Secap

Need help with your Secap desktop addressing printer & imager? Check out our FAQ’s and see if your question is answered below. If you need further assistance, please complete the online support request form. For urgent requests, please call us at 1.800.809.8645 to find out the contact information for your local dealer.

FAQ's

General Printer Information

Q. What is the maximum distance you can print on a mail piece from left to right for Secap’s shuttling head address printers?
A. The driver is written to only give you a maximum length of 9.4 inches.

Q. Why does my print walk slightly to the right when I am in the middle of printing a large job for Secap’s shuttling head address printers?
A. There are 3 (three) factors that can cause this to happen.

1. Press the Enter button First make sure that the shuttle head is not hitting anything as it is coming out of the home position.
2. If this seems clear then the next possibility is to change the head ribbon cable, this is an inexpensive part and over time the ware from the head shuttling back and fourth can cause breaks in the contacts leading to improper communication between the main logic and the printer head board.
3. If neither of these are an issue then you must check the resistance on the shuttle motor. If the motor falls below 16 Ohms then you must change the shuttle motor and the driver board.

Q. How do you do a memory reset on the printer?
A. You must go through a four phase reset procedure that will reset the printer back to its factory defaults. (Warning: this will reset all of your parameters to their original settings.)

1. The printer must be turned in the off position, then while holding the test button down, turn the printer on. The display will say “Printing starting one”, “Printer starting two”, “memory reset phase one shut off” then “on”.
2. Do not let go of the test button! Repeat this step three more times until the printer says “memory reset complete shut off” then “on”. Then, release the test button and turn the printer off then on. When it boots up it will be reset to its factory default settings.

Q. Can you load firmware to the printer through the parallel port for the printer?
A. Yes, you may download the printer firmware from our web site and download the file using the instructions to the parallel port.

Q. What type of cartridges do these printers use?
A. 5K-LE - Uses a 51629A cartridge
    All other Secap Addressing Printers - Use a C8842A cartridge

Q. Do these printers have the ability to print in different colors?
A. There is spot color available (This means that you would have to buy a cartridge of a specific color, insert it into the printer and this would allow you to print one color at a time). This is based on the colors that are sold by Secap. These colors include: Yellow, Red, Green, and Blue.

Printer Setup

Q. How do I Connect the Printer to my Computer?
A. Connect the printer* to the serial, parallel or USB port of the computer. Initialize the printer communications port by sending data to either the parallel or serial port. The Driver must be set to the type of connector (parallel, serial or USB) To connect the printer to the computer:

1. Align male end of parallel cable or serial cable connector. Push the cable connector in.
2. Secure the cable. Use the 2 wire clips to snap into the tabs on the parallel connector. Use the thumb screws on the serial connector to screw into the hex jack screws on the electrical bracket.
3. Align the other end of the cable to the connector on the computer and push into the port.
4. Secure the cable in place. Use the thumb screws (parallel & serial only) on the connector to screw into the hex jack screws on the computer.

You must go to the Setup Menu to change from Parallel Port (Default) on the 5K-LE, 9KL, 13K & VJet to Serial Port.

5K-LE, 9KL, 13K & V-Jet - Serial & Parallel Ports
22K, 24K, 26K & 30K - Parallel & USB Ports
SA3100/3150, SA3300/3350, SA500, SA5300, SA5300 PRO – USB Ports

Q. How Do I install Ink Jet Cartridges?
A. To install the printer ink cartridge, do the following:

1. Verify the LCD display message on the top line of the display is either OFF LINE or ON LINE.
2. Open the front cover.
3. On the top Control Panel, depress Replace Print Cartridge button (plus button) and the carriage will travel to the center position and stop. DO NOT MOVE THE CARRIAGE BY HAND. DAMAGE MAY OCCUR TO THE CARTRIDGE.
4. Remove cartridge from the shipping container. Be careful not to touch the copper ribbon.
5. Remove both pieces of tape covering the ink nozzles on the print cartridge. Be careful not to touch the copper ribbon.
6. Gently insert cartridge down at approximately a 45 degree angle into the cradle of the Print Head Holder Assembly. Insert with the green arrow on top of the cartridge pointing toward the input bin.
7. Place forefinger on cradle tab and thumb on top of ink cartridge and gently squeeze together until the cartridge snaps into place.

Q. Do I Need to Prepare the Media Before Running My Job?
A. To avoid problems of misfeeding and jams it is recommended the media be prepared for the printer. Use the following steps:

1. Take a pile of media and fan all sides of the media to make sure each piece is free from one another.
2. Square (tap) the pile against the table top, assuring a square pile on all sides. This allows media to settle toward the bottom of a stuffed envelope and will increase the feeding capabilities of the printer.

