Sporty-Tex Should we give it a go?

eetherman · March 27th, 2012, 10:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by squeegee

Well I was wondering if you might be using a FB, mainly because they are slow, with or without a screen in the head. A full coverage quartz or IR flash would speed you up for sure.

We have been very lucky 90% of all the large runs, have been wet/wet no flash. Gotta love that!!

Gilligan · March 27th, 2012, 10:41 PM

Well... I just have to say... you have quite a bit of options.

If you are printing 7k every 10 days (even if it's business days) and your jobs are sub 300 pcs then you should be making at LEAST 15k a month... Again... I know we don't know your situation but that's easy to make a payment or just save up and buy the Jeff way (CASH!)

That is EXACTLY what I would do. If you want to talk more candidly about your financial situation then feel free to PM me.

I would personally save up the money and buy a used press cash... I'd rather spend the money sending Alan or Brian where ever the press would be located and having them check it out for me and then shipping it across the country than to spend money on a *shrug* press especially the shipping across the world. How much do you really want to "gamble"... and to be honest... who really wants to gamble in BUSINESS. Risk vs reward... I wouldn't chance it personally.

Even if you got this thing for almost nothing... if it's a flop, well guess what you have a 16' diameter flop sitting in your shop taking up space. Now you got to either pull it apart (assuming you are allowed) and jam it in a corner still taking up plenty of space (too much space?) and get something else to keep up.

Why chance it? You KNOW you only have ONE phone that rings when things go wrong... what happens if he stops answering like he has done with other people? Why not buy from a place that will answer your calls everytime and get your problem resolved? I'm not talking about just M&R... ANY other established press manufacture. Hell, my buddy has/had a Brown Semi.. I've watched him call tech support and get a guy walking him through the problem IMMEDIATELY... if he ever needs parts they are on their way. He recently upgraded colors and to a full auto... guess what he bought? Another Brown... he had his share of problems with it but he was obviously satisfied with the customer service. Other people have spent 100k+ replacing machines that don't work or never arrived and don't get their calls returned. And no matter what, it's ALWAYS someone else's fault. No matter how much "BS" you think goes on... just look at it this way... HIS customers have these issues. They spent 10s to 100s of thousands with him only to have all these issues that he won't deal with... why? because M&R?! That is insane. There is ONE common denominator with Robert and that is Robert. You have to at least see that... he ALWAYS has someone to blame, EVERY time. Doesn't that get more old than the ad nausem of people that are just trying to warn you?!

Again... PM me if you want to get more candid about this discussion.

californiadreamin · March 27th, 2012, 10:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eetherman

I appreciate the response and have played the situation over multiple ways. I honestly think I would have to achieve the Sporty on a almost consignment type of deal. I maybe would pay the shipping and test drive for awhile. Probably not possible but is a thought. I'm not gonna make any crazy decisions that's for sure. I have been trying to read all responses and is really hard to read past all the BS. I try to keep an open mind when it comes to things like this i'm not gonna put one manu in front off the other. Lets face it these things really only print tee shirts.

Hello eetherman!
If you by chance read my post, then you most surely understand my responses
were as " tongue-n-cheek" as I could be! They were not ment to condem your
descision, but rather to "jar" your thinking. I will honestly tell you my opinion
and you can do with it, what you would like. It is "gratis" with no strings
attached! Period. You have children, so I presume a family! You have NO
business being a "beta" location for ANY manufacturers press. Period! You
Do Not have the experience or the support to make it succesful for either party. I have been in the Biggest Rodeos in this industry, and have had my
share of being knock on my a$$,and some , where the price paid, was much to high! It is in this spirit, I am writing. This industry is filled with visions
of granduer! TANSTAAFL!!! There Is No Such Thing As A Free Lunch. Make all
major decisions with not only the Price, but also the Cost. Without both, a
poor decision can be FATAL to your business,and worse, your Family! Like
you said, we are only printing T-Shirts! It is easy when one does not have the funds to buy product "A" or "B" and product "C" makes it so easy. Be careful,
move slow, open your eyes "wide", think about how your decision will either
be the biggest "Blessing" or the biggest "Curse" to you and yours! I have no axe to grind with any parties, no matter what is said.
Good Luck!
winston

jmd · March 27th, 2012, 10:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eetherman

Let me first start of by saying. I never said we print 2000 a day. I simply stated that these runs are becoming more frequent. We printed 2000 yesterday and part of today. I have another 1500 shirts next Monday front and back and another 1000 later in the week. So i guess in a 10 day period about 7000 prints. These jobs bottleneck my operation since we thrive on 24-300 piece runs, around 15-20 per week on average. I'm sure I could go out and buy a new machine but i feel that to be just stupid. I make good money doing what i do and enjoy it (sometimes) but it just doesn't make sense for me to buy a new. A good used one seems a better way to go or a new one that is discounted is even better. The Sporty-Tex looks like a good machine, and the design has come along way in 6 months. Set the Barnes crap aside and look at Chinese manufacturing, they have us beet hands down. This machine might be new in design but I am almost certain that it will be a quality piece of equipment when all is said and done. The company manufacturing has some time under their belt and I'm sure they well make this work. Again these are my thoughts everyone else is entitled to their opinion.
And yes my family is number one and always will be. No decisions will be made without an attorney and contract. This isn't my first rodeo.

