Movin' on up - Transitioning to an Auto

[Prosperi-Tees]

Well in a couple weeks I will be traveling a few hours and picking up my Workhorse 6/8 Javelin. It is a 96 with low print count, maintained yearly and has 2 standard flashes which I would like to sell or trade for 1 Flashback as I dont have the electrical capacity to run 2 flashes. I would imagine that this a going to be a winter project as I still need a chiller and need to get my electrician to come in and run all that.

So I would like to hear tips and tricks for transitioning into an automatic press and also installing (which I may have a tech do) and maintenence.
Also I hear that artwork has to be handled differently when printing on an auto. Also mesh counts are usually higher as well. Any tricks/tips for this particular press? How about inks? Are emulsions more prone to breakdown on an auto? Well basically anything you guys can input will I am sure help me in the transition, Thanks guys.

[spotcolorsupply]

Congrats Gerri... Glad you found a fit!!

[Prosperi-Tees]

Congrats Gerri... Glad you found a fit!!

I really wanted to buy new for my first auto but for the cost of the down payment I could own it make money off it and pay cash for the upgrade and sell the old one for what I paid for it so I am stoked.

[spotcolorsupply]

I get that... Javelins are great/simple machines!! When you go to pick up the machine, before money changes hands, pull up and down on each pallet arm, and make sure you don’t have any slop in the carousel. On a javelin this can be adjusted (Unlike any other machine) but it is not easy. If there is any movement, I’m not saying it’s a deal breaker, but it will need to be fixed "first" during the install. Do you have a tech lined up, or are you going to try to install the machine?

[GraphicDisorder]

Congrats, life will change.

[Frog]

So, all of you auto people, at least those of you who made the move from manual, what was the first thing that you had to unlearn from your manual experience. and adapt to the new machine?

What new steps or techniques were suddenly paramount?

What new procedures gave you trouble?

Are they common to all automatics? Does the Javelin have its own unique quirks?

[spotcolorsupply]

Does the Javelin have its own unique quirks?

V-Squeegees 

[Frog]

Yep, and that was recently discussed quite well here. http://www.theshirtboard.com/index.php?topic=1406.0

[pwalsh]

So, all of you auto people, at least those of you who made the move from manual, what was the first thing that you had to unlearn from your manual experience. and adapt to the new machine?  What new steps or techniques were suddenly paramount?

What new procedures gave you trouble?

Are they common to all automatics? Does the Javelin have its own unique quirks?

Andy:  I can't offer the first-hand experience that folks who've personally made the transition from manual to automatic printing could, but I can provide a screen-print industry suppliers view point.  Over the years I've worked with many, many companies that have made the transition from Manual to Auto printing.  One of the biggest changes that people need to learn is that you lose a lot of the “Fudge-Factor” with an auto that you have with a manual press. 

A manual press provides the printer instant and continuous opportunity to adjust squeegee stroke speed, pressure, angle, and number of strokes in conjunction with what their eye is seeing.  The other big difference with manual printing is that because the operator is only printing one color at a time, it's possible to flash as many colors as needed to get the desired print result without negatively impacting production speed.  What this does is to allow the skill of the manual printer to cover-up many of the sins, in the way that the art was prepared, the mesh that was selected, screen tension, and the way the stencil was prepared. 

The ability to cover up these “front-end” issues without greatly impacting production speed and print-quality is significantly reduced when operating an auto.  Bottom line, moving from a manual press to an auto helps transition the screen-printing process from an Artisan Craft, to more of a manufacturing process.  The best advice that I can provide to a company making the move from manual to automatic production is to get your artwork and pre-press processes optimized before the auto arrives.  Get the Front-End right and your ramp up learning time will be greatly reduced, meaning that you’ll be on the road to more free time and/or increased revenue in no time at all. 

Another important point that people often overlook is that with an auto it’s extremely likely that they’ll be printing larger orders than they did in the past.  It’s important to have sufficient room to stage boxes and boxes of shirts before and after printing.  One other final and vitally important issues to be aware of with operating an automatic press and dealing with larger orders is to make sure that you have sufficient operating cash or an open line of credit to support your increased volume of purchases of blank good and screen-printing supplies.  Unfortunately it’s very common for a company to run out of operating capital during this important business growth stage.

[Prosperi-Tees]

So, all of you auto people, at least those of you who made the move from manual, what was the first thing that you had to unlearn from your manual experience. and adapt to the new machine?

What new steps or techniques were suddenly paramount?

What new procedures gave you trouble?

Are they common to all automatics? Does the Javelin have its own unique quirks?

This sums up my questions but I guess I cant put them into words lol.

[Prosperi-Tees]

I get that... Javelins are great/simple machines!! When you go to pick up the machine, before money changes hands, pull up and down on each pallet arm, and make sure you don’t have any slop in the carousel. On a javelin this can be adjusted (Unlike any other machine) but it is not easy. If there is any movement, I’m not saying it’s a deal breaker, but it will need to be fixed "first" during the install. Do you have a tech lined up, or are you going to try to install the machine?

I am hoping to afford a tech. There is a shop a half mile from me that run 2 Javs so I may poke my head in there if they let me to see who did their install and hopefully some pointers. From what I hear they are good people but I dont know if they will respond well to me asking questions.

[GraphicDisorder]

So, all of you auto people, at least those of you who made the move from manual, what was the first thing that you had to unlearn from your manual experience. and adapt to the new machine?

What new steps or techniques were suddenly paramount?

What new procedures gave you trouble?

Are they common to all automatics? Does the Javelin have its own unique quirks?

Transition hasn't been that hard really.  Just learn to use higher mesh and be ready to have sore legs/feet rather than arms.  That's about it. 

[Prosperi-Tees]

The space thing is a major issue that I am hoping to be able to tough out. I only have 700 square feet to house everything and still be able to bring in large orders. I just signed a 2 year lease but my hope is my neighbor 2 spaces down does not renew his lease in a year and I can move in there which is about 1500 square feet.

[Frog]

I've known folks to add a heavy shipping container outside for relatively secure storage. It would probably depend on your parking space situation.

[Prosperi-Tees]

If push comes to shove I could rent a fenced yard which is only 25 yards from my shop and stick a container in there.