Q. What Types of Media Can I Use?
A. The printer is designed to feed and print on a variety of media with various finishes and coatings. The sharpness of the print quality will vary with different media types, depending on how absorbent the media is, as well as other qualities. The best results can be achieved using white wove bonded stock. The printing quality will be less sharp on tyvek, recycled and glossy media.

Acceptable media: Envelopes, Booklets, Catalogs, Postcards, Self Mailers, Paper

Acceptable paper types: white wove, bond, recycled, coated, card stock, brown kraft, manila.

For postcards (.003” thickness) – set a smaller gap between the H-Block Assemblies and the Feed Rollers. Try using a sheet of copy paper to set the feed gap.

For stuffed media – set a larger gap between the separator blocks and the feed roller. Try adding two or three, #10 envelopes, on top of the media before setting the separators.

Q. How Do I Set the Proper Feed Gap and Load Media?
A. To start a print job you want to make the right adjustments to accommodate your media being used.

1. Set the proper feed gap spacing between the feed rollers and the separators.
   a.    Lift the latch assembly to unlock and raise up the H-Block Assembly.
   b.    Unlock all three H blocks on the Print Station assembly.
   c.    Take a piece of media and place between the feed rollers and the H-Block Assemblies.
   d.    Square the edge of media against the registration wall of the Center Plate.
   e.    Push the Latch Assembly down and allow the H-Block Assemblies to drop on top of the media. Keep the H-Block Assemblies up that won't contact the media. When just one of the separator fingers is in contact with the media use another piece beneath the other separator finger and the feed roller to set the feed gap.
   f.    Press the Latch Assembly all the way down to secure H-Block Assemblies in this position. (Hint: set a smaller gap for postcards by using a piece of copy paper. Set a larger gap for stuffed media. Try adding two or three #10 envelopes on top of the media before setting the separators.)
2. Adjust the Envelope Thickness Knob.
   a.    Adjust the envelope thickness knob to the fully opened position by turning clockwise.
   b.    While the printer is printing, close the envelope thickness knob by turning counterclockwise until the printed message smudges. Then, back off the adjustment for the desired print quality.
   c.    Adjust the Wire Form Assembly which supports the media stacked in the input bin and redistributes the weight of the media to assist in the feeding of media. There are three basic adjustments:d.    Use the wire form center adjustment to eliminate skewing of the media and print.
   e.    Use the wire form height adjustment to allow the printer to feed media of varying density (Hint: rigid media is set low, light weight media is set high.)
   f.    Use the wire frame ramp adjustment to improve the feeding of media by distributing the weight of the media stack onto the feed roller.

Q. How Do I Set the Proper Feed Gap and Load Media for the 5K-LE & 9KL?
A. To start a print job, the feed gap should be set for each type of media used in the printer. The feed gap is the spacing between the feed rollers and the separators. Set the feed gap with a piece of media by following these procedures:

1. Loosen the H-Block Knob on the three H-Block Assemblies.
2. Raise the three H-Block Assemblies up. Tighten the H-Block Knobs to secure H-Block Assemblies in place.
3. Take a piece of media and place between the Feed Rollers and the H-Block Assemblies.
4. Square the edge of the media against the wall of the Rear Support Plate Assembly.
5. Loosen the H-Block Knobs and allow the H-Block Assemblies to drop on the top of the media. Keep the H-Block Assemblies up that won't contact the media. When just one of the separator fingers is in contact with the media use another piece beneath the other separator finger and the Feed Roller to set the feed gap.
6. Tighten H-Block Knobs to secure H-Block Assemblies in this position.

When the feed gap is not set correctly the printer will have feeding problems. When the gap is too wide double feeding (feeding two or more pieces at a time) will occur. If the gap is too small the media will jam beneath the separators.
The input bin can now be filled with media for printing. Envelopes should be “shingled” or layered with the piece on top partially covering the piece below it like shingles on a roof. Load into the input bin with flap away from the feed roller and facing downward. Start with just a few envelopes to start the stack and get the angled contour of the bin area, then add several more pieces. Then add the remainder of the stack.

Q. How do I Synchronize the Print Cartridges?
A. The Left Print Head Cartridge is able to run independently of the Right Print Head Carriage. Separating the two allows one cartridge to print either a return address, indicia or company logo on the top or bottom of the piece while the other carriage handles the mailing address and USPS barcode.

A carriage needs realignment when a new print cartridge is installed. Synchronizing the print cartridges is accomplished using the Service Menu option/adjust print.

