Seeing how Dymo appears to have embraced HP-style consumable management, I almost wonder if the new printer spaces the letters so widely so that the tape is used up sooner, and you have to buy more.
I have literally never seen or remember seeing one of these label makers, but have seen labels made by one and wondered how in the world do people make them. Now that curiosity has been fulfilled and I feel kind of dumb that this didn't click sooner. Nice stuff.
I've seen these at an office, being used, like just a few years ago, as they are so handy (literally) for short runs. It is time we get to to see more mechanical fallback systems. We used to use abacuses in primary school. Now i feel old. No, but seriously, we have become too dependent on electricity and electronics. I just saw a video about automatons of the 19th century and they were incredible pieces of craftsmanship and ingenuity. So let's have some sort ofmechanical backups everywhere in case the serialization and lock outs have gone completely out of hand, or another apocalypse.
One of my first student job was inventory at Sears and they used one for identifying random racking for winter salt and utilities, they had stolen it from the clothing dept in 1978, that was the legend...
They work as a thin coloured film on a white tape. The raised letters are embossed from below. When the tape is stretched by the impression, the colour "dissolves" revealing the white underneath.
It's also one of the first membership store chains -- I believe a lifetime membership still costs only $5 (it was $2 when our family joined in the mid-70s). Much cheaper than Costco, Sam's Club, etc.; the smaller store size and hometown feel make for a more-enjoyable shopping experience according to many customers. There's also Lucky Number Tuesdays -- but that's for a future comment! I don't think the origin of the name "Bi-Mart" was ever publicized. I always thought "Bi" was just a (weird) play on "Buy". Nowadays the store name could be misinterpreted...
@@clydecrashcup2708 In Canada, there used to be a large chain of neighbourhood discount department variety stores call Bi-way. Don't know the origin of the name, but they folded years ago.
@@clydecrashcup2708 Yeah I always go there over Target and Walmart, if I can. Most of the time, they have what I need. Even cheap Mobil-1 and Rotella-T oil, which normally has to be from Walmart. Also seems like the cheapest place to buy car batteries, so both my car and truck have Bi-Mart batteries. Just the most friendly employees, it's like they actually like their jobs! I used to think the name was funny but I guess I quickly got used to it.
What great nostalgia! I got one of these for Christmas in 1965 and I made labels for everything I had. When I took it to school my classmates wanted to put labels on their lunch boxes Sounds pretty square but I miss those simpler times.
@@AltimaNEO Not even really back then, my 6 year-old niece is obsessed with my labelmaker, she'd go through entire spools if I let her. I didn't know these older style ones were so cheap, this actually might make a good gift for spelling practice.
As a kid, my parents labeled everything with a red Rotex labeler. I think they still have it. Nowadays, my parents use a Brother P-touch and I use a Brother industrial label maker. I like that Dymo doesn't need a leader section of label to pull it through, but I'm sticking with Brother because of the aftermarket support.
I have a p-touch as well and just bought a bunch of aftermarket labels. they work just a good and I gone through many reels of cheap labels and have no complaints. I'll definitely have to be wary of DRM whenever I buy anything in the future.
Recently found my late grandfather's old Dymo label maker from probably the 60s. All metal except for the wheel, still has a roll of label tape that is still good and sticky! He passed away in 1996 and I'm not sure when he last used it but I'm willing to bet it was probably last filled sometime in the 1980s.
You are my hero, I have been advocating for these label makers for years- My personal favorite are the metal chromed 1570 and 1550s they were a fantastic design.
There was some fantastic technology back then that seems to have been lost forever. I remember incredible devices such as this one that were so advanced that they could work without having to depend on cloud resources and a broadband connection. I also remember we had a toaster that you would just plug in and use without even the need of entering the WiFi password.
We had one of the cast metal label makers when I was a child in the late-1950s. My father worked in the plastics business and was a good friend of Arnold Horowitz, one of the developers of the Dymo Label Maker. They did business together for many years. The secret to how it works is that the label stock is made of stress-whitening vinyl that is manufactured to turn white when embossed. It was my understanding that Arnold helped develop that plastic and/or the manufacturing process. They even made clear label stock that showed white letters on semi-clear plastic as the adhesive prevented it from being totally transparent.
Dymo were big in the UK and my late Dad had loads of these when I was growing up.I remember a very vivid bright orange dispenser. It was poignant when clearing my parents house after they had passed away to find so many things still labelled with dymo tape.
@@cdl0 I had an orange one too. I vanished from my life many years ago but a couple of years ago I bought a fine second hand orange one on ebay. I use it to label my spice and herb jars!
7:28 i love the back of this plastic package because they suggest through the image that you would put a label on your video game controller so you know whose it is (in this case, it's DAVID's),,. got a good chuckle out of that.
Dymo still makes the older, beefier design - it's called the Dymo Office Mate II model 1540. They also make a bigger, beefier one that prints on stainless steel labels called the Rhino M1011. I remember my mom having one of these and it sitting in the bin of 'nice' craft supplies that I wasn't supposed to touch without permission, with the metallic paint pens and glitter and such.
