colorspan 72 uv printers?

[froggys]

how easy are the colorspan 72 uvr & uvx printers to work on?
replacement part costs?
we are looking at a used one & want to know if we will be able to service it ourselves since i have seen some people having issues with them.
thanks
william

 

[ChicagoGraphics]

I wouldn't piss away any amount of money on that printer.

 

[omgsideburns]

maintenance is easy, but the parts are pricey if you buy direct from HP.

 

[JFitzgerald]

You could get a used one for way cheap but you won't be able to service it yourself and keep in mind there are 16 very expensive heads on that printer. And I would recommend that you get operator training from either a dealer or a current operator.

 

[MilanoGuru]

ohh this Topic again... UV Printers are great! Whether they are UVX or UVR They are completely based on Opinion now. If its in your budget and it fits your need then It will prob do everything you put into it. Everyone can Love this and Love that. But the bottom line is you need to care for your machines and if they break down, fix em you wouldn't let a cherry red Ferrari sit broke down. but anyway... I would just be thankful to even have the chance to afford a new addition to the shop. Good Luck! I hope the best for ya!

 

[Pexce]

If you worry about the spare parts, you can go to find what kind of spart parts it used and brand name, also can check with the agents for the price like motor, print heads, UV ink, UV lamp,etc. Good luck.

 

[ksc]

junk.............................................i returned mine.....

 

[SublimeGraphics]

We've been running ours for just over a year now. We bought it used and I had really good heads on it. We had a tech install and train us, during training the tech told us if the machine needs new heads just throw it away because they are worth more money to replace than the machine is worth. Needless to say we take very good care of the heads. Other than that we have had really good results with ink adhesion (we print mostly coro and banner) I have personally changed the Linear encoder strip and both lamps on the machine. HP parts are really easy to install and actually come with step by step directions! For what we paid for this thing we are really happy with it so far.

 

[artbot]

i read on a message board that there was independent company dedicated to refurbing these and providing tech support etc. i think it was in california. sorry i can't refer you, but figure if you search long and hard enough, the name will come up. that said, there's a uvx out here in the houston area for $6200. or was a week or so ago.

 

[eforer]

I have 2 I'm selling. I'd bundle both together for $10k. I've had many good years of service, would keep them but our new agfa has rendered them pretty useless in our shop.

 

[Bootlegsigns]

Anyone know of a place that can repair the i/o contoller board
I have shorted 2 boards andcannot find any blown fuses or resistors, maybe it is a logic chip?
I will be parting out a UVR
UV box, ect...

 

[eforer]

Try these guys, they know colorspans inside and out.

Mike Smith
CMS / California Media Services
4345 Artesia Blvd. Building A
Fullerton CA 92833
Ph: 714.522.2204 Fax: 714.522.3014

 

[klemgraphics]

I'm also looking at a used 72uvx, what are some things to look for on these units?? What kind of registration accuracy can be obtained when doing double sided prints?

From what I gather price on these is anywhere from $5000-10,000, are they worth for someone that doesn't need something super fast? Or more headache than it's worth?

 

[klemgraphics]

What can happen to these printers if they sit for say a month or so?

 

[klemgraphics]

The more I look at older posts on these it looks like a lot of them got parted out. Last I talked to the owner of this one he said they would not be able to hook it up in order to do a test print or anything. I'm thinking to treat it as a parts machine at best if I cant even see it run.

 

[klemgraphics]

Anyone have any insight?

 

[klemgraphics]

Nobody has any other comments on this machine? Good, Bad, Ugly?

 

[oldgoatroper]

What can happen to these printers if they sit for say a month or so?

The heads need to be flushed before it's allowed to sit. Otherwise, the printer needs to stay on and undergo regular cleanings of the print heads.

If the printer in question was just turned off to let sit without doing a thorough flush of the heads, then don't even consider it.

 

[klemgraphics]

Is there a way to tell if the heads were flushed before taken out of service? I am still looking at this machine as the price just got better.

Also how do they do printing to aluminum and polymetal?

 

[artbot]

it will be pretty obvious. pull the gantry over and get a look at the bottom the heads, look at the capping station, does it look like washed out ink or thick dried up ink, the ink tanks should be empty, etc. if the printer was decommissioned than there should only be signs of washed out residual ink, not dark/bright ink stains etc. that said, uv printers don't sit that well, also you can always just fill it with flush and then print flush onto a sheet of aluminum to get a test print. just shine it in the light. if the heads performed a test print correctly, you will be able to see it on the aluminum.