I have been screenprinting for 18 years. I
am now going to get into embroidery. My brother has a Barudan 6 head machine in his shop. I am trying to decide if I should buy the same or a Tijima. Hirsh has a show room within an hour of my shop. I welcome any info with this decision as well as anything I should consider with adding embroidery. Thanks for the help
Since both are very reliable machines, I'd go for the company who will give me the best support. If you talk to Hirsch and feel comfortable dealing with them, then go for the Tajima. Another plus is that Hirsh is also a distributor now of Kornit (and maybe Mimaki) DTG printers, and other equipments that you might decide to buy in the future. Maybe if you can establish a good relationship with them, you can get better terms in your future purchases. Good luck with your choice!
I have looked at both machines at shows. I like the barudan better. it seems quieter and more beefy. That being said Tajima is a great company with a long track record. I use SWF machines and could not be happier with them and their tech support. i think most name brand machines are good, it's like cars it comes down to price and personal choice. .... JB
I am looking at purchasing a Tajiam their service plan i better that the other companies I have spoke with both sale persons and Tajima has a trade in value of 50% Barudan didn't, both are great machines though. If it is close to you then when you have a problem they are right there.
we had a 6 head tajima and traded it off as trying to do some of your own maintenance on it was nearly impossible, you always had to have a tech out. we opted for Happy machines which are good, sturdy machines and it is possible to do some of your own maintenance.
Melco Amaya. Start with a few heads and add as you go along and need them.
Had ours, going on 4 years now, and only 1 service call. very reliable.
I too researched them all and Melco fit us perfectly. We have just gone mobile, with an 18' portable trailer, and I can move 1-3 heads in the trailer depending on size of the event.
I am very happy with our decision to go with the Amayas. Not to mention the flex software that I can sew 3 different jobs on three different heads. flats on 2 and names on the third. All at the same time.
If your running a big job, and someone walks in, you can stop one head and get a single job done. Not interfering with any of the other heads. Cant beat that.
I have been screenprinting for 18 years. I
am now going to get into embroidery. My brother has a Barudan 6 head machine in his shop. I am trying to decide if I should buy the same or a Tijima. Hirsh has a show room within an hour of my shop. I welcome any info with this decision as well as anything I should consider with adding embroidery. Thanks for the help
Both are great machines. It really comes down to tech support and ease of maintenance. I have a single head Barudan. Every problem I've had with it has been something I did improperly but Barudan tech support has responded promptly to my cry for help and been able to talk me through it over the phone. There has never been a charge to me for tech support. There is a charge if they have to send someone to you and it's not a warranty issue but that is understandable. I'm not that mechanically inclined and I've been able to do all the regular maintenance and the emergency repairs myself.
Tajima is a good machine but I don't know about the tech support. I would suggest that you talk to other embroiderers who own Barudan and Tajima and ask them about maintenance and tech support. One of the replies to your post said that Tajima retains 50% of its value and Barudan doesn't. I would question that statement. I bought my Barudan in late 2004 and as recently as a year ago had someone offer me 70% of what I paid for it. If at all possible visit an Imprinted Sportswear Show and not only talk to the machine companies but talk to the garment suppliers. When I was shopping for my machine I ask the shirt, jacket, cap suppliers what machine they used and what they recommended that I buy. From that I made my decision at that time on support.
My company has 40 Tajima machines.20 heads per machine.They are really good.they do 3D caps very well,and clothing is perfect.I love Tajima.we bought them 5 years ago and they are still good now.
We started out w/ Melco back in 1986, and a few years later purchased a used Tajima machine, and have been using Tajima ever since. Always have had good luck, service was sometimes "spotty", but 20 years later, still runing Tajimas.
Thanks for your response. When you say service was spotty what do you mean?
The reason that we are leaning to Tajima over Barudan is that I hear that their service
is good and that they have a show room / training center near my shop.
I have about 40 Barudan heads and 100 Tajima heads in my operation and both brands are excellent. The service from both companies is very good especially over the last few years.
No matter what machine you purchase you will want to learn how to do the basic maintenance and repairs. An embroidery machine is no different than a car, if you don't take care of it, it doesn't perform very well and performance is essential for productivity.
Tajima vs Barudan 
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