# Is sublimation printing EVER reliable



## Nic (Jun 13, 2008)

Hi.. 

I have a Rotech CISS set up running on an Epson C110..

I've had nothing but trouble.. I purchased this late last year...everyday something else seems to be wrong.. oneday it is the cyan not printing next it could be one of the blacks.. I'VE HAD IT>> .. The shop just tells me to be patient and keep fiddling... I fiddle and it then works but don't know what exactly was wrong.

I am currently in the middle of my first paid job.. and you guessed it.. it has crapped itself!!! 

Can anyone tell me if sublimation printing is reliable enough to start a small business? At the moment I am wondering if finishing my website is worthwhile. 


 Nic


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## majesticmind (Sep 1, 2007)

As soon as the ink sits it tends to clog up. The printer just needs to go through the cleaning process. I am not familiar with your Cis system but mine works well. We run out of a epson 1400 and c88+. Every day we run a small test print that has each color in it , to keep the ink flowing. works well uses minimal ink.


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## Nic (Jun 13, 2008)

Glad to hear it can be reliable.. thankyou.. 

It did have 3 weeks with no nozzle checks earlier this year (Jan).. we live in a hot/humid climate which wouldn't have helped over summer (australia). 

The printer is brand new (got another one just incase)..so the nozzle heads aren't blocked.. something must be blocked in the lines.. Is it possible to flush the lines and re-prime the tubing? The Rotec inks are in one container (but seperate housing) makes it hard to target a particular colour to prime a cartridge. 

I have done countless cleans/nozzle checks/cleans.. once the ink is empty from the cartridge it doesn't seem to be syphoning from the bottles ?????????????????????


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## Madrod (Jun 27, 2007)

make sure you have the breathers in.


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## Nic (Jun 13, 2008)

thanks.. they are!

I will contact the company that sold it to me.. I will ask if I can drain the lines and re-prime to see if that helps.


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## majesticmind (Sep 1, 2007)

every once in a while we get an air bubble in the line and the line will stop syphoning. If we just turn off the power to the printer and turn it on again it fixes the problem during the start up stage. All the color get sucked during that process.


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## cochise (Nov 12, 2007)

I have been doing Sublimation printing on hard and soft goods for a while. The major problem I had was the CIS system lines plugging with ink because I didn't print something each day. I shelved all the CIS systems and went to refillable carts. I also have an auto print software for all my printers, Sub or not, that causes them all to print a nozzle check each day. I can spot weak heads and then do a print of that color in Best Photo mode. I also switched to ArTainium ink. Refillable carts are not for high volume businesses where the printer is used daily but they work very well for my business needs.


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## Nic (Jun 13, 2008)

The auto print software sounds awesome.. what is the name of it.. and where would I find it.. how much did it cost you? 

Thanks for your feedback.


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## cochise (Nov 12, 2007)

Nic said:


> The auto print software sounds awesome.. what is the name of it.. and where would I find it.. how much did it cost you?
> 
> Thanks for your feedback.


InkSupply.com has one and Conde.com has one. I am sure there are others. Many are free and the rest are reasonably priced and can submit the check pattern request to multiple printers.


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## cochise (Nov 12, 2007)

This was a free download from Inksupply.com as I recall. I have attached them in 4, 6, 7, and 8 colors. You could also create your own using Adobe or Corel and a series of boxes filled in with the correct colors. Note that the 8 head pattern gives you the formulas to use for each color.
The good news is that you can edit the master and create a file/image for each color eliminating the waste of printing multiple colors when only one is not printing correctly. Obviously you can also edit the size of the output from say a postcard to 8 x 11. I have solved 99% of head clog issues by simply printing the weak color using Best Photo and selecting Heavy Matte paper in the printers paper options box. That setting will flow the most ink without doing multiple head cleanings and wasting ten times the amount of ink.
It will not solve every problem, but it has worked very well as a part of my "Preventative Maintenance" program.


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## Nic (Jun 13, 2008)

Thanks for that.. I will look into it.. will certainly take some pressure off!


