Geo Knight Digital Knight DK3 User manual

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Version 2-11
Digital Knight
Digital Mug Press

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Contents
Introduction............................................................................................................ 3
Setup & Suggestions ......................................................................................... 4
Normal Operation .................................................................................................. 5
Normal Operating Mode ................................................................................... 5
Setting Temperature.......................................................................................... 5
Setting Time...................................................................................................... 6
Pre-Press Timer................................................................................................. 6
Setting Pressure................................................................................................. 7
Important Pressure Notes .................................................................................. 7
Additional Green Pads ...................................................................................... 8
Replacement Green Pads................................................................................... 8
Guidelines, Tips & Settings .............................................................................. 9
ERR Mode........................................................................................................ 10
Over-Temp Alarm............................................................................................ 10
Programmable Presets........................................................................................... 11
How Presets Work............................................................................................ 11
Loading a Preset............................................................................................... 11
Editing/Programming a Preset ......................................................................... 12
A Walkthrough Tutorial for using Presets ....................................................... 13
User Menus ........................................................................................................... 14
Entering the user menus & options .................................................................. 14
Fahrenheit / Celsius.......................................................................................... 14
Timer Counter Units ........................................................................................ 14
Recorded Pressings (User Odometer) .............................................................. 15
Pressure Minimum ........................................................................................... 15
Pressure Maximum........................................................................................... 15
Temperature Drop Sense.................................................................................. 15
Keypad Beeper................................................................................................. 16
Alarms.............................................................................................................. 16
Finished Warning Beep.................................................................................... 17
Prepress Timer ................................................................................................. 17
Prepress Alarms ............................................................................................... 18
Operator Lockout ............................................................................................. 18
Parts / Maintenance / Misc.................................................................................... 19
Replacement Parts............................................................................................ 19
Maintenance ..................................................................................................... 19
Wiring Diagram ............................................................................................... 20
Troubleshooting ............................................................................................... 21
Troubleshooting (cont.).................................................................................... 22
Limited Warranty............................................................................................. 23

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Temperature
°F/°C Indicator
Ready/Heating Indicator
Open/Timing/Done Ind.
Time
Pressure Bar Graph
TEMP key
PRG key
Up/Down Arrow keys
Default Operating Mode of Controller
Introduction
Congratulations on your purchase of the DK3 mug press! This heat
press machine has many exciting features, all of which are meant to
help make your heat transfer pressing endeavors as successful and
easy as possible. Please take the time now to thoroughly read through
this manual to become acquainted with them. It will explain some key
features, concepts and methods that will save much time and effort in
using this press and in your heat pressing applications.
Throughout this manual, many areas and components of this machine
will be referred to by specific names. Please refer to the illustrations
below in order to become familiar with some of the terminology used
in this manual.
Handle
Timer Tilt Sensor
Clamp / Linkage
Quick Release Pin
Pressure Knob
Controller
Heater Band
Power Inlet
On/Off Switch
Base

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Setup & Suggestions
• Locate the press on a firm, sturdy work surface. Non-skid rubber
matting is especially helpful to keep the press from sliding on the
worksurface.
• The height of the bench/work space the press is located on would be
ideally 27” to 32” high. The higher the press, the more difficult to
close/lock.
• Attach the power cord from the rear to the backside of the controller.
There is a power inlet on the back panel of the control box for the
power cord.
• Make sure the power cord can not be pulled on. Make sure there is no
tension on the inlet socket that the power cord plugs into
• The press can be left in the opened or closed position. There is no
difference in heating/performance. At certain pressure settings, the
handle may rest in the closed position. This is not a problem.

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Normal Operation
Normal Operating Mode
The normal operating mode of
the press will display the current
actual Temperature at the top of
the screen and the time setting
or elapsed time below the
temperature.
The right side the screen will
indicate the heating status by
stating HEATING, READY, both
of those words, or none at all,
depending on if it is cooling down or heating up to the set temperature.
READY is shown only if the current temperature is within 5 degrees of
the set point temperature.
The right side of the screen will also indicate the timing status by stating
OPEN, TIMING or DONE. The DONE indicator may remain on in
some cases until the press is opened back up.
The pressure bar graph digits at the bottom of the screen are not used
on the DK3.
Setting Temperature
From the normal operating mode,
simply press the TEMP key to set the
temperature.
The flashing 3-digit number is the
temperature setting (not the actual
current temp). Use the Arrow Keys to
set the desired temperature. Hold them
down to increase rapidly, press both
together to set it to 350°F.
Press TEMP again to lock in the setting.

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Setting Time
From the normal operating mode, simply
use the Arrow Keys ONLY to set the
time. Do not touch the PRG key.
Hold down either the Up or Down arrow
key for more than 2 seconds and the time
will increase rapidly.
Press BOTH Arrow Keys and the time
will reset to 00 seconds.
Pre-Press Timer
There is a second timer available for
use, called the “Pre-Press Timer”.
This feature is useful if a multiple-step
process is performed.
For example: If a product must be
pre-pressed for 5 seconds before a
main pressing cycle of 20 seconds, the
Prepress timer can be set for 5 secs, and
the main timer for 20. When the operator closes the press, the 5-sec
time counts down. When the operator opens the press, the time setting
switches to 20 seconds.
The word PREPRESS will be displayed next to the pre-press time setting
when it is active. To set the pre-press time, simply use the Arrow Keys
to set the time. If PREPRESS is not displayed next to the time, quickly
close and then open the press to switch to the prepress time.
To turn ON the prepress timer feature, enter the User Options Menus
(see page 15) and go to the PPR setting and turn it ON. (see page 17)