Each bank of three print cartridges has to be synchronized to print graphics, scaleable fonts or to justify the left edge of print. If the print cartridges are not synchronized anything that requires two or three print cartridges to line up a left edge or to print next to each other may print to the left of one another or on top of each other. The Left Print Head Carriage Assembly is referred to as Bank A, and the Right one is referred to as Bank B. Synchronize each bank by aligning the test pattern that is printed by each of the print cartridges.

Note: When lines of print start to run on top of each other the Print Cartridges have to be synchronized vertically. Perform a vertical adjustment whenever the center of the test pattern isn’t a solid crooked line. When a line of print is split apart or the left edge of a block of lines don’t line up with the left edge of the other lines the Print Cartridges have to be synchronized horizontally. Perform a horizontal adjustment whenever the large solid line and the set of 18 thin vertical lines do not form long vertical lines for the whole bank of print cartridges.

The two banks combine for one large block for large fonts and big graphics or two dimensional barcoding using the Service Menu. To combine Bank A and Bank B use the mechanism on the front of both the Right Print Head Carriage and the Left Print Head Carriage. Use the following steps to adjust the two print head carriages together:

1. Move the left print head carriage assembly to the area that the carriages will be printing on the piece.
2. Lock the left print head carriage assembly in place using the green locking knob. Pull up the handle of the horizontal handle toggle clamp to verify it is up.
3. Unlock the right print head carriage assembly.
4. Line the front edge of the two carriages.
5. Pull on the knurled knob of the carriage alignment latch to release the latch and slide it over to the latch knob on the right hand print head carriage assembly.
6. Set the latch into the groove of the latch knob.
7. Print out an adjust printing test message.
8. Made adjustments by turning the screwing the latch knob in or out.
9. When the adjust printing test pattern makes a solid pattern across both banks then level both banks A & B. Push down on the horizontal handle toggle clamp to put pressure and level both carriages.
10. Lock the right print head carriage in place using the green knurled locking knob.

Q. How Do I Program the Printer?
A. The printer has two menu directories to program the printer. These menus are displayed on the LCD panel located on top of the printer. The two menus available are the Main Menu and the Set Up Menu. To access the two menu directories use the following steps:

1. Press the On Line button until the LCD display shows “OFF LINE”. Pressing the On Line button on the control panel will toggle the printer from ON LINE to OFF LINE and vice versa.
2. To access the Main Menu depress the Menu button. MAIN MENU will be shown on the LCD display.
3. To access the Setup Menu depress the Menu button for 2 seconds, until SETUP MENU is shown on the LCD display.
4. Press the + Plus or - Minus button to scroll through the options available in the Main Menu or the Setup Menu.
5. Press the Enter button to choose the displayed option from the Main Menu or Setup Menu options.
6. Press the Menu button several times to back out of the Main Menu or Setup Menu until the printer displays OFF LINE.
7. Press the On Line button; now the printer displays ON LINE and is ready to use.

Q. How Do I Select Print Quality?
A. You can change the speed of the printer and the density of the characters printed on the media.

Executive quality is used for documents that require a professional appearance. This is the darkest of the three print qualities, the slowest print speed and uses the most ink.

Letter quality is for documents that require a finished, polished appearance. Draft quality prints the fastest and saves ink. This option offers the highest print speed and prints the lightest of the 3 print qualities.

Use the following steps to select the print quality of your choice:

1. Press the + or – buttons to scroll through the Main Menu options until the Print Quality option is displayed on the LCD panel.
2. Press the Enter button to select this option.
3. Press the + or – buttons the scroll through the Print Quality options: Executive, Letter, Draft.

NOTE: Driver needs to be set to use these features on the front panel

Preventative Maintenance

Q. How Do I Clean the Feed Rollers?
A. With regular use lint and paper dust tends to build up on the feed rollers. When the rollers are glazed or have a yellowish residue, clean the rollers. Use alcohol to dampen a soft cotton cloth to clean all rubber rollers.

Q. When Should I Clean or Replace the Ink Cartridge?
A. If the print quality is unacceptable, select the Purge Print Head function from the Setup Menu. If the problems still persist do the following:

1. Remove the Ink Jet Cartridge
2. Clean the nozzles with a soft cotton cloth
3. Use a dry cloth or one moistened with water to clean the ink jet cartridge
4. Remove problem ink jet cartridge and install a new one

Q. What Could Be the Cause of Misfeeds?
A. With use, a film and/or dust builds up on the sensor causing misfeeds of media. Lift the front door and use compressed air to blow dust from the sensor.