Servicing for the edge.

[Nigel Fraser]

Hi mate,

I posted a similar topic a few months ago when I was in exactly the same position. I decided that since I keep my edge pretty clean and don’t use it all that much (less than 100m p.month at a guess) that I would be better off out of the scheme. Just hope I made the right choice 😉 I did put details of a guy who does edge service on his own – but I know he is currently in hospital with a fairly serious ailment so don’t know how this will affect his business in the future. Have you tried the site http://www.edge4talk.com where you can perhaps find out life expectancy of heads etc more accurately ?

Good luck with your choice anyway mate,

Nigel

[Nigel Fraser]

Sorry that should have been http://www.4edgetalk.co.uk 😳

[Nigel Fraser]

this is getting really embarrasing 😳 i mean http://www.4edgetalk.com

Must be the wine I guess !!

[Andy Gorman]

We took up the maintenance deal with head cover and it was worth it. They do tend to be a bit picky when dealing with head related problems, but always replaced it when it went doolally. The engineers never arrived with a spare head even when the symptoms described were obviously of a knackered head type nature. It was usually the next day they would come back with a new one. I don’t know what limitations, if any, are placed upon the maintenance contract at the moment; you’ll have to ask.

Out of interest, we did print A LOT and often hundreds of metres of the exact same image which is very detrimental to the head as the same section is always being used, and we went through a couple of heads a year.

Have you had to replace the head yet? If not and it lasts another few months you’re probably better off putting the money in the bank (?) Also what call out charges apply if you don’t have the maintenance deal?

[Nigel Fraser]

…Oh the call out charges are a fair old cost too ! They want £250 call out and then £75 per hour plus parts with a 10 day response.
When you say you printed a lot how much is that roughly ?

Nigel

[Andy Gorman]

Nigel, 6 weeks after getting our Edge we had the head replaced. We had printed 1800 metres 2 colours of a stripe which had ‘burnt’ a mark on the head. After that the average job was perhaps 100 metres per day of ‘normal’ images (letters logos etc) and this head lasted about 9 months.

[Nigel Fraser]

Now I’m convinced I have made the right choice 😀 If you can get about 18000m of “normal” print out of one head that would take me over 10yrs at the rate I’m going !! And in that time I could have paid something like £6500 to have the cover 😮
Thanks for the info, I’ll avoid printing long stripes like the plaque 😉

Nigel

[Andy Gorman]

A point you made earlier Nigel, I was almost religious about the cleanliness of the printer. I cleaned the head every 20m of print, the material was always spotless and the whole machine was cleaned every day. I don’t know if it made any difference but I felt we got pretty good use out of it considering the throughput. Also, of course, it is important to select the right material profile in the software. The heat will bugger up the head quicker if it isn’t right for the material being printed. ( I must say, without any offence to any suppliers here, that the Print One cartridges deposited a lot of powdery residue on the head which can’t be good. I wonder if this is still the case-it is almost a year since I last used it).

[Martin Armitage]

Weve had our edge for 3 years and print up to 1000 mts a month and still on our first head (touch wood!) expected it to burn out last year.
Had a service contract up until 6 months ago, felt it to be an important thing until we had need of it and were left without a working edge for two and a half weeks, and the only response being a telephone shrug of the the shoulders. Have cancelled the contract, if the head does burn out we will probably look at getting something different – a cadet perhaps.
Martin

[Steve-Smith]

i work for a company that produces aircraft markings and liverys and we have had a edge one for 8 years and never had to change the head once 😀 we havnt ever had a service contract mainly because of the hideous price from spandex. we must print 40 metres a day with it so u should be able to print to your hearts content. apparently the edge was made so well that it will last for years where as other machines pack up after a few years! long live the edge!

[Nigel Fraser]

Martin / Steve,

Can I ask since you have run your machines for so long on its original head….
1) What make of foils do you generally run ?
2) Are you particularly carefull about cleaning the head/machine all the time?
3) Have you had any other parts replaced in the edge ?

On the face of it, it sounds like really good news for the life expectancy of these machines – I’m really pleased about that since I didn’t bother with the spandex cover !

Nigel

[Martin Armitage]

Nigel,
We use Print One for spot colours and Gerber super cmyk for process.
I clean the head once a week if I remember but can leave it for up to a couple of weeks
I dont really bother changing heat intensity settings – theres normally a backlog of 7 or 8 jobs waiting to be applied so i just use default unless of course ime printing onto static cling or such like
Apart from bale arm squeegees the only problem i have had is the dongle wich had to be replaced, the service contract didnt help when we found out Spandex don’t keep spares and they have to be ordered in from America. Took about three weeks, but strangely after two and a half weeks of dealing with tech support I spoke to my account manager and was phoned back within the hour with the message that tech support were testing a spare and it would be in the post that night, oh yes and as a favour they would not charge us the couple of hundred pounds rental fee.
They couldn’t seem to understand why i was just a little vexed!
Service contracts are i think a good thing to have, but you do expect them to work for you when needed.

