Network Cable Labeling

[DocGreen]

Hey guys, got a question for those of you that do a lot of cabling: What labeler do you use? I know there are labelers specifically made for cabling, but I can't ever seem to find them when I search. All I ever find are variations of the ol' Dymo continuous tape labeler, and those things NEVER stick to cable for very long.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Sky-Knight]

I always just used a sharpie... then bust out the P-Touch for the face plates and panels.

 

[DocGreen]

I always just used a sharpie... then bust out the P-Touch for the face plates and panels.

Well I'm gearing up to cable a 10-story apartment building, so I want to make sure I'm doing everything as "right" as I can.

 

[Fred Claus]

What about your laser printer and something like this? https://www.showmecables.com/1-x-2-...aLUsMy3ULnXfZNoJ5kyHrLjLIAuvqs2BoCCZAQAvD_BwE

 

[GTP]

Just doing a cabling job for a medium sized SMB.
It's a nightmare trying to trace cables to wherever because some lazy SOB didnt bother to label the cables.
The switch is also being shared by a hairdresser down stairs to complicate it further.

I'm just using a sharpie and a P-Touch as well.

 

[Sky-Knight]

I tried labels many times... and every job I ran I had the same issues.

1.) applying the label to the cable takes just as long as writing the cable number three times on the jacket with a sharpie.
2.) The labels are additional mass on the cable head, which has an annoying tendency to get caught on stuff and then FALL OFF while the cable is being pulled. (it being 3000 degrees in the crawl spaces because of this desert I live in doesn't help!)

And since you have to mark the cable head AND the box so you can mark the cable tail when you trim it off after the pull...

The only magic bullet I learned in those days was to make sure the same person wrote all the cable ends. That way you have one set of messy hand writing to decipher at a job.

 

[phaZed]

I use a Dymo Rhino 5200 - https://www.amazon.com/DYMO-Industrial-RHINO-Label-1755749/dp/B002M1DEM6

Labels are wrapped around the cable - works for many cable types and thicknesses. I used these Rhino printers back when I was an electrician, too.

Labels are vinyl and very tough... can withstand cable pulls, being wet, dipped in wire pulling lube, etc.

 

[Markverhyden]

Sharpie on the bare cable wile running and then a p-touch for the face plates/smb's/patch panels for home runs. For the rack I'll color code based on function. The biggest problem I've had with p-touch on the cable body is if the environment is warm, which is often the case, they come loose easily. I consider heat shrink tube to be the best but that's not very practical since I rarely have a gofer helper.

 

[SAFCasper]

We have a Rhino 4200 and a Brother I can't remember the model. Both use wrap-around labels and work great. Never had any problems with them coming loose or falling off however the vast majority of stuff I'm labelling is already fixed in position, often in a rack. If I'm pulling new wiring through walls, ceilings etc I still use a sharpie to mark them up. It's just faster and less waste because 99% of the time you are going to trim the cable afterwards, cutting off the label in the process.

I should point out I rarely do large wiring jobs. If it's more than 10 cables or anything remotely complex we get in a local electrician to do the cable runs then we come back to terminate the patch panel/wall boxes. He uses a labeller but I've never taken note what type.

 

[Fred Claus]

I use a Dymo Rhino 5200 - https://www.amazon.com/DYMO-Industrial-RHINO-Label-1755749/dp/B002M1DEM6

Labels are wrapped around the cable - works for many cable types and thicknesses. I used these Rhino printers back when I was an electrician, too.

Labels are vinyl and very tough... can withstand cable pulls, being wet, dipped in wire pulling lube, etc.

View attachment 12882View attachment 12883

Seems this one isn't available right now. Is it old or just out of stock?

 

[phaZed]

Seems this one isn't available right now. Is it old or just out of stock?

Just old. Probably 6 or 7 years old by now... still works great. I would recommend the Dymo commercial labelers, so grab a newer model.

 

[Fred Claus]

Just old. Probably 6 or 7 years old by now... still works great. I would recommend the Dymo commercial labelers, so grab a newer model.

I like the fact that it prints in a thin label that can be read even when wrapped around the cable. I use a Brother P-Touch and making the labels like a "Flag" hanging off the cable is a terrible look.

 

[mikeroq]

Seems this one isn't available right now. Is it old or just out of stock?

Amazon.com: Sanford Brands 1756589 RHINO 5200 Label Printer Kit: Office Products

Buy Sanford Brands 1756589 RHINO 5200 Label Printer Kit: Everything Else - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases

www.amazon.com

Still shows on the Dymo website.

XTL is their new line: https://www.dymo.com/en_US/label-ma...refn1=DY_LABELING_NEEDS&prefv1=Wires & Cables

 

[PaulTech]

A little off-topic but check out the pockethernet combined with the https://www.tindie.com/products/jpelectron/wiremap-terminator-for-pockethernet/

It's an incredible tool and you won't have to tote your laptop around. If you get a bunch (8 or 12) of the wiremap terminators you just plug them into the punchdown ports and go from wall jack to wall jack and your testing is done.