Discuss the various aspects of direct to garment printing. DTG printers include Brother, T-Jet, Flexi-Jet, DTG Kiosk, Kornit, Mimaki, Tex-Jet and others! Discuss and learn about this up and coming printing technology.
It seems every DTG operator/owner has their bias for or against each machine. It would be nice to have a thread dedicated to the "wonders or great results" these (your brand here) machines have given along with any samples you may like to post- without knocking or disparaging someone else's equipment. Just the positives of your equipment that you have encountered. Remember this is for POSITIVE feedback only... For great results - not problems or troubleshooting --- Any Takers??//
OK Pink,... now I get it. For a minute there I thought you were being unsensitive... (he's Not)
Howard, I agree, the negativity gets old sometimes. Sometimes it's very "telling". Most come here for info, others to vent. With all the stuff here, you still have to read between the lines to see the real story. Even more becomes apparent after your up to you knees in DTG. I'm a happy user, so you do not hear me vent. If I have I have to do this, I will vent to the people who sold this machine to me. Buy From a good Dealer and a good manufacurer So far mine has kept me very happy.Do Lots of homework before buying. Go to shows, get the samples, bug the hell out of the sales people. Be a pain, before you buy one. Howard, I'm not mocking you here. I'm just saying that the people who come here to badmouth other printers are just warning you (in their own way) to do you homework very good. Being fairly familiar with these printers (now I am!) the hardware is all very similar. The thing that matters most though, is the service and support given to current users. The technology works, and if you have a plan and model that is sound, you can make money. You also have to be willing to make adjustments to your plan as you go, because even with all the best planning, things can and will go wrong. Good luck to you.
__________________ imprimeo! ....Digitizing, DTG and Embroidery..FREE Embroidery SOFTWARE Sierra Consultant, Stitch ERA Universal Dealer, Digitizing trainer for GUNOLD USA
Great post Ian, I am looking into buying a DTG printer and since I have become a member of this site I have heard quite a few horror stories. It is kind of daunting that it COULD happen to me too, but it is positive to hear that some people are successful.
Great post Ian, I am looking into buying a DTG printer and since I have become a member of this site I have heard quite a few horror stories. It is kind of daunting that it COULD happen to me too, but it is positive to hear that some people are successful.
There are horror stories in any new business. Do not NOT get in, because of them, learn from everyone elses mistakes. Just realize that when you get into any business with new technology, you are a pioneer(or a guinea pig). This technology is only a few years old and It's not perfect, but viable. If you're willing to learn, It can be profitable.
__________________ imprimeo! ....Digitizing, DTG and Embroidery..FREE Embroidery SOFTWARE Sierra Consultant, Stitch ERA Universal Dealer, Digitizing trainer for GUNOLD USA
It seems every DTG operator/owner has their bias for or against each machine. It would be nice to have a thread dedicated to the "wonders or great results" these (your brand here) machines have given along with any samples you may like to post- without knocking or disparaging someone else's equipment. Just the positives of your equipment that you have encountered. Remember this is for POSITIVE feedback only... For great results - not problems or troubleshooting --- Any Takers??//
Personally, I'm impressed most with the Brother GT-541 DTG printer. It has proven to be a very reliable, trouble free workhorse. Of course its downfall is the fact that it can only print on lights / white.
Brother has been saying they will have a white ink model out in a year or so [but also heard that two years ago]. Will be interesting to see if they can solve some of the white ink problems facing other printers.
For anyone looking to buy a DTG .... take your time, do your homework and find out everything you can about the various printers out there before laying down any cash. And do not purchase one of these printers based on price alone .... there are many other things to consider like reliability, dealer support, print costs, print speeds, quality/durability of print, required service, etc.
Are all DTG printers created equal ? No I don't think so .... I think some may be better than others but is there "a best" DTG printer ? Probably not.
DTG as well as any other printer likes to print. You need to have enough volume to use it every day. This is also a complicated piece of machinary so you better have the guts to work with it, be able to tear it apart and put it back together and make it sing and you had better understand grpahics, color profiles and the like. It is only as good as you are.
I love my Kiosk! I don't have the white underbase system and find it fun trying to print on darker color shirts. The challenge is finding a color that will show up. So far no major issues-knock on wood.
I have had my Brother DTG for over a year and love it. I too wish it would print on darks, but otherwise it has been good to me. I didn't find that there was much of a learning curve at all with the Brother DTG - basically just send the design to the Brother instead of the desktop printer and press the 'big green button' to print as many shirts as you like.
I can see where there may be problems for someone who has no graphics experience at all, you have to start with a good design to get a good print, but you would run into the same problem with screen printing or embroidery.
There really is not a lot of maintenance to do - especially the first year. After a year, parts do start needing to be replaced, but so far it has been much much easier than the things I have to do with my embroidery machine. Ugh!
If you do go with a Brother, I have one big word of advice - BUY FROM A GOOD DISTRIBUTOR - really check them out too. I purchased mine directly from Brother and I may as well have purchased it from someone sitting in a back alley in Philadelphia. Luckily I hooked up with Jessup in NJ and they have been fabulous. When I finally buy #2, it will certainly be from Jessup.
I don't know enough about the other printers to bash them. I have seen a few that print darks - over 18 months ago - and back then I just found them to be too slow for me. I just couldn't see how I could make any money with them if I couldn't crank them out. However, I will certainly be checking out any DTG that can print white at the next ISS - I'm always open to using another brand and I'm sure progress has been made.
There are horror stories in any new business. Do not NOT get in, because of them, learn from everyone elses mistakes. Just realize that when you get into any business with new technology, you are a pioneer(or a guinea pig). This technology is only a few years old and It's not perfect, but viable. If you're willing to learn, It can be profitable.
I'm more than willing to learn but I think I might just start out simple and buy a non-white ink DTG and start with light shirts. Otherwise, I might be jumping in the deep end and would probably struggle to tread water, let alone thrive!
I'm more than willing to learn but I think I might just start out simple and buy a non-white ink DTG and start with light shirts. Otherwise, I might be jumping in the deep end and would probably struggle to tread water, let alone thrive!
Martin, That is a very good idea. I have the Anajet and you can run it dual CMYK . When and if you want to run white, you invest in the ink and a RIP... no other machine upgrade needed...... That being said, you will still need to start simple and slow so you can learn the process.
__________________ imprimeo! ....Digitizing, DTG and Embroidery..FREE Embroidery SOFTWARE Sierra Consultant, Stitch ERA Universal Dealer, Digitizing trainer for GUNOLD USA
This is a discussion about Neutral Ground for DTG printers (no Bashing!) that was posted in the Direct to Garment (DTG) Inkjet Printing section of the forums.
Neutral Ground for DTG printers (no Bashing!) 
Re: Neutral Ground for DTG printers (no Bashing!) 
(he's Not)
Re: Neutral Ground for DTG printers (no Bashing!) 
but I think I might just start out simple and buy a non-white ink DTG and start with light shirts. Otherwise, I might be jumping in the deep end and would probably struggle to tread water, let alone thrive!
