HELP! Need advise ASAP: Have to (physically) move printer to a new shop - any special steps?

[Jumpshoutmedia]

As the title suggests, I've had to move out of my current shop pretty suddenly..

I've got everything out except for my Roland XC540.

I vaguely remember moving it in some years ago, and I do remember I had 3 or 4 guys help me carry it up the stairs and into my shop, where we set it onto the stand and a professional Roland rep then came in and did what they do to pump up, purge, and set up the machine..

Is there anything special I need to know before I move it out?

I DO know about installing the locking plate back onto the machine to secure the head carraige, and I do plan to remove the drain bottle and to stick a plastic bag over the the drain tube.. but is there anything else I need to worry about before I attempt to move it?

FYI, it is going to be transported directly to it's new home, and will only be unplugged for about an hour, and once I move it into the new place it'll be plugged back in again.. so im pretty sure I'll be okay as far as dried out heads, etc.. right?

I need help ASAP, as it's gotta be out within the next couple of days! So thank you in advance guys!

 

[StarSign]

We moved ours 12 blocks and didn't even secure the head. We rolled it out of one shop onto a trailer and right in the doors of the new shop, plugged it in and it was great!

 

[d fleming]

Sounds like you got a handle on it, unplug, lock the carriage and go. Maybe a cap fill prior to unplugging just to keep heads good and wet. Remember how many hands it took to get it in and get a few more. Down can be a toughie.

 

[Jay Grooms]

You'll be fine. Power down, lock the head, go to new place.

BTW remember to unlock the head FIRST then plug it in and turn it on..... yeah I forgot to once.... the machine was none too happy lol

 

[RustyNZ]

You'll be fine. Power down, lock the head, go to new place.

BTW remember to unlock the head FIRST then plug it in and turn it on..... yeah I forgot to once.... the machine was none too happy lol

I was also going to emphasize to make sure you unlock the head before you turn it back on as well. I usually put a sticker over the power button/socket saying to unlock before turning on just so I remember and on the off chance someone else goes to turn it back on before I do. You could do serious damage.

 

[Mascitti Bro]

I'd like to follow along on this topic, as I also have a move coming in about 90 days that'll involve my Roland VG-540 (about a 15min drive once loaded onto trl/trailer

 

[ewded]

Why would you lock the head? Mine had a 15 min ride without any problem. (took the inks out while transporting)

 

[LarryB]

I used a bungee cord to hold the head in place and stuff t-shirts so the head could not move. Worked great.

 

[Joe House]

Why would you lock the head?

1. It's recommended by the manufacturer
2. It prevents the head from coming loose and crashing into the other end
3. It keeps ink from leaking out the bottom of the print head.


Better question would be "Why not lock the print head for a move?"
A lot of people ride motorcycles without helmets and don't have problems, but it's safer to wear one when you ride. Your anecdote is nice and you didn't suffer from the trip, but it's not great advice.

As to the OP, lock the head, empty the waste ink bottle, use shrink wrap or masking tape to secure anything that might flop on the trip like the take up dancer, covers, etc. and don't tip the printer any more than necessary. Also, leave the inks in the printer - with the heads capped and cartridges in, there's a lot less risk of ink escaping. Good luck (unless I'm too late. In which case, I hope it worked out for you)

 

[Jumpshoutmedia]

I was also going to emphasize to make sure you unlock the head before you turn it back on as well. I usually put a sticker over the power button/socket saying to unlock before turning on just so I remember and on the off chance someone else goes to turn it back on before I do. You could do serious damage.

The sticker thing is a REALLY good idea! I'm a worry wort, and I usually end up worrying SO much about super important things like this, that it frazzles my brain to the point that I end up doing the ONE thing that I was hyperfocused on worrying about! Lol. So putting a sticker over the power cable receptical sounds like a GREAT solution!

I actually did the same thing to warn and remind me to discharge static before touching the button panel on my printer.

The static build-up was REALLY bad in my old shop, it was on a second floor, the floors were concrete covered with very thin, synthetic fiber carpet, and the air was really dry, so EVERY time anyone would approach the printer and touch a button on the control panel, a HUGE lighting bolt would discharge INTO the printer! We actually had a controller PCB burn out due to a static discharge when the printer was new (under warranty luckily).

After that, I actually opened up the button panel and added several custom ground cables (flat, braided, copper) directly from the PCB to the printers chassis, and I added a thick piece of braided ground cable from the chassis to the buildings electrical ground using threaded grounding studs and copper wing nuts, but the discharge was still SO severe that if you forgot, and weren't prepared for it, the discharge would WAKE up up! Anyway.. we kept shocking the printer until I finally printed up a GIANT yellow triangle warning decal with a lighting bolt coming from a finger tip (not an approved ANSI symbol lol).. along with a reminder to touch the leg of the laminator stand (right next to the printer) FIRST before touching the button panel on the printer.. and it worked like a charm! After that, i think I forgot maybe once or twice!

Just a stupid side-note but, another thing that worked REALLY well was.. I had a lot of that flat braided copper ground cable left because I bought a spool of it, so i cut up 36' of it into 72" lengths, I solidered the ends of each length in order to keep them from unraveling, and I hung them from the metal drop-ceiling grid around the printer.. kind of like one of those beaded curtains, lol. So every time you walked up to the printer, even if your hands were full, you would brush up against at least 1 of the hanging "grounding-straps" and the copper JUST brushing up against your clothing was enough to eliminate, or severely minimize the static build-up to the point that if you did touch the printer first, the most you'd get wouldbe a mild little "tic"..

Adding the straps ALSO had a positive effect on print quality too, we noticed a lot less "overspray" on prints, that was likely due to static electricity pulling the atomized ink droplets away from head and landing anywhere but the printed area.

Thanks for the good Ides guys. I really appreciate it!