Ribbon Printers Direct

Worldwide

Part of Creative Printers of London (Est. 1986)

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Answers to
frequently asked questions

To make you buying experience easy, we have listed some frequently asked questions along
With answers. If you have a question which is not answered here, please e-mail us your query
we promise to get back to you same day, often within the hour, during weekdays.

Alternatively, you may talk to a real person by calling us on the phone numbers supplied on the
‘Contact us’ page. All out staff are fully trained to assist you with any queries which you may have.

Question: Do I have to use the entire width of the foil even if I am printing smaller width ribbons?
Answer:  Well, we have two great solutions for you that will help you to save money and eliminate any wastage of foils:-

a) We are the only company to offer you two width of foils, namely 55mm and 110mm wide. To our knowledge, our competitors only offer the wider one and not the narrower foils - we offer both! Therefore, if you are printing, say a 35mm wide ribbon, then you can use our 55mm wide foil rather than the 100mm wide foil - this is not only cheaper but will also save you money. We are the only company who have invested heavily in stocking both size of foils, so you, our customer can save money in the long run.

b) We were the pioneers in introducing the ‘multi-print attachments’ which allow you to print several ribbons, even of varying sizes at once! This allows you the ability to ‘squeeze’  out every but of your foil and just as importantly, it allows you to print several ribbons at once, thereby saving you a great deal of time too!

We have the necessary technology in place so we can custom make a multi-print attachments based your particular requirements. Alternatively, you can select from our six ‘off the shelf’ attachments at a competitive price!


Question: I have been told by others that as their machine has a left hand feed as opposed to our central feed, you can re-use the foil by turning it around - is that correct?
Answer: This, in our opinion, is myth and not a practical solution at all. We say it is not practical because of two main issues (and that is why we have kept away from supplying left aligning machines):-

a) As the foil is fed through the machine for printing, it rewinds onto a waste foil uptake rollers at the back. During this process, the waste foil will crease as it rewinds onto the waste foil uptake roller. Therefore, if you were to turn it around as others suggest, you will get MISPRINTS because where the foil is creased, you will get bits of print missing!  It simply is not practical to check each print - this is not the right solution at all.

b) If you were to follow the argument of others that you can turn the foil around on their machine, then there is another problem - and this problem is that if you were, say, using a 110mm wide foil (as they do not sell 55mm  wide foils like we do), then if you were printing, say two ribbons at 35mm width each, then allowing for the gap between the two, you would end up using 35mm + 35mm + 5mm (for spacing) = 75mm. If you were to turn the foil around, you would only have 35mm of ‘spare’ foil left over (i.e. 110mm - 75mm) . If your next ribbon to be printed had a width of 40mm, you would not be able to use the foil, you would have to open up a new roll of foil - which leads to more wastage! Even if your next ribbon to be printed was 25mm in width, then you will still likely get misprints as the foil tends to waver a little whilst printing. Therefore, if you do not allow enough tolerances, you will experience further problems and frustrations.

We would like to stress that we are basing this on facts because foils do crease leading to problems as described above. Turning the foil around depends on how wide your next job is!  We feel, that with other machines, you will experience problems and it is not as straightforward as  you may be led to believe it is. In light of this, we feel we have the perfect solution for you; central fed machine with 55mm and 110mm wide foils together with multi-print attachments.

Question: What type of ribbon can I print onto?
Answer: Our ribbons printer works best on single or double faced stain ribbons. It will not print onto
grossgrain or other textured finished ribbons.

Question: What is the minimum and maximum size of ribbons can I print onto?
Answer: Our machine prints 15mm to 100mm wide ribbons. For ribbons narrower than 15mm, we will
supply you with a free adapter which will allow you to print 5mm, 7mm, 10mm and 12mm wide ribbons
too.

Question: Can I print more than one ribbon at a time?
Answer: Yes, you can indeed! Using our optional multi-print attachments, you can print several
ribbons of varying size, all at once! They can all have different messages, but the print colour will be
the same. We can also custom make a adapter for you based on your specific needs, please enquire.

Question: Will the ZX-40 Ultra accept oversized ribbons?
Answer: Yes it will, thanks to the free external ribbon holder which we supply free of charge with
your purchase of the ZX-40 Ultra. This free offer alone is worth £29.99+VAT!

Question: Can I print vertically as well as horizontally?
Answer: Yes, you can. Vertical print on a ribbon is often used for rosette tails.

Question: Can I print in any language?
Answer: Yes you can, providing you have the fonts installed on your PC. Many of our customers
around the world print in English, Spanish, French, Russian, Hindi, Arabic to name but a few.

Question: Can I print logos, designs and symbols?
Answer: Yes you can! It is this capability of being able to print logos and designs as well as
text in any language that makes the ZX-40 Ultra Ribbon Printer such a sought-after product.

Question: Can the ribbons be washed after printing?
Answer: Printed ribbons are splash proof but cannot be washed (apart from our washcare labels)

Question: Will the ZX-40 Ultra work anywhere in the world?
Answer: Yes, it will, The ZX-40 works on 110v for North America and 220v for rest of the world.
The ZX-40 Ultra comes with a UK three pin plug as standard, however, we will provide you with a
free adapter to suit your country.

Question: Will the ZX-40 Ultra work on a Mac?
Answer: It is now possible to use Windows  on a Mac using Boot Camp. Please click here for more details.
You will need to install a version of Windows too (not supplied here).

Question: What length of ribbon can I print?
Answer: Any length is possible. The ZX-40 Ultra will print approximate 1 meter of ribbons which
can be duplicated as many times as you like (providing you have enough foil)

Question: What if I have any issues in setting up my ZX-40 Ultra Ribbon Printer or using
the design software?
Answer: No need to worry, as we can offer you remote assistance , regardless of where you are
in the world. For this, you will need connection to the internet and we can then log into your PC
from here (with your password of course) and help you that way. Whilst we are helping you, we
can add messages on your notepad, which you can then save for referral, should that ever be
required.

Question: How secure is Remote Assistance?
Answer: Very safe indeed. We give you a link to free software, you click on it and it will generate a
random password, which then issue to us. Using this password, we will be able to access your PC.
You will be able to see us moving your mouse and clicking on any relevant files. Please be assured
that we will not look in any other files, only those that are relevant for the task in hand. At every
stage, we will ask for your approval. You can disconnect us at anytime instantly. We will not be
able to log in again until you generate another password.

Remote Assistance is thus a perfectly safe method of offering distant support and it is widely used
IT companies around the world.

Question: If I require training after purchase, can I visit your premises?
Answer: Absolutely!  Most people are happy to receive the printer by post and often start printing successfully within an hour of receiving it. However, if you feel that you may require hands-on training, then that option is also available at our premises by prior appointment, at no extra cost.

Question: Do you supply foils and accessories?
Answer: Yes, we do and we keep large stocks in our warehouse for prompt shipment to anywhere.

Question: Do you supply ribbons?
Answer: We do not supply ribbons as they are widely available. With your purchase, we will even
give you details of recommended suppliers in the UK.  Buying ribbons this way will enable you to shop around for best deals rather than being tied down to just one single supplier and end up paying extra to the middleman. It is for this reason why we give you a list of recommended suppliers.
For rest of the world, a simple google search will no doubt throw up quite a few suppliers in your locality.

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