do these printers ever run out of ink (x431)

The device uses thermal paper, there is no ink involved.

well here's the deal. i bought more paper and it's not printing. any ideas? the paper came from you guys.

Because it is thermal paper, it will only be heat activated on one side. the easiest way to check which side goes where is to scratch the surface of the paper, the side that should face up will scratch darker than the opposite side. Also, when installed correctly, the "curl" of the paper curls down towards your x431 when exiting the printer chamber.

i think i really screwed it up, now the paper isn't even coming out. is there a print test i can run?

Can you hear the printer trying to feed paper? Check that the paper is not jammed. Next, MAKE SURE THE SWITCH IS LOCKED! This is visible when you take the printer chamber cover off. This switch needs to be in a locked position. Here is the print test.....


Print Test
The paper used is thermal paper and will only print on one side. If the paper feeds but remains blank, have the customer either reinstall the paper the other way, or run through a print test.

1. Turn on scantool; have paper installed.
2. Select “Start”
3. “Tool”
4. “Run”
5. “USR”
6. “PDA”
7. “BIN”
8. “Test Print”

In a pinch I've purchased supersized rolls at the office supply house, the only thing is you have to unravel about HALF the roll in order to get it to fit in the machine. It's not the most environmentally friendly option, but it gets us out of a pinch.

Mr. G