HI,
We've had our DTG HM-1 since August and I've been noticing that the image seems to be a bit blurred, like a slight double image. it seems to be on things like fine black lines in a design, or even the edges of the design. Cleaned the encoder strip, do nozzle check each day, cleaning when needed. Any suggestions?
One thing I learned this time round is do not pre-treat shirts in advance. If they get folded the PT is gone in that area and I don't think the prints are as nice.
I'm using PS to create and print from, sending to the DTG rip program.
Thanks,
JAC
As princessracer has said, make sure your platen is up as far as the sensor will allow. Also check that the platen is level (left to right, and front to back), as differences can cause this double imaging. It is also possible to print in UNI directional, which will slow the print by around 60%, but will remove any double imaging problems you have.
It is possible to get good results by batch pretreating
Try pretreating, pressing for 10 seconds then stacking. Then just before you print onto the garments, press for another 10 seconds (this will flatten the fibres that were raised during the stacking). The Pretreat hasn't gone, its just the fibres standing up beacause of the stacking.
Hope this helps
__________________
Engineers build things, technicians swap things out
One thing I learned this time round is do not pre-treat shirts in advance. If they get folded the PT is gone in that area and I don't think the prints are as nice.
Try not folding the garment where the pretreatment is. Lay the garment flat and stack the other ones on top of them. Think of pretreatment like a thin layer of glue. The more you bend / fold the garment, the more likelihood the thin layer of glue is going to breakdown before you get the ink cured to the top of it. If you have to fold the shirt, try folding the shirt at the bottom where there will be no ink. This is what a lot of the distributors do at a trade show that don't pretreat onsite because they have to save room on shipping. They print the designs that will sit at the top of the shirt and above the folded area.
Try not folding the garment where the pretreatment is. Lay the garment flat and stack the other ones on top of them. Think of pretreatment like a thin layer of glue. The more you bend / fold the garment, the more likelihood the thin layer of glue is going to breakdown before you get the ink cured to the top of it. If you have to fold the shirt, try folding the shirt at the bottom where there will be no ink. This is what a lot of the distributors do at a trade show that don't pretreat onsite because they have to save room on shipping. They print the designs that will sit at the top of the shirt and above the folded area.
Yup that is just what I meant when I made that statement.. sorry if it sounded different.. thanks for your input.
You should not need to do a head alignment unless you have changed the printhead and then noticed this problem (can also happen when replacing the head carriage). The head alignment on an HM1 can take a while, especially if you don't use Epson cartridges in the machine (4 channels of white make it hard) - I'm sure Alex knoew this, just forgot to mention it.
Have you tried printing in unidirectional mode? If so, did it improve the quality?
Have you tried turning the GAP sensor off and printing a bit closer to the head? If so has this improved the print quality?
You should not need to do a head alignment unless you have changed the printhead and then noticed this problem (can also happen when replacing the head carriage). The head alignment on an HM1 can take a while, especially if you don't use Epson cartridges in the machine (4 channels of white make it hard) - I'm sure Alex knoew this, just forgot to mention it.
We do recommend doing a head alignment if you replaced the print head or carriage assembly, or if you are getting blurred images in bi-directional mode. It does take a little time. You just need to print the tests on film and the white parts are then very easy to see. Once the alignment is done you generally will notice an improvement in your bi-directional printing. Bi-directional will also be faster then printing in uni-directional mode.
You should not need to do a head alignment unless you have changed the printhead and then noticed this problem (can also happen when replacing the head carriage). The head alignment on an HM1 can take a while, especially if you don't use Epson cartridges in the machine (4 channels of white make it hard) - I'm sure Alex knoew this, just forgot to mention it.
Have you tried printing in unidirectional mode? If so, did it improve the quality?
Have you tried turning the GAP sensor off and printing a bit closer to the head? If so has this improved the print quality?
Don,
I did some changes and am printing unidirectional. massive improvement!! I had an issue with the choke and thanks to Anthony in Florida he help out with that. I wasn't setting the choke and than restarting rip. I'm still new to Photoshop, so there is always learning there. I've been using vector based programs for vinyl cutting. Good thing I have a son who learned it (PS) in school.. I did have a weird thing happen this morning while printing.. I'll post a photo of what happened when I get it into the pc.
Thanks for all your help
Jayne
slight double image printing 