My uncle labeled the outlets and switches in his house and other buildings on his farm. I think it was either the amp rating or the circuit number corresponding with the number at the breaker panel. So I did the same for my house. Very useful when doing electrical work to easily know which circuit to turn off. Those labels on outdoor receptacles do endure the elements, years of direct sun and rain, and haven't faded or fallen off yet.
I grew up with a few of those over the years from the early 70’s right into the 2000’s. The earliest colors I remember were the avocado green and the orangey-yellow with a few interchangeable discs; I remember the script as well as both directions of text. Absolutely the label standard in the days before the Brother P-Touch style printers. I still prefer the older Dymo units too. A much cleaner embossing and it didn’t flex like it was about to break like the new ones do. I’ve always loved the wood grain labels too. I’m still a fan of wood grain paneling and stained wood doorways and finishing, and these labels just look right in that environment.
Hah, neat seeing a Bi-Mart price tag all the way in NJ. Bi-Mart is a northwest membership store in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. Man, these labelers bring back some memories. I used to make labels for our family's electronics repair shop parts bins, service data binders, etc. I got pretty good at the ol' Dymo. :)
I have wanted one of these ever since I saw Double D use it in the cartoon Ed, Edd n Eddy. Now I have several of them. That cursive script looks great, I have never seen it before.
Yeah, my Dymo embossed label maker is a 70s (maybe 60s? I had assumed 70s) model I inherited from my grandfather - basically identical to yours but it's black with a little bit of chrome trim and cast alloy. Works perfectly!
In a previous job in a 80s datacenter, I used a very large one with tape an inch wide, which was used to make the labels for the sides of full-size computer tapes. It sat on a table top and had a large lever you pushed down on with your whole arm.
They used to use these lDymo's for labelling control switches in everything from race cars to fighter jets back in the 60's & 70's. Had one myself growing up as a kid.
I used to use a mechanical dymo label embosser for labelling electrical switchgear, what impresses me is they are still selling them, just proves you don’t always need an electronic gadget, simple lasts
We had that exact same Dymo label maker (the one in the early part of the video) when I was a kid with the extra wheels as well. I used it a good bit back in the day,
I've had a few of these over the years. I have found the latest ones get jammed very easily. I bought aftermarket cheaper tape and while the tape worked for a while, it was too thick and eventually buggered up the label maker. Had to buy a new one. I hadn't thought about looking for vintage ones so I'll give it a go.
My (autistic) son was entertained for years of his childhood with a Dymo label maker. He's a young adult now, but we still often see his labels on things: chairs, tables, boxes, books...
I have a Dymo 1570 I got from Goodwill for $6. It's basically the same as the vintage one you showed except it's made out of metal instead of plastic. Naturally it feels extremely high quality and not at all cheap.
I used one of those label makers back in the 80's & early 90's, before the newer P-touch type labels. The company I worked for used to use them. They had a pro model that was silver and made out of metal.
I've known about these label makers for some time, but I never really thought much about them until this video. I have a newer electronic Dyno handheld label maker and between expensive labels, chewing through batteries, and backing that is difficult to get off its been living in the junk drawer for years, but something like this seems ideal for what I'd need it for.
Wow! What an eye opener! Of course that vintage one would be better! Everything they make now a days is never as good as older items that seem to work better and last longer including furniture. Due to this video I now purchased this exact vintage model on Amazon. So excited to use it because I can have more varieties of label writing in the vintage one. And yes I'm a milenial but prefer to use something long lasting 💖!
There were so many of them, way back. We also had Avery, it did a fine job and Dymo made a small one that sold for a few bucks at Radio Shack. Dymo had the widest variety of products.
I used to have the Dymo HandiMark 1885 label maker similar to the one in the video. The model I had the label cartridge is loaded in the rear allowing me to precisely retract the excess label by pressing on the feed knob to release the label so I can reposition it by manipulating the reel.
Sometimes old is better than new! Especially in this case. Dymo making you have to purchase their own non-third party labels was the worst thing they ever did. I watched the videos Dave Jones made. Great video on tried and true classic technology!
It really is baffling to me that a company with a well known brand name would sell terrible products. But it's probably because they want people to buy there electric printers and lock everyone to their label cartridges. But I for one would not buy another Dymo product if I had bought that new POC.
the brother P-touch is superior compared to the dymo thermoprinters. cheap aftermarket tapes, easy to use and some (maybe all?) desktop ones can run off of batteries too!
My favorite toy at my grandparents' house. Everything got a label. The pots and pans got labels. The jars in the pantry got labels. The chairs in the dining room go labels. Grandma got a label.
@@planetX15 Thermal Labels, unfortunately. But for outside labeling of trunks and circuits the DYMO aluminum embossed tags are still in use in some areas.
I love my Brother P-Touches (older one at work and newer one with USB at home). They take anything, even air. Different tapes are automatically recognized with notches in the cassette and the labels are always laminated.
