Epson 4800

[css custom graphics]

I am considering an epson 4800 printer. I am new to digital printing but have been making signs, decals, banners, etc. for going on 15 years. We use a Q series cutter from signwarehouse and it has the ARMS system. So we have been building towards getting into digital for a while. My question is can I use this printer to make magnetic signs? I have been contacted by a friend who is is into several organizations that do surveys. He had made make several magnets for a convention and they went over great. The problem is making an extremely detailed small magnet with cut vinyl. I was considering purchasing this printer in the past, and having these magnets go over so well has me really considering it. The use of these magnets is very limited, meaning that they will only have them on their vehicles while conducting surveys several times a year and then only for a few days. Is it possible I could get the longevity I need with this type of printer. I would laminate also. I would also use this machine for t shirt prints, small decals, and probably some banners. I would like to hear from members who have actually used this type of printer, and what their experiences have been.
Thanks
CSS

 

[MrKoob]

Well, the Epson 4800 has been discontinued and has been replaced with the Epson 4880. If you have or are still getting the 4800 it's probably used, but still finding ink shouldn't be a problem. That leads to the next part. The 4800 series are aqueous inkjets which means you can't print to vinyl unless the vinyl has been specially coated for use with water based inks. The other issue you would have to face would be switching out inks (unless you have some type of hybrid-use driver to where you can use one set for one side, and another set for the other.) You can change out ink types (like dye sub), but cleaning the heads each time might get costly. You might want to consider investing in or leasing a large format device. I'm not saying you couldn't do what you're wanting to do with 4800, I just think it probably wouldn't be the best approach. Others may already doing so and if they are I hope they jump in because I don't want to give you misinformation.