Help with film bunching as printing [RESOLVED]

DTF Printer
1

Hello- new to DTF printing and have had an issue. When printing the film will start pucker in between the left and center rollers and if we don’t release the left rollers in between each print, it will start smearing. Any advice is much appreciated.

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Hi, @Kbaltz44. Welcome to the community! Congratulations on your new printer.

The film is puckering because the rollers aren’t gripping evenly, so the film is being pulled sideways and buckles between the rollers. Once it lifts, the printhead hits it and smears the ink. Straightening the film and balancing the roller pressure usually fixes it.

Here’s what you can do to fix it — these are quick adjustments and they usually solve it right away:

1. Reseat the film completely
Lift the film, straighten it, and make sure it’s feeding dead‑center.

2. Check your roller pressure
Make sure:

  • all rollers are DOWN
  • all rollers are gripping evenly
  • the left roller isn’t pressing harder than the others

If one roller is tighter, the film will pucker exactly where you’re seeing it.

3. Adjust your film tension
You want:

  • not too tight (causes buckling)
  • not too loose (causes slack and smearing)

The film should glide smoothly with light resistance.

4. Run a test feed
Before printing:

  • hit “feed”
  • watch the film move
  • make sure it stays flat and doesn’t walk left or right

If it starts drifting, fix the alignment before printing.

5. Clean the platen area
If there’s any powder, lint, or debris under the film, it can lift the film just enough to cause smearing.

Let us know if this fixes your issue. :heart:

Also let us know if it doesn’t, and we can move on to the next steps.

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Thank you for all the information. I really appreciate it. This may be a silly question but how do you tell if the rollers are gripping evenly?

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You’re very welcome. And, no, it’s not a silly question.

You can tell if the rollers are gripping evenly by watching how the film feeds. When the rollers are even, the film moves straight and stays flat. When they’re uneven, the film will start walking to the left or right, or you’ll see it buckle between the rollers.

Here’s what I’d do:

  • Feed a little bit of film and watch the edges — if it drifts to one side, that roller is gripping harder.
  • Lift the film and press it back down under each roller. You should feel the same amount of pressure on both sides.
  • Make sure all rollers are fully down and none of them are sitting higher or lower than the others.
  • If the left roller feels tighter or the film pulls toward the left, that’s your uneven pressure.

If the rollers are gripping evenly, the film will feed straight, stay flat, and won’t pucker between the rollers.

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