I absolutely agree with you on the vintage labelmakers! i went through 3 cheap plasticy 90s ones before i came across a vintage orange version of your green dymo in this video and it has been solid as a tank ever since i got it! Also i had no idea you could swap the charachter wheels!!
I bought one of the newer label makers in the summer of 2020 to aid in a room organization project. It did the job I needed it to admirably enough and I was able to pick it up at my local office supply store the day of ordering. While I agree with the sentiment that the more spaced-out lettering is a way to increase the consumption speed of the tape, I think there's a certain aesthetic sensibility to it that I prefer. I don't think I knew about lightly squeezing it to advance the tape until you did it, I've been moving the wheel to the space section (right next to the cutting section) every time.
These labels are still being used for offices and mailboxes. Because they come in different colors to match the fixtures. They’re simpler to use and cheaper than the computerized labels.
I can imagine that the old one could also write Braille if you have the correct wheel And while embossed letters might be touch readable, that requires the blind person to know what written letters -look- feel like
I remember discovering my dad's Dymo label maker at his office in the 1970's. Later in life, when I got into flying airplanes, it seems like aircraft owners really loved the Dymo label maker to put placarded instructions on the instrument panel. They were really fond of the red label color 😂
I have a working mini keyring dymo printer that I got about 10 years ago at an airport. It is about the size of an egg. It is pretty cool, I use it, but it takes narrower than standard tapes which are a bit harder to get, or cut down and respool, but it is pretty usable.
If Clint from LGR sees these woodgrain labels he's gonna want it too and probably will label everything in his house including the woodgrain 486 and perhaps even the labelmaker itself 😅
My kid wanted the older style like that. So when I was at a estate sale. I picked up a few. Then embossed some ip numbers and put them on my switcher. WoodGrain. Oh that is great.
I grew up seeing everything labeled with Dad's chonky Dymo embossing label maker like this. As a US Navy kid, these were all the rage into the early 00's for file cabinets, file folder tabs, hanging folders and dry foods storage in the pantry. I even remember trying to "make" vertical labels by feeding the tape in manually from the side of the wheel itself and squeezing each letter with plyers. Removable wheels would have saved a ton of trouble.
Therapeutic video! I have an old Dymo label maker I use all the time. Someone gave it to me. It uses the same basic mechanism as the ones you show here, but it's very large and oddly shaped. It's heavy and made of black metal and chrome. I found it in a vintage catalog priced at hundreds of dollars. It came with a pile of "aluminum tapes" which make metallic silver labels.
I have a newer DYMO label maker from around 2013 or so and it's worked fine, until recently it's had problems giving out faded looking prints. Decided to bust out our old DYMO 1550 that I had largely forgotten about since we got the new one. But, man does it still hold up well. Great, clear looking prints without ridiculous spacing either (lovely font too). Thing's built like a tank and is mostly made of chromed metal with some hefty plastic. I'd guess it's either early 70s or even maybe late 60s. Best part is, it still has the price tag on it. My Grandma bought it from the Salvation Army store she worked at in the late 90s for just $1.00. When you consider that this thing will probably last another 50 years, I'd would say that was quite the value.
My mother has had and has been using a version of a Dymo labeler that uses Braille characters on the wheel. It still makes great labels (although she has only used official Dymo labels in it).
5:54 I wonder if the spacing can be adjusted to match the script letters up exactly? Maybe centring also to avoid "cut-off" tops but that might be a bit more awkward. (Sorry if this has already been asked).
I had a different brand of label maker when I was young. The containers for the tape varied with different brands. It was easy enough to swap tape into empty containers.
Great Video. I still use my Dymo even though the Brother P-Touch I also use is more versatile. I like the looks of what they now call retro labels. Amazon still sells a model that has been around since the 60's/70s the 1540, or Office Mate II, new since Dymo still makes it. It is night and day better than the Express model. Enjoy the videos, keep up the good work. These plastic labels still have many uses on the right surface...
my grandad was a journalist and had so much great quality ‘tech’ from the 60s/ 70s. I was looking how to refill this but I think he had an older model which took thinner tape!
I have always wondered how these types of label makers worked. I have seen the machine on websites but its something else seeing them in action and its wireless too!
I remember my dad having one of these mechanical label makers, even in the same greenish color. I can barely fathom the concept of being forced to use an electronic one with DRM.
I still have the Dymo competitor brand label maker I purchased in the early 70's at a local Saxon paint store. Now that I know that the labels are still available, I'll have to find it and start labeling everything!
Nothing shouts old one off electronics than Dymo labels. The set builders got it 100% correct when they used one of these to label the controls in the Back to the Future DeLorean time machine.
I love how VWestlife answers to other YT videos ... Labelmaker controversy by Louis Rossmann ... Weird cassette eject mechanism from techmoan .... Thank you for showing us this old-school embossing labelmaker. I didn't know they are still making them today. I will have to get one just for fun.
