What the F*()*#$ is wrong with my printer ???

[Chad.]

So the other night at 3 for the first time, the printer went crazy and started printing barcode like images in my print.

Now Last nite, and today, the same thing ...

What is going on here ?

 

[P Wagner]

I would first look at communication issues on your network or USB interface.

Has anything changed that would correspond with the onset of the problem (changing protocols, added or removed equipment, new router or ISP)?

Bob

 

[Chad.]

Nothing has changed, the printer is hooked to a dedicated computer ...

 

[UVchick]

When it happened, was there any other equipment that usually isn't on at the same time running?

 

[Fred Weiss]

First thing I would do, if you haven't already, is to reboot the computer and the printer. Next thing I would do would be to delete any secondary files with job parameters in them that get generated when you send the job to your printer. Then try it again and see what you get.

 

[Chad.]

The computer is a dedicated computer, only program running was versaworks, restarted it, i only import one job at a time, and delete completed jobs ...

this. sucks.

 

[Fred Weiss]

Restarting Versaworks is not the same as rebooting the entire dedicated computer which will clear any issues with operating system errors. Same is true for the printer. Try it ... it might help.

 

[Chad.]

umn, i have restarted versaworks, rebooted the computer, reset the printer NIC ... prior to today

 

[iSign]

BUMMER!
I feel your pain.

I'm not sure I have a lot to offer in the way of troubleshooting suggestions, but I had a few comments anyway.

who did you buy it from?
do they offer technical support?

there's lots of great minds here... but it really helps to have authorized technicians trained in your equipment & on someone's payroll explicitely to get with you on the phone, & stay on untill the issue is resolved.

As I've said every time someone comes on here looking for opinions on which printer to buy, that they will all print great, so buy from a source that will provide the best support.

Advantage Sign Supply spent over an hour on the phone with my computer technician yesterday before their closing time... AND almost another hour AFTER he was supposed to leave for the day to help us resolve an issue that had me unable to output jobs for awhile. They got us back in business, as they always have. (No charge either)

...so I hope you will also have that luxury available to you.

also, try posting on printingdigital.net if you haven't already.

 

[zmatalucci]

On a side note, do you guys always run with that many pinch rollers?
I know this has nothing to do with the problem, I'm just curious. I only use 2 on 54" due to the fact that I hate the chances of my ink getting skid marks during a contour cut.

 

[mystysue]

zm.. we always use as many pinch rollers as there are places for on the size of media we are printing..

I have never ever gotten any skid marks on any print

 

[zmatalucci]

zm.. we always use as many pinch rollers as there are places for on the size of media we are printing..

I have never ever gotten any skid marks on any print

Even on high speed? Maybe I need to turn up the heat

 

[iSign]

oh, I get it... you roland guys want to cut stuff right away, while it is still loaded in your print-n-cut machines. You should let prints cure before cutting them... even if you need to take it out & print the next job first to stay efficient.

 

[mystysue]

isigns.. I always cut right away.. and have never had one bit of trouble with any marks at all.. been doing it a year..
yesterday.. i printed and cut 1000 stickers for the auto auction..


zm.. we have print cut on high speed and regular and its never left marks..

 

[iSign]

The reason I have learned that I should wait on cutting some prints is because if I have a lot of black ink bleeding off the edge, the edges will curl off the liner because in the curing process, the ink tries to contract... but my Mimaki is running full solvent inks, which have some superior characteristics, but I guess this contraction issue must not be an issue for mild solvents. I wasn't aware of this. I'm sure there is still a curing time in which application tape would not be advisable... but even with my solvent ink, I do that when I have to with no consequences thus far.

 

[Gino]

Doug, you're correct. Even with the mild solvents, when you have a bleed border, you get a fair amount of edge curling. Black is by far the worst, but heavy colored borders will react the same. We are constantly battling that with our Roland. However, it doesn’t seem to help even if we let it sit for hours. The inks soften the media to the point that under certain conditions even going back and cutting will make for tearing instead of accurate cutting at some inside angles.

 

[Tony Teveris]

To me it looks like the ink firing electronics are messed up. Loose cable or electronics have gone bad. I don't this it's communications because most printers are driven by some kind of language that follows a strict syntax and if not followed you would be getting error messages on the printer because the printer's firmware was unable to process (understand) the commands.

 

[DARLAK]

I had a similar problem with an old, very used FJ52 SolventJet. There was a lot of ink splashed up on the ribbon cable, right where the cable folded against the back of the printhead. The ink melted the cable just enough to short out the cable. $12 later the problem was solved.

 

[player]

I would try re-installing vesraworks.

P

 

[Munch]

I agree with player. It sounds like a RIP issue.
I like Versa Works....but I can puke a RIP!
The older Color Works was clunky, but it was a much stronger RIP.
For example, If I send a complex vector file with a contour path....Versa works IGNORS the cut pat. I can shoot the same file on the Color Rip with no problems. I have had heafyt discussions with Roland about it.
Is you RIP up to date?
_Munch