Category Archives: Evolis Printer

New from Evolis: The Avansia

avansiaEvolis has introduced a brand-new printer, which is currently available for order!

The Evolis Avansia is a re-transfer printer, meaning that it prints first on film, then that film is fused to a card. This process creates cards that are less subject to wear than cards on which images are directly printed. Additionally, the printing process is less susceptible to card-surface imperfections that sometimes affect image quality on direct-to-card printers.

By using this method of printing, the Avansia printer provides extremely high resolution images (up to 600 dpi) and is capable of over-the-edge printing, maximizing use of your card’s surface area. Despite this advanced printing method, the Avansia still prints at a rate of 140 single-sided color cards per hour. And, thanks to options for magnetic stripe and contactless smart-card encoding, this new printer can satisfy even the most rigorous security needs.

This printer is designed for heavy use; it can operate in critical environments thanks to its airtight structure and is backed by a 3-year standard warranty as well as a life-time warranty on the printhead. The printer itself is also secure. It comes with a RFID electronic key, which can be removed to lock the printer, preventing any attempt at use, as well as a Kensington® type security slot and an optional mechanical key lock to prevent access to consumables.

MSRP on the Avansia runs from $5,195-$6,835 (depending on encoding modules included). To learn more, and to obtain our best pricing for your required configuration, call our experts at +1-888-485-4696 or +1-704-535-5200!

Evolis Discontinuing Spare Parts for Older Model Printers

trade in program

Trade in, trade up!

File this post under “Fair Warning.” Evolis has announced that they will no longer produce spare parts for the Tattoo1, Pebble, New Pebble, Pebble3, Dualys and Dualys2, all of which have been out of production for several years and replaced by newer models. Production of spare parts will cease October 30, 2014. You may order parts up until that date, but it’s important to note that if you have one of these models, your printer will no longer be supported in a few weeks.

If you know that you need a part, this is the time to order it. Alternatively, if you’re planning ahead, Evolis offers an excellent trade in-trade up program for these old printers. We’re happy to facilitate your trade in and save you money on an upgraded Evolis printer.

If you have any questions about your printer and how this will affect you, please call one of our experts at +1-888-485-4696 or +1-704-535-5200.

Coming Soon: Evolis Badgy200!

Badgy200 and consumable pack

The Badgy200 Solution

 

Evolis has announced that this fall a new line of their Badgy card printer will be available. The original Badgy was named New Product of the Year 2013 by the Boss Industry Awards given by the BOSS Federation, the trade association serving the UK office supplies and services industry. We hope this indicates good things for the updated version coming out in the next few weeks. The Badgy200 will be an economical solution for small-scale printing needs, allowing education, corporate, and leisure organizations to print in-house, thus saving money and offering instant results.

 

Badgy200
95 cards/hour (~38 seconds/card)
Edge-to-edge printing
Evolis Badge Studio® + included
100 print consumable pack included
Energy Star® certified
Single side printing (re-insert card for reverse-side printing)
Wide selection of templates available for card design
PC & Mac Compatible
1 year standard warranty

 

As you can see, the Badgy200 is a good entry-level card printer solution. Evolis Badge Studio®+ allows you to print from a database, making it easy to retain information for reprinting cards and to organize your card printing in batches. The consumable pack sets you up with a ribbon and 30 mil CR-80 PVC cards (100), so you’ll be able to start printing immediately upon set up.

This printer is designed to set up in the same manner as a desktop printer, making it easy for anyone familiar with office equipment to get running quickly.

If you’ve been looking for a budget card printing solution, this new offer from Evolis may be a good fit. As always, to make sure the needs of your organization are met, call Safe-Card ID at +888-485-4696 OR +705-535-5200 for a free consultation with one of our experts! We look forward to hearing from you!

Evolis Pebble or Dualys – Printer Won’t Feed A Card

Here’s a problem that occasionally is presented to our technical staff: An Evolis Pebble or Evolis Dualys printer won’t feed a card.

Most Likely Causes when a Printer Won’t Feed a Card:

Evolis printer won't feed a card

Evolis Dualys3

  1. Printer needs a cleaning
  2. Cards sticking together
  3. Thickness gauge set too narrow
  4. Hopper not completely inserted
  5. Cards not loaded properly in hopper
  6. Worn card input roller

More details and suggested steps for resolution:

