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Lynx C Price Gun Review

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Summary

The Lynx C pricing gun is both sturdy and reliable, and we recommend it for high-usage environments.

It’s our most expensive single-line price gun, so what makes it so attractive when compared to other models?

Let’s find out.


Build Quality

Lynx price guns are manufactured in the EU, with a build quality you’d expect of western manufacturing standards.

The machine feels strong due to a thicker plastic body and is much more resilient to drops and knocks than rival price guns.

It uses the same label feed system as the reliable Sato Kendo 26, using cuts in the backing paper between each label. Though unlike the Kendo 26, the Lynx has some modifications to the label feed process which makes loading and operation the most reliable of any of its rivals.

A feature of the Lynx is a wide, clear path to load the labels through the main body. The dust cover ensures your labels and the machine don’t get dirty in a dusty environment. The cover is translucent so you can see at a glance how many labels you have left on the reel.

The ink replacement system is standard for most price guns, flipping out from the front of the machine. The Lynx pricing gun is supplied with a plastic tool to aid replacing the inks so you don’t get any ink on your hands, though it is a little fiddly when compared to Sato’s Kendo models.

It’s worth noting that the print bands themselves are very smooth and adjust reliably. This is often the falling point of guns that get a lot of use as dust/dirt builds up inside the mechanism and ends up jamming the bands. This is almost unheard of in Lynx labelling guns.

The print position is simple to adjust, there’s a screw in the bottom of the gun which moves a plate. Usually this is obscured beneath the backing paper of your labels, but you can simply punch through with your screwdriver to adjust the plate.


Lynx C6 Band Layout
Lynx C8 Band Layout

Band Layouts

This model features two popular layouts, a six digit version or an eight digit version. The six digit band characters are larger, but can only show prices up to £99.99 or dates in short format 010416. The eight digit layout allows for prices up to £999.99p and can show either full dates 01042016 or easier to read short dates 01 04 16.

Lynx do offer customised layouts are available, though they will incur a much higher price. For example a Lynx C10 uses 10 bands, but costs £5 more than the C6 or C8 models.

This also for letters to be used alongside numbers or other information. There’s far more customisation in the bands than can be easily shown here, so contact a merchant for more advice on customising the bands.


Print Examples

ct4 label priced by a lynx C8

To the right you can see an example of the C8 8 digit gun printing a price on the popular “wavy edge” 26x12mm label.

ct4 label priced by a lynx C6

The text is of a higher quality than other rivals, though the difference isn’t much it’s easily seen in a side-by-side comparison.

The next label is the same as the above, but using the C6 6 digit gun instead.

ct4 label short-dated by a lynx C8

To the right you can see an example of the C8 8 digit gun printing a date on the popular “wavy edge” 26x12mm label.

ct4 label full-dated by a lynx C8

You can get the C8 to print the year in full as seen on the left, but it can look cramped.

 


Summary

What we like

  • Robust plastic frame.
  • Smooth print adjustment.
  • Excellent print quality.
  • Obvious focus on resilience for heavy-duty use.
  • Uses the popular 26x12mm label, either rectangular or “wavy”.

What we didn’t like

  • Ink replacement is a little fiddly even with the use of the tool.
  • Adjusting the print position through the backing paper is not easy.
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Kendo 26 Price Gun Review

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Summary

Manufactured by Sato, this price gun is light and well made, but don’t let the low cost trick you into thinking it’s low quality.

As far as we’re concerned, this is the price gun which all budget label gun manufacturers try to beat, but none ever really do.

Here’s why.


Build Quality

The Kendo is a model which has been created building on 50 years of experience in making hand labellers. It’s light plastic design makes it easy to use, but resilient to being knocked around in normal use.

It features a label feed system using cuts in the backing paper between each label. The label feed rarely fails once loaded correctly.

With a wide open channel to feed the labels through, loading the machine is relatively easy. There’s a clever plastic flap that prevents the labels from being fed into the wrong part of the gun when opened, that secures them in place when closed.

There’s also an intuitive plastic tab that prevents the reel from dropping off the spool when you tip the gun whilst loading.

The ink replacement system is quick and clean, requiring a single lever to be pressed and the ink drops out without needing to handle. This is very fast and clean, unlike handling other label gun inks and staining your fingers.

The print heads are simple to adjust, just two screws on the side. There’s even handy markers to help you align the print head accurately without having to guess.

Band Layouts
Band Layouts


Band Layouts

This model features two popular layouts, a six digit version or an eight digit version. The six digit band characters are larger, but can only show prices up to £99.99 or dates in short format 010416. The eight digit layout allows for prices up to £999.99p and can show either full dates 01042016 or easier to read short dates 01 04 16.

As this is a Sato machine, customised layouts are available, though they will incur a higher price they can be as many as ten digits long. This allows for long batch numbers or other information. There’s far more customisation in the bands than can be easily shown here, so contact a merchant for more advice on customising the bands.

Alternate Layout

An alternate model is specifically made for dating, and prints the month in three letters along with the day and year. An attractive alternative if you are only going to be printing dates. You can see an example of this below.


Print Examples

kendo 26 ct4 example 1

To the right you can see an example of the 8 digit gun printing a price on the popular “wavy edge” 26x12mm label.

kendo 26 ct4 example 2

The text is clear and easy to read without being too sharp.

The next label is the same as the above, but using the 6 digit gun instead.

kendo 26 ct4 example 3

The third image is the alternate layout date gun as mentioned above, printed on a rectangular 26x12mm label instead.


Summary

What we like

  • Light yet resilient polycarbonate body.
  • Easy to adjust printhead.
  • Quick and clean ink replacement.
  • Clever quality of life features for simple everyday use
  • Uses the popular 26x12mm label, either rectangular or “wavy”.
  • Lots of alternative band layouts available on request.

What we didn’t like

  • You can’t see the label poking out the front of the label gun so it’s hard to place correctly without practice.
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Judo 26 Food Labelling Gun Review

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Summary

Manufactured by Sato, this gun uses the popular and reliable Judo model. A tried and tested build design, ink and label loading makes little changes from the other Judo models we already know and promote as one of our best sellers.

Band Layouts


Band Layouts

This label gun has a couple of unique lines. The top band can show any one of pre-set phrases: DEFROSTED, READY, USE BY, OPENED, BAKED, REFRIGERATED, DISCARD, DECANTED, MANU DATE, PULL, COOKED, FROZEN, DISPLAY.

The bottom line can show a date (with or without a time) a metric weight or a price.

Alternate Layout

An alternate model replaces the top row with another set of characters, identical to the bottom row. This is good if you need to show two different sets of data, such as a date/time on the top and a price on the bottom, but you would need a pre-printed label to show what the date/time means e.g. “Best Before”


Print Examples

Print Example

To the right you can see an example of the gun printing a Defrosted date and time.

The text is clear and contains a lot of data. It shows the date, am or pm and an exact time, to be as accurate as possible and reduce the chance for misreading.

Below is a Use By date. Note how the dots have to be displayed when printing a full date.

Print Example

Both labels featured here are part of the Date Right labels range.


Summary

What we like

  • Made with food labelling in mind.
  • Top band phrases allow for many applications, saving money on buying different pre-printed labels.
  • Being able to show a time with a date on a single line.
  • Looks great with Date Right labels.

What we didn’t like

  • Lack of “Best Before” on the top band
  • Weight labelling seems like an afterthought