The former Non-TSR Recent Fun Finds Thread
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Post Posted: Sat Feb 13, 2010 5:10 pm 
 

How much do large format scanners cost BTW? And which ones are good? Is it a case of sticking with HP and Epson like on small scanners or are there specialists?

I'm also in the market fro an old dyeline printer, and the appropriate supplies (paper and amonia). Can you still buy that sort of thing or is that completely redundant technology now?


This week I've been mostly eating . . . The white ones with the little red flecks in them.

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Post Posted: Sat Feb 13, 2010 11:51 pm 
 

mbassoc2003 wrote:How much do large format scanners cost BTW? And which ones are good? Is it a case of sticking with HP and Epson like on small scanners or are there specialists?

I'm also in the market fro an old dyeline printer, and the appropriate supplies (paper and amonia). Can you still buy that sort of thing or is that completely redundant technology now?


Blue Line Printers…. YIKES!
Not redundant more like obsolete, or very close to it.

Now that brings back some old memories… wait… no it doesn't. :?
I lost some history (memories) from using those things.
Ammonia eats at your brain cells….

I would investigate not just the cost of the setup if you go with Blue line tech, but also upkeep and supplies as well, not to mention safety concerns, and safe (and legal) disposal of the spent ammonia bottles.

I would imagine that Blue Line (Dyeline) printers can still be had and probably very cheap too, but I used them for over 15 years; running literally thousands of prints through them, and honestly they are not worth the trouble to use and/or get repaired these days.
I would NEVER go back, no matter how cheap they might be….

To be honest with you, I have not done any research lately (since I would never go back) but I think you would be lucky to even find folks that can (or will) repair them.
Not to mention finding common supplies.
Blue line paper and the specialized ammonia bottles and the air filters (WHICH ARE VITAL) are nearly impossible to find.

Modern Black line printers (plotters) are SO much cleaner, not much more expensive, MUCH easier to use, find parts for, and to find repair companies for.

The HP Scanner\Plotter that we have will plot color or B&W, and any mix in between, and it will also print Photo Quality Prints of small, medium or large size (From wallet to wall papering size).
It was purchased through a local banks business foreclosure sale several years ago.
At that time the HP Scanner\Plotter we got was almost top of the line for that specific type of set up.
Included a Plotter, separate scanner, touch screen computer dedicated to the scanner/plotter combo and network software to run it all, plus a 10 year full on warranty for labor and parts (Which we have called them on several times).
The firm (the one that was going out of business) had paid over $30K (cash) for the set up.
We got it for MUCH less.
Today, a comparable set up might run in the $18-25k range. (See the link to HP below).
Around 18K for a scanner that can handle simple sketches (lines and Text) and up to 25K for a scanner that will scan Images at Photo Quality.

I have seen good used plotters for as low as $500 that you can still find parts for.
Like an HP 750 C  (Color/B&W)  printer/plotter.
They all use the same paper, and the ink is easy enough to find too.

If you feel good about at least surf-shopping for a new plotter, then I recommend HP.
Check this page.

Designjet Large Format Printers | HP® United States

You can buy a new HP 24" Roll Plotter (So 24" by 36" plots are possible… D Size) for less than $850….

Large Format scanners are a totally different deal though and I know of NONE that can be had on the cheap.
Especially when they are tied to your plotter through a dedicated computer system.
If you find any, then PLEASE let me know.


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Post Posted: Sun Feb 14, 2010 3:11 am 
 

The beuaty with the old dyeline printers (the one's we used in the UK) was that what you got was a sepia coloured print with dark brown lines that have a character that you just can't reproduce with today's technology.

I imagine the difference between blue line and brown line was just a pigmentation in the paper. I remember having to take prints and lay them out in the attics of Salisbury Cathedral to let the smell of amonia disapate. But we never had our own dyeline printer. We used to use a copy shop. I'd be looking to keep it in the garage.

