Mike]

In my experience, as far as OEM ink on smaller-format solvent machines is concerns, Mimaki seems to be the leader in durability. We've tried and tested or at least handled or messed with prints from a lot of printers over the years, including Mutoh, Roland, Seiko and Epson, and the Mimaki SS21 ink seems to be far and away more durable right off the printer. It's still nothing amazing and won't hold a candle to a true industrial solvent ink, but it's good for what it is. We've had several Mimaki machines through the years, we're now running Triangle ink in our JV33 and it is noticeable more durable than the OEM Mimaki ink.

 

[rjssigns]

Geez nothing like an open ended question that depends on nearly unlimited variables. There is no "best". Anything you will learn here will be subjective, not definitive because of exhaustive lab tests.

Variables:

Printer
Laminate
No laminate
Printer environmental conditions
Environmental conditions where products be used? Indoor? Outdoor?
Banner material?
Cast?
Calendared?

And this is just a short list. Then we get into gamut and Delta E and so on...

 

[boxerbay]

this is like one of those APPLE or PC which is better questions.

 

[Gino]

It's a trick question. It's impossible to answer.

Nothing mentioned about exterior vs. interior use.

If you print with ANY eco mild inks in ANY machine and never touch them, clean them, let the sun hit them or look at them, they will last a long long time. Otherwise, they all have to be laminated.

 

[artbot]

by process of elimination will be the only way to get to a few ink options. OEM mimaki ink is out performed in color and scratch resistance by Triangle. but neither are truly "scratch resistant". solvent ink is basically a micro thin coat of spray paint. and we wouldn't expect a micro thin coat of spray paint to hold up to anything.

 

[Robert M]

Eco inks

I sell printers, Mimaki, Mutoh, Roland
Of those three the Mimaki SS21 inks are more scratch resistant. As for UV durability each manufacturer will offer you that info.

 

[JgS]

I'm running eco-sol max in a roland vp-540 at 7200 ft. above sea level with little to no humidity. At best an unlaminated print gets about 6 to 8 months before it starts to fade. As for scratch resistance it seams to be ok.

 

[PrintItBig]

Thanks to those who have answered seriously.

Gino, boxerbay, rjssigns this is not an Apple vs PC or which colour is the "best" type question. Obviously external weather conditions vary, print materials vary etc etc But I'm talking about "on average", "all things being equal", except for the ink / printer used. I would have thought that was obvious.

As you can see from the replies from people who bothered to add something of value, the general consensus is the Mimaki SS21 ink, in most conditions, is probably one of the most durable OEM inks around and this is bettered by the Triangle equivalent. No this isn't a completely exhaustive, scientifically definitive answer, but it gives us a pretty good indication.

 

[Bly]

8 posts now and only one useful answer?

Cmon people we got a BUSY man here... chop chop!

 

[sfr table hockey]

One thing that I would add is that some of the stronger solvent inks that may be better for scratch resistance may also tend to clog up your print head or drain lines more easily if you are not running the printer every day. Also they may be harder on parts as well and tend to stink a lot more like was said above.

So if you are fighting with keeping the heads from plugging up or the lines, it may not be worth the extra scratch resistance they have. I also think media can come into play here as well. Find a vendors sample book of the media they carry and try scratching over each printed sample. Even though they all are printed with the same ink, some are better than others.

Also if you don't have a way to profile your own media, it may be a fight with 3rd party inks as well to find one that prints with the profiles you have. Plug and play is almost never that easy however they may be some.

Sorry but can't help on the question of which brand of printer has the best ink.
Do the latex printers have scratch issues with their ink???