This is my desktop diy with 4880
[DIY DTG]
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Joined
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51 Posts
Very nice!!!
Tell us about it please! Did you build it?
What size can it print?
Looks awesome and very professional and complete.
Tell us about it please! Did you build it?
What size can it print?
Looks awesome and very professional and complete.
Joined
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25 Posts
DIY huh?? Where?
Joined
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51 Posts
That's a nice looking printer. Really does not look like typical DIY. Much better.
My question is the typical questions anyone reading this forum on DIY, who sees such a nice finished product.
I've tended to think of DIY DTG in a few different categories.
1. A Hack - Brutal, ugly, 90% manual, but at least technically works. (EX: it's naked (no plastic back on the frame) and likely requires manual positioning of the platen to get it to print.. experiment vs a permanent printer.)
2. "Fundraiser / Hobby" Quality - Works, is relatively automatic and repeatable. Might be CMYK only so only for white T-Shirts, but is a repeatable workable solution...
3. "Budget Professional" - I call mine a budget professional system. (Based on 1430 so white capable, well designed and functional undercarriage, and all of the professional options are solved... (CISS, Adjustable platen, accessible waste ink tank, and good aftermarket cartridges) This is a low budget, but good foundation for a small business.)
4. "Purpose built professional" - Your system is here. It uses industrial feed (stepper motor) and is built for mire automation, more reliability, and likely better suited to an established business day to day running.
5. Anything above this is in my mind, technically an emerging brand of DTG printer...(I.E. you probably don't just build the printers for your own use...)
Please share any features you made sure were in there or how you handle cartridge empty messages, head clogging, and other typical concerns.
Beautiful work by the way!!!
I already sell them, but built in my garage. Metal parts are laser cut and bended, I make the electronics, cabling and setup myself, also the design is my own. If you would like I can share the design files, i'll be happy to give something back to this society..
Joined
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51 Posts
I can understand. I'm very new to DTG printing, but I have been known to have a specific talent when it comes to DIY. I'm a good integrator.
Let me explain it this way... I work with computers / networking / programming. In the offerings available to enterprises for software, you have shrink wrapped (expensive licensed software) customized (expensive services based deployments) and Free (open source).
To be successful, you either spend thousands (or hundreds of thousands...) on the normal options, or you fail. Few businesses can make open source work or even evaluate it properly. In my opinion, the key to making that "Free option" work is realizing it is currently broken. It's free, but provided to you in a non-working state. (Partially completed)
Once you realize this, you can evaluate it more closely. It's no longer "Free" but then it never was, it's costs are just hidden in different places. By deploying it, and cataloging what is missing, you can gage if it's a good fit or a disaster.
EX: Open source is typically broken, like an Arduino board reads a 1430, or P600 feed and operates a stepper motor perfectly... You base your printer on a P800, it may not read the input right, and it will definitely not match the movement right... Board (T-Dozer) costs $149 as a kit with stepper etc...
Important thing is that it will get close, and only a few lines of code or settings need to be changed to match the new printer type.
What's better, is somewhere you can probably find those settings from someone else doing a P800 with it... so now you need only to insert the changes. (You don't have to experiment and discover what they are...)
Hopefully you see why I asked the questions I did. I see things in DIY as a list of reasons it won't ever work, and a corresponding list of solutions eliminating each of those reasons.
DIY DTG won't work because:
1. Inks are different.
2. Cartridges are not re-usable.
3. Paper jam Sensors can not be tricked.
4. No white ink option. Or 1430 only has two white. Not enough coverage.
5. Etc...
Successful DIY:
1. Use Firebird Ink for Epson with any Epson print head.
2. Cartridge resetter, or order blanks from china... with reset chips on them.
3. Here's how you move the paper sensor so it still works but applies to the platen...
4. On the 1430 in RIP choose 130-160%, 1440x1440 and "large dot".
5. Whatever else solves the rest.
Any time I see elegant solutions like this, I always am curious how each bit was solved.
Keep up the beautiful work my friend! Good luck!
Let me explain it this way... I work with computers / networking / programming. In the offerings available to enterprises for software, you have shrink wrapped (expensive licensed software) customized (expensive services based deployments) and Free (open source).
To be successful, you either spend thousands (or hundreds of thousands...) on the normal options, or you fail. Few businesses can make open source work or even evaluate it properly. In my opinion, the key to making that "Free option" work is realizing it is currently broken. It's free, but provided to you in a non-working state. (Partially completed)
Once you realize this, you can evaluate it more closely. It's no longer "Free" but then it never was, it's costs are just hidden in different places. By deploying it, and cataloging what is missing, you can gage if it's a good fit or a disaster.
EX: Open source is typically broken, like an Arduino board reads a 1430, or P600 feed and operates a stepper motor perfectly... You base your printer on a P800, it may not read the input right, and it will definitely not match the movement right... Board (T-Dozer) costs $149 as a kit with stepper etc...
Important thing is that it will get close, and only a few lines of code or settings need to be changed to match the new printer type.
What's better, is somewhere you can probably find those settings from someone else doing a P800 with it... so now you need only to insert the changes. (You don't have to experiment and discover what they are...)
Hopefully you see why I asked the questions I did. I see things in DIY as a list of reasons it won't ever work, and a corresponding list of solutions eliminating each of those reasons.
DIY DTG won't work because:
1. Inks are different.
2. Cartridges are not re-usable.
3. Paper jam Sensors can not be tricked.
4. No white ink option. Or 1430 only has two white. Not enough coverage.
5. Etc...
Successful DIY:
1. Use Firebird Ink for Epson with any Epson print head.
2. Cartridge resetter, or order blanks from china... with reset chips on them.
3. Here's how you move the paper sensor so it still works but applies to the platen...
4. On the 1430 in RIP choose 130-160%, 1440x1440 and "large dot".
5. Whatever else solves the rest.
Any time I see elegant solutions like this, I always am curious how each bit was solved.
Keep up the beautiful work my friend! Good luck!
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