I guess a large scale scanner is out of my price range. :cry:


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Post Posted: Sun Feb 14, 2010 6:00 pm 
 

Mars wrote:
Ya, you have!  We don't really know anything about these items either until they arrive :)


Its true.. a well placed Google search helps us look smart as well..

BUt I tell you I spend WAY to much time looking at Ebay!

Brette:)


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Post Posted: Sun Feb 14, 2010 6:03 pm 
 

Gnat the Beggar wrote:

If you feel good about at least surf-shopping for a new plotter, then I recommend HP.
Check this page.

Designjet Large Format Printers | HP® United States

You can buy a new HP 24" Roll Plotter (So 24" by 36" plots are possible… D Size) for less than $850….

Large Format scanners are a totally different deal though and I know of NONE that can be had on the cheap.
Especially when they are tied to your plotter through a dedicated computer system.
If you find any, then PLEASE let me know.


They have one of this printers at work, they print out posters and banners with it..

Brette:)


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Post Posted: Sun Feb 14, 2010 8:44 pm 
 

mbassoc2003 wrote:. I remember having to take prints and lay them out in the attics of Salisbury Cathedral to let the smell of amonia disipate.


OK - there's a part of the story I want to hear about.


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Post Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 2:31 am 
 

I used to be a stone mason's draughtsman on Salisbury Cathedral. Back then we used pen and ink and drew of draughtin film on drawing boards, but we also had to draw things large scale so that we knew everything would fit together, so inside the attic of the south transept we had a huge layout room, and we also hused to hang frawings in the eaves of the clerestory. It was pretty cool to have free run of a building that size and find out all it's secrets.


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Post Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 9:00 am 
 

Here is what I know about the difference between what we called Blue Lines and Brown Lines.

A Blue line was made from chemically treated (Light sensitive) paper.
A Brown line was made from a chemically treated (Light sensitive) film (also called Sepia).

In either case, the original and copy (Sepia, or paper) are fed together into the machine first, then the copy alone is fed into it again through a different part of the machine.
A blueline machines speed could be controlled in each area.

An original with printing and/or images (preferrably a see through film such as mylar) is placed over a light sensitive media (Sepia, or paper). Then the two sheets are fed together into the Blue Line Machine.
The media and original go through the first track (The lighted area) of the copier and once they come back out; what was on the Original is burned (not litterally) into the copy media (Sepia, or paper). then the original is set aside and the copy (Sepia, or Paper) is then fed back into the machine through the second machine track for an amonia treatment to set the media (Sepia, or Paper) so that the images burned into the media would not immediately dissapear when exposed to regular light.

The light inside the machine exposes the light sensitive copy media that is not covered by something from the original (Linework, or image).
The Ammonia then sets what is left so that the copy will not fade away later when exposed to a light source (like sunlight, or even overhead lighting).

The longer time the media and original were exposed in the light area of the machine; the more light sensitive chemical from the copy is lost.
If you pushed a copy sheet through the light area with nothing over it (no original) the copy sheet would come out at the end as blank white paper....
If done correctly, What is left on the copy sheet is a copy of what was on the original.
The longer time the copy media was exposed to the ammonia bath the more stable the copy was (For the most part) and the longer the copy would last.

Bluelines would always fade over time in any case if exposed to light for a long time, no matter how long the light and ammonia exposure lasted.
I am not talking centuries or even decades, but mere months or at best years.
Which is yet another reason to invest in a newer type of large format copy (plotter) machine and avoid the blueline machines.

Sometimes modern technology is WAY better and well worth the extra cost.


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Post Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 11:31 am 
 

The machine at the copyship used to use brown sepia leght sensetive paper but you did n't need to pre-treat the paper before hand. It came in a box with a thick black plyethelane liner and you only openned the end and took one sheet out at a time.