I have something very similar to this, but it outputs Braille. I’ve had it for many years but I don’t know the manufacturer of the one I have. RNIB still sell one called the ‘Reizen RL-35’ but I don’t know if it’s what I have, or if it looks like the item you’re demoing in this video. Now I’m curious to find out. I haven’t had to use it in years, but it’s still full of tape, and would work as soon as I needed it. Forgot about it until this video.
I finally upgraded from 1/4 and 3/8 to 1/2 inch metal tape-makers but few have interchangeable wheels. You lucked out getting that script wheel. Long ago there was a mail order catalog for spare wheels including Hebrew, and probably Braille, which makes perfect sense!
Not thicker or thinner, width is what you are talking about. And, it is 1/4" or 3/8". About 50 years ago I watched a local librarian making labels and tearing off the small tab at the end and then struggling to peel off the backing. When I attempted to show her how to use the tab to peel off the backing, she blew me off because I was kid and obviously couldn't know something she didn't know.
I've seen labels like this at many places especially in Hungary, but none in Slovakia (the two countries I spent most of my life in). I figured out it was a mechanical thing, maybe dating back to the 60s or 70s, and since it was quite popular in Hungary, I thought it had to be a Hungarian invention :D Now I know it's a Dymo product, thanks! I'll track an old one down on eBay, it will be fun to make labels of the repair date of the bean to cup coffee machines I repair as a hobby :)
I still have a Handimark 1885 label maker that uses the 3/8 inch tape. Would use it more but refills are only available online now. Love the woodgrain tape and your label marker does two thicknesses , vintage and damn cool .
When I see an embossing label maker, the first thought that comes to my mind is Edd aka Double D from Ed, Edd n Eddy. He had an embossing label making machine , that he used it to label everything in his room.
I have one of the old metal ones, really feels like a proper well built tool, though ultimately still has plastic embossing wheels. Also has a wheel to load and advance the tape that also lets you manually set the spacing of the letters, which can be really handy in a tight spot when you just need to squeeze in one more letter. Can also look nicer with the tighter spacing, especially with the right embossing wheel.
On my Dymo 1710, if you press the wheel release 'button' gently towards the body of the device with your thumb as you turn, it is a lot quieter to turn the wheel. The clacking is less annoying if you are doing a lot of labelling. The tape on mine can be pushed straight through without the need to pull on the trigger. I generally push a good length through, then wind the excess back in to the reel.
Wood grain embossed labels; something LGR would really be into
Greetings…..::.
and welcome to an LGR _thing_
Label Maker Reviews
@@randonmichels8969 I see the connection
@@randonmichels8969 lazy label maker reviews ;)
Seeing how Dymo appears to have embraced HP-style consumable management, I almost wonder if the new printer spaces the letters so widely so that the tape is used up sooner, and you have to buy more.
That's exactly it.
I thought that was what they'd done too
Soon they charge you for new typerprints , that the new "plan" what were honor of old age before is not the new honour thats now preferble
It's also worse quality so you buy their digital ones
@@pawepiat6170 There's gotta be a superior-quality Chinese product that you can buy.
I have literally never seen or remember seeing one of these label makers, but have seen labels made by one and wondered how in the world do people make them. Now that curiosity has been fulfilled and I feel kind of dumb that this didn't click sooner. Nice stuff.
I've seen these at an office, being used, like just a few years ago, as they are so handy (literally) for short runs. It is time we get to to see more mechanical fallback systems. We used to use abacuses in primary school. Now i feel old. No, but seriously, we have become too dependent on electricity and electronics. I just saw a video about automatons of the 19th century and they were incredible pieces of craftsmanship and ingenuity. So let's have some sort ofmechanical backups everywhere in case the serialization and lock outs have gone completely out of hand, or another apocalypse.
One of my first student job was inventory at Sears and they used one for identifying random racking for winter salt and utilities, they had stolen it from the clothing dept in 1978, that was the legend...
They work as a thin coloured film on a white tape. The raised letters are embossed from below. When the tape is stretched by the impression, the colour "dissolves" revealing the white underneath.
My uncle had one, an I got to try it once. Cannot recall which model it was, but his had a roll of gold tape. I've never seen the script font, though.
Hey there is a use of 'literally' in it's new definition of 'figuratively'.
Thanks kids for making literally mean figuratively.
Good old Bi-Mart, I shop there all the time! It's an employee owned chain here in the PNW, much like Wal Mart but smaller stores.
same. love my bi-mart.
It's also one of the first membership store chains -- I believe a lifetime membership still costs only $5 (it was $2 when our family joined in the mid-70s). Much cheaper than Costco, Sam's Club, etc.; the smaller store size and hometown feel make for a more-enjoyable shopping experience according to many customers. There's also Lucky Number Tuesdays -- but that's for a future comment!
I don't think the origin of the name "Bi-Mart" was ever publicized. I always thought "Bi" was just a (weird) play on "Buy". Nowadays the store name could be misinterpreted...
