Epson ERC-31B Ribbon Cartridge, Black, for Epson TM-H5000II, TM-U950, TM-U925, TM-U930 and TM-U590

The Epson ERC-31B (C43S015369) is the original black ribbon cartridge for the impact section of Epson’s multifunction POS printers — the TM-H5000II hybrid, the TM-U950 and TM-U925 receipt/journal/slip printers, and the TM-U930/II and TM-U590 — used in retail, hospitality and banking where slips, cheques or journals are printed by impact.

On hybrid models such as the TM-H5000II, receipts are printed thermally and the ribbon is used for the slip (form) station, so the cartridge lasts according to how many slips you print.

• 1 × Epson ERC-31B ribbon cartridge, black
• Epson retail packaging

• Impact (dot-matrix) printing strikes the ribbon onto the paper, so it works on plain, recycled and carbonless multi-part paper — the reason these mechanisms are still used where a duplicate copy or a long-life printout is needed.
• Print gets gradually lighter as the ink is used up; replace the cartridge when text starts to look grey or uneven, not when it stops printing altogether.
• A dried-out or torn ribbon makes the print head strike bare fabric or paper, which wears the pins faster — a fresh genuine cartridge protects the mechanism.
• Keep a spare sealed cartridge next to each printer so a change takes seconds during opening hours.

• Thermal receipt printers (for example Epson TM-T20, TM-T88 or TM-m30 series) — they print with heat on thermal paper and use no ribbon at all.
• Epson TM-H6000 series and TM-U675 — they take the ERC-32B cartridge.
• Epson TM-U220 / TM-U230 — they take ERC-38.
• Re-inking or refilling — the cartridge is a sealed, single-use unit.