Morgana CardCutter vs Duplo DC545

gazfocus

Well-known member
If there's one thing I really dislike using in our printshop, it's our guillotine. Not because it's bad, but because it's so time consuming and with registration being off on our Xerox C560, it just makes life difficult sometimes.

So, we are looking for something that we can use for our most common tasks which is business cards and postcards, and have seen a Morgana Cardxtra with business card and postcard cutters, and also seen a Duplo DC545 for sale.

At the outset, the Duplo looks the better machine because it can cut way more than the Morgana can, and can even do creases, but I've not been able to find out if it can read a registration mark like the Morgana does, to ensure the cuts are in the right places.

I also like the fact you can store different job settings on the Duplo whereas the Morgana means swapping out the cutting cassettes.

Any advice on which ones better? The Duplo is about £500 more than the Morgana.
 
In the US at least, the Duplo DC545 is past "end of life." I know a couple guys who have them and they often cannot get service or sometimes cannot get parts. I would recommend a DCS 615, DC 616 or DCS645. We had a 615 and liked it. We bought a used 645 and sold the 615. I am friends with the guy who bought our 615 and I know he is happy with it even though it is more than 8 years old now as I recall.
Used Duplos are very viable if you can find service and there are many service providers here in the US, for example. They are well built. I would not buy a machine that could not be serviced. I see used 615's around $10,000 and used 645s for somewhat more. We love our 645 as it is noticeably faster than our old 615. It is easier to maintain and is generally more robust. We do a lot of folded cards with it and its creasing on digital prints is unsurpassed. The programmability of the 6xx machines is useful. Many hold 80 presets and we have an additional 150 or so that we switch out via PC connection. Our digital press and the Duplo have tight registration so we don't need any kind of optical registration pickup. Make sure your Xerox 560 can put out absolutely flat sheets or running a Duplo will be a nightmare if they are not flat - I have experience with that (We got rid of that Xerox just a few days after its new installation ) Well that was a long time ago. The Duplo works great with our Xerox Versant.
Allow some money for an experienced technician to check and set up the machine after it gets moved into your facility.
 
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Thanks Lorenzo. Unfortunately, the DC615, etc are all out of our price range (the DC545 is for sale for £3000, and the Morgana Cardxtra is £2700. The Morgana looks like an early model rather than one of the newer ones but not sure of the age of either machine.
 
Hi Gaz. We have a business card / postcard cutter for sale. Not sure on the age, would need to check with colleagues, but we are using it less and less. It's a Morgana CT620, and it's just taking up factory space that could be better used for something else. Drop me a message if you'd like me to get more info or see a few photos.
 

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