Comments

JJKizak wrote on 4/11/2005, 12:32 PM
For a couple of hundred bucks you can get the printer, discs, software
and you can do the whole thing right after you burn the discs. Piece of cake.

JJK
jmpatrick wrote on 4/11/2005, 12:35 PM
Thanks. Which printer? Is the printing waterproof?
Jessariah67 wrote on 4/11/2005, 12:44 PM
Epson R200 and a can of spray sealer works great.
Dach wrote on 4/11/2005, 12:48 PM
I personally use the Epson R300, but the R200 is the exact same printer, but without the memory card reader. It meets my expectations especially for the inexepensive cost. ($99.99)
Tom Pauncz wrote on 4/11/2005, 5:44 PM
Hmmm,
I am using the Epson R800 and while I am thrilled with the quality of the print on the CD, I can't seem to get a decent, smooth coating with Krylon clear acrylic spray. It seems to 'run off' the ink as if it was too 'waxy' if I spray from reasonably close. From further away, I get an 'orange peel' effect.

Does that make sense? Any suggestions?

Tom
ushere wrote on 4/11/2005, 5:53 PM
canon i865 / i3000 - very happy with results.....

leslie
Laurence wrote on 4/11/2005, 6:00 PM
I had terrible luck with sprays. I do mostly video DVDs these days and even the smallest amount of overspray messes up the tracking. I ended up spending about $2,500 on an Accent disc laminator. It was expensive, but my discs are waterproof and look better than most store bought discs. I use it on every disc I send out.

I'm using an Epson 300 with generic ink off of eBay. Per disc costs with disc, ink and laminated plastic layer are well under 50 cents a disc.
B.Verlik wrote on 4/11/2005, 7:29 PM
You must let the ink dry for 24 hours before coating them with acrylic clear. And you can't expect perfection, but only the prissiest of people would notice, and ot course other video makers. Yes if you're going to get out the magnifying glass and side by side compare with a Hollywood made DVD or CD, it won't look as good. But it's a DVDR or a CDR and it technically isn't as good anyway. So who're you trying to fool?
Edit: I don't really know what the heck I'm doing when it comes to spray painting, and I've only ruined two discs out of hundreds, with overspray. One, I was able to fix, because it barely got on the very edge.
scifly2 wrote on 4/11/2005, 7:39 PM
HP Lightscribe
No Ink
Waterproof
* burner not waterproof
Aaron Little wrote on 4/11/2005, 8:48 PM
I do not print on the surface of my DVDs. I print title and such onto hub/core labels. It seems that more and more “Hollywood” DVDs are only printed on the hub so costumers are accustomed to it. I have never had a complaint from a customer. I do make sure that my DVD inserts look great. Hub labels cost me 2 to 3 cents apiece. No need for sprays or dry time.

I get them from “Sure Thing”. I have had bad luck with the ones from neato though.

Aaron Little
stepfour wrote on 4/11/2005, 8:59 PM
I echo letting the ink dry 24 or more hours. Very important.

As for the application of the seal, it's like any kind of spray painting. The can must always be in motion when it is over the target. That means your starting and ending point need to be away from the target. That fraction of a fraction of a second when the can is over the target, but not in motion, is overspray. Smoothness is acheievable. A properly functioning nozzle and several feathery coats works very well. An empty CD cakebox with spindle makes a good holder. Use the little ring thing that comes on CD spindles to protect the center of the target.
craftech wrote on 4/12/2005, 5:19 AM
canon i865 / i3000 - very happy with results.....
======================
For some reason Canon will not sell their disc printers here in the United States. I went through that when I wanted to buy one and reluctantly ended up with the Epson due to lack of choices.

John
craftech wrote on 4/12/2005, 5:22 AM
I do not print on the surface of my DVDs. I print title and such onto hub/core labels. It seems that more and more “Hollywood” DVDs are only printed on the hub so costumers are accustomed to it. I have never had a complaint from a customer. I do make sure that my DVD inserts look great. Hub labels cost me 2 to 3 cents apiece. No need for sprays or dry time.

I get them from “Sure Thing”. I have had bad luck with the ones from neato though.
===============
I gave up on hub labels because of Neato. They didn't fit right and the text was never centered. Plus the Media Face software they provide is probably the worst I have ever seen. Locked up my computer. Never printed correctly.
Now I refuse to buy anything from Neato.

John
riredale wrote on 4/12/2005, 8:24 AM
Sigh...

Am I the only one on this forum who has not had trouble with stick-on labels?

Really, guys, although the operation is a bit more involved, the results are great and the labels, PROPERLY APPLIED, cause absolutely no problems.

