FARGO electronic DTC500 - Manual (Page 45)

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DTC500 Series Card Printer/Encoders User Guide (Rev. 5.0) 45
Printer Components: Blank Cards
Caution: Never run cards with a contaminated, dull or uneven surface through the
Printer. Printing cards on this surface can lead to poor print quality and can greatly reduce
the life of the Printhead. Always store the card stock in its original packaging or in a clean,
dust-free container. Do not print onto cards that have been dropped or soiled. Printhead
damage caused by contaminated or poor quality cards will automatically void the Printhead's
factory warranty.
Type Description
Card Size The card Printer accepts standard CR-80 sized cards (3.375
”
L x 2.125
”
W/85.6mm L x 54mm W) or CR-79 sized cards (3.303
”
L x 2.051
”
W/83.9mm
L x 52.1mm W) with a thickness of 10 mil to 50 mil. This does not apply for
the LC printers.
Card
Design The Printer will print onto any card with a clean, level and polished PVC
surface. (Note: Although the Printer is equipped with card cleaning Rollers,
it is very important to always print onto cards specifically designed for direct-
to-card Dye-Sublimation printing.)
Card
Surface Suitable cards must have a polished PVC surface free of fingerprints, dust or
any other types of embedded contaminants.

Cards must have a completely smooth, level surface in order for the
Printer to achieve consistent color coverage.

Some types of Proximity cards, for example, have an uneven surface
which will inhibit consistent color transfer.

Some Smart Card chips are raised slightly above the cards surface,
which also results in poor color transfer.
UltraCard
Stock Due to the importance of using high-quality blank cards, a factory-approved
card stock called UltraCard
™
is available and recommended for best results.

UltraCard stock has a glossy PVC laminate on top and bottom and is
optically inspected to provide the cleanest, most scratch and debris-
reduced cards possible.

Two types of these cards are available: UltraCard and UltraCard III.
UltraCard stock has a PVC core and offers medium card durability.
UltraCard III stock has a 40% polyester core and offers high durability.
Both types of UltraCards produce printed images with a glossy, photo-quality
finish.