Dryer Belt Width vs Heat Length

[alan802]

for what it's worth, we run a single auto (MHM 12/10) on our 72", and it's full. I can't really see running a second auto on it... but if you can pull that off, then it's a good idea. (what's that commercial say? It's only weird if it doesn't work)

Steve

What dryer and chamber length?

[TCT]

for what it's worth, we run a single auto (MHM 12/10) on our 72", and it's full. I can't really see running a second auto on it... but if you can pull that off, then it's a good idea. (what's that commercial say? It's only weird if it doesn't work)

Steve

What dryer and chamber length?

Was wondering the same thing myself, seems like a 72" should handle 2 autos easy let alone 1.

[Admiral]

Perhaps they are doing a 3 min dwell time or something...We do just under 1.5 min for discharge...

38sec-45sec for plastisol depending on substrate

[alan802]

It all depends on the settings I guess.  With our settings at 350 and 15'/min, we barely get the shirts up to 320, but we have ours set at 380 and 22'/min belt speed with a 12' chamber, 60" belt and it will handle two autos rather easily and the donut probe says 320.  I bet we could crank the belt speed up to at least 25'/min if we raised the temp to 400-410 and then we could lay shirts flat, without folding while running the auto at 1000/hr, using only one side of the belt.  If we get a second auto, we will change where we load the belt from the end to the side and if you fold the shirt by 1/3 then two will fit on each side.  Only issue I see is if we were running both autos with a 20" print at 800+/hr.  Other than that scenario I think we could run two autos full speed with no issues. 

[Gilligan]

Standards!

[tonypep]

Exactly. And what if you're running discharge on one side and LC plastisol on the other? This is stuff we face every day.

[Sbrem]

for what it's worth, we run a single auto (MHM 12/10) on our 72", and it's full. I can't really see running a second auto on it... but if you can pull that off, then it's a good idea. (what's that commercial say? It's only weird if it doesn't work)

Steve

What dryer and chamber length?

Old Advance Tex-Air, 10 feet of heat (infra-red on the ends and gas in the middle). One operator alone, around 400 per hour, does not fill the belt, but add a shirt puller, and it's closer to 600 per hour (plus) and the belt is mostly full. In the shop I started in, we had an auto and a manual sharing a 72", and it worked out, but again, they were usually using one operator loading and unloading the auto. For us, there wouldn't be room to put two autos next to each other due to the construction of this 100 year old mill building (support beams every 8 x 20 feet) The panels run at 1080° (that's internal) and the gas around 350° plus... this for us is the best speed without scorching light shirts.

Steve

[3Deep]

Shoot I'd be root to poot if I could get a 48 wide belt in here and nope not a Vastex, something about those dryers make me feel uneasy, but I,m sure those shorty jokers work...anybody using one Pros & Cons

Darryl

[ebscreen]

Exactly. And what if you're running discharge on one side and LC plastisol on the other? This is stuff we face every day.

Yeah, for all my wizardry in scheduling we occasionally hit that wall. Which brings up another interesting thought,
one dryer per press. Probably ideal if space allows, but we print so much discharge they'd both have to be big gas dryers.
Or I'd have to get better at scheduling and somehow limit one press to ink type. Ugh.

[Prosperi-Tees]

Or how about a split belt?

[alan802]

for what it's worth, we run a single auto (MHM 12/10) on our 72", and it's full. I can't really see running a second auto on it... but if you can pull that off, then it's a good idea. (what's that commercial say? It's only weird if it doesn't work)

Steve

What dryer and chamber length?

Old Advance Tex-Air, 10 feet of heat (infra-red on the ends and gas in the middle). One operator alone, around 400 per hour, does not fill the belt, but add a shirt puller, and it's closer to 600 per hour (plus) and the belt is mostly full. In the shop I started in, we had an auto and a manual sharing a 72", and it worked out, but again, they were usually using one operator loading and unloading the auto. For us, there wouldn't be room to put two autos next to each other due to the construction of this 100 year old mill building (support beams every 8 x 20 feet) The panels run at 1080° (that's internal) and the gas around 350° plus... this for us is the best speed without scorching light shirts.

Steve

We had one very similar to yours.  It was a texair gas/IR combo but had 4 IR panels that ran about 8' of the 10' heat chamber and weren't just at the ends.  We ran the IR at 950, gas temp was around 360-370 (can't remember exactly) and belt speed set to around 18 (I remember that specifically).  Sometimes we'd speed it up to 20 but most of the time it was on 18.  48" belt, 5' infeed, 5' outfeed, 10' heat and it kept up with our auto at full speed. 

I think you should be able to get more out of that dryer since it is really close in capability to ours.  I'm now wondering if our texair had continuous IR panels or if were at the front and rear only.  I never opened up the top to see the panels but there were 4 identical plates with handles on the top so I assume there were IR panels under all of them.

[Sbrem]

That does sound pretty much like ours Alan, though we have 2 panels on the front end, and one in the rear with the gas in the middle.  We also have 48" Tex-Air with an old '94 Gauntlet in front of it. Both dryers have manuals on the sides, but they are rarely used. As I said, 2 guys on the press and the belts fill up nicely.

Steve

[Gilligan]

Or how about a split belt?

And NOW I know what a split belt is for!

[tonypep]

Thats right Gil. We had two of these at Nike Sport Graphics when Nike was going to turn the world upside down with DC. Also one ginourmus one to handle two belt printers..........that really didn't turned out as planned; but thats Nike for you.
BTW they are veerrry expensive but very rarely one will come up used.

[Gilligan]

I've seen them, just never put two and two together on why... It always puzzled me, now it makes so much sense I don't understand why I didn't realize it before! Ha!