You then placed it light sensetive side to back of the tracing paper drawing, squated them and and fed them into the dyeline printer. The paper copy then dipped down and was fed through an amonia bath and came out damp and stinky. The resulting print was very pronounced dark brown to a light creamy paper, but over time the coloured lines faded and the paper also darkenned into a light/dark sepia drawing.

I still have a dyeline copy of the original measured plan I made of Salisbury Cathedral all those years ago, and it wouldn't surprise me if they don't still use the original draughting film drawing when they need building plans. I couldn't see them redrawing the building again.

Because I still have the ability to draft in that format, and still have some dungeon plans from that era from a local games store, I thought dyeline printing would be way cooler than laserjet.


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Post Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 4:38 pm 
 

Speaking about machine, nice win on this one Mars ;) Rollmax machine


** expired/removed eBay auction **


How much did you bid? Just to know if I should have bid a bit more or not...  :twisted:

When you get it, could you give some informations about it? Did not manage to find anything about this book... it is why I did not want to spend to much money on it.


Adventures in Austerion : a fantasy RPG, with boardgame mechanisms and modular battlemap. By Guillaume Tavernier and Géraud G.

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Post Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 4:59 pm 
 

I thought I was going to win it for $1 but my high bid was $26.  I don't know anything about it either.  I asked and was told it is an RPG.  I will post some info when I get it.  Although I might not get it until the summer - I might have the seller drop it off at my parents house (since it is in my hometown).

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Post Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 5:07 pm 
 

Mars wrote:I thought I was going to win it for $1 but my high bid was $26.  I don't know anything about it either.  I asked and was told it is an RPG.  I will post some info when I get it.  Although I might not get it until the summer - I might have the seller drop it off at my parents house (since it is in my hometown).


Sorry, I should asked to avoid this increased bid :oops:
Actually, I hoped  that you bid only $1-2 :D

So, all info will be welcome when you receive it. I am afraid that it would be more a boardgame or a wargame-like than a RPG...


Adventures in Austerion : a fantasy RPG, with boardgame mechanisms and modular battlemap. By Guillaume Tavernier and Géraud G.

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Post Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2010 12:15 am 
 

lokiwookie wrote:I was thinking that it would go for much more than that (especially if some "big money" guys bid on it). Definitely surprised (good surprise) by the final price :)
So it seems that they did not release any other products?


Nice win Géraud!  If you also happen to have a copy of Fief (White Rose Publishing, 2nd edition from Cumberland Games) I'd be curious to hear your thoughts comparing the two!  (That goes for you too, Bill, or anyone else with a copy of both books).


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Post Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2010 8:31 am 
 

Nothing very interesting in this book actually, only a long long long (too long, 1600...) list of professions... Just that, only that, nothing more than that...


Adventures in Austerion : a fantasy RPG, with boardgame mechanisms and modular battlemap. By Guillaume Tavernier and Géraud G.

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Post Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2010 8:40 am 
 

lokiwookie wrote:Nothing very interesting in this book actually, only a long long long (too long, 1600...) list of professions... Just that, only that, nothing more than that...


Is that all...  :lol:  :wink:


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Post Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2010 8:47 am 
 

Sounds like Balboa Games' Instant Bad Guys. That's a book that will disappoint anyone.


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Post Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2010 10:37 am 
 

grodog wrote:If you also happen to have a copy of Fief (White Rose Publishing, 2nd edition from Cumberland Games)


I have a copy of this on order, taking advantage of lulu's latest discount, on your recommendation.  So if it sucks...  :evil:

  

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Post Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2010 11:05 am 
 

mbassoc2003 wrote:Sounds like Balboa Games' Instant Bad Guys. That's a book that will disappoint anyone.


It is worst than Instant Bad Guy... In IBG, you have at least some "characteristics" for the "Bad Guy". There, you have only a list of name... no description, no characteristics, nothing more.

I guess that if I want to sell it in the future I should have said that it is a wonderfull supplement...  :roll:  :twisted:


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