I need some experienced advice

[dirtbiker525]

Hi,

My dad runs a motorcycle shop in South texas. He has recently agreed to front me $1500 to start a side business. Im interested in making motorcycle decal kits, like the link before and i have a bunch of questions that i need experienced members advice.

1.) what type of vinyl cutter should i get? i was thinking about getting a Roland PC 60, because i only want to spend between $500-800 on a used printer. and it seemed to be a good model, (newb here feel free to give thoughts) so what should i get?

2.) Ok would i need software to go along with the printer,(photo editing, vinyl printing software, haha, i have no idea)?

3.) what are good books to learn how to use it( PC 60) or where to learn it, or how?

4.) what materials would i need to use and maintain it

5.) what to make sure about buying a used printer

6.) and generally just a walkthrough of all the stuff that goes along with printing vinyl stickers.

thanks ahead of time,

dirtbiker

ps. dont flame im trying to learn just like you guys did at one time, im interested in this i just have no idea where to start thanks

[Torchhead]

You are woefully under funded to do full color print and cut decals on adhesive vinyl. PC60's are getting rather long in the tooth (old) and use inefficient resin tape cartridges. Price a full set for the PC60 and then set down. The heated heads on the PC60 tend to clog easily and need constant maintenance and/or replacing ($$$$). NEVER buy one unless you can watch it print with your own eyes. Used machines can become money pits. Any newer ink based machine will be way outside your budget. Also don't forget that the software to drive the cut and print can be expensive. You can't design and cut with just any drawing program. Unless the manufacturer has an application that will run as a plug-in for something like CorelDraw you will have to find a way to use the machine. That means an investment in SignLab or Flexi with drivers for that specific machine There is a free program for contour cutting (from a printed piece with registration marks) for the Gerber products that works with either Adobe Illustrator and CorelDraw 12 or later. You have to print using a template with the registration marks onto the media.

There are two aspects of printing stickers. One is of course having a printer that will put permanent (UV resistant) full color on vinyl. The other is to contour cut what you print. With a vinyl cutter and software that lets you read registration marks you can contour cut anything you can print. A lot of the Gerber models (but not all) have this capability. Even the low cost Gerber ROBOCut units will contour cut from registration marks. Then you have to find a separate machine to do the printing on vinyl. The PC60 (then PC600) and the upper Gerber, Roland and other models combine the processes (print and cut) but do not necessarily do a better job (just faster with fewer steps).

You can look at sublimation printers and using special sublimation vinyl but I think the longevity of the product for exterior use will preclude it's consideration.

My advice: Find a signmaker locally that has a machine that could use some extra income and see if they will subcontract to print or print and cut your designs. Use the money to establish your business and designs and market your products. You will have a tough time making a living doing a single service/product to a local market. Also Google the Decal and Sticker market on the web. There are places that will churn out stickers for a low price and you will have to compete with that.

There are a lot of other products that given a simple low cost vinyl cutter (not a cut and print) you can make and sell. One is sandblasted (etched) glass objects (pichers, beer mugs, wine glasses, mirrors and maybe even taillight lenses.


Also let's discuss copyright issues here. You are not allowed by law to simply copy and print commercial logos or trademarks, so if your designs are for popular logo products you may find yourself running afoul of their legal departments. You Dad may have by being a franchised dealer the right to use the logo and trademarks for advertising but it gets murky if it's for products that could compete with something the company has or be construed to have been provided by that company. I know dealers that have bought plasma cut and laser cut logos and sold them and the vendors ignore it. Other get nasty letters from legal departments. Usually the designs take the form of something other than the trademarked logo so there is no problem.

This is not intended as a flame but as educational and good business sense. If you see someone getting ready to step out in front of a bus you would naturally try to warn them. The sign market (of which stickers are part of) is a very competitive and equipment intensive business. For more information on vinyl cutters and cut and print systems visit Beacon Sign Supplies and Sign Warehouse.

Best of luck. The US needs more small businesses to help us afford obamacare.

Tom caudle
www.CandCNC.com

[dirtbiker525]

what would be a better/newer used machine

and how much would be needed for whole process