UNDER THE HOOD / MIMAKI CJV200 24 Issue 258 - April / May 2025 www.signlink.co.uk With the growing attention to waterbased inks for signage and display applications, now even including UV, it’s easy to overlook the fact that solvent and eco-solvent printers are still very much around and represent the backbone – and indeed the starting point – of many small sign shops, with low entry costs, long-proven technology, and an improving environmental story to tell as inks and PVC-free media continue to develop. This is the space that established Japanese printer manufacturer Mimaki, and its UK and Ireland exclusive distributor, Hybrid Services, is targeting with the CJV200 line of print-and-cut machines, launched in the UK at last year’s Print Show, and validated by more recent launches from its competitors. The company said at the September 2024 launch that the new model is designed to be more accessible to printers of varying levels of experience in terms of operation and maintenance, while also bringing some new functions and offering a choice of ink sets. Target applications for the CJV200 include vinyl banners, stickers, signs, vehicle graphics, window graphics, and other wide-format applications. Mechanically the CJV200 is a roll-to-roll print-and-cut machine available in three variants that support printable widths of 80, 137, and 161cm, the latter two billed as 1.3 and 1.6m respectively. Mimaki says that the new models use the same piezoelectric printhead assembly as its more productive CJV330 series models. This offers a range of resolutions from 600 x 600 to 1200 x 1200dpi, with drop sizes down to 3pl, allowing speed and quality to be traded off according to the work in hand. The single printhead design is said to simplify maintenance, requiring less time to be spent on cleaning and subsequent adjustment. Mimaki’s Dot Adjustment System adjusts automatically for different media types, again saving time when changing media in the typical job mix likely to be found in smaller sign shops where one printer has to do a bit of everything. Further ease-of-use features that are new with the CJV200 include a wide-opening cover for easy access to the printhead and an upwards-facing control panel for easier viewing and operation. The CJV200 printers are complemented by a choice of ink sets. There is the BS4 Taking a look at the Mimaki CJV200 A recent addition to Mimaki’s range of roll-to-roll printers is the CVJ200, an entrylevel solvent print-and-cut machine that aims to combine attractive pricing with ease of use, productivity and print quality. Michael Walker takes a look Michael Walker is a trade journalist, technical writer, and editor with over 37 years’ experience in the print, prepress, photography, and digital imaging sectors, with a particular interest in the digital transformation of processes. In addition to editing Desktop Publishing Today and Digital Printer magazines, he is co-author with Neil Barstow of Getting Colour Right (Ilex Press, 2004) and Practical Colour Management for Photographers and Digital Image Makers (2009, self-published e-book) and winner of a Communicators in Business Gold Award.
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