Vinyl Printer+Cutter
The current Ace of the Vinyl Printer+Cutter is Summer Martindale (Makerhub@georgefox.edu).
Vinyl Printing is the process of applying ink to vinyl sheets to produce graphics. The maker hub has a Roland BN-20 printer/cutter. It uses a conventional inkjet printing method with solvent based inks.
⚠ WARNING: DO NOT unplug or turn off the printer using the rear cutoff switch for more than a couple hours. This will cause detrimental damage to the print head. However, using the front power button is safe.
Documentation
The Master Guide covers every basic thing about the BN-20. It has instruction on printing, cutting, maintenance, and calibration. Look over this if you are new to the BN-20.
Training
The following is a description of the steps for printing from the BN-20
Design
The first step is to get your graphics ready for printing. Whether you get your graphics from the internet or deign them in a program similar to Adobe Illustrator, it will need to be imported into Adobe Illustrator for the process described here. These steps could be taken in CorelDRAW as well (refer to Master Guide), but this section does not cover that.s
Maintenance
The BN-20 needs to be maintained regularly. If not mainteined regularly, the machine becomes more prone to malfunction in the future.
Utility Software
The BN-20 has utility software in the system tray. It displays ink levels and helps the user do maintenance tasks.
Ink
Printing Cartridges
The utility software should notify the user when the ink is empty. When it is, remove the empty cartridge, get one of the same color and type (type must be Eco-Sol Max ink), shake the cartridge vigorously, and simply push it into the slot.
WARNING: Use only "Eco-Sol Max" ink. Do not use Eco-Sol Max 2 or 3.
Waste Cartridge
The utility software will notify the user when the waste ink cartridge is full. When this happens, remove the old waste cartridge and push in a new one The cartridge is located on the rear right of the machine).
WARNING: Replace the waste ink cartridge when and only when the utility notifies the user it is full.