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Re: Schulze (Blue-Line) 4-way press / get what you pay for?
Posted: 10 Aug 2012, 13:05
by Postcard
Andrew;50958 wrote:Postcard - Have you ever printed with dyesub before? Not sure if I am right but it seems this is going to be all new to you. If so and you mention second to none prints is what you are aiming for then it's going to be a big learning curve. There is far more to it than just getting the best press you can buy and it will be a long learning curve. Do you really want this learning curve to be on a very important run where quality is crucial? I would be wary of proceeding straight onto the main runs if you haven't had past experience.
Printer and profiles, mug choice, ink, paper and press timings/pressure will all come into it when producing a top quality print. Problem solving can take some time to get it all going in the right direction. Personally, I would outsource the big runs and learn the basics in the background with no pressure. Once your confidence builds then you can move production in-house. The amount of faulty prints you could get on a large run would probably end up costing more than outsourcing. When I started out I wouldn't fancy having the pressure of getting a 1000 order spot on.
Andrew I value that observation, thank you for that. My experience is wide format giclee and other substrates and wet process photo repro, not dye-sub. We are taking a lot of advice, thats why we went down to Dublin for a demo. The problem with the large order is there just isn't the margins. The plus is delivery isn't for a few months so we are investing now and training up on short runs locally first. Fingers crossed we will have our eye in by the time we need to produce the larger orders. I certainly defer to the fact that it is a learned skill and by no means plug and play. We have also budgeted for wastage. We are nervous, but hopefully by allowing ourselves time to train up and by asking the right questions of the right people we will a) invest in the most appropriate kit for the job and b) be equipped to make a decent fist of things..
Re: Schulze (Blue-Line) 4-way press / get what you pay for?
Posted: 10 Aug 2012, 14:19
by Andrew
If it's price sensitive then the first thing I would advise is to go large format straight away. Get a second hand 9600 or newer. Sourcing the right mug will be as crucial as getting the right press. If you have strong colours and want to go full top to bottom then it's hard work to find a mug that makes it possible. You are going the right way in not buying a cheap press but price won't always guarantee you can hit the ground running either. I would go by what is tried and tested by other members myself to play it safe.
You obviously know a fair bit about printing so hopefully this will be a stepping stone rather than a giant leap.
Good luck.
Andrew
Re: Schulze (Blue-Line) 4-way press / get what you pay for?
Posted: 10 Aug 2012, 14:27
by Postcard
Andrew;51049 wrote:If it's price sensitive then the first thing I would advise is to go large format straight away. Get a second hand 9600 or newer. Sourcing the right mug will be as crucial as getting the right press. If you have strong colours and want to go full top to bottom then it's hard work to find a mug that makes it possible. You are going the right way in not buying a cheap press but price won't always guarantee you can hit the ground running either. I would go by what is tried and tested by other members myself to play it safe.
You obviously know a fair bit about printing so hopefully this will be a stepping stone rather than a giant leap.
Good luck.
Andrew
Kind of you to be so positive Andrew, and helpful -thanks. Just quickly though, large format 9600, do you mean the Epson printer, for mugs?
Re: Schulze (Blue-Line) 4-way press / get what you pay for?
Posted: 10 Aug 2012, 14:48
by Andrew
Yes, Epson 9000 series is the wide format option which makes the ink 1/4 of the price. There are other printer make options but I know little about them. If you go smaller than that or the Ricoh route then it will cost you a lot more in ink. Ricoh is probably the easiest to get going on but I would think you know enough about printers....... well certainly more than I did when we started. This does depend on how many mugs you think you will do per year and how often the printer will run as well. We've got 2 that print constantly but having 1 that turns on now and then might gave you a little more fun in keeping it ticking along nicely.
Re: Schulze (Blue-Line) 4-way press / get what you pay for?
Posted: 17 Aug 2012, 15:53
by Earl Smith
http://www.schulzeshop.com/main.php?SID ... n=articles
Just seen this thread so I thought Id post a link to Walter Schultz the manufacturers. ( hope your Germans up to scratch). They are at all the shows over here , very helpful and they build quality products.