Do you need help in loading direct thermal labels in your Zebra printer? Let this short guide assist you on how to install your labels to your printer correctly.

Zebra-GK420d

Source: Amazon

Zebra label printers are among the most reliable and smart printing systems that are available in both thermal and direct thermal models. Among the many types of printers they offer, the Zebra GK420t thermal transfer printer and the Zebra GK420d direct thermal printer are the top-selling ones. These printers provide long-term dependability and proven design which makes them ideal options for various distributed printing and mid-volume printing applications.

Though both types of printers are popular, many businesses prefer direct thermal printers for their labeling applications. That is why in this blog, we are going to provide a step-by-step guide on how to use direct thermal labels in Zebra’s G-Series printers.

CONTENT

How to Load Label Rolls in a Zebra Printer

How to Load Fanfold Media in a Zebra Printer

Printing a Configuration Label

How to Load Label Rolls in a Zebra Printer

Zebra’s GK-Series printers usually use label rolls, so we’ll discuss the instructions for installing label rolls in your printer first:

1. Open your printer by pulling the release latch levers toward the printer’s front.

2. Open the roll holders for the media. Use your other hand to pull the guides open.

3. Place the label roll on your printer’s roll holders before releasing the guides.

4. Make sure that the media roll’s printing surface is facing up when it passes over your printer’s platen roller.

5. Pull your label roll to make it extend out of your printer’s front.

6. Make sure that the label roll:

    • Can turn freely
    • Is not sitting in the media compartment’s bottom
    • Its printing side is facing upward

7. Push the label roll under the media guides and close your printer. The cover should snap close.

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How to Load Fanfold Media in a Zebra Printer

If you want to use fanfold labels, you need to adjust the stop position of the media guide:

  1. Open your printer’s top cover.
  2. Adjust the stop position of the media guide with the thumb wheel. You can set the stop position using a fanfold piece.
  3. Widen the guide by rotating the thumb wheel away from you. Make the guide narrower by doing the opposite.
  4. Insert your fanfold label through the printer’s rear slot.
  5. Run the fanfold label between the printer’s hangers.
  6. Close your printer’s top cover.
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Printing a Configuration Label

Ensuring that your printer is working properly before connecting it to your computer prevents future complications. Print a test label first:

  1. After closing your printer’s top cover, turn it on.
  2. Press the printer’s Feed button if it initializes with a blinking green light (pause mode). This will set your printer to Ready mode.
  3. Calibrate your printer for the installed direct thermal label by pressing the Feed button again 2-3 times. Your printer will feed a few labels during the process.
  4. Once the status light turns green (not blinking), press and hold the Feed button.
  5. Wait until you see the light flashing once before releasing the Feed button. Your device should print a configuration (test) label.

Wrapping Up

Zebra’s G-Series printers are widely used in the manufacturing, hospitality, transportation, retail, and healthcare industries. Aside from distributed printing deployments, they are also used in receipt printing, healthcare labeling, retail inventory, and product labeling. The wide application of these series of label printers made them popular among users.

However, having a reliable printer is not enough to guarantee the production of eye-catching labels. You will also need to use high-quality Zebra direct thermal labels which we, at enKo Products, can offer you at very affordable prices. For more related guides, refer to our blogs below:

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Tags: Direct Thermal Labels
Gene Paul Lim

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