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## Riderz Ready (Sep 18, 2008)

If there is one thing I wish to see in my professional lifetime it is demise of bulk system for Epson printers. Every vendor selling these ought to be scolded. They know that generally the systems cause many more problems then not. They are the number one reason people leave dye sublimation. We experienced it first hand on two separate systems and yes we even quit dye sub for a period of time. Unless you can afford an Epson 48XX or above printer the odds are that you will spend more time and money on clogs, etc. then you will ever make printing. Once you have a printer that uses presurized cartridges then your headaches will go down 99%. 

There are hundreds upon hundreds of post on this forum alone regarding CIS for the small Epson printers and all the problems people have yet vendors will keep selling them - shame.


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## Nic (Jun 13, 2008)

Thanks for your post. 

I will be making some calls on Monday.. I just have had it. I purchased it from a shop that raved about their after sales service.. they are really nice but I want it sorted .. I don't think I could really handle being told to just fiddle with it and keep perservering. 

One day it is all systems go .. the next nothing and will then be down for about 4days till the ink settles and will come through. 

Do you know if you can buy the pressurised cartridges on Ebay or pick them up somewhere cheap? Are they refillable?

Cheers,

Nicole


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## clayboyrat (Dec 1, 2008)

I use refill carts for sub ink in my c88. No troubles. If I had lots of work to do I would just but a second set of carts.


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## cochise (Nov 12, 2007)

You can purchase refillable carts from Conde or InkSupply. They are complete with auto reset chips, syringes and instructions.


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## Nic (Jun 13, 2008)

Thanks for that.. you have helped me on my other post too !

Cheers,
Nicole


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## conde tech (Nov 15, 2007)

Before you start working on the CIS, install the regular Epson carts. You may have a printer problem and not a CIS issue. If you are unable to get a good nozzle with the Espon carts, you have a printer issue.


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## Nic (Jun 13, 2008)

HI.. yes have done that.. Printer is brand new.. brought it just incase the nozzle heads were blocked/damaged before.. 

Seems to be a problem with the ink syphoning from the resovior bottles. No priming instructions were given with this instruction booklet so really hard to know how to get some ink flowing. I've tried raising the resovior tank thing up when I clean to get some ink flowing down.. I've tried syringing from the top.. and bottom of cartridge. Just seems to be blocked somewhere.

Cheers,
Nicole


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## jclynn67 (Mar 11, 2007)

On-line Jerseys said:


> If there is one thing I wish to see in my professional lifetime it is demise of bulk system for Epson printers. Every vendor selling these ought to be scolded. They know that generally the systems cause many more problems then not. They are the number one reason people leave dye sublimation. We experienced it first hand on two separate systems and yes we even quit dye sub for a period of time. Unless you can afford an Epson 48XX or above printer the odds are that you will spend more time and money on clogs, etc. then you will ever make printing. Once you have a printer that uses presurized cartridges then your headaches will go down 99%.
> 
> There are hundreds upon hundreds of post on this forum alone regarding CIS for the small Epson printers and all the problems people have yet vendors will keep selling them - shame.


What printer and ink do you use?


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## Riderz Ready (Sep 18, 2008)

jclynn67 said:


> What printer and ink do you use?


Epson 9800 and 4800 with Artainum ink - we are in the process of testing Sawgrass's Sublim ink which is supposed to greatly reduce head cloggs -


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## KUSTOM _DUDE (Mar 6, 2009)

I have used bulk ink systems extensively for many years now and have never had a problem with them. It is the ink itself that tends to clog. 

I now use large format printers and am not tied to buying Sawgrass inks anymore. Consequently I no longer have any ink clogs whatsoever. Figure it out for yourself?


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## Susie (Oct 19, 2007)

I went with the Epson 7800 with gigantic cartridges. Before I went into the business, I learned from this forum that those bulk systems can be a pain in the patooshie. 

I've been running that printer for a year now and it's been just fantastic! No problems at all. I do the nozzle check thingy once a week if I didn't use it. Always had a clean print. 

I would highly recommend skipping the whole mess of CISS and small fiddlely printers and invest in a good setup. I have never regretted that. I also invested in a somewhat expensive RIP. Everything prints the way it should when it should. 

Heh heh, now I've said that it'll probably break down this week!
Good luck with your setup.


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