Pro's of a Laser Printer

[crupiea]

For years I used the cheapo inkjet printer.  They were about $30 and came with ink.  Of course when it comes time t replace the ink, it costs about $35 for it.  That always bugged me. 

I got mad at that and figured I would just buy a new one every time I ran out of ink which worked good but it was just not an environmentally nice thing to do.  

Plus they do not print that many pages. 

Pulled the trigger on a color laser printer a few years back and could not be happier.  I got a Brother 3170CDW.  It cost me about $170 or something like that on Amazon.  now that is a chunk of change no doubt but it is well worth it.  For starters, it comes with all the colors toners, red, blue, yellow, black, or whatever fancy words they call them.  The initial ones printed about 300 pages.   The ink jets did about 25 -50 pages at best. 

I get the generic replacement toners that cost me $45 of so on amazon and they all work great.  

You know how it is with pattern printing.  There is always some resizing and printing and moving something around, printing again and so on.  before i would be very cautious about the pages but now i just hit print like i am at the office or something.  

I can print 25 pages per project and not even care.  Well worth the money if you are getting frustrated with ink and such. 

Plus the wifi part connected no problem and also have a phone app to print from my phone.  



 

[kmmcrafts]

A Thermal printer works real nice too.. no ink or anything to replace or refill.. I only have to replace the paper now and then.. LOL I love this little printer.. now i just need one that does patterns etc.. The one I'm speaking of now is just a shipping label printer.. Well I have used it for patterns too since it's on sticky paper.. but the patterns have to fit on a 4 x 6 inch sheet. LOL

My bigger printer I bought recently does BIG sheets.. 11 x 17.. Nice for printing those large portrait patterns... I even found a source of 11 x 17 self adhesive sheets of paper too.. since I try to stay away from the sprays.. I've always used the 8.5 x 11 full sheet shipping labels for my patterns so no messy sprays..  

[Foxfold]

We've had a laserjet printer for many years, wouldn't be without it.

[edward]

I Have a Epson 3620 ink jet printer,  although  it joes a good job, not happy when I have to replace  the ink, when I run out  of  a certain color it wont print a black copy which upsets me, then I have to buy a color cartridge so I can finish printing. Thinking about a laser printer in the future when I have some money.

[Sycamore67]

I love my Brother Laser printers.  I have one that scans, copies and prints and does a great job.  I often scan an image and then manipulate in PowerPoint.  I also have a Brother plain printer which works well.  They are much better than the HP inkjet printers.

[MrsN]

I have a brother laser printer and I love it. I have only had to replace the toner cartridge a few times in the 3 or 4 years that I have had it.

I only have a black and white one, and only a few rare occations have wished for a color printer.

[OCtoolguy]

15 hours ago, crupiea said:

For years I used the cheapo inkjet printer.  They were about $30 and came with ink.  Of course when it comes time t replace the ink, it costs about $35 for it.  That always bugged me. 

I got mad at that and figured I would just buy a new one every time I ran out of ink which worked good but it was just not an environmentally nice thing to do.  

Plus they do not print that many pages. 

Pulled the trigger on a color laser printer a few years back and could not be happier.  I got a Brother 3170CDW.  It cost me about $170 or something like that on Amazon.  now that is a chunk of change no doubt but it is well worth it.  For starters, it comes with all the colors toners, red, blue, yellow, black, or whatever fancy words they call them.  The initial ones printed about 300 pages.   The ink jets did about 25 -50 pages at best. 

I get the generic replacement toners that cost me $45 of so on amazon and they all work great.  

You know how it is with pattern printing.  There is always some resizing and printing and moving something around, printing again and so on.  before i would be very cautious about the pages but now i just hit print like i am at the office or something.  

I can print 25 pages per project and not even care.  Well worth the money if you are getting frustrated with ink and such. 

Plus the wifi part connected no problem and also have a phone app to print from my phone.  



 

I have the model that superceded yours. I'm still using the toner cartridges that came with it. I wish I had pulled the trigger years ago. I wasted a fortune on inkjet printers both in ink and paper. Oh, and time too. I recommend Brother laser printers 100%.

 

[Rockytime]

When my HP bites the dust I'll make the switch.

[wombatie]

I have had a Fuji Xerox laser printer for well over 12 months and only recently had to change the black toner cartridge.  More than happy with it.  I also have a Canon ink jet that scans, not so happy with that though.

Marg

[CharleyL]

For my scrollsaw and woodworking patterns, I usually use an old HP laserjet 4 printer. It does a pretty good job on 8 1/2 X 11 paper or sticky backed clear Mylar. For larger work I have a HP 5000  and a HP 5500 wide format inkjet printers that will handle 4' wide paper on rolls that are about 160' long. A little over kill for scroll saw work, but quite handy for doing larger woodworking, or for printing larger or life size photos. For small photos I use an Epson XP-830. or Canon Pixma Pro.

Charley

[WayneMahler]

I have been thinking about replacing my HP Inkjet. Tired of paying way to much for ink. Thanks for all the great words about Brother Lasers. May help making and better decision when it comes time to pull the trigger on this purchase.

[OCtoolguy]

1 hour ago, WayneMahler said:

I have been thinking about replacing my HP Inkjet. Tired of paying way to much for ink. Thanks for all the great words about Brother Lasers. May help making and better decision when it comes time to pull the trigger on this purchase.

