This tutorial is for the TSC 2410MT, though other TSC printers have similar menu setups, this may work for other models. Check your printer before changing your settings. The TSC 2410MT with cutter attachment is shown.
Step 1 - Loading the Ribbon
Unless you are working with direct thermal material, you will not only need to load your media, but you will also need to load your ribbon as well! The nice thing about TSC thermal transfer printers is that they can use both CSI (coated side in) and CSO (coated side out) ribbons! If you aren't sure what kind of ribbon you have, you can use scotch tape to check. The ink will stick to the tape and easily come off the ribbon!
Open the printhead using the green lever on the right and feed your ribbon under the printhead. Make sure your excess ribbon is securely attached to the uptake spindle located directly above the printhead. The ribbon is what will pull your tags through the printer, so if it becomes detached anytime while you're printing, your printer will stop printing and display an error. Check the yellow path guide below on how to load your ribbons properly.
Step 2 - Feed Your Media
If you are working with a roll of tags, slide the roll onto the spindle at the back of the printer. Secure the roll with the metal guide attached to the supply spindle, as this will keep the roll from shifting while you print! If you're using fanfolded tags, you will have to either feed them into the printer through the bottom or rear media loading slot indicated in the above graphic.
Once your media is loaded, feed it over the middle tension guide bar and then under the printhead. Our printer has a cutter attachment, if you also have one, you will need to slide your media under the black plate past the cutter. Secure the media in place with the two paper guides. There is a small silver guide by the sensor and a large green one on the tension guide bar. Both of these will keep your paper from shifting while you print!
Step 3 - Aligning the sensor
To properly calibrate your printer and avoid many errors, make sure the sensor is in the correct position! The sensor bar is a green "clip" (that looks slightly like a clothespin) that can slide back and forth across the printer. Your media should pass through the opening in the middle of the "clip" before it leaves the printer.
The actual sensor is located at the bottom of the "clip" so we can't see its placement. However, there is a small triangle pointing down at the top of the senor bar, this indicates the position of the sensor. Move the sensor bar to where it will pass over your label's gap or black mark. If you have a notched tag, you want it passing over the notch. If your tag has a hole, avoid placing the sensor over it. Otherwise, your printer might place the print incorrectly due to a miss-calibration. Once you position your sensor correctly, lock it in place with the green sensor lock located by the lever that releases the printhead. In the photo above, we have it in the locked position. Turning the lock counterclockwise will unlock the sensor!
Step 4 - Calibrate your printer
Now that everything is in place, close the printhead and shut the printer cover. On the menu screen, navigate to "Calibration" and select your media type.
Gap - tags with notches or labels with gaps between each label
Black Mark - tags or labels with a black bar that goes across the paper.
Continuous - continuous tag or label material that has no sensor features
SPECIAL NOTE FOR BLACK MARK MEDIA:
Some black marks go across the entire media width, while others only go partially across. So it's important to place the sensor over the black mark. The sensor reads from the bottom, so make sure your black mark is FACE DOWN as it goes through the printer. In the above images, you can see that our media is a small circle label with gaps, but there is a black mark on the back of the liner. So in this instance, we set our printer sensor to read the black mark.
Once you select your media type, the printer will start to go through auto-calibration. It's common for the printer to send out some blank tags. It will stop once it completes the calibration, so don't worry. If the calibration fails, try adjusting your sensor and try again. Once again, check that your sensor is placed where it can read your media's sensor feature!
Once the printer has run through its calibration without errors, you are ready to print! You can test to see if your printer is calibrated correctly by hitting the "Feed" button on the printer. If it feeds one tag or label, then you are good to go!
Troubleshooting
If your printer is still giving media errors when you go to print, despite having already inputted the proper settings into the printer, check the print settings on your computer. Many times the print settings on your computer will override the settings on the printer. Double-check that the print dialog box settings when you go to print match that of your printer before sending the job to the printer!
Still Having issues? give us a call! We won't leave you stranded!
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937-743-1550