Any one in to DTF ?

[Ravisteam]

I am just starting to look in to this, to be honest it's mainly for the wife to play around with. I have an old R2880 that hasn't been used for a few years that I plan on converting to DTF for her.

Wish me luck lol

Good luck , nice interesting project . But make sure to look after the machine everyday .While ink is nasty and can block your head if not maintained . I think converting is easy maintaining the print head etc is the difficult part . But good to start from somewhere .

[Ravisteam]

I see that the DTF version of the Mutoh VJ628 is now in Europe, launched at the Amsterdam show two weeks ago. It sells in USA for less than $8000.
It is only a single printhead machine - but with 8 channels - compared with the two head x 4 channel machines already on the market.
Looking forward to P&P....
https://www.printweek.com/product-news/ ... -amsterdam
https://www.stsinks.eu/sts-introduces-i ... ar-system/

Do yo know how much is going to be with all the bits . ?.

[Paul]

I will do. At the moment i only have little bit of info.
head cost -£600
comes with Chinese rip that you need to make masks for white and also comes with english rip that does it all for you.
cost - around £16k
ink - £70/L
if I remember correctly, film is about £140 for 100m 300mm. Not sure how much is the 600mm.
powder is about £25 per 1kg that will do full roll of film.
so running costs are extremely low.
future of printing I say…
printer comes with everything you need to start printing incl. 2kg of powder.

[Ravisteam]

16K for the printer ?

[Paul]

printer and shaker.
300mm. version is £10K

[pw66]

Do yo know how much is going to be with all the bits . ?.

Not sure yet. I know that the solvent ink version of the VJ628 is about £5.5k, so a lot will depend on how much extra the DTF version will be. In USA it is about $1000 more than the solvent version.
Not sure about ink costs yet. If it is as expensive as the sublimation ink used in the Sawgrass version of the VJ628 then it will be a non runner.
Edit- looking at the STS Inks US site, 1ltr pouches of DTF ink for the VJ628 is $127, set against 1ltr bottles @ $77. Big premium!
Add on the cost of $900 for the bulk ink adapter +$300 for the stand and alot of the VJ628 price advantage over other 24" systems is gone.

By comparison, the Resolute machine is £10k, but it is a twin head machine, and looks more 'heavy duty' than the VJ628. The extended guarantee is about £2.5k per year. I have yet to ask about the cost of the RA Smart machine ( similar spec to the Resolute).

I am in two minds as to having a more industrial machine will be more beneficial than the proven reliability of the Mutoh based machine. A lot will depend on how much Mutoh have done to convert the VJ628. They have massive experience in making wide format printers, and a good reputation.

[logobear]

regarding the sublistar... IMHO 30cm is wide enough .... but how mutch edge loss?
If the full system is 10k, - its a serious concideration.
My main issue/question is .... HOW MUCH usage does it need to stay healthy?

The white inks can/will clog.

means that there will be a minimum usage per day that can keep the heads and white ink system fluid .... and idea what level of throughput than might be?

Following !
Phil

[pw66]

regarding the sublistar... IMHO 30cm is wide enough .... but how mutch edge loss?
If the full system is 10k, - its a serious concideration.

Phil

For much of the time I could probably get away with A3+ width - 33cm - with roll feed capability. One sheet per shirt works well for me with sublimation. The only downside would be that you are doubling the work of the mechanical parts when compared with 24".

Most of the small format machines seem to be converted desktops. I know from sublimation experience how comparatively quick it is to wear out an A3+ Epson. I can't see a DTF converted L1800 lasting as long as one used for sublimation. At four times the price that would worry me....

[Ravisteam]

For much of the time I could probably get away with A3+ width - 33cm - with roll feed capability. One sheet per shirt works well for me with sublimation. The only downside would be that you are doubling the work of the mechanical parts when compared with 24".

Most of the small format machines seem to be converted desktops. I know from sublimation experience how comparatively quick it is to wear out an A3+ Epson. I can't see a DTF converted L1800 lasting as long as one used for sublimation. At four times the price that would worry me....

Paul , I have a Dtg Epson F2100, Its very reliable machine , No need to operate and clean all the time .I love it so much . If you are not going to print lot of T shirts or Sell DTF transfers why bother buying a industrial DTF machine ?. Just buy a used Epson DTG like me and it can do DTF as well with no issues .I am interested cos I have a business in mind for bluk prints . But if not I think its over kill .

[Ravisteam]

For much of the time I could probably get away with A3+ width - 33cm - with roll feed capability. One sheet per shirt works well for me with sublimation. The only downside would be that you are doubling the work of the mechanical parts when compared with 24".

Most of the small format machines seem to be converted desktops. I know from sublimation experience how comparatively quick it is to wear out an A3+ Epson. I can't see a DTF converted L1800 lasting as long as one used for sublimation. At four times the price that would worry me....

But I dont think Epson convetrs for DTF would last as Epson converted Sub printers cos of Nasty White ink. It clogs easilly and Epson Converted printers do not have good captops to keep the white inks separate without contaminating the colour nozzles . I think white inks needs a separate captop in the machine. Imagin the mess you have in L1800s small captop .You will be troubleshooting and replacing heads than printing .