  1. Needs cleaning: As you use the printer, with each new card inserted, minuscule amounts of dust, lint, and card-manufacturing remnants go into the printer with the card. The printer transport rollers are sticky or tacky to the touch specifically so they can move the card forwards and back during printing. Over time, these contaminants adhere to the rollers which can make them slip on glossy card surfaces. Each cleaning of the printer should consist of using an IPA alcohol impregnated cleaning card, followed by an IPA soaked cleaning wipe, and then finally a pass on the print-head with an IPA alcohol foam-tipped swab. These items are included with a standard Evolis UltraClean Cleaning kit #A5021.
  2. Card sticking together:  This can occur for a variety of reasons, but the most common is static cling. Yes, the force of nature that makes your socks stick to your dress in a dryer, can make PVC cards stick to one-another. If the static bond is stronger that the force imparted on the card by the transport roller, then the printer won’t feed a card. Fortunately, you need only to break the static bond to get things going again. Handling the cards only by their edges, manually separate and shuffle the cards, then reinsert them in the card hopper. The mere act of separating them will dissipate the charge and the cards should feed normally.
  3. The card-thickness gauge is manually set, and is located just behind the top cover of the printer – between it and the card-hopper. There are a series of graduation marks on the gauge. Slide it right or left to set a thickness appropriate for your cards. We recommend setting the gauge to a thickness just a bit larger than your cards. So, if you’re using standard 30-mil cards, set the gauge to about 32-33. Setting this properly ensures cards will be pulled more consistently, should they have slight warping or are slightly thicker than normal.
  4. If the card input hopper is not fully seated, it can also cause mis-feeds or no feed at all. Remove the card hopper, check for and clear any obstructions, then re-seat the card hopper. Press down firmly to ensure it is seated fully.
  5. If the card hopper is not loaded properly, cards will not feed into the printer. Remove the card hopper, then remove and re-insert the cards to ensure they are placed properly. This is also a good time to check for any card static-cling issues, as in #2, above.
  6. Last, but not least, you could have a worn card intake roller. With age and use, the input and transport rollers of all card printers are subject to wear and degradation. The rollers will become hard and slick over time, making it difficult for them to do their jobs. They CAN be replaced, but the labor-portion of such a repair can be very high. This is because it requires the full disassembly and reassembly of the afflicted printer. Contact our service department for more information, should this be the case.

Need more info?

For more information about Evolis card printers – the Evolis Pebble or the Evolis Dualys, contact our ID-card experts toll-free at +1 888.485.4696 (from the US or Canada), or +1 704.535.5200 (elsewhere).

Evolis Dualys – Printing on Two Separate Cards

If you have an Evolis Dualys printer, you are most likely using it to produce custom printed cards designed for dual-side printing. We have seen instances where the Dualys3 will print the first side on one PVC card, then use a second card to print the back side of the card. Obviously this is incorrect, as the intent is to have both images printed on opposite sides of a single card. Fortunately, there is a simple fix.Evolis Dualys3

(note – you must have elevated privileges on your associated Windows user-id to be able to make this change to the print-driver)

To access the screen where you can make the required changes, follow these steps:

  1. Access Windows’ “Devices and Printers” view (“Printers and Faxes” if still operating under Windows XP). This is accessible through Windows Control Panel, or you can type the string within the quotes in the Windows search box.
  2. Find the instance of the Evolis Dualys print-driver within the “Printers” section; right-click on the icon, then select “Printing Preferences”.
  3. In the resultant pop-up window, ensure that the “Graphics” tab is selected.

Now that you are in the right place, follow the 5 steps as outlined, and in the image below:

Setting the Evolis Dualys Printing Preferences:

  1. Ensure your have the proper ribbon selected (“R3314 – 6-panel colour ribbon – YMCKOK”, if printing color front-side images, and black-only back-side images; otherwise, select the ribbon appropriate for your card configuration).
  2. To the right of the ribbon selection box, make sure the box is checked for “Dual-side Printing”.
  3. In the drop-down box to the right of the check-box, set your card-print configuration (“Front YMCKO / back K” if using the R3314 ribbon).
  4. Click on the “Apply” button at the lower-right of the window.
  5. Click on the “OK” button at the lower-middle of the windows.

Finally, reset the printer by disconnecting the power for 5 seconds, then re-applying the power. When the printer comes back to a ready state, you may resume printing.

Need More Info?

The Evolis Pebble and Dualys printers were mainstay printers for Evolis through 2012, and are now replaced by the Evolis Primacy Simplex and Primacy Duplex series printers. For more information and support for all Evolis printers, contact our ID-card experts at +1 888.485.4696.

Evolis Primacy – How to Do a Routine Printhead Cleaning

Below you will find a video illustrating the correct way to complete a routine print-head cleaning using a cleaning card on the Evolis Primacy ID card printer.

1.  Open the top printer lid.
2.  Remove the print cartridge.
3.  Close the printer lid.
4.  Open the cardstock hopper and remove the cards.
5.  Shift the card thickness gauge to the right (“Max”).
6.  Put the cleaning card in the card input area.
7.  Turn the cleaning cycle on.
8.  Remove the cleaning card from the card output hopper.
9.  Open the top printer lid.
10. Replace the print cartridge.
11. Close the lid.
12. Open the card-stock hopper and load with your standard cards.
13. Shift the card thickness gauge to the correct card thickness for your cards.
14. Close the hopper.

Contact our ID card experts at 704-535-5200 for Evolis Primacy supplies and information.

