Help Guide

Measuring Your Till Roll

Our Help Guide will hopefully enable you to simply and quickly identify the correct type and size of paper roll you need for your till, cash register epos system, credit card terminal, PDQ machine, chip and pin machine.

 

Measuring your Till Roll, Credit Card Roll or Multiply Roll.

Measuring your paper roll is easy as there are only three key industry standard measurements, and these are normally measured in millimetres (mm) as follows:

1. Width – the first measurement to take is always the width of the roll, simply lay the paper roll down on its side and measure from left to right as per the diagram above.

2. Diameter – The next measurement to take is the diameter of the roll, to do this simply place the paper roll on its end and measure the full diameter from edge to edge in the centre of the roll ensuring you go directly through the centre or core of the roll as per the diagram above.

3. Core -  The final measurement is the size or diameter of the core which runs through the centre of the roll as per the diagram above.

It is worth noting that there are three standard core sizes commonly used namely 12.7mm, 17.7mm and 25.4mm. Most till rolls or credit card rolls sit in a well and the dimension of the core does not actually matter in simple terms the larger the core size then less paper is wound on the roll and will lead to more frequent roll changes.

What type of Paper Roll do you need?

Essentially there are three types of paper used to produce paper rolls for use in Tills, Cash Registers, EPOS systems, credit card terminals, PDQ Machines, Chip & Pin Machines and other point of sale equipment.

 

1. Thermal Paper – This paper has a special coating which when exposed to heat produces the image on the receipt and is commonly used in a wide variety of tills, EPOS Systems, Credit Card Terminals, Chip and Pin Machines which do not ribbons or ink cartridges.

2.  Plain ‘A’ Grade Paper – This paper is used in impact printer machines where a ribbon, ink rollers or cartridges are required to create the print image. Plain A Grade Rolls are commonly used in standard cash registers as well as some point-of-sale systems.

3. Carbonless – Multiply Paper – This paper is specially coated either on one or both sides and the print image is created by impact printers, these rolls are commonly used in Kitchen Printers.

 

Top Tip: The quick and simple way to tell the difference between Thermal Paper and Plain ‘A’ Grade Paper is that thermal paper has a smooth glossy appearance. Whereas “Grade A-paper” has a matt appearance and feels like standard paper. You can also differentiate the two by running your finger nail or coin across the paper, the thermal paper will leave a black mark where you ran your finger or coin, the Plain A Grade Paper will leave no mark.