@@clydecrashcup2708 In Canada, there used to be a large chain of neighbourhood discount department variety stores call Bi-way. Don't know the origin of the name, but they folded years ago.
@@clydecrashcup2708 Yeah I always go there over Target and Walmart, if I can. Most of the time, they have what I need. Even cheap Mobil-1 and Rotella-T oil, which normally has to be from Walmart. Also seems like the cheapest place to buy car batteries, so both my car and truck have Bi-Mart batteries. Just the most friendly employees, it's like they actually like their jobs! I used to think the name was funny but I guess I quickly got used to it.
Makes me think of a unisex shop that sells items for both male and female customers? (Whatever happened to them?). LOL.
What great nostalgia!
I got one of these for Christmas in 1965 and I made labels for everything I had.
When I took it to school my classmates wanted to put labels on their lunch boxes
Sounds pretty square but I miss those simpler times.
Same! I got one for Christmas in the 70s. I loved that thing!
they were neat as heck back then
@@AltimaNEO Not even really back then, my 6 year-old niece is obsessed with my labelmaker, she'd go through entire spools if I let her. I didn't know these older style ones were so cheap, this actually might make a good gift for spelling practice.
Neat how they harnessed the stress marks on plastic to highlight the letters.
The white "ink" *was* the stress marks of the plastic.
@@timfischer Yep, I know
As a kid, my parents labeled everything with a red Rotex labeler. I think they still have it. Nowadays, my parents use a Brother P-touch and I use a Brother industrial label maker. I like that Dymo doesn't need a leader section of label to pull it through, but I'm sticking with Brother because of the aftermarket support.
P-Touch is inexpensive to buy and doesn't go in for DRM craziness, at least not yet.
I have a p-touch as well and just bought a bunch of aftermarket labels. they work just a good and I gone through many reels of cheap labels and have no complaints. I'll definitely have to be wary of DRM whenever I buy anything in the future.
Recently found my late grandfather's old Dymo label maker from probably the 60s. All metal except for the wheel, still has a roll of label tape that is still good and sticky! He passed away in 1996 and I'm not sure when he last used it but I'm willing to bet it was probably last filled sometime in the 1980s.
the Compact cassette machine, recently????
Why you need labels? the wife needs to read it?
You are my hero, I have been advocating for these label makers for years- My personal favorite are the metal chromed 1570 and 1550s they were a fantastic design.
There was some fantastic technology back then that seems to have been lost forever. I remember incredible devices such as this one that were so advanced that they could work without having to depend on cloud resources and a broadband connection. I also remember we had a toaster that you would just plug in and use without even the need of entering the WiFi password.
The gadget on the “new” Dymo’s packaging is a Gravis gamepad circa 1991 😂
Best old school gamepads of the DOS/9x era (the gamepad pro that is)
Great gamepad 🎮
We had one of the cast metal label makers when I was a child in the late-1950s. My father worked in the plastics business and was a good friend of Arnold Horowitz, one of the developers of the Dymo Label Maker. They did business together for many years.
The secret to how it works is that the label stock is made of stress-whitening vinyl that is manufactured to turn white when embossed. It was my understanding that Arnold helped develop that plastic and/or the manufacturing process. They even made clear label stock that showed white letters on semi-clear plastic as the adhesive prevented it from being totally transparent.
Dymo were big in the UK and my late Dad had loads of these when I was growing up.I remember a very vivid bright orange dispenser. It was poignant when clearing my parents house after they had passed away to find so many things still labelled with dymo tape.
Mine is an original funky orange one from the early 1970s, owned since new by me. I still use it.
@@cdl0 I had an orange one too. I vanished from my life many years ago but a couple of years ago I bought a fine second hand orange one on ebay. I use it to label my spice and herb jars!
@@davidjgomm Which all goes to show that this was and is a classic, timeless design.
7:28 i love the back of this plastic package because they suggest through the image that you would put a label on your video game controller so you know whose it is (in this case, it's DAVID's),,. got a good chuckle out of that.
Dymo still makes the older, beefier design - it's called the Dymo Office Mate II model 1540. They also make a bigger, beefier one that prints on stainless steel labels called the Rhino M1011.
I remember my mom having one of these and it sitting in the bin of 'nice' craft supplies that I wasn't supposed to touch without permission, with the metallic paint pens and glitter and such.
IIRC that one also has a different font
Thanks!
I've never had much use for one of these, but now that I know I can get woodgrain tape I want one. Great vid!
Whee, what a blast from the past! Had one of these in the early 1980s, as a kid. I never knew there were replaceable typewheels, that's wild! 😻
My uncle labeled the outlets and switches in his house and other buildings on his farm. I think it was either the amp rating or the circuit number corresponding with the number at the breaker panel. So I did the same for my house. Very useful when doing electrical work to easily know which circuit to turn off. Those labels on outdoor receptacles do endure the elements, years of direct sun and rain, and haven't faded or fallen off yet.
