Vinyl Printer Help – White Ink or White Back

[David Hammond]

Or get a screen printer to flood them white??

Never tried it myself but a new customer of mine had me print on clear then he takes them to the screen printer to flood white.

[PaulRutt]

quote David Hammond:

Or get a screen printer to flood them white??

Never tried it myself but a new customer of mine had me print on clear then he takes them to the screen printer to flood white.

Thanks for the good idea David, though would like to do it all in house to save adding to the turn around time.

[Steve Morgan]

I frequently print mirror image onto clear, apply to clear acrylic then overlaminate with white, I think perhaps the results are a little muted compared with printing straight on to white however without a comparison next to it there is no noticable difference. Find someone who can do you some samples
You will still have the problem of dust and air bubbles if you are not careful – that will never go away, it’s one of the joys of working with highly static charged plastics and sticky backed vinyl 😀

[Joe Wigzell]

Hi Paul,

It sounds like you need to and are ready to move forward and simplify your process! 😀

Here’s my response to your queries…hope it helps:

1) Yes, it sounds logical to me. However with an eco-solvent printer you would have more options than just this one way on offer which is a bonus. There are a number of ways you could apply your image, with different effects depending on the exact output you’re after (for example print onto optically clear vinyl and mount to the front of the acrylic and then mount white to the back). You may be able to offer a couple of different versions of the same image to your client!

2+3) Obviously depending on your budget you will need to balance your priorities. An SP will do great quality prints, but you’re correct in saying that the VS will offer that bit extra, with a white option to help you even further. If you had a white and metallic configuration again you have another component to offer your customers.

4) Different manufacturers and materials will vary, as well as your technique being an important factor! Although it is definitely a viable option.

Using an optically clear vinyl will yield a great result. I think with a little practice and trying a few medias you could definitely cut your process time and with a new machine be able to offer more outputs as well.
There is one option you didn’t mention which is worth considering. If you bought a UV printer you could print directly to the acrylic! Depending on the size of your prints Roland offer 2 machines which would be ideal. one for small scale (1ft sq.) and one large 64"!
Check out this tutorial that will give you an insight.

I hope this helps!?

If you would like any more info or help let me know.
It might be best to go to a dealer and ask them what they’d recommend as well?

All the best

Joe

[PaulRutt]

quote Steve Morgan:

I frequently print mirror image onto clear, apply to clear acrylic then overlaminate with white, I think perhaps the results are a little muted compared with printing straight on to white however without a comparison next to it there is no noticable difference. Find someone who can do you some samples
You will still have the problem of dust and air bubbles if you are not careful – that will never go away, it’s one of the joys of working with highly static charged plastics and sticky backed vinyl 😀

Thanks Steve, i’m going to have a look at getting some samples!

[PaulRutt]

Thanks for the reply Joe,

I think going down the eco solvent route might be the best way to go, would be good to see a sample of an SP series on clear vinyl flooded with white in comparison to a VS with white ink. I’ll speak to Roland to see if they can send me something, as you say, there is the benefit of being able to add more options to my existing portfolio of products.

I could purchase the product new, but being someone that likes to keep a firm grip on the bank balance I was wondering if there is anywhere that sells 2nd user VS printers?

I’ve also done my research on the hybrid and flatbeds like the Océ Arizona, but I think that’s a run further up the ladder from where I am at present.

Thanks for all the help

Paul.

[Chris Wool]

biggest advantage of the vs is that you can do spot white or met but the machine is very slow in that mode compared and if a white flood required i vinyl it not print it.
the print quality of the vs is superb and better than the sp which is very good, but yet to find the settings i like for photo work, this is not the machine its the profiles. as a graphics printer job to beat it
i have another 6 colour roland that does better for photo work because of the rip and profiles.

[PaulRutt]

quote Chris Wool:

biggest advantage of the vs is that you can do spot white or met but the machine is very slow in that mode compared and if a white flood required i vinyl it not print it.
the print quality of the vs is superb and better than the sp which is very good, but yet to find the settings i like for photo work, this is not the machine its the profiles. as a graphics printer job to beat it
i have another 6 colour roland that does better for photo work because of the rip and profiles.

Hi Chris,

Thanks for taking the time to comment, am I understanding you correctly:

Are you saying that if i don’t need both clear and white areas visible through the acrylic i.e. i’ll be producing a solid photo. I will be better off saving some cash and getting a quicker SP printer and flooding the back with white vinyl?

Regards

Paul.

[Chris Wool]

depends if you think the 4 colour sp is a match for your epson which i don’t think it will be, hit the right profile and settings and the 6 colour vs is as good as the epson IMO.
the vs uses a new epson head system compared to the old epson heads on the sp there is a difference to be seen.
only mentioning all this as you are doing for photographers and from experience a picky bunch, then its down to materials the vs will print well on to a wider range of materials better because of the way the head lays the ink down and banding is just not a issue as can be with the older style heads

[Joe Wigzell]

quote :

I could purchase the product new, but being someone that likes to keep a firm grip on the bank balance I was wondering if there is anywhere that sells 2nd user VS printers?

Hello again,

There are 2nd user VS machines out there although they are not all that common as the VS is a relatively new machine.

If you would like to discuss possibilities though try speaking to Rob from Roland directly who will help you to find the best solution (he is in close contact with the dealers), perhaps you could get an ex-demo model or something similar.
rob.goleniowski at rolanddg.co.uk

Hope you find a suitable fix!

Joe

[PaulRutt]

Thanks Chris and Joe,

I’ve spoken to Rob at Roland and discussed my needs. I’m now convinced that I need to get the VS series based on the fact I primarily do photographic work and need a print and cut machine.

Just need to work out now whether to get:

1) A new VS machine, because Rob advised that in the last 6 months they are now able to supply a double white ink configuration if you don’t need the metalic ink.

2) A cheaper ex-demo machine in the typical 6 ink configuration which are more common and hence more likely to come available.

I asked Rob about printMax as they seem to do fairly good offers and he is going to have a word with a guy called Chris there about giving me a call tomorrow to discuss samples and options etc.

Cheers for all the help guys, i’ll let you know the outcome as I feel quite happy that I will end up with the right machine for the job. I’ll probably end up paying a bit more than I would like, but when is the right machine ever the one that’s the cheapest option!

Paul. 🙂

[Joe Wigzell]

That sounds great, as you say sometimes stretching that bit further with the initial investment will be worth it down the line with the quality of your work and the new opportunities it will open up!

I hope it all works out for you, all the best

Joe