Problems to consider when purchasing thermal transfer ribbons

When purchasing a ribbon, it is usually necessary to determine the chromophore (wax, mixed or resin) of the ribbon, the width and length of the ribbon. In order to get the right ribbon and get the best print results, you should consider the following:

1) What printer is used on?

In the thermal transfer printing mode, the ribbon and the label paper are consumed synchronously in the longitudinal direction. In the width direction, the width of the ribbon should be greater than or equal to the width of the label paper, which is smaller than the maximum printing width of the printer. Due to the physical size of each printer, the maximum roll length that can be loaded and the maximum width that can be printed are also different. In addition, the working temperature of the print head and the sensitivity characteristics of the ribbon will also have a great impact on the final printing effect.

2) Different print media

Print media is the material that the label printer can print. From the shape of the medium, there are mainly strips, cards and labels, and the materials are mainly paper, synthetic materials and cloths.

The following are introduced separately: paper is divided into high light, semi-high light and matt according to surface gloss.

*Highlight: Mirror copper plate, glossy paper, etc.

*Half-light: Coated paper.

* Matte paper: offset paper.

*Special papers are aluminum foil, fluorescent paper, thermal/thermal transfer paper.

In general, high-gloss paper-based media are made of resin-reinforced wax-based ribbons or mixed-based ribbons, especially mirror-coated paper. Although it is called a copper plate, the surface is a high-gloss coating and should be treated as a synthetic material. The types of ribbons available for semi-high gloss paper are resin reinforced wax bases and general wax based carbon ribbons. The matt class is best printed with a wax-based carbon.

Synthetic materials are divided into materials: *PET (polyester) * PVC (polyvinyl chloride) * BOPP (polypropylene) * PE (polyethylene) * PS (polypropylene) * POLYIMIDE (poly milling vinylamine) * metallized PET : Mainly laser rainbow film, brushed film, gold (high light, matt) silver (high light, matt).

These materials are stronger and more beautiful than paper-based materials. They have a wide range of applications for the environment, and have high requirements for carbon ribbons. They mainly use mixed-base and resin-based carbon ribbons. Requirements and usage environment.

3) Desired graphics durability

If you want the printed label content to have good durability, you should choose a resin-based ribbon.

4) Affordable costs

In general, the cost of a wax-based ribbon is the lowest, the cost of a mixed-base ribbon is second, and the cost of a resin-based ribbon is the highest.

5) Label scratch resistance, scratch resistance, smear resistance, corrosion resistance, high temperature resistance, etc.

If the label is used in a scratch-resistant, smudge-resistant, corrosion-resistant, high-temperature environment, a resin ribbon or a hybrid ribbon should be selected.

6) At what speed is printed

In the case of high-speed printing, a high-sensitivity ribbon should be selected.

In general, it is not easy to purchase the right ribbon. Different printers have different printing preferences. Different printing media will affect the printing effect. Now, the ribbon can be said to be The domestic processing capacity is becoming more and more popular, the price is getting lower and lower, and it is necessary to have a genuinely knowledgeable person to guide the purchase of a cheap and easy-to-use ribbon. Otherwise, the bad printing effect directly affects the image of the product. . In addition, a small number of imported printers are designated to use a dedicated printing ribbon, the effect is not necessarily significantly better than the general printing effect, and the ribbon is very expensive, which is a special place to pay attention to when purchasing a printer.