[lnemup]

Hello all,
After a long time of wanting get into vinyl,yesterday I finally did. Found a really good deal on a cutter, so after a 8 hour round trip, I am the owner of a new Roland GX-24. Where do I gofrom here? Thing I have so far is the Roland, CS5 (Adobe illustrator/Photo shop), Cut Studio, Flexi Sign Pro, and a laptop. I want to start off with doing decals, signs, and heat pressed vinyl.

So first question which press is recommended? Have done alot of reading and pretty set on a 16x20. Which brand? Auto or not? Clam? Which vendor?

Vinyl/heat transfers/sign material? Who are most buying from? Who has resonable prices, and good customer service?

Blank shirts? Quality brands prefered, and seller?

Lastly how do most get started with decals? Freeonline stuff, buy cd's ect?

Thanks in advance to all though comment,and sorry if this was posted in wrong section.

 

[Nick Horvath]

Congratulations!

So first question which press is recommended? Have done alot of reading and pretty set on a 16x20. Which brand? Auto or not? Clam? Which vendor? For a heat press I would begin by taking a look at the preferred vendors on this site. I would also, if you have the money, get a machine that has an auto open. You'll thank yourself later when you have a busy day at the heat press.

Vinyl/heat transfers/sign material? Who are most buying from? Who has resonable prices, and good customer service? I would also recommend you look at the preferred vendors on this site. I would gather samples and try them. This way you will know the vinyls you like the most. You will definately get opinions on this subject, but I would encourage you to try materials for yourself as well.

Lastly how do most get started with decals? Freeonline stuff, buy cd's ect? You mean artwork? Allot of people pull images offline, or get them from customers.

Good luck, and feel free to ask questions!

Best Regards.

 

[Flagrant-T]

Congrats! I have that cutter and love it.

I agree totally with Nick on the Auto Open. I have the Stahls Hontronix auto open clam. Just did 105 expensive golf shirts with the high tech wicking material. 3 print locations. Time/temp/pressure is critical with these as you do not want to leave heat press marking on the material. Auto open made this job a piece of cake.

I started with a cheaper heat press without auto-open. Worked fine on t-shirts, but some of the newer super nice transfer material as well as more expensive blanks are a lot more touchy with respect to temperature control. Also there heat wasn't as even across the heating element. And more then one I'd press a shirt, turn to grab another shirt, get distracted by something, and realize I left it in the press for a minute or two! I never new what I was missing until I got a really nice press.

Good luck,
Nick

 

[Twanabee]

I agree with Nick and Nick. I have the auto-open and glad I bought it with that option. I use mostly Thermoflex Plus for vinyl but I agree that you should try out a few to see what you like. Some weed better than others and it also depends on what material you press on. I use Bodek & Rhodes for my supplier as they have a wearhouse near me so I can pick-up the same day. Their prices are good also but you do need a resale number to get an account.

Good luck to you and feel free to ask away.

 

[JoshEllsworth]

After a long time of wanting get into vinyl,yesterday I finally did. Found a really good deal on a cutter, so after a 8 hour round trip, I am the owner of a new Roland GX-24. Where do I gofrom here? Thing I have so far is the Roland, CS5 (Adobe illustrator/Photo shop), Cut Studio, Flexi Sign Pro, and a laptop. I want to start off with doing decals, signs, and heat pressed vinyl. Congratulations, you are starting with a great cutter and software program

So first question which press is recommended? Have done alot of reading and pretty set on a 16x20. Which brand? Auto or not? Clam? Which vendor? I like the auto clam and have been it's top supporter for about 5 years, now I have a swing away/draw for my videos and I also love it, I can see the benefit for each...swing away/draw if you want the nicest option for lining things up out from under the heat, but would do the auto clam if you want to save a few bucks and have a very efficient press from an operational standpoint

Vinyl/heat transfers/sign material? Who are most buying from? Who has resonable prices, and good customer service?Lots of choices, usually customers select a couple core supplier so their eggs aren't in one basket I would encourage you to forge a few relationships here with preferred vendors as well

Blank shirts? Quality brands prefered, and seller?I always order from Alpha Shirt Company, they have a warehouse within a one day point from me which is key when I want product the next day without carrying an inventory of blanks

Lastly how do most get started with decals? Freeonline stuff, buy cd's ect? I would recommend buying a clip art package form a company such as Action Illustrated, Great Dane Graphics or Digital Art Solutions - also you can search through rivalart.com and arsenal.gomedia.us for artwork when needed and buy individual pieces or packs on demand.

 

[lnemup]

Thanks so much for all the responce. I have checked out all the Preferred vendors on the left. Was hoping to get a few to jump out there and recommend a few of them since there is no ratings.
I am trying to get the best equiptment my budget can allow. I got such a good deal on the roland I think I maybe able to swing the auto clam. Especially since so many recommend it.
On the software side I got to tell you I open up illustrator and I was lost. I am a newbie with no experience, but I thought I would pick up quickly. Not the case. I am probably going to get corel draw as well and compare the two and see which is best for me to start.
Forgot to mention in first post also need advise on inkjet printer/setup. I saw Josh video on superman logo and would also like to be able to this type of work as well, need to get the optical eye some use.
Lastly are there any how to videos out that are recommended? I have done the youtube thing which have been great, but looking for more of start to finsh step buy step. Thanks again for help