CADlink Digital Factory v11 Tutorial: The Best Rip Software for DTF

Hello, and welcome to a another post about the best rip software for dtf printing. In this article, we will tell you everything about the most advanced RIP on the market for DTF printing. And that’s of course, Digital Factory DTF Edition developed by Cadlink. Get a look at all its features, and find out if it’s really worth it. Let’s get started!

Installation

To get the most out of a printer, it’s important to get the right software, especially with techniques such as DTF which use white ink as an underbase and color mixes. We had previously talked about Acrorip, a simple software with standard features for DTF printing. Today, we’ll talk about Cadlink Digital Factory DTF Edition. Its interface will be familiar to you as they’re the same ones who make the RIP for Uninet iColor printers, and because they have a version for DTG printers which we will tell you about soon.

Let’s take a closer look at the installation process.

1. Download the software from its product sheet, available here.
2. Run the installation wizard and let it download the software from the server.
3. Follow the steps on the screen to complete the installation.
4. Once the program starts, it will ask you for your unit of measure and the number of decimal places. Select “centimeters” and 2 decimal places.
5. You have a 15-day trial period that includes all of the full version’s features so that you can test it before you buy it.
6. If you’ve already ordered yours, you will need to copy the license files we sent you in the software’s root directory, which is located on the C drive by default.
7. The dongle will also have to be connected via USB.
8. With the printer switched on and connected with a USB cable, click on next, then on install printer and select yours. Click OK and tick “Search for new printer package(s) from Cloud server” so that it downloads the drivers and print modes.
9. Choose the port, and you’re all set!

How to Use Digital Factory DTF Edition

Remember that with the USB version, you can install the software on several computers, but you will need to connect the dongle to the PC for it to work. We will now analyze the software’s main features and its workflow.

1. Through the File menu, you can import the patterns to the print queue.
2. The software supports most image and vector files, but remember that the printer prints white, and if you print something with a white background, it will appear on the final image.
3. Once imported into the print queue, the image appears, and you can resize it, rotate it, align it, and even nest it if you’ve imported other images.
4. In the bottom menu, you can choose the paper size, the number of copies, the space between them, and more.
5. The printing mode is important. You will find several presets, depending on whether the T-shirt to be printed is black or colored, and whether you want a raster image or not.
6. By default, all print modes are mirrored. If you intend to create a new print mode, such as for white T-shirts, for example, you’ll have to go to devices, manage print modes. Choose a default mode and duplicate it. Give it a new name and double-click it. In the “Color Layer” tab, then in “Processing Options,” disable the white underbase or reduce ink levels. In the Ink Removal tab, keep hole-size at 255 if you’re not looking for a raster image or reduce it to the desired level if you are. Click on save, and your new print mode will be ready.
7. A very interesting feature is the possibility to create templates in order to save time when printing your projects. To create a template, go to Devices, Manage Print Media, and click on the plus sign. Click on create template media. Give it a name, choose the size of the sheet, and click on Add. Set the size of the designs, scale to fit, center alignment, and save. Finally, click on “Auto slots placement” to finish filling the sheet. In “Jog all slots,” you can move the holes to center them. Click on Save, and your template will be ready. To use it, go to queue properties and in media setup, select the type: Template Media and the name of the template that you’ve created. Click on OK, and you’ll see your template appear in the workspace. Import the designs, which will be automatically adjusted and placed where you want them.

Printing with Digital Factory DTF Edition

Now that we know how to use it, let’s put it to the test by printing a complex pattern on a black T-shirt. We’re going to learn how to empty it, clean it, add some text, and print it.

1. Import your photo. In order to see the difference, select a colored T-shirt profile, right-click on the image in the queue, and generate preview image. Because it’s a jpg file, the image would be fully printed, including its background.
2. By selecting preset settings for black T-shirts and generating a preview image, you’ll see that the software removes black areas. You should be careful as some areas that are not pure black will still be printed and stain the image.
3. To avoid this problem, click on Jobs, easy adjustments, and then cleanup black x3 to have the software remove all near-black areas.
4. Now, if you right-click, RIP only, and then view raw data, you’ll be able to preview the print, view the white mask, as well as each color layer separately and even choose the color of the T-shirt to preview the final result.
5. With Digital Factory, GIMP is also included. It’s an editor, similar to Photoshop but free, so you can edit the image or add text among other things.
6. Let’s add some text and click on send to Cadlink so that this new version shows in the queue.
7. You can start printing. After printing, you know what’s left. Apply DTF powder, remove the excess, cure for 120 seconds at 165ºC, and finally, press the T-shirt for 15 seconds, at the same temperature. Let it cool and peel the film in a slow and steady motion.

Cost Calculation and Maintenance

As an advanced software, Cadlink Digital Factory DTF Edition has a lot of options, including something that’s almost indispensable for this activity: cost calculation.

1. To use it, click on the calculator icon in the top menu.
2. Set the material cost, surface treatment costs, and ink volume cost.
3. Underneath, you can select the ink contingency, which is the percentage of ink used for cleaning purposes.
4. On top of that, you can add taxes and labor costs. Click OK.
5. Before estimating the costs, you must RIP the image. Let’s use the previous image and estimate its cost. Click on the calculator, and you’ll see the cost of each item. As you can see, the ink cost is very low, and the labor costs are very competitive.

The maintenance of the printer is one of the main concerns when working with DTF because of the sedimentation of the white ink, and it’s best to print periodically to prevent the print head from drying out.

• Digital Factory allows you to clean the printheads manually by going to Devices, Printer properties. But if you want it to be done automatically, you will have to go into Queue, then properties, printer status, and select the interval at which you want a head cleaning to be performed.
• Click OK, and the countdown will start. For it to work, you must leave the software on.

Conclusion

We’ve walked you around the main functionalities and uses of what we believe to be the best DTF printing software. In future, we will expand on the training of this software, with features such as barcode printing, hotfolders, and print modes. If you want advice and more information on getting started or improving your skills, feel free to read related articles on this blog.