An ink image producing machine has (a) imaging devices, including at least one ink jet print head and an image receiving station for producing an ink image on a heated substrate; (b) a substrate handling assembly including holding devices for holding supplies of substrates, and transport feeding devices for transporting and feeding substrates in a substrate direction towards the image receiving station; (c) a first substrate heating assembly located upstream of the image receiving station for initially heating each substrate being fed and transported from the holding devices; and (d) a second substrate heating assembly located downstream of the first substrate heating assembly and upstream of said image receiving station, relative to the substrate feeding direction, for controllably re-heating each substrate, initially heated by the first substrate heating assembly, to a desired ink image receiving temperature.