Lawson LED 5000

[T Shirt Farmer]

Lawson led 5000 ....Any of you have comments or experience with this unit... most of their product is entry level but the exposure unit looks spot on, blazing fast pull down, auto start lights, 4 year warranty on bulbs, and the price is right.

[Doug S]

I have the 3248 model.  I purchased it before M&R had released theirs.  It gives me solid burns, however I wouldn't compare it to a 5000 watt metal halide as their site claims more like a 3000 watt.  It's definitely not as fast as the times I've seen posted from using the starlight.  I believe the starlight has 10 times the leds compared to the 96 in the lawson I have.  I've modified mine to work as a cts exposure unit. 

All in all I would do it again.  If you'd like pm me your contact info and I'll give you ring sometime tomorrow.

[blue moon]

there is significant degradation of LED life with heat. I know that temperature and life expectancy have been addressed in the Vastex and M&R unit, make sure they are doing something about it too.
Also, find out the wave length of the LEDs as this is a significant factor. Also what is their power rating, at what percentage of full power are they running and in what range of the recommended Voltage are they running. These will all have a very big impact on longevity of the unit.
Finally, you should find a way to confirm the uniformity of the light output at the glass (or even better the screen) level. Vastex has a slight edge over M&R here, but they are both very good. Hot spots or smaller exposure area then advertised could be a problem. My comments go for any unit out there, not just Lawson. . .

You can pick up a UV light meter on ebay for $200 and check the field uniformity for yourself. I would!

pierre 

[JJPrint]

I have been using the LED 5000 for almost a year and has worked very well.  We previously had a Nuarc 3140.  I can't tell the difference between the two as far as on press performance.  We got a good price and picked  it up right at the SGIA show last year.  We use Chromoline CTR emulsion (coated 1 over 1) and it exposes in 15-19 sec depending on the mesh count (81 to 305). 

[blue moon]

I have been using the LED 5000 for almost a year and has worked very well.  We previously had a Nuarc 3140.  I can't tell the difference between the two as far as on press performance.  We got a good price and picked  it up right at the SGIA show last year.  We use Chromoline CTR emulsion (coated 1 over 1) and it exposes in 15-19 sec depending on the mesh count (81 to 305).

just to clarify, I have no knowledge of any unit other than Vastex and M&R and am thus not putting any of them down. These are just the things to check and questions to ask before buying.

pierre