Coaster Press

[GoonerGary]

I was told by a supplier that presses with a silicone base work well for glass coasters. Anyone any thoughts on this?

I'm looking for the smallest press possible due to confined working spaces. I have no intention of moving to large products as every product type I produce will be small and round.

I like the idea of those Xpress plate presses, nice price and small. I plan to press 90/ 100mm diameter glass/ uni sub coasters and 0.5mm metal sub discs. What would be suitable for these substrates?

[pisquee]

There isn't a huge markup on coasters, but they work well as a product as they sell quickly, and you can print quite a few at a time on an average sized press, so your profit per hour is better if you can print 12 coasters at once compared to only 1.
We use a PressMech, which have some sort of soft/cushioned bed on the bottom platten, and so works well for glass and slate work without extra sheets of silicone.
For pressing thicker items, I would definitely recommend a swing away press as they tend to give a more even distribution of pressure compared to a clam press, which will help give an even, consistent print across the whole press area, but they also tend to be better at accommodating thicker items than a clam.

[GoonerGary]

PressMech? That's £1,500 of profit that will have to wait a while to recoup.

I see your point doing 4/6 coasters at a time which seems very logical, but will your average Adkins 28/ 38 or 38/38 evenly distribute the heat for an identical set of coasters?

If a clam can't evenly distribute pressure, what's the point of those???

[Paul]

If a clam can't evenly distribute pressure, what's the point of those???

garments ;)

[GoonerGary]

Buying a press for £109 goes against everyone of my principles, but I'd love this to work for glass coasters...

Flat T shirt Press 23x30cm Swing.

http://www.coralgraph.com/heat-press...e-certified-uk

You could have one as back up, but a £500 Adkins for back up is crazy.

Any recommendations?

[GoonerGary]

I am starting to narrow down options:

Adkins Beta Mini 38cm/ Xpres XP7005A swing away @£954

Stahls Hotronix MAXX 28x38cm @ £598.80 incl

or that CG £109 clam press is still inviting.

The Hotronix Maxx has that patented central clam action, does it come down extremely parallel with the bottom platen or does it touch the back of the platen first?

Will it work as good as a swing away or is it just marketing hype?

[RogerC]

I am starting to narrow down options:

Adkins Beta Mini 38cm/ Xpres XP7005A swing away @£954

Stahls Hotronix MAXX 28x38cm @ £598.80 incl

or that CG £109 clam press is still inviting.

The Hotronix Maxx has that patented central clam action, does it come down extremely parallel with the bottom platen or does it touch the back of the platen first?

Will it work as good as a swing away or is it just marketing hype?

I have got the highlighted press and it is brilliant. I can press clothing, coasters & mouse mats (neoprene rubber and unisub) etc with complete certainty they will press correctly. Oh and I got mine for a 'song' compared to the price you posted. Keep an eye on that 'Bay' site because they do come up on there from time to time.

[GoonerGary]

Thought I had decided on the Adkins until I read the spec sheet and it needs 3 feet of working space. I don't have that space with the amount of different equipment I have...need new premises and staff!

Might have to with the glorified iron...the George Knight JP12! But in fairness it actually suits my needs perfectly, silicone base, small and moveable, swing away and should last longer than a £109 Chinese special.

[NikGrey]

That Stahls Hotronix is the same design as my Adkins, the ONLY difference I can see (apart from a slightly different controller casing and the overall colour) is I have a big electro magnet where they seem to have a bolt with a rubber condom over it !

Mine is bigger than yours though at 400x500mm :)

And mine (and I am sure all Adkins of this Ilk) delivers an even pressure - not really sure why there are people against the Clam type ? ok, maybe we cant get as much pressure as a Swing Away but I am certain I will never use the pressure I have available with my version. I have been playing with mine tonight as I thought I saw a quick and easy Modification but it didn't work.

[RogerC]

Thought I had decided on the Adkins until I read the spec sheet and it needs 3 feet of working space. I don't have that space with the amount of different equipment I have...need new premises and staff!

Might have to with the glorified iron...the George Knight JP12! But in fairness it actually suits my needs perfectly, silicone base, small and moveable, swing away and should last longer than a £109 Chinese special.

Just my opinion but if it was me looking and I had the budget I would go for the Maxx not the GK press. The Maxx is a much better construction and the big bonus is the warranty.......1 year on the GK press but on the Maxx you get

• Lifetime warranty on heating element and 1 Year RTB warranty on all other parts . Considering the 'other parts' are going to be much cheaper you get lifetime coverage on the (probably) most expensive part to replace.