I grew up with a few of those over the years from the early 70’s right into the 2000’s. The earliest colors I remember were the avocado green and the orangey-yellow with a few interchangeable discs; I remember the script as well as both directions of text. Absolutely the label standard in the days before the Brother P-Touch style printers. I still prefer the older Dymo units too. A much cleaner embossing and it didn’t flex like it was about to break like the new ones do. I’ve always loved the wood grain labels too. I’m still a fan of wood grain paneling and stained wood doorways and finishing, and these labels just look right in that environment.
Hah, neat seeing a Bi-Mart price tag all the way in NJ. Bi-Mart is a northwest membership store in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. Man, these labelers bring back some memories. I used to make labels for our family's electronics repair shop parts bins, service data binders, etc. I got pretty good at the ol' Dymo. :)
I have wanted one of these ever since I saw Double D use it in the cartoon Ed, Edd n Eddy. Now I have several of them. That cursive script looks great, I have never seen it before.
Yeah, my Dymo embossed label maker is a 70s (maybe 60s? I had assumed 70s) model I inherited from my grandfather - basically identical to yours but it's black with a little bit of chrome trim and cast alloy. Works perfectly!
Wood grain labels LGR would be happy! I think we still have one somewhere in our house!
I"ve been using this style lable my whole life. I love the aesthetic of this label and for labeling plants and items its my favorite goto label.
In a previous job in a 80s datacenter, I used a very large one with tape an inch wide, which was used to make the labels for the sides of full-size computer tapes. It sat on a table top and had a large lever you pushed down on with your whole arm.
I expected you writing up "LGR" on that woodgrain label but its not hahaha! xDDDD
Great to see these humble label makers from my youth get some love finally....!
They used to use these lDymo's for labelling control switches in everything from race cars to fighter jets back in the 60's & 70's. Had one myself growing up as a kid.
Ahhhh so that's where these came from, I saw them a lot at work on different office supplies.
I used to use a mechanical dymo label embosser for labelling electrical switchgear, what impresses me is they are still selling them, just proves you don’t always need an electronic gadget, simple lasts
I'll bet that LGR would love that wood-grain label refill.
We had that exact same Dymo label maker (the one in the early part of the video) when I was a kid with the extra wheels as well. I used it a good bit back in the day,
I've had a few of these over the years. I have found the latest ones get jammed very easily. I bought aftermarket cheaper tape and while the tape worked for a while, it was too thick and eventually buggered up the label maker. Had to buy a new one. I hadn't thought about looking for vintage ones so I'll give it a go.
I loved this. I got a Dymo for Christmas in 1973 I doubt I was too happy about it.
My (autistic) son was entertained for years of his childhood with a Dymo label maker. He's a young adult now, but we still often see his labels on things: chairs, tables, boxes, books...
I have a Dymo 1570 I got from Goodwill for $6. It's basically the same as the vintage one you showed except it's made out of metal instead of plastic. Naturally it feels extremely high quality and not at all cheap.
Oh man, I love the old school Dymo label makers, now I need to get some woodgrain rolls!
Avocado AND woodgrain?! I am in love!
I used one of those label makers back in the 80's & early 90's, before the newer P-touch type labels. The company I worked for used to use them. They had a pro model that was silver and made out of metal.
I've known about these label makers for some time, but I never really thought much about them until this video. I have a newer electronic Dyno handheld label maker and between expensive labels, chewing through batteries, and backing that is difficult to get off its been living in the junk drawer for years, but something like this seems ideal for what I'd need it for.
Wow! What an eye opener! Of course that vintage one would be better! Everything they make now a days is never as good as older items that seem to work better and last longer including furniture. Due to this video I now purchased this exact vintage model on Amazon. So excited to use it because I can have more varieties of label writing in the vintage one. And yes I'm a milenial but prefer to use something long lasting 💖!
There were so many of them, way back. We also had Avery, it did a fine job and Dymo made a small one that sold for a few bucks at Radio Shack. Dymo had the widest variety of products.
Those green labels @2.49 remind me of the colour of your old Mazda 2.
Bet @LGR will love those woodgrain labels!
Awesome video. I remember using Dymo as a child. Our machine was yellow in colour!
I used to have the Dymo HandiMark 1885 label maker similar to the one in the video. The model I had the label cartridge is loaded in the rear allowing me to precisely retract the excess label by pressing on the feed knob to release the label so I can reposition it by manipulating the reel.
Sometimes old is better than new! Especially in this case. Dymo making you have to purchase their own non-third party labels was the worst thing they ever did. I watched the videos Dave Jones made. Great video on tried and true classic technology!
It really is baffling to me that a company with a well known brand name would sell terrible products. But it's probably because they want people to buy there electric printers and lock everyone to their label cartridges. But I for one would not buy another Dymo product if I had bought that new POC.
the brother P-touch is superior compared to the dymo thermoprinters. cheap aftermarket tapes, easy to use and some (maybe all?) desktop ones can run off of batteries too!
