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Hey everybody! I'm looking for some advice. One of my business associates has a used Roland PNC 5000 for sale. I've been interested in getting a vinyl printer/cutter combo, and he has been very pleased with it. I'm just looking for some fellow letterhead advice on this machine. He says he likes it better than his PC 600, and has had no trouble with it.(he talks of printhead failures with his PC 600). Please either post or email me directly at dvdmotorspt@earthlink.net with your advice. Sincerely, Keith Davidson Davidson Graphics
-------------------- Keith Davidson Davidson Motorsports Graphics Ballston Lake, NY Posts: 8 | From: Ballston Lake, NY USA | Registered: Aug 2000
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I've had a PNC5000 the past two years. I'm glad I bought it refurbished from Roland for cheap instead of brand new cause it's great as a cutter but lousy as a printer. I use mine only to cut, I gave up on printing after a few weeks and hundreds of dollars worth of ribbons.
I never had much luck getting a good print from it. The actual print quality is great but the process to get it to that point is a nightmare. By the time the printing pitch is adjusted to get a clean print with no gaps between printhead passes, you've blown through all yer inks while trying to get it adjusted.. and the inks are $40 per color, and only cover a few square feet no matter what level of coverage you print.. Whether you print a solid strip of color or just a couple tiny dots, it uses the same length of ribbon.
I hear people say it's great for small stuff but I dont even think it's good for that cause the costs associated with every new tiny job exceed what you can actually sell that job at... ie: a one square foot full color decal (and I wouldnt even attempt to print anything larger than that) would cost you probably $10 in ribbons alone just trying to get it to print right.
For what most people are looking for in a print nowadays, you could do it with an inkjet printer and laminate it cheaper than the PNC 5000 can print it.
-------------------- "If I share all my wisdom I won't have any left for myself."
Mike Pipes stickerpimp.com Lake Havasu, AZ mike@stickerpimp.com
Posts: 8746 | From: Lake Havasu, AZ USA | Registered: Jun 2000
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Glenn and Mike, Thanks for the info! I'll steer clear. I've already got a good cutter. Any advice on what printer to look into buying? I do mainly car graphics, nothing too large (wide). Has Roland overcome their printhead failures on the PC60 and/or PC 600? Thanks again! Keith
-------------------- Keith Davidson Davidson Motorsports Graphics Ballston Lake, NY Posts: 8 | From: Ballston Lake, NY USA | Registered: Aug 2000
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Kieth, are you near Ballston Spa or Malta? If so, call the Balch's...Ernie and Diane ar great folks, and they have a smaller color printer in thier shop.
Bet they could give you some info.... Thier number is: 518-885-9899
The problem with the printhead failures is due to the engineering design. Neither machine has a good history on printheads. Here's why....
The printhead for either machine is about 3/8" wide. To print a 12"x12" area just one color, the printhead must travel 384 linear inches. What happens is that the printhead just simply wears out.
In contrast, lets look at the Edge. The printhead of the Edge is about 11.8" wide. To print approximately the same area, the printhead would only travel 12" instead of 384" as required by the ColorCamm.
Simply put, the ColorCamm printhead must do 32 times as much work as the Edge printhead.
Now comes the argument that the CC printhead is cheaper to replace. Since mechanics of the two printheads are pretty much the same, then it is safe to assume that the Edge printhead will wear out after printing the same amount of linear feet as the CC. If so, then there is a flaw in the argument. Since the CC printhead has to do 32 times as much work, then it is reasonable to assume that the ColorCamm printhead will wear out 32 times before the Edge printhead.
Edge printhead > $2000 CC printhead > $600 / 32 x $600 = $19,200
This means that you will spend $19,200 on a CC printhead before you spend $2000 for an Edge printhead.
There is more, much more, but you get the drift.
Feel free to contact me for more info and comparisons if you'd like. In the meantime, check out the BB's at www.colorcut.com and www.4edgetalk.com . Both sites will help provide some insight in digital printing equipment. If you have a bigger budget, also check out www.summa.com.
[ January 04, 2002: Message edited by: Glenn Taylor ]
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