Dark Jet printing and the cost of ink !

[mrs maggot]

my garment care always tells people NOT to tumble dry, sometimes i have vinyl shirts popped back to me, where they have crinkled the vinyl after tumble drying it for too long or too hot, i re press them for them.

so far i have not had any dark jet bought back, the designs i use on them dont have any white on them, normally i ensure they have a nice wide black border so any cutting errors dont show.

i kow someone who uses them extensively on babywear with no problems

we get normally 25/30 sheets per ink set, normally the black will go part way say after 15/17 sheets or so.

not done any a4 size yet, we tend to do a5 or smaller with them

[bms]

You'll have to stay with the genuine inks for this product as the vast majority of compatible cartridges use dye based ink rather than pigement inks (which is what the durabright ink is). If you do go for a CIS then pigmented inks are available which can be used in this printer. We used to supply the inks for the Epson 4800/7600/10600 printers and sourced our inks from image-specialists.com in the US. We still have several litres of this ink in stock but no longer actively sell this. The inkjet dark product is pretty good for the purpose it serves although we call it printable flex.

[Flash]

You'll have to stay with the genuine inks for this product as the vast majority of compatible cartridges use dye based ink rather than pigement inks (which is what the durabright ink is). If you do go for a CIS then pigmented inks are available which can be used in this printer. We used to supply the inks for the Epson 4800/7600/10600 printers and sourced our inks from image-specialists.com in the US. We still have several litres of this ink in stock but no longer actively sell this. The inkjet dark product is pretty good for the purpose it serves although we call it printable flex.

Hi Martin,
Is media printed with 'Solvent Inks' more durable than 'Printable Flex' printed with Pigment Inks? What i'm talking about here is the Roland Versacamm used for decorating 'Dark' garments.

Phil

[bms]

Hi Phil,
I think they are considered comparable. The Versacamm is designed for that type of work and the printable flex is a work around for use with standard printers (using the durabright inks). The printable flex is thicker than the material I've seen printed on with the Versacamm, but washable up to 80 degrees C (standard precautions of reverse iron, don't tumble dry, don't bleach etc). For those without a laser printer or a Versacamm then it offers a decent alternative.

[mrs maggot]

we have done over 100 t's now with the durabright on the darkjet paper, currently using a paper from dorotape - which we like slightly thicker than some of the others, target was the one we had before, am also about to trial one from the transfer press.

i have 1 sample t - which i print new product onto, i normally print what it is & a date onto the sample and then this goes into the family wash whenever its being done. i know its not too scientific - but it serves us well to see how the different ones are holding up

also forgot to say - a red laundry marker putting a cross over the tumble dry logo on the t shirt - another 2 seconds work - but worth it

[Flash]

If January/Feruary are anything like last year i'm going to look into this again.
mrs maggot, what brand of darkjet paper are you using?

Phil

[mrs maggot]

i dont have a inkjet printer, so i use the D-print from dorotape has a grid backing, so never any mistakes printing, and fairly easy to peel the backing, not as prone to curling as some, and give a very nice fiish dorotape link they are only 10 mins away so i can save a bit on postage. I have used Target also before with good results get some samples from both and try, as ive said before, i test print, putting details on of what paper it is and date etc, then wash and wash and wash again

[mrs maggot]

well i am taking the plunge and ordering these from CISS solutions, they only use pigment ink so at £39.99 for a set of replacement cartridges & 100ml of each ink, i think its worth a gamble, after all thats what a replacement set of cartridges costs - each one only holds 7ml, i will let you know how i get on

[mrs maggot]

well it arrived today, and we have had fun and games, as they only send out dye ink with it, they have made a mistake which Keith has accepted, he is sending out the pigment ink bottles and i am paying the difference, he is also altering the website description so no one else has the mistake, - cant say fairer than that

[chongsta]

Hia,

I have a Versacamm sp300-v. Ive had it 4 years now and its been a dream and paid itself off a number of times now. Theyre actually quite hard to get second hand refurbs of them because its such a good printer/cutter. I was just about to get rid of mine about 8 months ago and go with a dedicated printer for my canvas prints, im so glad i didnt now!

I bought mine new from Grafityp UK, incredible customer service and very very friendly people. They have a wide stock of printable vinlys etc. I go for the Sub Block printable, its for dyed garments and is quite thick but takes prints like a dream, easily peelable too. If your doing footie kits with stripes on them, this stuff errrr blocks the stripes lol.

Recently i too have been looking at DTG and i agree that the "white" issue looks like its been sorted, also the prices have dropped like mad, not quite at £50 quid stage but certainly at affordable prices compared to even a few years ago of £15k you can now get them for as little as £3-4k.

Im seriously thinking of getting one out of my christmas sales. I shudder to think how my sales wouldve been with a DTG! *brrrrrrr*

The T-Jet 1200 is taking my eye at the mo' - If i get it from china! well cheaper.

If you need any info on the versacamm let me know.

cheers
Dave