ALPS MD 1000 Printer

The ALPS MD-1000 Printer

White Decals Printed Successfully

I finally got my ALPS MD 1000 Printer to do exactly what I wanted... print tiny white decals.  Yes, it worked.  I'd almost given up hope, but on January 31st, 2017 I successfully printed half a sheet of tiny 4 pt. lettering on clear decal paper.

I tested the decals on a couple locomotives that needed some lettering.  If done quickly, the decals can be applied WITHOUT using a decal sealer on the paper.  They will work.  But, then I tried doing about 20 of them at one time.  The decals that stayed in the water and ammonia mix that I use did have some breakage and some of the letters actually separated from the paper.

The simple fix is to use decal sealer on the sheet like I do for all the other decals I use.

Here's is what you need to know if you want to get an ALPS MD 1000 working.

1.  You will need an old computer running Windows XP.  There is no exception to that rule at all and I tried everything.  Also, it's best if you use SP2 or lower.  I had trouble with SP3, but did manage.

2.  The cartridge you will need is the SCWH which means special color white.  It's usually used for making other colors opaque when set down first and printed over with another color.

3.  The mode used is SPOT COLOR SINGLE COLOR WHITE ONLY.

4.  THE PRINTER IS INSTALLED WITH 2 DRIVERS, MAKE SURE TO USE THE REGULAR PRINTER, AND NOT THE MS VERSION.  YOU HAVE TO SELECT IT EACH TIME YOU PRINT!!

5.  There is a mode that I experimented with where you hit the feed button, print one color and then the paper backs up to the beginning again and allows you to print again, might be useful for making yellow decals printed over the white.

I use an old program I got 17 years ago called Freehand.  It was made for Windows XP and is perfect for lettering.