Ribbon Wrinkle and Broken Ribbons: Causes and Fixes

Streaks of color across a card, or a ribbon that snaps mid-job, usually come from the same cause: too much heat in the print head. Here is how to avoid both, and how to rescue a broken ribbon.

Too much heat, too much color

Cards with plenty of color variation, like a photograph, print without trouble. Problems start when a design floods the card with solid color. The print head heats up until the ribbon wrinkles, which shows as streaks or lightning-bolt marks of yellow, red or white across the card.

There are two ways to prevent it: design with variations of color rather than large solid blocks, or lower the color intensity in your print driver.

The same heat can break the ribbon. If it does, you do not need to throw it away. Tape the two ends back together with clear tape, wind the ribbon onto the spool past the break, and put it back in the printer. Cassette-style ribbons work the same way, and the printer resets itself.

The short version

• Ribbon wrinkle comes from printing large solid areas.
• Use color variation, or lower the intensity in the driver, to prevent it.
• A broken ribbon can be taped, rewound and reused.