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Print tips

Posted on by CISON

When encountering thermal printing problems, it is common to put the blame on the ribbon. However, it is important to remember that there are three elements to successful printing that need to be correct. These are the ribbon, receptor. and printer settings.

Below are some of the common problems and possible reasons for why they occur.

The printed image is patchy or faint

  • The printers heat and speed settings may need to be adjusted.
  • There may be dust on the label.
  • The label substrate may not be compatible with the ribbon grade.
  • The printhead may be dirty.

The ribbon is wrinkling

  • The printhead may be misaligned.
  • The printers heat setting may be too high.
  • The ribbon unwind tension on the printer may be too low.
  • The ribbon may be too wide for the label being used.

The ribbon snaps during printing

  • The printhead may be dirty causing heat build-up.
  • The heat setting on the printer may be too high.
  • The printhead pressure may be too high.
  • The ribbon may be incorrectly loaded on the printer.
  • The ribbon rewind tension may be too high on the printer.
  • The backcoating may be faulty on the ribbon.

The printer will not detect the ribbon

  • The ribbon sensor on the printer may be in the wrong setting.
  • The ribbon may be incorrectly loaded in the printer.

Excessive Sticking between ribbon and label

  • The heat setting on the printer may be too high.
  • The printhead pressure may be too high.
  • The angle at which the label exits the printer is too steep.

The printer will not stop at the end of a ribbon

  • The ribbon sensor may be dirty or obstructed.
  • The ribbon sensor may be out of position.
  • The ribbon trailer may be incorrect for the specific printer.

The printed image is scratching off

  • Make sure the correct grade of ribbon is being used.
  • Check compatibility between ribbon and label.

Premature printhead failure

  • Ribbon width is smaller than label width.
  • The heat setting on the printer may be too high.
  • The printhead pressure may be too high.
  • The label surface is uneven (e.g. Containing a hologram)
  • Insufficient printhead cleaning.