Zebra Technologies GC420t Loading Transfer Ribbon

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Loading Transfer Ribbon

5/22/2012 GC420t™ User Guide P1052686-001

Loading Transfer Ribbon

Transfer ribbons come in several varieties and in some cases colors to match your application

needs. Genuine Zebra® transfer ribbons are specifically designed for your printer and Zebra

brand media. Using non-Zebra media or ribbons not approved for use in your Zebra® printer

may damage your printer or printhead.

• The media and ribbon types should be matched to provide you with optimal print results.

• Always use ribbon that is wider than the media to protect the printhead from wear.

• For direct thermal printing, do not load ribbon in the printer.

Your printer needs to use Zebra® Uni-Ribbon™ (universal ribbon). Uni-Ribbons have a ribbon

out trailer (reflector) to stop printing when empty. Zebra® Uni-Ribbon™ will work on older

model Zebra® desktop printers too.

Uni-Ribbons are identified with a color coded leader.

•Blue - Performance Wax (5319)

•Silver - Premium Wax/Resin (3200)

•Gold - Performance Resin (5095) for synthetics (6 ips max. speed) and coated paper

(4 ips max. speed)

•Red - Premium Resin (5100) for synthetics (4 ips max. speed)

Before following these steps, prepare the ribbon by removing its wrapping and pulling its

adhesive strip free.

See Ribbon Overview on page 36 for more information on ribbon use.

Notch

Adhesive Strip

Right Side

(printer and roll)

Important • DO NOT USE early model desktop printer ribbon cores! The older ribbon cores

can be identified by notches on only one side of the ribbon core. These older cores are too large

and will cause take-up spool to bind.

Note • DO NOT USE ribbon cores with damaged notches - rounded, frayed, smashed, etc. The

core notches should be square to lock the core on the spindle or the core may slip causing

ribbon wrinkle, poor end of ribbon sensing or other intermittent failures.

Contents

Main Page iii iv FCC Compliance Statement Environmental Management Page vi Who Should Use This Document How This Document Is Organized vii Contacts Contacts viii Document Conventions Contents Page Page Page Introduction GC420t Thermal Printers Whats in the Box? Unpack and Inspect the Printer Your Printer Opening the printer Printer Features Page Page Page Getting Started Attaching Power Loading Roll Media Preparing Media Placing the Roll in the Media Compartment Page Page Loading Transfer Ribbon Page Page Page Printing a Test (Printer Configuration) Label 20 Pre-install Windows Printer Drivers PlugNPlay (PnP) Printer Detection and Windows operating systems Page Connecting your Printer to a Computer Interface Cable Requirements Page 24 Serial Communications Autobaud ZPL ^SC Command EPL Y Command Resetting the Default Serial Port Parameters 2. While the status LED rapidly flashes amber and green, press the feed button. Serial baud, NO parity, 8 data bits, 1 stop bit and a HARDWARE and SOFTWARE (merged) data Page 27 After Your Printer is Connected Testing Communications by Printing Page Print Operations Determining Printer Configuration Long Term Printer In-activity or Storage Thermal Printing Modes of Printing Print Media Types Page Determining Thermal Media Types To perform a media scratch test, complete these steps: Replacing Supplies Adding a New Transfer Ribbon Replacing a Partially Used Transfer Ribbon Adjusting the Print Width Adjusting the Print Quality Media Sensing Ribbon Overview When to Use Ribbon Coated Side of Ribbon To determine which side of a ribbon is coated, complete these steps: 37 Ribbon Test with Adhesive To perform an adhesive test, complete these steps: Ribbon Scratch Test To perform a ribbon scratch test, complete these steps: Printing on Fan-Fold Media Page Printing with Externally Mounted Roll Media Externally Mounted Roll Media Considerations: Fonts and Your Printer Localizing the Printer with Code Pages Identifying Fonts in Your Printer Stand Alone Printing Sending Files to the Printer Print Meter Printer Options 46 Label Dispenser Option ^XA ^MMP ^XZ Page Page Zebra KDU Printer Accessory 50 KDU Plus Printer Accessory * - Not real values ( 45mA + 120mA + 25mA ) + 50mA <Max. Current Current Draw ZBI 2.0 Zebra Basic Interpreter Page Maintenance This section provides routine cleaning and maintenance procedures. Cleaning Cleaning the Printhead Media Path Considerations 57 Sensor Cleaning Platen Cleaning and Replacement Page Other Printer Maintenance Replacing the Printhead Page Page Page Troubleshooting Status Light Descriptions Status Light Error Resolutions Page Print Quality Problems No print on the label. The printed image does not look right. There are long tracks of missing print (blank vertical lines) on several labels. The printing does not start at the top of the label or misprinting of one to three labels. A ZPL label format was sent to, but not recognized by, the printer. A EPL label format was sent to, but not recognized by, the printer. Manual Calibration Troubleshooting Tests Resetting the Factory Default Values Communications Diagnostics Page Feed Button Modes Feed Button Modes Amber - Red Flashing Green Amber www.zebra.com Page Page Page Universal Serial Bus (USB) Interface Parallel Interface PRINTER DB-25 Pin No. Centronics Pin No. DB-25 to Centronics (Cable) Serial Port Interface Connecting the Printer to a DCE Device Page Page Page Page C 88 Managing the ZPL Printer Configuration ZPL Printer Configuration Format ZPL Configuration Status to Command Cross-reference Page Page Printer Memory Management and Related Status Reports ZPL Programming for Memory Management