Making the right choice!

[danlad]

Hello all I'm new here, I’ve have had a good look for the answers to my questions but can't really find them.

Sorry if this has been asked.

I already have a photography and canvas printing business in Kent and feel it is a natural progression to add dye sub to it. I have been looking for the right equipment to buy and am not too sure what to do.

I have about £900 to spend and wanted to see what you can suggest?

I have been looking at the EPSON 1400, what do you think about that? Is this the best A3 printer for the job?

What do you think is the best CIS system for that and what is the average cost? This is one I have been looking at.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/DYE-SUBLIMATION-B ... 45f691ccbc

I also need to buy a mug press and heat press. I have been looking on eBay for these two items but am not too sure if I will get the quality. Can anyone suggest some affordable equipment to buy?

I've been looking at this heat press.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/HEAT-PRESS-T-TEE- ... 4155b7526e

Can I realistically get what I need for around £900?

Thanks in advance

Dan

[Justin]

Epson 1400 is a great printer. The CIS you have linked to looks fine, personally I would prefer Artainium ink to Rotech but there are members on here that use Rotech without any issues.

Heat presses you really get what you pay for generally speaking. A couple of the suppliers on our list may well do you a good deal for buying the full startup kit but I think you'll be pushing it a little for your budget but it isn't impossible. You could save initially by using inks not supported by Sawgrass/suppliers but if you're just starting out in Dye-Sub this may not be the best option as you're on your own in terms of support (Other than the DSF of course!) Sawgrass have the patent on small format inks so suppliers aren't allowed to sell directly for use in the Epson 1400 but they can be sourced.

The Ricoh printers are great for new starters, cartridge driven so no messing with tubes/bottles etc. and the entry level printer isn't too expensive. Do you need A3 sized prints? It's rare that I print a full A3 and you'll probably find 99%+ of your work could be done on A4, another way to save money. Whilst my main printer is a 1400 I have also had both a P50 and S20 on test for the last few months with superb results, far cheaper printers.

I just sold a very good heat press that I imported from China, this is again a good way to save money but there are the obvious risks. Mug presses aren't too expensive, check out the Suppliers list again for a few decent low cost machines.

Good luck with your new venture and welcome to the forum!

Justin
DSF Admin

[bms]

Hi Dan,

Epson 1400 is a good choice, but as funds are limited then consider the B1100 with the ink system as this will save you a few pounds and is still an A3 printer.

As a supplier we can provide the B1100 printer, Artainium ink system, combination mug/flat bed press, paper, tape, case of mugs, samples of t-shirts, placemats, coasters, mousemats for a little over you budget, but not much.

http://www.printerowners.co.uk/sublimation/231/8-in-1-combination-startup-business-package.htm

[danlad]

Wow... Thanks for the quick replies.

I have said the 1400 as that is what my research has led me to and thought it was the best printer for the job but the B1100 looks fine to me. And allot cheaper!

I am looking to sell t shirts, mugs, mouse mats, puzzles etc etc. Would any of these need an A3 print?

Thanks for your advice on the heat presses Justin, as you say you pay for what you get.

Regarding the starter kit, I don't think I like the idea of an 8 in one kit. In your honest opinion Martin what are the down sides to an 8 in 1 rather than single units. If I wanted to go down the single unit road, what would the finished price be from you for all equipment needed?

Thanks

Dan

[Justin]

I like the 1400 as I find photographic reproduction is first class. The 4 colour printers don't quite come close enough for my liking but that said the print more than acceptable and it all depends on your market. B1100 looks like a very good printer for the price. Most of your work may well be A4, larger place mats/sun shades/larger jigsaws will justify A3. Make sure your press will print A3 as well if you go down this route

The combo presses seem to be a good way of getting into dye sub, I prefer seperate equipment but you have to work within your budget. Again, members on here report decent results with these presses.

[danlad]

I am looking to provide the best product I can, I use an Epson 7880 which uses 8 inks for my canvas and printing work and want to match the quality. I think going for the 1400 and starting out with some cheaper heat presses is my best idea to get the product going. Why do you think the Artainium ink is better in your opinion?

[Paul]

I am looking to provide the best product I can, I use an Epson 7880 which uses 8 inks for my canvas and printing work and want to match the quality.

With sublimation printing you can made quality products. I am talking about nice, sharp picture/artwork with good colors on quality blank. But I am affraid you can not mach colors in 100%. very close but not 100%. If you want to save few £££ then you can go for B1100 printer. I know Justin preffer 6 color systems for better skin tones and halftones but the best way for you to find out the quality of print is to ask your supplier about print two mugs for you with YOUR picture with both printers. then you can compere the results and make right chose for you.

My personal chose was B1100 with artanium inks. but I give up now with artanium ink as I have better results with other brand. but this is long story

[Justin]

Bought a rotech system years ago, had a lot of hassle but this was probably more down to the very poor customer service from a well known supplier.

I really like the 1400 but it's taken 3 printers to get to this reliable one!

[Paul]

but it's taken 3 printers to get to this reliable one!

Did you payed for all of them???

[bms]

In your honest opinion Martin what are the down sides to an 8 in 1 rather than single units.

Downsides: the area of the heat platen is one. The combination presses don't have the large heat area like the individual machines. The larger machines can go up to 16" x 20" but you'll pay for the added platen size. The comination press has a press area of 12" x just under 16". Some of the more commercial press, such as the Adkins are well known for their reliability and durability allowing you to keep them switched on all day, every day. The only issue with the combination presses is that it's recommended to allow the machine some 'breathing space' if you're pressing, for example, mugs for longer than 2 hours at a time. We've had our combination flat bed press switch on for long durations as well as the more commercial press we sell with no problems. Obviously you can't print mugs AND flat bed items at the same time as the control unit is used to operate either of the parts of the press, not both at the same time. So, in those instances you'd need to spend 30 seconds unpluging one part and connecting the other.

So the main downside is probably size of these presses. The control panel on the press is the same as the mug presses we sell separately and these have had good reviews and feedback in the time we've been selling them. Going down the route of separate machines isn't going to be as cost effective as buy a combination press from us as our larger commercial press is more expensive than the combination press alone (but it is bigger and comes with interchangable base platens). All the current options of presses/ printers are available from the same section as the link I posted above.

As Paul says, you're not going to get the same results with sublimation as you do with your 7880 - it will be close, but don't expect pantone matches as the sublimation printing process puts plenty of hurdles in the way (colour profiling, heat, time, substrates etc).