Reinking A Type Writer Or Dot Matrix Printer Ribbon
| Field | Computers |
| Went Obsolete | Appoximately 1992 |
| Made Obsolete By | When inkjet and laser printers became cheap |
| Knowledge Assumed | None |
| When useful | If still using a Dot Matrix printer or a Typewriter |
Please note that this technique will only work with a 9-pin dot matrix printer or a conventional typewriter. (ie. Hammer or Daisy wheel type) Do not try this with 24-pin dot matrix printers.
Ideally, what you need is a reinking jig. This is basically nothing more than two spool winders mounted onto a piece of wood. Think of a lever that is connected to a shaft (Somewhat like those old pencil sharpeners) which is then connected to a spindle, with a index pin. You could buy these at any office supply place at one point in time. (It was meant to respool new ribbons or to rewind reversed ribbons if my memory serves me right, we had one in my high school.)
Mount the reels onto the reinking jig. Then find a stamp pad. Using the long side of the screwdriver, spray the portion of the ribbon before the stamp pad with WD-40. (Make sure you are in a well ventilated room when you do this) Then hold the ribbon down with the screwdriver against the stamp pad firmly and crank the other reel so it's “Dragged” across the stamp pad.
If you get good at this, you can use a contant spray of WD-40 while quickly spooling the ribbon across the stamp pad onto the other reel.
(Corrections required where necessary!)
