printing anyone

[semimoto]

hiya,
i have posted this question on occasion, and will probably again,
does anyone know of a printing co. that does small jobs for a
reasonable fee?
i am a member of NAPP and i get coupons for this and that but i don't need a thousand copies of anything right now.
the way things are where i live i could just as well buy a large format printer for the price of a years printing ( exaggeration)
but you get the picture $50.00 for a 24x36" poster is not cost effective when were talking about selling the job much less making a profit.
so some of you more experienced cats might point me to a link.
tankx,

[semimoto]

ok, no would be the answer.

[givie]

I know a guy named Paul Wilson that runs Wilson Graphics in northwest Florida. He's got a large format printer and I'm told his rates are reasonable. I've seen some sample output that looks pretty good. His Web site is http://www.wilsongraphics.net. The site is pretty bare-bones, but you can contact him and discuss your needs.

Guy

[lilypad]

Are you always looking for posters? Or are there other products you are looking for?

As far as the posters go, anything over 11x17 in a short-run situation is looking at some higher cost off of a large format printer. I just got quotes on 20 - 36"x48" (12 square feet) posters on white vinyl at roughly $4 per square foot. Quantity and stock will play a big roll in the cost.

For other products, several printers local to my location are getting into many of the digital color copiers and printers. These are offering a great opportunity to get full color output in a short-run setting for a good price. You will definitely need to get samples from the printer first though. There are many models out there that offer less than acceptable results, but if you find a few you like, it is a great way to do up 50 or 100 full color postcards.

PM me and I will see if I can get you some info... One of my local printers that I work with a lot just set up a new "digital color press" (color printer if you ask me) that can handle from 17# bond to 24 pt. cover. Most of the color copiers I've seen top out at about 110# or 140# index. And I actually like the print samples I have seen so far. Since he just set it up (and I mean it was just over last weekend) I don't think he has it all calibrated yet, nor has he set up pricing yet.

- jon

[MacForMe]

Well, Walgreens charges $20.00 for a 20"x30" poster print. You could save your .ai file as a .tif and upload it online. I have a buddy in a band who made a bunch of 4"x6" flyers by printing them at the photo booth at Walmart. They were pretty sharp looking.

[dbltapp]

Session school of design provides these printers for students wanting to do limited print runs:

http://www.sharpdots.com/

http://www.platinumcards.cc/

http://www.modernpostcard.com/

I've not used any of them yet.

[photobookmemories]

My friends have a large format and would love to have it be used more. They do pop art pet portraits mostly on canvas but can print posters They will do one off, not a problem and for a reasonable price. You can contact me or go to them directly.

http://www.popartpet.com

[warking@mac.com]

The sq foot at "Cost" is still $3.00 for a 24X36 Print. $18.00 is not a profitable cost for printing. Plus anyone who prints it should double that to $36.00 minimum. I personally would charge $100 for a 24X36 full coverage print. I think many printers charge $15.00 a sq ft.

How many prints are you looking to make?

[Black Swan]

PS Print does short run 11X17 prints for $12 apiece. I've used them and have been very happy with the results. I sent off a PDF that was built in Illustrator. See http://www.psprint.com/printing_products/short_run_poster_printing.asp
Good Luck.

[Brice]

Black Swan that looks like one of the most useful links I've seen in a long time.

Brice

[semimoto]

Thanks everyone,i really appreciate your responses, giving your time.

[digitaldallas]

Hello:

Do a search for large format printers in your area. Prices will vary widely for a qty of 1. You can find someone to probably do it for $35 maybe. $50 is not a bad price though. I’m a commercial printer and for someone to rip the file for there rip, print and trim $50 is a reasonable price in my opinion.

:) Buzz
The Odee Company - Digital printing - Dallas
http://www.odeecompany.com

[Te_Wheke]

I was in the same boat here in New Zealand though I was paying between $250 and $450 for an A0 sized canvas print and the results were very inconsistent. After a year I calculated how much I spent on prints and realised I could have bought my own 44 inch Epson with pigmented inks, so I did. I can now print what I want, when I want, on what ever I want and the quality is way better than anything I was paying others to do for me.

I bought the printer used for around 4k, though I have seen the same printers used in the States for $500- $ 700 usd, you guys are lucky everything is so cheap there compared to here. The printer paid for itself after I sold 10 prints, now I am printing for the cost of consumables, just a suggestion.

BTW the Epson and new HP large format printers have good enough drivers that you don't really need a rip unless you want to print really long panoramas and then you can use something like QImage, I haven't had any problems even printing text. The Rips cost as much as the printers sometimes, though they are valuable they are not necessary if you have a decent printer with a decent driver.

hiya,
i have posted this question on occasion, and will probably again,
does anyone know of a printing co. that does small jobs for a
reasonable fee?
i am a member of NAPP and i get coupons for this and that but i don't need a thousand copies of anything right now.
the way things are where i live i could just as well buy a large format printer for the price of a years printing ( exaggeration)
but you get the picture $50.00 for a 24x36" poster is not cost effective when were talking about selling the job much less making a profit.
so some of you more experienced cats might point me to a link.
tankx,

[Jodi Frye]

yup, looks good ! Bookmarked ! Thanks Black Swan