# How good is the ChromaBlast inks on cotton?



## RedEye (Aug 18, 2006)

I'm going to be getting a 4800 system soon, and I'm debating on going Full dye sub vs. the Dual Setup.

How good is the ChromaBlast inks? Bright Colors? Good Wash? How's the feel?

Is printing faster with a complete Dye Sub system vs. the Dual setup?


What pros/cons are there between Dual setup and straight Dye Sub.

Dye Sub is what i'm interested in....just would like to weigh the ChromaBlast option.


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## charles95405 (Feb 1, 2007)

Chromablast is just so so in my opinion...I spent 900 USD in Jan for a set up..have not used it more than a dozen times..nozzles clog ad nausem and so I have just about given up on it.

with a dual system you get to have loss of one printing system if the other side goes down.

one advantage of the 4800..it is consider wide format and not is not effective the the recent Epson ruling. The R1800 now has dual system out but it not considered wide format...even though it prints 11x17..like the 1400.

I think I would consider doing laser dye sub...I have just started a system and dont have to worry about any clogging...contact me off line if you want more info..

For cotton I use a laser and duracotton


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## DAGuide (Oct 2, 2006)

RedEye said:


> How good is the ChromaBlast inks? Bright Colors? Good Wash? How's the feel?.


The best thing you can do watch a sample get printed with your own eyes and do your own wash test. I would recommend trying it on more than just white shirts so you can see what the border looks like on colored shirts. Some people like the results and others don't. It is really going to come down to what your market / target audience will buy. Remember that ChromaBlast is a light transfer and the paper is not going to work as a print-cut application.



RedEye said:


> Is printing faster with a complete Dye Sub system vs. the Dual setup?


It depends on what set up you get and how large of a file you are printing. Sawgrass has a hybrid system that prints using the Epson driver to process the job. This is usually good enough until you start to print larger file sizes. Any hybrid powered by a RIP will allow you to print at better detail in the same time or faster. 

If you look at going with a hybrid, you should check out what the different ones are available on the market. Sawgrass' system does not use a RIP and requires you to use only two inks (Sublijet IQ and ChromaBlast). The hybrids that run a RIP will allow you to use either ArTainium or SubliJet IQ for sublimation and ChromaBlast or an all purpose heat transfer / film positive ink on the other side. Some RIPs come with profiles for the different substrates and others give you the tools to create your own profiles. Some RIPs also provide other features like exporting / importing jobs that have all your print settings saved so you can reproduce the same job later on. Ultimately, make sure that you get a sample and watch how to use the software first-hand before you make a purchase.



RedEye said:


> What pros/cons are there between Dual setup and straight Dye Sub.


Here are just some of the things off the top of my head.

*All Dye Sub System*
+ Get a larger ink gamut because you are using colors besides CMYK (but you need to have a software that can print those colors. A RIP gives you better color control than the Epson driver).
- You have more invested in the ink and you will have more money tied up in having ink on the shelf when it starts to get low.
- You will need two printers to do all the same things that one hybrid printer will do.

*Hybrid System*
+ Only need to invest in one printer to print two different ink sets
+ Takes up less space
+ Have the ability to print on multiple fabric types (i.e. polyester, cotton)
- Have to make sure you print to the correct channels or you can put the wrong ink on the wrong fabric/substrate

As far as the loss of ink if you are printing heavier on one side of a hybrid, all Epson printers do this maintenance / cleaning. So, whether you have an 8-color dye sub system (and the cost to fill all 8 channels of ink) or 4-colors of dye sub and 4-colors of another type of ink (that is almost 25% less the cost of dye sub ink)...you are still going to waste the same amount of ink. These cleanings are control by the Epson firmware. No matter what model you have for an Epson printer...you will lose ink. The hybrid just makes it more noticeable because it is easier for you tell since you determine the ink from the side you don't use is going to drop.

An alternative thought is to get a hybrid printer, but only put the 4 dye sub cartridges in and run cleaning fluid through the other 4 channels. You have to have ink in the other channels, but the printer can't tell the difference between what is ink and what is cleaning fluid. And cleaning fluid is cheaper and good for your printhead. Just something to consider.

Hope this helps. Feel free to ask question that comes up.

Mark


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## roj49 (Mar 12, 2007)

DAGuide said:


> The best thing you can do watch a sample get printed with your own eyes and do your own wash test. I would recommend trying it on more than just white shirts so you can see what the border looks like on colored shirts. Some people like the results and others don't. It is really going to come down to what your market / target audience will buy. Remember that ChromaBlast is a light transfer and the paper is not going to work as a print-cut application.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Hey, Mark, Great post! I know its dated Nov but it hit on my problem. I HAVE A 4800,running artain. & chromablast, and I have the clogged nozzle syndrome. I"ve run 2 cleaning cycles and many nozzle cks(w/ epson ink that came w/ the printer), and still one color is clogged. What is the cleaning fluid you mentioned and where can I get it ? I"m using 110 carts, so how would I get the fluid to just one color ? Any help with this situation would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Roj49


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## imeccentric (May 13, 2007)

I'm running thr 4800 hybrid system too and get great results with chromoblast but clogging is a constant problem. I've even told sawgrass I was considering doing away with that part and going strictly to dyesub because of the problems. You don't want to pull the carts out and run cleaning fluid through because it takes about half of a cartridge to prime the system again. 

Jim
Embellishments in Thread


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## roj49 (Mar 12, 2007)

Hey Jim thanks for the heads up. this is my latest test print. C an you tell me what is going on with the yellow on the end? I used the epson carts that came w/ the 4800 to do the cleaning cycle.
thanks for any &all help Rojer


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## DAGuide (Oct 2, 2006)

Roger,

Let me clarify my previous post. There are some MultiRIP users that don't want to do inkjet transfers (whether using ChromaBlast or MultINK). Because the firmware for the 4800 / 4880 requires there to be fluid in the lines and print head before it will print, you have to have some type of liquid in the LcLmLkLlk channels. These MultiRIP users have chosed to put just cleaning cartridges (which are filled with a cleaning solution) into the printer so that they can just print sublimation transfers. This is why I mentioned the cleaning cartridges above.

As for your clogging problem, here are your basic options (I would try them in this order):
1. Try to print just the clogged channel color using a large block of that color and printing to that side of the printer.
2. Use Printer Jockey's (Printer Jockey) channel flush feature to have more control over the printing of just that single channel.
3. Just get one cleaning cartridge and try step #1 and #2 on that channel. The cleaning fluid is kinda like Drano in a way as it helps to unclog channels.
4. Run a Power Clean (this will push ink through all channels). The unique thing about this cleaning procedure is that the print head is docked over the capping station and there is a pump that will help suck out the clogged head. However, this process will use about 88 ML of ink, so this is the second to last option.
5. Worse case scenario, take the printer to an Epson repair facility. There might be a clogged damper that needs to be replaced or the print head couldbe damaged.

You should be able to get cleaning cartridges from just about any dye sub / inkjet transfer distributor. Some companies will even rent cleaning cartridges if all you need is to use them once. 

Is the clogging on the ChromaBlast ink only? Maybe Sawgrass knows if there is a challenge with that type of ink. I have not heard of any clogging problems with MultINK.

Hope this helps.

Mark


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## roj49 (Mar 12, 2007)

Thanks, Mark Now Ive got some things to try.
Rojer


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