Evolis Primacy – How to Do an Advanced Printer Cleaning

Following is a video of cleaning instructions illustrating how to properly clean the Evolis Primacy printer using an Evolis cleaning kit.

1. Open the lid on the top of the printer.
2. Remove the print ribbon.
3. Close the lid.
4. Open the card intake hopper.
5. Remove cardstock.
6. Shift the card thickness guage all the way to the right.
7. Open a cleaning T card.
8. Push the printer on button.
9. Insert the T card in the place where cards enter the printer.
10.When the strip ejects, place a cleaning card in the cardstock intake area.
11.When finished, the card will eject in the output hopper.
12.Open the lid on the top of the printer.
13.Replace the ribbon removed in step 2.
14.Close the lid.
15.Open the card hopper and replace the cardstock.
16.Shift the card thickness guage to the correct thickness for your cards.
17.Close the card hopper.

 For information about the Evolis Primacy printer, our ID experts are available toll free at 888-485-4696.

Evolis Dualys – How to Manually Clean the Printer

Like all Evolis plastic card printers, the manufacturer recommends a cleaning cycle be performed once every 1,000 card prints. For printers still under warranty coverage, these cleanings must be performed on time to maintain coverage on the print-head. For any Evolis Dualys series printer, follow these steps to manually clean the printer:

Cleaning Supplies Required:

Manually Clean the Printer:

  1. Open the printer lid, remove the print-ribbon, and set it aside;
  2. Remove the card hopper, and then remove all cards from the card-hopper. Set the cards aside where they’ll stay clean and neatly stacked. Be careful to handle the cards only by the edges, and not on the printable surfaces.
  3. Move the card thickness gauge to its maximum open setting (past the “40” marking).
  4. Remove an Evolis Hi-Trust IPA-alcohol cleaning card from its protective package and insert the cleaning card into the card hopper.
  5. Place the card hopper, with cleaning card inserted, back onto the printer.
  6. Push the power button for about 1 second, and then release it. (Note – if you don’t hold it down long enough, nothing will happen; if you hold it down too long, the printer will power off. If either occurs, try again.)
  7. The cleaning card will be pulled into the printer, and it will be cycled through the print area repeatedly. You will know that the cleaning is proceeding properly when you hear the card being cycled forward and back in the printer. If the card is transported straight through and into the output hopper, replace the cleaning card into the card hopper, and start at step 5.
  8. Once the card cleaning has completed successfully, open the printer lid and remove the cleaning roller from the inside-back of the printer.
  9. Open an Evolis Hi-trust IPA alcohol cleaning wipe, and use it to thoroughly clean the cleaning roller.
  10. Replace the cleaning roller into the printer, ensuring that the “axle” on each end is fitted into the appropriate slots on either side of its mounting location.
  11. Continue to use the IPA alcohol wipe to clean any other visible rollers within the printer. Note that you may want to rotate these rollers by hand to be able to clean them completely.
  12. Replace your print ribbon and close the printer lid.
  13. Remove the card-hopper, reset the thickness gauge to the number equivalent to your card thickness (standard cards are 30 mil, so you would set the gauge to “30”.
  14. Replace your card stock into the card hopper and place the hopper back into the printer.
  15. Ensure that the output hopper is fully open.

Once the steps above are completed, your Evolis Dualys series printer will be clean and you will be ready to print again.

Safe-Card ID Services is an authorized dealer for all Evolis card printing products. For additional information about ID card printing, or if you need further technical support or assistance, feel free to contact us toll-free from the US & Canada at +1 888.485.4696, or +1 704.535.5200 elsewhere.

How to Remove and Replace an Evolis Pebble Printhead

Our technical area is busy with different questions our customers have about printers and how customers can get the most efficient operation from them. One popular question about the Evolis brand printers is about the printhead removal and replacement. The following video was prepared to demonstrate how to remove a printhead from the Evolis Pebble printer and then replace it wil a different printhead.

Steps:
1. Remove the hopper.
2. Open the top cover.
3. Push the support mechanism in to release the printhead.
4. Slide the printhead up and over the metal holder.
5. Unplug the wire harness.
6. Reverse the steps to put the new printhead into place.

Once the above steps are completed, the printer is ready for use.

If you need information about the Evolis printer brand, please contact our ID card experts at 888-485-4696.

Evolis Printer – How to Change a Print Ribbon

The Safe-Card ID video team completed another instructional video to help Evolis printer owners know how to correctly change a printer ribbon in an Evolis Pebble and Evolis Dualys printer. Follow the steps below and you will be set to print.

Changing a print ribbon:

1. Open the printer cover.
2. Remove the ribbon from the packaging.
3. Lay the ribbon as indicated on the instruction panel in the printer, making sure that the ribbon runs over the top of the two spools.
4. Close the lid.
5. The printer will cycle through to start printing on the right panel.

If you need information about PVC card printing system, contact our experts at 888-485-4696. We would love to hear from you.

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