My favorite toy at my grandparents' house. Everything got a label. The pots and pans got labels. The jars in the pantry got labels. The chairs in the dining room go labels. Grandma got a label.
Those 1” DYMO Embossed labels were the standard for central office trunk markings at the telephone company until just a few years ago.
So what's the standard now?
@@planetX15 Thermal Labels, unfortunately. But for outside labeling of trunks and circuits the DYMO aluminum embossed tags are still in use in some areas.
@@ok4todd Interesting...
I love my Brother P-Touches (older one at work and newer one with USB at home). They take anything, even air. Different tapes are automatically recognized with notches in the cassette and the labels are always laminated.
I absolutely agree with you on the vintage labelmakers! i went through 3 cheap plasticy 90s ones before i came across a vintage orange version of your green dymo in this video and it has been solid as a tank ever since i got it! Also i had no idea you could swap the charachter wheels!!
I bought one of the newer label makers in the summer of 2020 to aid in a room organization project. It did the job I needed it to admirably enough and I was able to pick it up at my local office supply store the day of ordering. While I agree with the sentiment that the more spaced-out lettering is a way to increase the consumption speed of the tape, I think there's a certain aesthetic sensibility to it that I prefer. I don't think I knew about lightly squeezing it to advance the tape until you did it, I've been moving the wheel to the space section (right next to the cutting section) every time.
These labels are still being used for offices and mailboxes. Because they come in different colors to match the fixtures. They’re simpler to use and cheaper than the computerized labels.
I can imagine that the old one could also write Braille if you have the correct wheel
And while embossed letters might be touch readable, that requires the blind person to know what written letters -look- feel like
retro objects yeah I still remember those!
I remember discovering my dad's Dymo label maker at his office in the 1970's. Later in life, when I got into flying airplanes, it seems like aircraft owners really loved the Dymo label maker to put placarded instructions on the instrument panel. They were really fond of the red label color 😂
I have a working mini keyring dymo printer that I got about 10 years ago at an airport. It is about the size of an egg. It is pretty cool, I use it, but it takes narrower than standard tapes which are a bit harder to get, or cut down and respool, but it is pretty usable.
If Clint from LGR sees these woodgrain labels he's gonna want it too and probably will label everything in his house including the woodgrain 486 and perhaps even the labelmaker itself 😅
I absolutely will if I find a supply of woodlabelgrain
As far as I can tell, the Chinese may actually manufacture NEW woodgrain tape on eBay. Only thing is that it’s not that deep 70’s wood pattern
Those labels were stuck to just about everything in my school in the 80s.
My kid wanted the older style like that. So when I was at a estate sale. I picked up a few. Then embossed some ip numbers and put them on my switcher. WoodGrain. Oh that is great.
I grew up seeing everything labeled with Dad's chonky Dymo embossing label maker like this. As a US Navy kid, these were all the rage into the early 00's for file cabinets, file folder tabs, hanging folders and dry foods storage in the pantry.
I even remember trying to "make" vertical labels by feeding the tape in manually from the side of the wheel itself and squeezing each letter with plyers. Removable wheels would have saved a ton of trouble.
Therapeutic video! I have an old Dymo label maker I use all the time. Someone gave it to me. It uses the same basic mechanism as the ones you show here, but it's very large and oddly shaped. It's heavy and made of black metal and chrome. I found it in a vintage catalog priced at hundreds of dollars. It came with a pile of "aluminum tapes" which make metallic silver labels.
I have a newer DYMO label maker from around 2013 or so and it's worked fine, until recently it's had problems giving out faded looking prints. Decided to bust out our old DYMO 1550 that I had largely forgotten about since we got the new one. But, man does it still hold up well. Great, clear looking prints without ridiculous spacing either (lovely font too). Thing's built like a tank and is mostly made of chromed metal with some hefty plastic. I'd guess it's either early 70s or even maybe late 60s.
Best part is, it still has the price tag on it. My Grandma bought it from the Salvation Army store she worked at in the late 90s for just $1.00. When you consider that this thing will probably last another 50 years, I'd would say that was quite the value.
My mother has had and has been using a version of a Dymo labeler that uses Braille characters on the wheel. It still makes great labels (although she has only used official Dymo labels in it).
5:54 I wonder if the spacing can be adjusted to match the script letters up exactly? Maybe centring also to avoid "cut-off" tops but that might be a bit more awkward. (Sorry if this has already been asked).
The script lettering was closer to the edge because I was using the thinner label tape.
I had wondered what made those labels. used to see them everywhere. They were also so damn hard to remove from things that had them
I have used many different models of those in my childhood but this was the first time I saw a model on which you can change the font disc.
7:37 I can always count on you to reference my favorite youtubers, still waiting on the druaga1 pun!
I referenced him in my video about LegacyBox.
@@vwestlife DANGIT I MISSED IT
I had a different brand of label maker when I was young. The containers for the tape varied with different brands. It was easy enough to swap tape into empty containers.
This was the first label maker I ever bought, and it's still going strong today!!
