Just thinking of buying a dye sub/mug press set-up and was wandering (roughly will do) how many prints (assume full colour complete wrap) I would get from a set of 125ml dye sub inks?
With the price of the inks being so high I really cant commit without knowing.
Just thinking of buying a dye sub/mug press set-up and was wandering (roughly will do) how many prints (assume full colour complete wrap) I would get from a set of 125ml dye sub inks?
With the price of the inks being so high I really cant commit without knowing.
Thanks in advance
Martin
Greetings Martin,
No one will be able to accurately answer that exact question. There are still too many variables. For example, a dominant pink background on a full wrap uses less ink, than if it were purple. Another example: 11 oz. or 15 oz mugs.
Better would be a cost per print estimate. By your reference I'm going to assume you are looking at ArTainium UV+ inks.
If so, then the most reasonable estimate that could be provided would be 1.5 to 2.0 cents a square inch. That is still a SWAG, but I think close.
Im in nottingham UK and the inks i am considering are by Rotech, this maybe the same people as you mention, i dont know.
I have just found a supplier here that is offering sublimation inks for around £25 for 125ml which is half the price of the rotech inks.
They are sold under the name of InkTec.
I've been working with cheaper inks for a while now and have come to the conclusion that I and many other have done before. Save yourself a lot of grief and go for the Sawgrass licensed inks, Rotech or Artainium better still go for SubliR through a Ricoh printer.
I've been working with sublimatiuon for many years and have been testing these inks as it's something I've always been curious about. I managed to get pretty good results but getting a profile written isn't easy and the suppliers aren't forthcoming with support for the inks, so you're on your own.
Sublimation inks are expensive, fact, but you can still make a decent profit, get good support and give your customers the best possible product.
I've just switched to the Ricoh and thus far it is proving so much better than the Epsons, it's the major breakthrough that was needed. No more clogged heads or often messy bulk ink systems.
Justin :-)
PS Interesting to see you're in Nottm. I'm born and bred there, moved away 2 yrs ago. Still buy from Xpres in Donno' though!
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Last edited by TJLewis; October 22nd, 2009 at 04:37 PM.
Have you used the Inktec inks before?
After a bit of looking about I have found that they are imported from china.
What are the problems with the cheapo inks?
I buy from expres as well, pain in the backside that i still have to pay for delivery and im only 5 miles up the road!!
Hi Martin, yes it was the inktec that I've been using, still have some here. They worked ok in my D120 refil. carts but not so well in a bulk system in my 1400. I've just imported a press from China and did think about getting the inks there as they are so cheap. Some Chinese companies help with a profile.
I found I was spending so much time getting each image to look right it just wasn't worth the hassle. I'm sure with more perseverence the inks would be fine but I don't have the time or funds to keep trying. Got a custom made profile but this was no good and the inks supplier just ignored all of my emails except the orders!
Will PM you as well.
Justin :-)
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The InkTec inks are good, but you do need a custom ICC profile making to get the best out of them. However, this is neither a comlicated or expensive process. There is a seller on Ebay called Mugs4us, another sublimater, who offers two services, one around £6 and the other around £15 I think. He sends you a PDF file to print out, you then post it to him, he scans it, and send you your profile. This profile is then not only specific to your inks, but also your printer. As each printer is going to print slightly differently, in the end, you will get better results than if using a more generic type profile from an ink maker. To find his sale search for "custom sublimation ICC profile."
We used him (his name is Paul) to profile our wide format Epson to Inktec sublimation inks, and are very happy with his service and to recommend him.
Also, even when you factor in the extra cost of getting a custom profile made, buying something like Inktec inks, you are still saving a bomb compared to buying Artainium etc.
Considering the small amount of ink it takes to print mugs, I believe it's not worth the hassle to try and get by on the cheap. With most of the mugs I print, the shipping costs for the mugs equals at least double what the ink costs.
Just because these inks are less expensive than Sawgrass, you should not believe that they are low quality. To do so is to believe the lies. They are very good, and I have not had any problems with them clogging my printer, which I did before when we were using Artanium/Rotech etc.
If you are in business, then surely you want to reduce any of your costs/overheads as possible.
These inks are professional and made for industry and large scales users, so they have to be good.
Just because Sawgrass over price their inks for small scale users, does not mean they are better.
I have this very morning filled up my CIS Carts for the First time since August 2011(and I still reckon I could Print another Case or Two of Mugs) and I have probably printed around 1200 Mugs
hi im originally from Nottingham and live in sheffield now.
i deal with Sabur inks from Barnsley. Very nice chaps just google Sabur and its the first entry there. give them a call if you are still in the dark and im sure they could help you out.
Cheers
How many mug presses (roughly)? 
