On Dec 12, 7:32 am, Pat Brennan wrote:
On Dec 8, 1:10 am, (Aaron Hicks) wrote:





Pat:

Don't know about pot labels, but I use several label printers in
the lab to keep the flasks and tubes straight. I have a couple of Dymo
printers for labels, but they can only do paper labels, which wouldn't
work for the greenhouse. I also have some old Datamax printers, which
will do either direct or thermal transfer. And then I have an E-Class
Datamax for seed packet labels.

But the real brute is the M-Class Datamax, which I use for labels
on orchid flasks. It's a thermal transfer label, meaning it's
chemical-resistant, and won't fade. After that, it's up to the label
substrate in terms of longevity. I got a batch of miserable labels from
one company- the biggest name out there- and they fell apart after a few
months. Of course, I still have that legacy, and find more embrittled
labels every day.

Everything is driven through Access. Play with the page size until
you get it right. It all works out eventually, although it took me a few
hours to tweak it in- but I use barcodes, too (Tbarcode, I think it is),
which made it more complex. I use the barcode software to put barcodes on
flasks as well as seed packets. It was a lot of work to set it up, but as
anyone who has seen my handwriting can attest, it's a fantastic
improvement.

The email address in the header is bogus. Send no email there.

-Chicks
Chandler, AZ

Aaron, thanks for the post. The thing is fighting me so it is good to
know it will be a fantastic improvement. Have not even tried Access
yet, but it is good to hear someone is doing it this way. I see
light. Some where along the install process I messed up email, so I
got out an old laptop, reloaded ME and got the printer to print a test
label. As soon as I determined that the printer was not DOA, I got a
hammer and some carpet tape and soon had an old Lexmark working. My
greenhouses are now labeled and I have 3 rolls of labels left. That
should give me enough time to get it working some time after the
holidays.

Kenny, The thing looks more like a toaster oven than a printer. I
got an old TEC printer because the guys at Economy said they have had
the least amount of head problems with this type. New heads run about
$500. In the thermal transfer printer world we print tags, labels are
adhesive backed things. Tags tend to be thicker and stiffer than
labels and not all of the printers work well with plant tags. Seems
Datamax is another brand to consider. If you go the eBay route, I
would recommend finding a printer that has a USB port. Not only does
the one I got not have a USB port, it is pre plug and play meaning you
have to find and set dip switches and is a general pain installing.
USB should not add too much to the price, most of the bidder seem to
be looking for Ethernet ready printers.

Pat- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

What is the model number of this toaster? What size tag rolls did you
get? I was wondering about maximum length of tags and their
*thickness* What really confuses me is that the printers offer stats
for labels and the only ones that mention max thickness of the print
media is the jacked-up-price "brand" the Horticultural label company
sells; which I suspect are just re-branded models. The end of the
dotmatrix printer....these are scary times indeed.

When I got a call from the label company this summer about how they
were not going to carry dotmatrix tag stock anymore I had just reveid
a box of ten 1000 lable rolls. I told the sales rep that I don't go
through these tags fast enough to make it worth buying one of the
printers she was selling and she told me that they would probably have
enough stocked dotmatrix rolls for the foreseable future if I needed
them. Who knows what that means or if tag horders have changed the
equation.

Earlier this year I was astounded that the new printer head for my old
epsom dotmatrix cost more than a replacement printer of the same make
and model. So this spring I bought a new printer and a replacement
head and then all those new tags and THEN I get the call about the
dotmatrix label shortage...