Hi Bev,
Welcome to the board. I am fairly new here also. I've owned a T-jet Direct To Garment Printer for almost a year before i sold it. It was great for doing white and light colors but when i upgraded to white that was very complicated and I couldn't afford the time and wasted supplies to figure out the system. However some people are making the T-jet work for them.
I looked around for a new machine and settled on the Brother GT-541. It was installed Thursday and yesterday I did a few test prints to see about vibrancy, speed, and quality.
Here's some items I printed from each printer during testing phase;
T-Jet:
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/customized.rm/album?.dir=b3f4&.src=ph&store=&prodid=&.done=http%3a//photos.yahoo.com/ph//my_photos
Brother GT-541
http://www.promotees.com/samples/mysamples.jpg
If you want speed and easy of use the Brother GT-541 is ideal.
If price is a factor than the t-jet is ideal.
Both do great at printing. I find that on some items I prefer the T-jet printing and on other items I prefer the brother gt-541's printing.
If you are considering these machines make sure you get your own files printed on each one.
- Find out how long it takes to print a full size design that has full coverage (a photograph or something with solid background and covers the entire full size shirt area).
- Does the design have to be printed twice to get vibrancy?
- Will the machine tell you how much ink you use
- How many shirts can you get per hour
- Are there any additional charges "after purchase"
- How long will "printheads last"
- What software is required to use this equipment or can i simply print to a print driver?
these are just a few questions you could consider there are actually many more. I wish you much success in your decision.
