Video of an IBM Impact Printer circa 1990 Please also see my Mainframe Computer Room Video

Mainframe Impact Printer similar to a 1403

• Category

  Science & Technology

[Sam Orona]

I remember those printing boxes and boxes of paper. They were very loud.

[dougspair]

These are still used for printing impact type, 3-4 pages of carbon copy.

[dougspair]

I worked on these in 1969-70 in New York Stock Exchange with the Phone Company. they were very fast then, and these are still very fast printers, and one of the few that can print full characters like a typewriter,and 3-5 page carbon copies.

[MadatMedia]

Shipping/trucking companies mainly. Any place that needs to print something for a hard copy for legal proof, even if no one will ever read it. What the bind is these printers are the only thing to print on a old IBM system. So if you want a new printer? You need to buy a whole new mainframe.

At least thats the way it seems to me anyway.

[MadatMedia]

Got a service call on this guy tomorrow.

[MadatMedia]

I just got trained to service this printer last week. May the printer gods be kind and generous lol

[CoolDudeClem]

Wow that's fast, something like that can be very usefull as long as any kind of graphics are not needed.

[smithbe40]

I used to run an IBM 4245. It had a similar ribbon and chain arrangement. It ran all through the night printing labels only 3" wide or so. Since it would only use up the one end of the ribbon, I'd flip it around to use the end side. :) The only time it ever broke down: a microswitch broke, it was the one that sensed that the ribbon carriage was closed. The tech oncall was 3 hours away, so I swapped it with the one that turned on the vacuum cleaner hose when you plugged it in.

[Jay Tel]

Cool.

[Jeff98177]

I ran a 6262 and before that, a 4245.