Labeling Solutions

I've been using a PT-2430PC at work for almost two years. I've used a over a dozen rolls of 24mm laminated tape and over twenty rolls of 12mm laminated tape.

I needed to make labels for small quantities of custom test equipment. The front panel has 24 toggle switches which need to be labeled. The back panel has several rows of connectors which also need to be labeled.

The P-touch Editor software enables complex label designs with icons, bitmap graphics, basic shapes [lines, boxes, circles], and full text editing.

I typically make long label strips with multiple text boxes such that each text item is aligned with the switches or connectors. Also, I make sets of labels in one long strip, and the automatic editable cut-lines cut the individual labels as they print.

The equipment I build looks almost "manufactured" thanks to the high quality labels I am able to make.

I've used a couple of Brother P-touch hand-held label printers. The PT-2430PC is much better. I liked the one at work so well that I bought one for home use.

PRO:
- very good label editor software

- label software measurements in inches, millimeters, or points

- very little waste to start a print job

- any length label can be created [up to limit of length of tape cartridge, i.e. 8 meters]

- high quality label stock

- good variety of colors, widths of label stock

CON:
- The printer does not handle 24mm laminated tape very well. After a few centimeters, the laminate becomes misaligned such that about 1mm of laminate is protruding above the top edge of the label base, and a corresponding 1mm of sticky label base at the bottom of the label is left uncovered by the laminating film. [I reported this to Brother technical support and the issue was ignored.] The second PT-2430PC I bought 8-months after the first one has the same problem with 24mm laminated tape. There is a pervasive problem with either the printer or with the 24mm tape cartridges.

- There is a lot of unusable space at top and bottom of 24mm tape. The printable area begins 3mm from the top edge and ends 3mm from the bottom edge. This is total 6mm of unprintable space or 25% of the tape. This limitation is not mentioned in the product features. On narrower tapes, the unprintable area is only 1mm top and bottom.

- The label editor alignment tools for label items are limited. e.g. It is not possible to align one element to another element.

- The label editor tool to position an element is limited to coarse dimension [e.g. whole millimeter increments].

OVERALL:
Good printer for simple to complex label requirements.

15 of 15 found this review helpful.
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A very easy to use label makers. Works fine out of the box, its doesnt need a computer scientist to program it.
I have 3 of them. And it produces 1" wide labels
Use it to label tool boxes, cabinets, electrical boxes, etc
Love it

2 of 2 found this review helpful.
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I really like this label printer. I find the software a bit hard to use but overall a good choice.

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This product was very easy to install and set up. However, the tape lenght only has two sizes and both waste about 1/2 inch of tape each cutting - which mounts up as the tape is quite pricy. If the tape lenght can't be manually set, I don't understand why the lenght isn't set to standard file tab sizes.

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