4.17.17
Mimaki USA, a leading manufacturer of wide-format inkjet printers and cutters, today announced the availability of the TX300P-1800B direct-to-textile printer featuring an advanced belt transport system to ensure stable feeding of stretchy and thin fabrics.
The 74-inch wide TX300P-1800B direct-to-fabric textile printer includes many features found in high-end direct-print models. It was designed specifically for direct-to-textile applications and is suitable for users creating samples or short-run pieces. It includes new print heads with a high gap setting that maintain accurate ink droplet placement and enable printing on thick or thin textiles, dimensionally unstable fabrics, woven patterns or raised fiber surfaces. Mimaki original inks are specifically designed for exceptional color reproduction onto natural or synthetic fibers for producing fashion textiles, performance sportswear, interior décor, flags, banners, and more.
Advanced belt transport system
This model utilizes an advanced textile feeding and conveyance mechanism – including rear tension bars as well as a sticky belt that ensures stable and high quality textile printing and transportation. Delivering the highest quality direct-to-fabric printing, the TX300P-1800B printer uses an embedded belt washing mechanism and belt feed compensation to clean the belt and stabilize the image quality.
High gap printhead
The TX300P-1800B printer includes new print heads that enable printing directly on various types of textiles. The high gap setting gives users the ability to print on thin and thick textiles, plus woven patterns or raised fiber surfaces, while maintaining accurate ink droplet placement.
Five ink types for printing to natural and synthetic fibers
Mimaki original textile inks are optimized for the TX300P-1800B printer. These purpose-developed Mimaki textile products provide an industry leading solution delivering consistency and reliability essential for the production of the highest quality direct-to-fabric products. Sb420 (direct-to-fabric dye sublimation), Ac400 (acid dye), Rc400 (reactive dye), Tp400 (textile pigment), Dd400 (disperse dye) are all Mimaki original textile inks designed to suit specific fabric characteristics ensuring exceptional color reproduction on either natural or synthetic fibers for producing fashion textiles, performance sportswear, interior décor, flags, banners, and more. Dye sublimation, textile pigment, reactive dye, and acid dye inks are available at the time of the machine release. Disperse dye inks are planned for future release.
Dual ink capability
The TX300P-1800B printer, along with its sister product the TX300P-1800 (without belt) printer will be able to accommodate two different inks in one printer. This dual ink capability gives users the ability to print onto natural materials with textile pigment inks (Tp400) or on polyester materials with sublimation dye inks (Sb420) using only one printer. Since neither Tp400 nor Sb420 inks require a steaming and washing process – resulting in an environmentally friendly production (less water usage) – this configuration simplifies the textile production process and is ideal for designers, fabric workshops, education and research institutions, and entrepreneurs. Dual ink capability is expected to be available in the summer of 2017, for both models.
Mimaki technologies for assured production of high quality prints
• Waveform control. Each ink color has its own specific gravity and viscosity. To achieve precise placement of the ink droplets onto the media, Mimaki designed an optimum waveform, enabling the printhead to jet each ink color at the appropriate jetting angle without losing precise ink droplet circularity.
• Variable dot printing. Variable ink droplet sizes are precisely placed using three different ink drop sizes. Smaller droplets create smoother gradients and quartertones for high quality reproduction while large droplets produce uniform solids and accommodate for high-speed printing.
• Mimaki Advanced Pass System 4 (MAPS4). This technology prints passes in a gradation-like method by dispensing ink drops between passes. This Mimaki-exclusive imaging technology reduces banding, uneven ink drying and bi-directional stripes, resulting in smoother images with no distinct bands.
• NCU (Nozzle Check Unit) and NRS (Nozzle Recovery System). These two functions work together to provide continuous or unattended printing and minimize waste by ensuring any clogged nozzles do not reduce the print image quality. The NCU automatically checks for and cleans clogged nozzles before printing. The NRS enables mapping of unrecoverable nozzles, so that printing can continue.
• Bulk ink system standard. The TX300P-1800 printer includes the Mimaki Bulk Ink System 3 (MBIS3) that features two-liter ink packs. This system reduces ink costs when compared to ink cartridges used in competitive products, and enables unattended printing, freeing staff to work on other projects. When used in four-color mode, the Uninterrupted Ink Supply System (UISS) delivers continuous imaging by automatically switching from an empty ink pack to the full container of the same color.
• TxLink3 RIP software for textiles is available as an option. TxLink3 RIP software for textiles offers effective color management, standard profile creation, simple RGB and CMYK color replacement on raster and vector data, and the ability to create colorways.
