Adkins Studio Twin Mug Press - Set Up

[thecartoonman]

Hi All

Would be grateful if somebody who has one of these machines can give me an idiots' guide to setting the thing up!

I have set the temperature to 190c and the time to 140 secs, but I have up to now used the BMS DF1 type mug press which works differently to the Adkins, in that once the machine reaches an idle temperature you insert the mug to be printed, press a button and the temp drops and then climbs before reaching a set figure and then counts down, I am told that the Adkins machines do not work like this.

Can somebody give me a simple 'step by step' guide once the machine has been turned on (with the temp/timer settings above):

1) Do we have a dummy mug in place?
2) If we do, the machine climbs to 190c and then we remove the mug and place in the press the mug to be printed. At this point, the countdown from 140 seconds will begin, but the mug will be cold and the temperature will have dropped and so will not be at 190c - does this matter?

Also, how tight should the clamps be on these machines?

I am told that the heating elements/pad are a lot softer than the BMS DF1 type and should not be clamped too hard but I am struggling to get a decent print on a black car, the image almost looks like it has done a few too many cycles in a dishwasher but is definitely not totally washed out.

I should add, the instruction manual is the usual 'chinglish' and so difficult to totally understand, I think my problem is in the drop in temperature once the mug to be printed is inserted, but these machines work differently to the BMS type, so maybe it is something else.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks.

[Justin]

Dummy mug in place, heat to 180c (If using Ricoh inks) mug in, press for 180 secs, blank mug in to cool down, job done You may need to adjust these settings a little but this is a good starting point. 160 secs may be enough.

Temp will drop when cold mug put in but these settings allow for this.

Adkins say that you only need light pressure but even if you're using the best mugs they still taper a little especially at the base so you will need medium to firm pressure.

What printer/inks/paper are you using?

[thecartoonman]

Hi Justin

Thank you for your quick response.

I thought you had one of these presses, so it's interesting you say 180 secs for the time, since I have been at just 140 secs (we use a Ricoh GXe7700n) so possibly 140 is too low which is why I am not getting the perfect print.

I need a different 'mind set' with the Adkins press, so I will try your settings and see if it works, and I can see it can be quite easy to over tighten these, as the Adkins is a substantial press when compared to the DF1.

[Justin]

160-180 secs is more likely, you may need to sacrifice a few mugs to get this spot on initially I'm guessing you have Subli-R inks which do cook a little quicker than Artainium etc. so can be prone to burning. Up your pressure as well, the blanket will wrap around the top and bottom of the mug well. Blankets will last you a lot longer anyway

Which paper you using?

[thecartoonman]

TruPix with Subli-R inks.

[Justin]

Excellent, that makes it easier Which mugs?

[thecartoonman]

BMS 10oz European.

[Justin]

OK, try 160 secs but make sure you're quite tight on the blanket. You can always lower the pressure until you get it to where it still prints properly.

[thecartoonman]

Much appreciated, I was almost there on the settings but maybe the extra 20 seconds will make all the difference!

It is quite difficult to gauge the 'tightness' on these Adkins presses as they are very well built and I would imagine it is very easy to 'over tighten' the clamps - we shall see on Tuesday

[Justin]

I can close mine with one hand but it is quite tight...you'll be fine