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FRANKEN-PRINTER!!! (carriage mod')

artbot

artbot

New Member
figured i post my latest mod. i really like it. the jv3 carriage is a bird's nest. so i disconnected the harness of ink lines on the right, added on/off valves and a tee that i can insert cleaning solution from a manifold or one at a time. this will allow instant custody washes while keeping the ink in the lines. the data ribbons are mutoh (41cm i think. they are very long and allow for easy access to the dampers).

on the left i've got prop'glycol, uvclear, and two solution lines with a auxiliary white line off to the side. doing data ribbon swaps on the left allows me to have four special channel heads.:rock-n-roll:

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Vinylman

Vinylman

New Member
artbot:

You are one sharp and adventurous dude.

One comment, then a question or two.

(1) I use painters {blue} tape to "bundle" the connector cables where they come together about mid cable to keep the area neat. You find this useful??

(2) As noted above, where do you find the solvent resistant valves and also the clear tubing? Any resources would be appreciated.

(3) does the added weight or bulk of the pieces you have added, had any negative effect on the movement of the head assembly? Or running this printer with the covers in place as from the factory??

(4) Where do you get the extended print cables, AND are they somewhat universal/ interchangeable from one printer to another? (ie.) What are the cable pair requirements that you use to determine which cables are compatible?
EXAMPLE: I am running a Mimaki JV-33. The print head cables are marked exactly like yours. { AWM 20624}. The only difference then is the length, IS THAT CORRECT?

Thanks for your replies.
 
artbot

artbot

New Member
hey vinylman!

1) yeah, i have standard masking tape holding my two data ribbon bundles in the middle.

2) as far as the valves, this is NOT the system i wanted to install. i searched ad nauseum for the perfect set of valves. and miniature valves that are made of HDPE are very rare. i'm going to redo this with some 3 way konica/minolta valves. but the supply is from china and lately back ordered. THESE little guys believe it or not are from lowes. they are for garden irrigation (just google 1/4" Barb x 1/4" Barb Mini-Valve). after soaking in MEK for days they came out pristine. the tubing is the exact size that fits down to a standard damper, you can get that by the meter from solventinksonline.

3) the weight of all this is minimal. maybe a few ounces. and as far as head covers. i take all the covers off my printer. i run strange stuff in the printer and need to constantly switch ribbons, and tubes, and such. the next step is to add a spot color cartridge/feeder. so when i run white or silver (haven't done the silver yet) i can just feed about 40 ml. right at the head and do the single print. instead of routing special color that clog easily all the way through the printer. i could mix a batch of metallic red in a cup, put it in the feeder. and print. forget profiling. it'd be more like custom paint.

4) the data cables are interchangeable as long as the pin count is fine. the jv33 has a 31 pin (jv3 is 21 pin). you'd just have to search around to see what other printers are using that head and if their data ribbons are longer. you can also buy stock data ribbons from data ribbon companies. but they cost more per.
 
Vinylman

Vinylman

New Member
artbot said:
hey vinylman!


2) as far as the valves, this is NOT the system i wanted to install. i searched ad nauseum for the perfect set of valves. and miniature valves that are made of HDPE are very rare. i'm going to redo this with some 3 way konica/minolta valves. but the supply is from china and lately back ordered. THESE little guys believe it or not are from lowes. they are for garden irrigation (just google 1/4" Barb x 1/4" Barb Mini-Valve). after soaking in MEK for days they came out pristine. the tubing is the exact size that fits down to a standard damper, you can get that by the meter from solventinksonline. THANKS FOR THE INFO!



4) the data cables are interchangeable as long as the pin count is fine. the jv33 has a 31 pin (jv3 is 21 pin). you'd just have to search around to see what other printers are using that head and if their data ribbons are longer. you can also buy stock data ribbons from data ribbon companies. but they cost more per.
Click to expand...

AGAIN THANKS. I was wondering "IF" I located data cables that had say 32-40 pins, would it be possible to just cut the cable down in width to the desired number of pins? Kind of like taking molded wiring and stripping off one or two of the leads leaving you with the correct number of pins??

Lastly, do you know if the ends, {pins} need to be factory finished?
 
dwt

dwt

New Member
Skycraft is amazing!! And twenty minutes down the road from me.

The isles are very narrow and jammed full of everything. You can spend all day wondering 'what in the world is that used for?'
 
artbot

artbot

New Member
i'm sure that would work as long as the spacing is right. they'd have to line up perfectly.
i'd just notch out and leave a corner. bulk cables don't often come in 31, but i've seen 34 pin regularly.

even without the valves, just the added space of taking apart the tubing harness and the extra data ribbon space is great.

you might also look on the IEWC Industrial Electric Wire and Cable website. look under:

Home » Products & Markets » Multi-conductor Cables » Ribbon Cable

cables4computer:

Cabling Products > Cabling Products Internal > Bulk Internal

what did mean by "finished"? if you were to strip the end it would fall apart, i'm assuming that the customizable cables, have one side that more easily pulls off.
 
Vinylman

Vinylman

New Member
artbot said:
what did mean by "finished"? if you were to strip the end it would fall apart, i'm assuming that the customizable cables, have one side that more easily pulls off.
Click to expand...


All the data cables I have seen on the internet have factory finished ends.

Do you think they can be shortened without the tinning that comes from the factory?

I have not swapped out a data cable yet, so does the "clamp" on the print head and at the board end actually pierce the cable to make contact? Or do the factory finished ends provide contact with flat surface contacts inside the clamp?
 
artbot

artbot

New Member
you definitely need the exposed silver ends on one side. on the board and print head, only one side makes contact. the contacts are like tiny springs that press against the ends of the ribbons. on cables4computer's website it mentions "Make your own custom cables with our high quality bulk cables. This quality nine conductor ribbon cable comes with a PVC jacket." and it's sold in 100' rolls. so assume there is some "peel away" side to the whole thing? i'd call first.
 
Spencer McMurtry

Spencer McMurtry

New Member
Very Cool! GOOD IDEA!

are you still using the standard plastic nipple plates? have you had any issues with them breaking?

What rip / process (just a basic idea) are you using to map out these custom colors?

Thanks!
 
artbot

artbot

New Member
i'm just an artist so i don't have the profiling demands of a sign maker. i've also been painting with metallics for about 20 years so i have a good eye for it. one thing you can do is run a gray background (i even use a scan of brushed metal sometimes) in photoshop. adjust your gray background according to the lighting conditions of the space you are installing. then put the print files layers above that in multiply mode and adjust your color layer so that it look right. in the same way you sandwich a white ink layer between the gray and color then invert it to black for color replacement. you'd be amazed how accurate some of these color are compared to the monitor when printed.

the head adapters are the standard type. with this set up there is less stress on the nipples. i'm currently redesigning the whole thing. maybe in a few months, i'll switch it up.
 
artbot

artbot

New Member
i just switched days ago to triangle from ss2. and loving it already. you can set this up easy enough, but currently i'm designing a full on cleaning system. something much more exotic (cleaning solution manifold, 3 way valves, damper plugs in the front of the head carriage, temporary color ports). just like the grand formats. maybe i'll have it going in about a month or so.
 
MikePro

MikePro

New Member
what's makes things solvent resistant neways? Anything I can do to prep/treat?
just curious since I tried storing some syringes full of ink jic of emergency head flushing and it turns out the ink eats through the plunger of your standard medical-grade syringe from Walgreens.
 
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