Color Printer recommendations

[David Fairfield]

Hi

I use a lot of graphics in conjuction with my laser, e.g. I print a sheet of graphics then use the laser to cut around them.

Forgive me for being a little OT but I'm hoping the collective wisdom here might point me in the right direction for a new color printer. I've been using an HP 932 deskjet, but its basically a money eater. The cartridges always run out of the red color ink quickly and I have to buy a new set.

Is there an economical color printer for commercial use? Graphics need to be nice and sharp.

Thanks!
Dave

[Dan Hintz]

I've always been a huge supporter of HP and their great build quality... until recently. I "upgraded" my lowly 612C for one of their wireless models so I could get the printer off of my desk. The 612C used a single black and a single CMY cartridge, whereas the new one used a separate cartridge for all four colors that are piped into a separate print head. I don't use the printer very often, but the 612C was always ready to go with a clear print... the new one clogs almost immediately if you don't use it every day. A real waste of money, and a shame they couldn't get it to act like the 612C

[Dee Gallo]

I bought a Konica Minolta Laser Magicolor - can't be beat for quality, speed and actually it only costs about 1 cent per copy even though YES the toner cartridges are expensive to start out with...but they print forever it seems.

No it's not a $59 lexmark, but hey those have their place too - just buy a new printer every time you run out of ink. It's cheaper than buying cartridges.

dee

ps- Epson has superior quality printers, but you don't get a new nozzle with each cartridge, so they will eventually wear out and you're done with that printer. It's the only brand I know of that does this. Too bad, because they are fantastic.

[Lee DeRaud]

Epson has superior quality printers, but you don't get a new nozzle with each cartridge, so they will eventually wear out and you're done with that printer. It's the only brand I know of that does this.

My Brother all-in-one works that way too: the cartridges are down in the base and don't move with the head. The other side of the coin is that the cartridges can be a lot bigger if they don't have to slam from side to side on every pass.

[Mark Winlund]

ps- Epson has superior quality printers, but you don't get a new nozzle with each cartridge, so they will eventually wear out and you're done with that printer. It's the only brand I know of that does this. Too bad, because they are fantastic.

They are commonly used for sublimation also.We buy the cheapest we can find, (Epson C88+) due to the clogging problem (usually magenta inks). We can get a printer for less than $100, and just factor the cost into the job.

Mark

[Rodne Gold]

Ink refill kit?

[Dee Gallo]

Rod- Have you ever used one? They are awful! At best, they are a complete mess, but at worst they leak all over the place. Better to get a brand you can have refilled at Office Max, but the ink isn't as nice.

[Martin Boekers]

There is a place called Cartridge World that sells refilled cartridges a bit more than half of the retail cost.

You can buy an aftermarket bulkfeed systems for some of the printers, but they have their issues to.

I would buy a basic printer, forget all the extras, cd printer, 6 colors (more cartridges to buy), scanner etc, it's just more to go wrong.

Marty

[David Fairfield]

Cartridge World ... I tried them twice, and twice the cartridges failed to work properly. My dog came out green. Total waste of money.

Mark I'm wondering if maybe my magenta cartridge is just clogged. Swab it with alcohol or what?

Is there any significant difference between an ink jet and a color laser printer?

Dave

[Dee Gallo]

Cartridge World ... I tried them twice, and twice the cartridges failed to work properly. My dog came out green. Total waste of money.

Mark I'm wondering if maybe my magenta cartridge is just clogged. Swab it with alcohol or what?

Is there any significant difference between an ink jet and a color laser printer?

Dave

Dave,

I have both printers - the main obvious difference is that you do not get the lines on a laser printer that you get from an inkjet, since there is no back and forth head movement. The only time you get streaks is when your mirror is dirty and that's a 2 second swipe to clean.

Depending on the quality of the paper you put in them, you can get excellent quality prints from both, but my preference is the laser for crisp lines and true color.

If your head is clogged, spray simple green on a Q-tip and touch the head. Maybe a few times with a clean tip each time. Sometimes it helps to wipe the inside contact but be careful not to press hard. The machine's cleaning process SHOULD clear a clog, but it will use up a lot of ink in the process. And you might have to repeat it several times before it works. AND, as mentioned by someone before, if it sits there for a week without being used, your head will be clogged on at least one color. I hate that.

Toners are a lot less trouble. My last set lasted me over a year and I use my printer every day for full page graphics.

cheers, dee

ps - I have an all-in-one ink jet, which I use mainly for scanning, but this is the printer I use for decals - the inkjet ones come out far better than the laser ones.

[Rodne Gold]

I also use a cart refill place for non critical work and for my kids and my home printers.
Did try a refill kit once , the inks werent bad , but it sure WAS messy....

[Gene Hobbs]

If Photo Quality is important, The only way to go is Epson. I was a pro photographer in another life. I traveled all over the country covering racing events. I did this for about seven years and tried every printer on the market. The ones I used are the Epson R800 and R1800 because they use the same ink. A Epson C88+ and Epson 1400 for sublimation work. For wide format look at the older Epson 7600 Printer. Does great work and you can get them under $1000.00 now. In fact I am getting ready to put mine online for sale, simply because I don't use it enough anymore. Great Printers as long as you use them, don't let them set.


Gene

[Kim Vellore]

Dave,
Your should consider a laser printer. The ink does not dry nor clog up. You cant get the bright contrast in color compared to a inkjet but the newer ones are very close. I got a Xerox Phaser 6180 for ~$250 and the ink that came with it lasted for 3000 pages it was many years for me. I am looking for new ink and I am considering buying one more new printer.

Kim

[Niklas Bjornestal]

I have been looking at a flatbed printer (from china) http://www.iehk.net/Products/FBP_ecA3.html
They cost a little more than an ordinary printer but the ink is cheap, and they can print on many different materials up to 150mm (about 6") thick.

[Rodne Gold]

DO NOT BUY THIS!!!!!!
You will have endless trouble , I bought one based on the same epson 890/1290 heads/platform and it never worked reliably , the issue is the heads which clog big time and cant handle the types of inks needed to be used with this type of machine.
To print on anything , the inks have to be a solvent type or eco solvent type (eco wont print on anything either), if you use stock inks , EVERYTHING has to be coated with an ink receptive coating. Solvent inks will kill your heads , pumps , tubing etc. I cannot see how the inks they specify will adhere to "anything" , I use large format printers and know inks and ink technology quite well.
When mine worked , it did work well , but I spent a lot of money and about 10x the amount of time it printed on repairing it and coaxing it back to life.
YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!!!