57 X 55 MM THERMAL PAPER ROLL FOR RETAIL SCALES AND TILLS

Description

The 57 x 55 mm thermal paper roll is the standard consumable for retail scales with a ticket printer and for most counter tills and compact POS terminals. It is a high sensitivity, low residue paper, formulated to keep the printer’s thermal head clean.

What 57 x 55 means, and how to tell if it is your size

The two figures describe different things and are easy to confuse. The 57 mm is the width of the paper web, and it has to match the width of your printer’s holder and head: too wide and the roll will not go in, too narrow and the ticket prints off-centre while the paper wanders as it feeds.

The 55 mm is the outside diameter of the roll, which is to say how fat it is. It sets how much paper it holds and, more to the point, whether it physically fits the compartment. A printer designed for 55 mm rolls will not take a 70 mm one even if the width is right: the lid will not close.

The 57 mm width is the 2 inch format, fitted to most counter retail scales with a ticket printer and to a good share of compact POS terminals. If your equipment prints narrow, single-column tickets, this is almost certainly the size.

Specifications

Web width	57 mm
Roll diameter	55 mm
Paper type	High sensitivity thermal
Residue	Low residue: keeps the printer free of deposits and impurities
Applications	Retail scales with ticket printer, cash registers, POS terminals and other thermal printers
Compatibility	Olivetti, Olympia, ECR Sampos, Samsung, Quorion, SAM4S, Casio and any equipment taking a 57 mm roll

Low residue, or the cheapest way to protect a print head

This is what separates good thermal paper from cheap thermal paper, and it is where the money is saved over a year. Thermal paper prints by heat: the head warms specific points of the surface and the coating reacts. A poorly coated paper leaves deposits and impurities stuck to that head on every pass.

The build-up shows first as pale bands and badly printed tickets, and then as premature wear of the head, which is the expensive part of the printer. On a counter scale printing hundreds of tickets a day, the difference between low residue paper and whatever was cheapest shows up in the working life of the equipment, not in the price of the roll.

High sensitivity works in the same direction: the paper reacts with less energy, so tickets come out sharper and the head runs at a lower temperature, which again means it lasts longer.

What you receive

• Thermal paper roll, 57 mm web width and 55 mm outside diameter.
• High sensitivity, low residue thermal paper.

A standard size, so in many shops the same roll serves both the counter scale and the till.

Frequently asked questions

How do I know whether my scale takes 57 or 80 mm rolls?

The simplest check is to measure the roll you are using now, or the slot it sits in. 57 mm gives narrow, single-column tickets, typical of counter scales and compact POS terminals; 80 mm prints wider tickets, usual on cash registers with a built-in printer.

What happens if I fit a roll of larger diameter?

Most likely the lid will not close. The 55 mm figure is the thickness of the complete roll, and every printer has a sized compartment. Forcing a larger roll in can stop it closing, or make the paper feed against friction and jam.

Why does low residue paper protect the printer?

Because the thermal head prints by contact and heat. A paper that sheds particles leaves deposits behind that first degrade the printing and then wear the head. With low residue paper that build-up is reduced and the head, the expensive part, lasts longer.

Can one roll serve both the scale and the till?

Yes, as long as both take 57 mm width and up to 55 mm diameter. It is a standard size, so in many shops the same roll covers the counter scale and the cash register, which keeps the consumables stock simple.

Does a thermal ticket count as a proper receipt?

What makes a ticket valid as a receipt is the content the equipment prints, not the paper it prints on, and the requirements for that are set by the tax authority where you trade. What the paper does affect is how long the document stays readable, so keep that in mind if the ticket has to be retained.

How should thermal tickets be stored?

Somewhere cool, dry and out of direct light, away from soft plastics and solvents. Thermal printing uses no ink, only a heat-reactive coating, so heat sources and sunlight are what darken or erase the document fastest.

Other weighing consumables and equipment

• 80 x 55 thermal paper roll: the wide size, for cash registers and industrial scales with a printer.
• DINA M-520 DC scale: a retail scale with a 2 inch ticket printer.
• DINA M-520 Tower scale: the tower format with a ticket printer.
• PD6 LED weight-only scale: a counter scale without printing.