Views: 0 Author: Site Editor Publish Time: 2025-03-14 Origin: Site
Thermal Transfer Ribbons come in three main groups: wax, wax/resin, and resin. This animation and article explain the specifics of wax Thermal Transfer Ribbons. Wax ribbons are named after the wax ingredient that carries the ink. A good product ensures a dark, high-density print that enables flawless scanning.
Typical applications of wax ribbons include labels for shipping and inventory management, as well as retail tags. However, you may come across wax-printed labels and other substrates in many industries. This comes as wax formulations are the most common ribbons used in Thermal Transfer Printing.
Compared to resin and wax/resin ribbons, wax ribbons are easier to print. The ink is transferred at lower heat settings on the printer and therefore the printing process requires less energy. Another difference between wax and resin ribbons is that the prints made with wax are less resistant to friction/abrasion and exposure to things like heat, solvents, and other chemicals. The next difference between wax and resin ribbons is the ability to print on rough surfaces, such as uncoated paper. In this case, wax ribbons are a better choice as they can overcome he unevenness of the surface by melting into it, ensuring a dark and crisp print result.
Printing with a wax ribbon is normally done at the lower ending of the heat-setting of the Thermal Transfer Printer. The easy transfer of the ink onto the substrate ensures a hassle-free printing process.
On paper materials, one can often achieve a print speed of 4-10 IPS, whereas on smoother materials you may reach up to 8-20 IPS depending on the settings, print material, and formulation.
Of all the Thermal Transfer Ribbons, wax formulations give the best print results on rougher substrates such as uncoated paper and Tyvek®.
The wax easily melts into the uneven areas ensuring dark, high-quality print results. In addition, wax ribbons also print well on other papers and a range of synthetic materials such as PE and PP.
Wax ribbons are seen in all industries where they are mostly used for production of high quality logistical prints. Compared to other printing methods, such as direct thermal, thermal transfer print with wax delivers a more durable and easy-to-scan image. The applications vary from box labels, crate tags, shelf labels and shipping labels.
