I don't print large decals that often but when I do it seems there are always problems. The material seems to get wavy the further down roll. So this cause inconsistent colors and head strikes on the material. I use media clamps and roll out excess before starting the print. Attached shows the problems I am having. This is the second time I printed this. Seems to start happening about the 4-5 foot mark every time. Don't feel like wasting another 8 feet of material. How do I avoid this?
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Problems when printing over 4 feet.
- Thread starter IsItFasst
- Start date
dale911
President
Need to know what printer and media you are using. Looks like a head strike from the pic I am looking at but it's not completely clear what it is.
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It's a SP-300V. The material I'm using is Orajet 3551 RA but that isn't really relevant since this will happen no matter what material I am using. The material starts getting wrinkles in it the further down the roll which is what causes the head strikes and discoloration. That print is about 22 inches wide. After the first one had a similar problem I moved the wheels in to be about 24 inches apart but that obviously didn't help.
Well I finally got it to print without headstrikes (simply didn't roll out the excess vinyl this time) but there are still pink spots showing up randomly all over. I know sometimes printing gray/silver tones can have some pink/purple hues but not sure why these are showing up in random spots? The fill colors are solid RGB vector colors from my pallet.
dale911
President
Do you have a take-up reel on your printer? I'm not sure on the gray/silver tones problem but I know that when running my printers, if I don't put them into the take-up as soon as it will reach, I take a chance of head strikes. The material likes the tension
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Until my take up reel arrives I did another print making sure there was always tension on the material. But the pink spots still appear and there is always a thin line of pink down the entire length (in this dark gray). See attachment. This may need to be started as a new thread but thought I'd post here first.
Attachments
I would try turning the print heater down 5 degrees C (do the math if you're using F. That should stop the material from expanding and buckling up in the print area. The less likely cause could be the paper liner absorbing moisture out of the air, or a combination of the two.
Lastly, check your outside pinchwheels - if they're worn down, they could cause this as well and an SP-300v could have quite a few miles on those little tires. Replace them if in doubt.
Good luck.
I know the pinchwheels are good since I just replaced them last month. Made a world of difference on cut accuracy! This last print didn't seem to buckle at all since I kept pressure on the roll the entire time. Now just trying to figure out the pink spots/pink line. Since the line is so spot on with every pass I'm wondering if there is a calibration issue. Thanks for all the input.
Solventinkjet
DIY Printer Fixing Guide
Joe House is getting you on the right track. Your media is buckling which causes the issue you are having. When the media buckles, the ink hit's those spots sooner than it is supposed to which makes a pattern that looks like a combination of ink drop out and bad alignments. Heat settings that are too high is usually what the problem is. But pinch rollers also contribute. Also, vacuum out your platen. Dust builds up in the vacuum fans and it causes the vacuums to not pull hard enough to hold the media flat. This is common the older the machine is and tends to be overlooked as a maintenance item.
Solventinkjet
DIY Printer Fixing Guide
I saw this after I responded. If the line is consistently in the same place, you need to clean your encoder strip or replace it.
I've had the pink spotting issue, it was random and eventually resolved itself. The printer was brand new (SP540i) and I went through SO much material trying every conceivable software setting I could think of. Ultimately, a year later the spotting showed up again. My fix was to make sure the printer room was better controlled for heat and humidity and then slowed the printing down by using Generic Vinyl 2 (standard). Generic 2,standard is slower then GCVP standard but faster then GCVP high quality. My machine really seems to like Generic 2.
I've also had tremendous trouble with Oracal vinyls, lots of buckling. I realize this is a heat issue but Avery vinyls don't give me any trouble, even if the setting are way off. I recommend 2903 & 2105
I've also had tremendous trouble with Oracal vinyls, lots of buckling. I realize this is a heat issue but Avery vinyls don't give me any trouble, even if the setting are way off. I recommend 2903 & 2105
spectrum maine
New Member
just a guess- are your pinch wheels in right? i think a rep told me they were tapered slightly to keep from wrinkling. not positive though.
take a couple of medium spring clamps & put them on the edge of the vinyl just outside the platen, the extra weight of the clamps helps.
take a couple of medium spring clamps & put them on the edge of the vinyl just outside the platen, the extra weight of the clamps helps.
Pacific Coast Sign
New Member
I've seen this problem on SPs many times. Go into your printer's menu and set the vacuum to 100%. This will suck the media down flat. Keep in mind, this may not work if your pinch rollers are worn or the heat is set to high for your media.