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The DK3 is fully adjustable to accommodate various size mugs.
• To decrease the pressure,
allowing for larger diameter
mugs, or to make the tension
lighter, turn the pressure knob
to the right, clockwise.
• The heater band will rise away
from the front of the press. The
allen screw will enter into the
plunger shaft deeper.
• To increase the pressure,
allowing for smaller diameter
mugs, or to make the tension tighter, turn the pressure knob to the left,
clockwise.
• The heater band will come closer to the front of the press. The allen screw
will come out of plunger shaft further.
Setting Pressure
The clamp must lock in place for a successful transfer. Do not simply
close the handle in a resting position. The handle must lock and clamp
down so that there is significant pressure on the mug. If the clamp
assembly can not be locked, then the pressure knob must be adjusted.
Do not over tighten the pressure. If it requires a lot of force to close
the press onto the mug, the black adjustment knob or mug handle can
break. The handle should be closable with one hand of the operator
when properly lubricated.
Sublimation inks do not require much pressure for a good transfer.
However - many styles of imprintable mugs are not straight, especially
at the top & bottom of the mug. For this reason, heavier pressure helps
press the transfer right up against the entire surface of the mug. Set the
pressure adjustment so that there is a firm clamping force. This will
insure good contact, and great results.
When the press is hot, and after much use, the pressure assembly may
be difficult to adjust. An ALLEN KEY has been included to allow for
easy adjustment.
Important Pressure Notes

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For mugs or cylinder shaped items less than approximately 3” in
diameter, an additional 1/16” or 1/8” green heat conductive pad may be
required.
Wrap this additional pad around the smaller diameter mug to make up
for the difference in size. Additional time may be needed for pressing to
make up for heat loss through the extra padding.
Additional Green Pads
The green pads on the heater will regularly wear and need replacement.
Contact the factory for replacement pads. Make sure you indicate which
pad thickness your version press uses: either 1/16” or 1/8” thick green
heat conductive padding.
Some mugs and users can achieve several hundred mugs or more from
a single pad, where other applications and users need to replace the pad
more often. As a general rule of thumb, the heavier the pressure, and the
wider range of mugs/cylinders pressed in the press, the more often the
pad needs replacing. The straighter and more consistent the mug size
used in the press, the longer the pad life.
It is normally time to change the green pad when light spots begin
appearing where normally good results appeared prior, and obvious
indents, chips, cuts, and sagging of the pad occur.
Replacement Green Pads

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Guidelines, Tips & Settings
Set the DK3 to 400°F for 5 minutes to begin, and try 30 seconds less
on subsequent mugs if good results are achieved. Always use a plain
paper cover sheet OR teflon liner over the entire mug surface on top
of the transfer to protect the mug surface. For some offset transfers,
high energy sublimation inks, hard mug coatings or full bleed handle to
handle transfers, it may be necessary to increase the time to 5.5 minutes
or more.
ALWAYS TRIM the cover sheet down to within the flat surface of the
mug. Allowing papers/cover material to overlap the edges of the mug
will cause wrinkling and white lines in the image. If the results are not
acceptable, or you are using laser transfer papers or other type of transfer
media, contact your transfer ink or paper supplier for recommended
guidelines.
Please note that when pressing mugs, it is perfectly normal to have
a significant drop of 30+° in temperature during the first part of the
cycle due to the mug absorbing a large amount of heat.
One recommendation for increasing production and decreasing pressing
time is to use a pre-heating oven, such as a small toaster oven or other
countertop batch heater. Pre-tape and wrap the mugs, set the small oven
to 300°F, and have mugs preheating inside while other mugs are being
pressed. This will invest heat into the mass of the ceramic, without
activating the sublimation, so that the final pressing in the DK3 will
be significantly faster. Times can then be lowered down to 2.5 to 3.5
minutes and in some cases less.
Some mugs may have irregular shapes. The top and especially bottom
rims of the mugs may taper inward. This will result in the paper
possibly wrinkling at the edge of the mug. Normally this will not
affect the transfer elsewhere on the mug. However if attempting to
press full bleed transfers with the image wrapping near the rims of the
mug, this can cause white lines and faded splotches, especially near
the extremities of the mug. This is the result of the mug shape tapering
inward, and the paper continuing to stiffly extend outward causing
wrinkling. The solution to this is to dampen (with wet fingers or spray
bottle - do not submerge) the cover sheet with water and bend the paper
with the palm of your hand around the edges of the mug. Press the mug
as usual and the water will help “paper mache” or cast/mold the paper
around the mug curvature. This will help alleviate white lines and white
splotches on the mug.

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ERR Mode
During operation of the press, if there
is a loss of signal from the temperature
sensor wire, the ERR display will
appear.
This is a safety feature that will shut off
the relay so the press will not overheat
aimlessly without a temperature signal.
Once the temperature signal is restored (no longer broken, or plugged
back into the control) the press will resume the temperature display, and
start heating if necessary. If ERR persists, contact support.
Over-Temp Alarm
If the press heats beyond the set
temperature by 40 degrees or greater,
the OverTemp alarm will sound.
This is a safety feature that warns the
operator of a possible thermal run-away
of the press. This means the press relay
may be locked in a heating position
where it will never stop heating, to a
possibly harmful temperature level.
If the OverTemp alarm sounds, set the temperature to a higher value
than the current actual temp. Wait 30 seconds and then reset the press to
your desired temperature and Watch Carefully. Do not let the press rise
to extremely high temps.
If it continues to rise, turn off the press and let it cool off to room
temperature. Turn the power back on and immediately set the temperature
to a low setting like 200°F. Wait for the press to heat up. When the press
displays “READY”, monitor the temperature and see if it continues to
heat to a level that the OverTemp alarm activates again. If so, contact
the factory.