FAQ

At one time, this was true. With the CrystalPress the process is automated. Instead of drilling stencils and brushing the rhinestones into place, the CrystalPress places your design onto the heat transfer paper in a matter of minutes.

It is true that automatic rhinestone placement systems can be very expensive ($20K-$45K). Ioline engineers found a way to simplify a complicated process, reduce cost, and yet provide a high speed commercial grade rhinestone setter with integrated simple software.

The CrystalPress is so easy to use that the user can be creating elaborate designs in a matter of minutes. Once the CrystalPress is hooked up, it can receive a design from its own design software, clip art or CorelDRAW!® or Adobe Illustrator. The machine uses a pick and place tool to grab rhinestones from the sorter bowl and places them on the heat transfer paper in the specified pattern.

Once the design is complete, it can be taken straight to the heat press to be affixed to a garment. The CrystalPress can create a series of the same design, or create a one of a kind motif in just minutes.

Purchasing a CrystalPress for your shop will give you the flexibility and creative freedom to create any design that comes to mind. You will not have to wait for orders to arrive, and there will be no minimum orders to fulfill.

You will also be able to create quick samples on the spot, demonstrating your creative abilities and closing sales.

CrystalStudio is not a drawing program. It digitizes completed designs to create stone placement and instructs the CrystalPress where to place the stones. In order to edit or create entirely custom designs, you will need a vector-based drawing program such as Ioline Design, CorelDRAW!® or Adobe Illustrator®.

Not at all. You could simply purchase a collection of stock designs and never have to use a drawing program.

With some very basic instruction, though, you can quickly learn how to modify existing designs in CorelDraw!® or another program. For instance, to change a font or add a tail.

Many newbies have learned how to tweak art and create custom designs with great success. Drawing programs can seem complex, but fortunately, you really only need to know about 20% of the program to get it to do what you need. We'd encourage you to get your feet wet and learn some drawing basics, as it is a skill that can help you gain more control over lead time and expenses, not to mention influence customer satisfaction.

There are some free training tools on the Web and numerous third-party professional training classes available. Because so many drawing programs are used with the CrystalPress, we do not offer training on third-party software. However, if you'd like help finding a class, please contact Ioline Sales.

The CrystalPress is compatible with Ioline Design, CorelDRAW®!, Adobe Illustrator®,and many other applications that can export HPGL PLT and DXF design files.

The CrystalPress can make an outline or fill a shape.

The CrystalPress system is setup to change colors/sizes after layers are printed so a motif can have up to 16 colors on a single transfer sheet. This is accomplished by a unique partnership betwen the CrystalStudio software, which manages a maximum of 16 colors, and the CrystalPress that has two sorter bowls, each holding one size/color at a time. It only takes ~20 seconds to change to a new color and/or size when printing with more than two colors or sizes.

The CrystalPress is nearly maintenance-free. There's no lubrication nor periodic adjustments required. Simply keep it clean.

The CrystalPress uses sticky heat transfer paper and rhinestones.

The sticky paper is where the rhinestone design is placed, you can take the paper straight from the CrystalPress to the Heat Press.

Rhinestones can be purchased directly from Ioline by calling 1.800.598.0029 or through a variety of other sources. They come in differing degrees of quality and brilliance. Ioline recommends that you research the rhinestones that best fit your design needs and confirm they are compatible with the CrystalPress before purchasing.

The CrystalPress runs on a PC running Windows® 2000, XP, Vista®, or Win 7.

In terms of electrical requirements, the CrystalPress needs about the same amount of power as an office printer.

The CrystalPress is compatible with Windows® PCs only.

Installation is nearly identical to that of an office printer. The CrystalPress sits on a table and plugs into the PC via a serial or USB cable. Install the CrystalStudio Software that comes with the cutter, and you're ready to make motifs.

One year full warranty on parts & labor.