Chinese mfg sucks for the most part in my opinion. They steal and copy many ideas and try and duplicate them, problem is they dont take the time to understand what they are copying. There products look similar but dont perform over time. There are a few exceptions to this rule like the auto industry, after years of junk they are finally putting out some decent product. Something like a screen printing press they are not going to put much into because of the low quantity and margins. Here's an example - have you heard of Panel Frames, and do you know what happened with this good idea after the screens were farmed out to china, they cant even get a screen with four plastic extrusions correct.

eetherman · March 27th, 2012, 11:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmd

Chinese mfg sucks for the most part in my opinion. They steal and copy many ideas and try and duplicate them, problem is they dont take the time to understand what they are copying. There products look similar but dont perform over time. There are a few exceptions to this rule like the auto industry, after years of junk they are finally putting out some decent product. Something like a screen printing press they are not going to put much into because of the low quantity and margins. Here's an example - have you heard of Panel Frames, and do you know what happened with this good idea after the screens were farmed out to china, they cant even get a screen with four plastic extrusions correct.

I can agree in some cases, but when it comes to machining and production of metals and the company has a decent reputation, they most likely will manufacture a quality product. The cheap stuff is largely our fault, cost over quality always wins in America. My father installs production lines all over the world and China by far was most impressive to him, work ethic and attention to detail. Its possible to find good manufacturing but many companies search for the cheapest possible.

Inkwerksspd · March 27th, 2012, 11:26 PM

The worst thing someone could do would be to trust their growing business to a machine that has not proved itself in a real world environment. We have all witnessed how this has already played out. Regardless of the brand or who is selling it, its just not a smart business move especially if you do not have the capitol to replace the potential boat anchor with what you should have purchased to begin with.

Gilligan · March 28th, 2012, 12:01 AM

Eee... not really the case. I work for the oil field industry and they do a lot of big construction out there in the gulf. I hear salesmen all the time saying "not chinese metal here..." and I hear the bosses talking about complains about the chinese metal on things they buy.

They do NOT machine everything well... they have very poor QA and don't care if they send junk to the US. You say "Cost over quality always wins in America"... what exactly do you think you are basing your decision on?

Printwizard · March 28th, 2012, 02:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Prosperi-Tees

One option would be since it is a beta press is to get it for free for a specified period of time, say a year and then start paying a heavily discounted price based on performance, breakdowns,support etc etc.
I would figure beta presses should be put in for free for the feedback and frustration of things unknown.

Agreed, someone will put these in and make payments while they are happy as long as they are happy, if it's a dog stop the lease payment and machine is uplifted. I see as less risk for the buyer and only way a Chinese machine will get any kind of market footprint for the first decade till it's proven. In saying that, these will appeal to some, others not, but that's the only way anyone will ever find out.

244 · March 28th, 2012, 07:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmd

Chinese mfg sucks for the most part in my opinion. They steal and copy many ideas and try and duplicate them, problem is they dont take the time to understand what they are copying. There products look similar but dont perform over time. There are a few exceptions to this rule like the auto industry, after years of junk they are finally putting out some decent product. Something like a screen printing press they are not going to put much into because of the low quantity and margins. Here's an example - have you heard of Panel Frames, and do you know what happened with this good idea after the screens were farmed out to china, they cant even get a screen with four plastic extrusions correct.

Sounds like someone we all know that isn't Chinese!

244 · March 28th, 2012, 07:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Printwizard

Agreed, someone will put these in and make payments while they are happy as long as they are happy, if it's a dog stop the lease payment and machine is uplifted. I see as less risk for the buyer and only way a Chinese machine will get any kind of market footprint for the first decade till it's proven. In saying that, these will appeal to some, others not, but that's the only way anyone will ever find out.

I don't know what the rules are in your country but if you lease a product here in the states it does not matter if you are having problems or not the lease is in full force. The lease company is only the financial part of the transaction . The equipment company you buy from is responsible for the machine. Doing what you suggest above would be a huge mistake and may cost you way more than the original purchase price.