[Nigel Fraser]

Thanks Martin, thats useful to know 😉

Nigel

[Kevin.Beck]

thanks for all the info.

paying for the edge is one thing, but to add another 70 quid a month on top is taking the pizz a bit.

glad to hear some heads ladt quite a long time.

I think I`m going to take a chance.

cheers kev

[Dave Standen]

Hi to all you Edge folks
There is little obvious info available with regard to Print Head care. This is something of a surprise considering that it is the main ‘consumable’ in the Edge. Just among this small group of Edge users on this thread you find different views & concerns. It should be dealt with by Gerber as the manufacturer (not Spandex the sales people)

In our friend Gerber’s absense I shall do my best!

Gerber offers a card to clean a print head. Sounds a bit strange but the idea is to rub the printhead with the card to remove dirt.

What is not commonly recognised is that folks can be too diligent in cleaning the head. Print One provides FREE cleaning kit to any Edge user (UKSG member or not, Print One client or not). The head cleaning kit comes with brief instructions on what to do.

The kit comprises of a small bottle of 99.9% PURE Isopropanol and a small hightech microfibre cleaning cloth, in a convenient plastic box to keep near your Edge. The idea is to wipe the print head regularly with the DRY microfibre cloth, and only use the PURE Ispropanol when you have stubborn dirt to remove, and then only use a it sparingly – a spot on the cloth.

You must NOT wash the print head – just keep it clean.

If in the past you have used less pure Isopropanol (90% pure or less) it is possible that the water content of that liquid is left on the head. PURE Isopropanol will evaporate leaving nothing. The head cannot tolerate water when working – when you start to use the print head. Over a period of time this can lead to water (or moisture) penetration of the small ‘filament heaters’. These heat the print head for printing. When this happens – you can get a filament to blow – and you need a new head (Fault – Pinstripe along length of print)

So the answer to print head care is – use the free Head Care kit from Print One. It’s free to any Edge User – I’ll send anyone who wishes a free kit. You’ll have far less trouble and longer print head life.

The Print Head Clean kit is a sales give away (sorry to try to earn a living) It is part of the client care we practice in promoting good workshop practice & I don’t think you’ll get one anywhere else! At least you get something usefull in your hand rather than a promise. If you are using isopropanol wipes – it’s time to stop and start to use this free kit. You could be storing up print head trouble.

Service contracts. It’s all horses for courses – those folks with heavy usage should have one – those with light usage could take the gamble – and some folks will win that gamble. Maybe you could set up a ‘service’ bank account and pay into that account by standing order, the amount demanded for the contract – but actualy pay your way and see if you end up saving up!

Anyone want a free head clean kit?
Regards Dave Standen

[Nigel Fraser]

quote :

What is not commonly recognised is that folks can be too diligent in cleaning the head.

I have not heard this before Dave, what do you mean exactly and how does keeping the head too clean harm it ?

I have always used your free kit (though I am getting a little low now, must stop swigging the stuff 😉 ) and prior to getting that I used the free wipes that duracoat supply. I clean the head every 10-15m of print, is this too often do you think ?

Thanks in advance,

Nigel

[Dave Standen]

Hi Nigel
The point to be made is not to wash the head. If it’s clean and you just wish to continue – a dry wipe may be sufficient. Use Isoprop on the head sparingly. Moisture and print heads don’t like each other. All moisture should be allowed to evaporated before restart of printing.
Perhaps a good workshop practice could be that the head clean routine is once a week, after work is completed, leave the lid open, allowing therefore plenty of time for evaporation. Of course there will always be the occasion to clean as you go – but use a dry wipe if possible.

The danger is to use the printer when the head is damp. Avoid at all cost’s. In my opinion, (revised after some years) the large print head wipes encourage generous use of isopropanol. A smaller wipe ( as issued by Print One over 12 months ago) whilst more appropriate, still is an encouragement to use. My advice is use isoprop. sparingly, which ensures quick evaporation, and a dry wipe if poss, and therefore reduce the chance of using a damp print head.
Best Regards – Dave Standen

[Nigel Fraser]

Thanks Dave, I will try and remember that in future 😉

Nigel