Keep checking Amazon. When I finally decided on which one to buy, I did some searching and luckily I found it on Amazon for just over $200. Now, it's over $300 but they do come on sale.

[OCtoolguy]

Take a look at this one. If it had been available, I might have bought this one. I like the smaller footprint. $179 and free shipping if you have Prime.

https://www.amazon.com/Brother-HL-L3210CW-Providing-Wireless-Replenishment/dp/B07FMS1DMX/ref=sr_1_3?crid=2J2Y840RML7W2&keywords=brother+color+laser+printer&qid=1560537907&s=gateway&sprefix=Brother+color+laser%2Caps%2C207&sr=8-3

[Sycamore67]

I use a website called CamelCamelCamel.com to track prices on Amazon. It can show you the historical prices of an item and notify you if the price goes below a price you set.

I used this recently and it saved me a bunch on a photo scanner.

[Kepy]

I used an HP laser for years until I switched to Windows 10 and it was no longer recognized.  I now have a Brother laser and it will copy and scan and also resize patterns so am very pleased.

[OCtoolguy]

I just got an email from Brother. Here are some great deals on "refurbed" laser printers.

https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/FMfcgxwChSFHLJRvmzZKzGNnRKmRldNs

[crupiea]

On 6/14/2019 at 10:39 AM, WayneMahler said:

I have been thinking about replacing my HP Inkjet. Tired of paying way to much for ink. Thanks for all the great words about Brother Lasers. May help making and better decision when it comes time to pull the trigger on this purchase.

I was worried about the cost but it was well worth it especially for this hobby.  You know how it is with working with patterns and such.  Nice to be able to just print out one and if you do not like something about it, print it again and again.    Dont even need to worry about it.  Also the ink does not dry out like an inkjet.  I have had that happen, almost new printer but never used it and when I finally did the ink had dried up.  

[OCtoolguy]

5 minutes ago, crupiea said:

I was worried about the cost but it was well worth it especially for this hobby.  You know how it is with working with patterns and such.  Nice to be able to just print out one and if you do not like something about it, print it again and again.    Dont even need to worry about it.  Also the ink does not dry out like an inkjet.  I have had that happen, almost new printer but never used it and when I finally did the ink had dried up.  

I just ordered/received a new black toner cartridge. I'm almost half way through the one that came with my printer. I just hate the idea of running out of toner. I'll probably never have to buy the other colors. I never use them. Well, once in a while. Anyway, I bought a black one for under $30 and it will last me forever. I can't believe how much money I wasted on inkjet printers and ink over the years. If I had bought a laser printer back when they were over a $1000 I'd still be ahead.

 

[crupiea]

1 hour ago, octoolguy said:

I just ordered/received a new black toner cartridge. I'm almost half way through the one that came with my printer. I just hate the idea of running out of toner. I'll probably never have to buy the other colors. I never use them. Well, once in a while. Anyway, I bought a black one for under $30 and it will last me forever. I can't believe how much money I wasted on inkjet printers and ink over the years. If I had bought a laser printer back when they were over a $1000 I'd still be ahead.

 

I hear you Ray.  Great value, especially for us heavily pattern dependant guys. 

[CharleyL]

I got my HP Laserjet 4 at a tag sale about 12 years ago. It was used, but seemed to be all there and for $10 I decided that it was worth the gamble. I think I've gone through about 20 toner cartridges since getting it. I buy the recycled cartridges 2 at a time when I need more from whatever source offers the best price through Amazon. It doesn't do color, but the 600 dpi capability makes nice fine black lines for scroll sawing. If I need color I use one of my Epson or HP inkjet photo printers.

Copier and Laser printers use toner that is actually fine pieces of hard black wax. It melts when heated and that is how it is applied to the paper. I have used this feature to iron my pattern onto the wood by printing a mirror image of the pattern on the laser printer (if mirroring is necessary) and then I attach the image face down to my wood, using a strip of tape to act as a hinge along one edge. I then use a hot clothes iron on the back (unprinted) side of the paper to melt the toner and transfer the image onto the wood. The hinge capability of the taped edge gives you the ability to inspect the transfer without losing the position. It helps to set the laser printer for the darkest line.

 

Charley

 

Edited July 15, 2019 by CharleyL

[OCtoolguy]

51 minutes ago, CharleyL said:

I got my HP Laserjet 4 at a tag sale about 12 years ago. It was used, but seemed to be all there and for $10 I decided that it was worth the gamble. I think I've gone through about 20 toner cartridges since getting it. I buy the recycled cartridges 2 at a time when I need more from whatever source offers the best price through Amazon. It doesn't do color, but the 600 dpi capability makes nice fine black lines for scroll sawing. If I need color I use one of my Epson or HP inkjet photo printers.

Copier and Laser printers use toner that is actually fine pieces of hard black wax. It melts when heated and that is how it is applied to the paper. I have used this feature to iron my pattern onto the wood by printing a mirror image of the pattern on the laser printer (if mirroring is necessary) and then I attach the image face down to my wood, using a strip of tape to act as a hinge along one edge. I then use a hot clothes iron on the back (unprinted) side of the paper to melt the toner and transfer the image onto the wood. The hinge capability of the taped edge gives you the ability to inspect the transfer without losing the position. It helps to set the laser printer for the darkest line.

 

Charley

 

Thanks Charlie, great info.