Great Video. I still use my Dymo even though the Brother P-Touch I also use is more versatile. I like the looks of what they now call retro labels. Amazon still sells a model that has been around since the 60's/70s the 1540, or Office Mate II, new since Dymo still makes it. It is night and day better than the Express model. Enjoy the videos, keep up the good work. These plastic labels still have many uses on the right surface...
That's why I'm always looking for vintage products like that. Even being older than I am, they still working better than new ones ♥
I remember a Dexter's Lab episode featuring one of these prominently, but never got to actually use one
This is incredibly comprehensive, I love it!
I love the old style labels with the 3d letters
my grandad was a journalist and had so much great quality ‘tech’ from the 60s/ 70s. I was looking how to refill this but I think he had an older model which took thinner tape!
I just found an old photo album with old Dymo embossed labels which are groovy 70s orange and magenta flower-power patterned!
I have always wondered how these types of label makers worked. I have seen the machine on websites but its something else seeing them in action and its wireless too!
I remember my dad having one of these mechanical label makers, even in the same greenish color. I can barely fathom the concept of being forced to use an electronic one with DRM.
I still have the Dymo competitor brand label maker I purchased in the early 70's at a local Saxon paint store. Now that I know that the labels are still available, I'll have to find it and start labeling everything!
As a kid, I really enjoyed operating this type of label maker as fast as I could.
Nothing shouts old one off electronics than Dymo labels. The set builders got it 100% correct when they used one of these to label the controls in the Back to the Future DeLorean time machine.
I love how VWestlife answers to other YT videos ... Labelmaker controversy by Louis Rossmann ... Weird cassette eject mechanism from techmoan ....
Thank you for showing us this old-school embossing labelmaker. I didn't know they are still making them today. I will have to get one just for fun.
POV: it's 3 a.m. and you just watched a 10 minute video about a label maker
I have something very similar to this, but it outputs Braille.
I’ve had it for many years but I don’t know the manufacturer of the one I have.
RNIB still sell one called the ‘Reizen RL-35’ but I don’t know if it’s what I have, or if it looks like the item you’re demoing in this video. Now I’m curious to find out.
I haven’t had to use it in years, but it’s still full of tape, and would work as soon as I needed it.
Forgot about it until this video.
I didn’t know vintage label makers were a thing, but now I’m in. Time to get on eBay!
Love the color of the vintage one. Very 1970s, my Dad has a bunch of power tools and gizmos in that kind of avocado or whatever.
I finally upgraded from 1/4 and 3/8 to 1/2 inch metal tape-makers but few have interchangeable wheels. You lucked out getting that script wheel. Long ago there was a mail order catalog for spare wheels including Hebrew, and probably Braille, which makes perfect sense!
not only interesting, also enlightening
"woodgrain labels"
If you are a friend or family member of Clint Basinger aka LGR, that must be the perfect 35 or 40 year birthday present.
Not thicker or thinner, width is what you are talking about. And, it is 1/4" or 3/8".
About 50 years ago I watched a local librarian making labels and tearing off the small tab at the end and then struggling to peel off the backing. When I attempted to show her how to use the tab to peel off the backing, she blew me off because I was kid and obviously couldn't know something she didn't know.
That's what I was referring to -- thicker or thinner in terms of width.
I've seen labels like this at many places especially in Hungary, but none in Slovakia (the two countries I spent most of my life in). I figured out it was a mechanical thing, maybe dating back to the 60s or 70s, and since it was quite popular in Hungary, I thought it had to be a Hungarian invention :D Now I know it's a Dymo product, thanks!
I'll track an old one down on eBay, it will be fun to make labels of the repair date of the bean to cup coffee machines I repair as a hobby :)
I still have a Handimark 1885 label maker that uses the 3/8 inch tape. Would use it more but refills are only
available online now. Love the woodgrain tape and your label marker does two thicknesses , vintage and damn cool .
Very interesting and relaxing as always.
Interesting to see the new machine has the letters further apart.... To use up tape faster?
When I see an embossing label maker, the first thought that comes to my mind is Edd aka Double D from Ed, Edd n Eddy. He had an embossing label making machine , that he used it to label everything in his room.
I have one of the old metal ones, really feels like a proper well built tool, though ultimately still has plastic embossing wheels. Also has a wheel to load and advance the tape that also lets you manually set the spacing of the letters, which can be really handy in a tight spot when you just need to squeeze in one more letter. Can also look nicer with the tighter spacing, especially with the right embossing wheel.
Great video as usual, now I know that it is a vintage Dymo that I need.
I still have mine from high school (early 70s). Still in the case. Turquoise, with 4 type wheels.
On my Dymo 1710, if you press the wheel release 'button' gently towards the body of the device with your thumb as you turn, it is a lot quieter to turn the wheel. The clacking is less annoying if you are doing a lot of labelling. The tape on mine can be pushed straight through without the need to pull on the trigger. I generally push a good length through, then wind the excess back in to the reel.