Here's what I do:

(1) Print the labels using an Epson pigment printer (result: no smearing with fingers, no need for overcoat, no fading) on Meritline glossy label stock ($17 for 100 at Fry's Electronics).

(2) apply the label with a stomper tool so centering is guaranteed.

(3) Use a rolling pin to ensure adhesion and uniformity. Thin cotton cloth on work table, then disk, then medium-weight towel on top, then rolling pin going over the while thing in three different directions.

Result: a beautiful, colorful, bubble-free glossy disk that won't ever smudge or fade, and which plays in every player. Honestly, I've done over 500 DVDs this way to date, and they work great.

As I've said many times on this forum, I'll be delighted to switch over to white DVD blanks as soon as the results work as well for me.
jmpatrick wrote on 4/12/2005, 8:34 AM
That's cool that you've had great success with stick-ons...but there's no way I'm going to send out an important project with them. Not these days...

jp
Jsnkc wrote on 4/12/2005, 8:48 AM
Take those CD's and DVD's with paper labels on them out in about 5 years and see how well they play. I'm sure you will change your mind after that. If it's just a disc that is going to be played once and tossed then go with paper labels if you want to, but anything that you want to be able to keep for a long time and use you're just asking for trouble. I used to be a DJ and I had literally hundreds of mix CD's that I burned probably 4 or 5 years ago and put paper labels on all of them. Now there isn't a single disc where the label isn't peeling off. I can't even put them in a drive to make a copy for fear of the label completely coming off and ruinig the drive.
We have tons of clients that we do CD and DVD duplication for and only one of them actually cared whether the CD's were waterproof or not, most people could care less so all this spraying and laminators are just a waste in my opinion.
JJKizak wrote on 4/12/2005, 9:57 AM
I have an older Epson 960 and I am currently getting about 120 discs printed on a set of refills using the default density. I am also using 21 and 119 for the printing limits (print to hub) with Verbatim 8x discs. I'm just happy as a pig in mud with what I have.

JJK
craftech wrote on 4/12/2005, 11:34 AM
I used to use labels and applied them in a similar manner as Riredale above. I only had a few DVD players that I tested them on which wouldn't play them well. A couple of Sony and Sanyo models, so I would mention the models to customers and offer them an unlabeled disc in it's place. That was awhile ago.
Now I use the disc printer or no printer and they play in virtually everything using Ritek G04 burned with DVDA at 1x-2x speed (actually they are the same speed due to unfixed software error). When I don't use any label I take a fine point Sharpie and neatly print something simple around the inner hub.

John
riredale wrote on 4/13/2005, 12:28 AM
Just got back to this thread tonight, and the concerns about adhesive longevity are certainly valid. Still, maybe the adhesive thing is overblown--I rummaged around for a few minutes and found some of the earliest CDs that I put labels on, dating back to around 1998 or so. Labels look fine, with no evidence of peeling. Maybe it's an issue of wear-and-tear, or heat cycles, or something.
craftech wrote on 4/13/2005, 4:35 AM
With the labels it is ABSOLUTELY dependent upon the quality of the labels themselves. I only use Avery "Permanent" labels. The ones you get that are generic or the ones you pick up at computer shows peel off from heat. That includes VHS labels, particularly the spine labels.

John
jmpatrick wrote on 4/13/2005, 6:15 AM
We went with the Epson R200. $94.99 at Best Buy. The print quality is surprisingly good, and after a few hours they aren't smudging.

Thanks to all.

jp
Rednroll wrote on 4/13/2005, 6:52 AM
Sorry, I caught your post a little late. If you where looking for someone. I would have recommended Mike Scroggs. He has a small duplication house located in Roseville called Copycats. The last time I did some work with him he was located on the corner of Gratiot and Utica road in the same strip as Gonzos. If you've ever heard the name DJ Mike Scroggs on the radio for some club event then that's him. I use to have my own mastering studio, and when doing small CD duplication jobs, I would usually burn all the CDs, then bring them to Mike and have him do the printing on the CD, print up the CD trays, and books, put them in a case and schrinkwrap them. I hated doing that part of it, and Mike had a thermal printer for the CDrs, a high quality laser printer for the paper stuff, plush a shrinkwrap machine and did it for a very reasonable price.

Another thing you can do is pick up a copy of the Metro Times. There's lots of duplication houses listed in the personal sections that do similar work. Actually too many for me to become interested in venturing into a business in that area and the prices are too cheap. Mike is fortunately hooked up with most of the clubs due to his DJ gig, and does a lot of work printing the color promotions for all the local clubs.

If you're interested in getting ahold of Mike either call information and request the number for "copycats", but he might have moved locations, because we had actually been talking about partnering up in a studio venture a few years back. Or send me an email and I've got a couple contact numbers for him. Email me at rednrollAThotmail.com