Zebra Technologies Z6M manual Order to avoid abrasion

Next, press the swab tip against the printhead and swipe the print elements from end to end. Then, turn the platen rollers while wiping them from side to side. Repeat this step until the swab no longer shows dirt.

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Abrasion: Over time, the movement of media/ribbon across the printhead wears through the protective ceramic coating, exposing and eventually damaging the print elements (dots).

In order to avoid abrasion:

•Clean your printhead frequently and use well-lubricated thermal transfer ribbons with backcoatings optimized to reduce friction.

•Minimize printhead pressure and burn temperature settings by optimizing the bal- ance between the two.

•Ensure that the thermal transfer ribbon is as wide or wider than the label media to prevent exposing the elements to the more abrasive label material.

Ribbon Backcoating and Buildup: Printhead contamination from direct thermal media or thermal transfer ribbon may occur in applications requiring high burn settings, high head pressure, high speed, or high volume. This contamination builds up on the printhead elements, creating a barrier to the heat transformation required to produce high quality images. Contaminant buildup occurs gradually and results in poor print quality that may look like faded print or failed print element(s). This build up is very resistant to cleaning with the pre-soaked swabs and is difficult to remove.

In order to avoid ribbon backcoating and buildup:

•Use thermal transfer ribbons that have been specially cured to provide backcoat protection for high demand applications. These ribbons — sometimes referred to as anti-stick ribbons — also dissipate static and provide more lubrication.

•Follow the recommended Printhead Preventive Maintenance procedures.

•Use our Save-a-Printheadcleaning film to remove printhead contamination buildup quickly and easily.

Zebra Z4M/Z6M Printers User’s Guide 59