I've tried the Rhino and had some issues with the labels loosening after only a short time. Been using the Flexible Nylon labels.

Those who use the Brady, which label material are you using for the wire wraps?

We are now using the Rhino 3000. I am very impressed. Super easy. Lots of options as to how you configure the label. I had to remove one I made a mistake on and it didn't want to let go (it's like the tick of the labeling world!). Super clean, super fast, super available and adds to "wow" factor with clients. We do still rough in with a sharpie but, when it comes time to trim a 7 foot rack with a boatload of cable it just makes sense to "do it right".

Brady also makes an Inkjet printed cable label that is pretty easy to use [Link: bradyid.com]$File/InkJet_Marking.pdf

Just put a sheet in your inkjet printer and print whatever you need. Not very convenient when you're on the job and need to make a label (though you can also write on them), but it looks nice and is easy to use at the office. The label is self-adhesive, has a white area to print on, and a clear area that wraps around the cable and back over the white area to protect it. I have a Word template that I made up to print them:
[Link: members.aol.com]

CJ

Again I think that the Rhino heat shrinks are best. Make label, slide on wire, do not heat shrink, cover with plastice for paint and drywall. On trimout, throw away plastic, cut wire to desired length, move the label up or down to desired position and use heat to lock in place, or leave alone if you think you might need to rework area at a later date. The beauty is that you only label once, not sharpie and then label again.

forget sharpies, they fade

What size Rhino heat shrinks fit CAT5 and 14/2 inwall wire? I just had a situation where a room overheated and all the PTouch labels just fell off, not going that route anymore.

John Olsen

We use both of the Rhino models 3000 and 5000.

After several years the Sharpie stuff just disappeared. It really faded away. Labels look cool to the client and the next installer.

Mike

The Rhino heat shrinks come in 3/4, 1/2 3/8. Please note that the labels are pricey compared to a dot matrix and software, but it got to be a pain dragging around a printer and computer on job sites, where as the Rhino is a handheld with batteries.

I've also had issues with the Rhino labels falling off. I no longer horizontally wrap the labels; instead only do vertical wrap which severely limits the amount of characters that can be printed.

Me 2

I always label based on the name of the room on the blueprints, that way there is absolutely no confusion. I never use the number system, I had a prewire sub one time tell me (after I told him how I wanted things labeled) how he came up with a great numbering labeling system.. 1A, 2A etc and gave me a handwriten sheet with the numbers and what the rooms were. It turned out half the numbers on the wires weren't even on his sheet and the other half were wrong, I reamed him hard and asked how he ever thought that anything would ever be easier or better than just writing "Living Rm Speaker" on the wire.

Some of you probably remember that I was a proponent of the multi-colors of 3M tape. With a specific combination for each room, and a 3M numeric label identifying each loation in the room (low to high clockwise)

After a recent job, I decided that I MUST have an actual labeler...
I used a Brother P-Touch M-tape unit to label up the interconnects on a rack... (I already had access to the P-Touch)
Big mistake... the labels started coming off of the Liberty serial-digital coax over the first night!!

I just had the opportunity to play with the Rhino Pro labelers, and I have to say that I would need BOTH the 3000 and the 5000 for what I would want.

Here are the Pros and Cons of the 3K and the 5K from my perspective:

Rhino Pro 3K Pros:
- The 3K has WAY more memory and preset rooms to print directly without manually typing them out...
- The 3K has WAY better backlighting
- The 3K tape cutting button seems more robust

Rhino Pro 3K Cons:
- The 3K cannot vertically print in small fonts.
I want this feature to label the ports on RTI RP-6 controllers and other similar applications.
- The 3K cannot cannot support 3/4" tape or large heatshrink.

Rhino Pro 5K Pros:
- The 5K can handle the larger tapes and shrink tubing
- The 5K is more flexible with font size in the vertical mode

Rhino Pro 5K Cons:
- The 5K does not have as much memory for day-to-day use slamming out a bunch of labels for high volume technicians who label a lot of prewires.
- The 5K label cutting button has this flap thing that makes it feel cheap like it could eventually break

I find that labeling it with its correct name and duty usually works best.

2nd Rick,

Excellent post. Thanks for taking so much time to articualte your experiences with both of the Rhino labelers.

That is good feedback and valuable insight for us considering one model (or brand) over another.

A shame they can't combine both postive attributes into one machine.

Kudos!

I have the Rhino Pro 3000, and like the abilities.

As eluded to prevously however, the vertical mode limits the amount of text, and when in the horizontal mode, the label can either kink or peel off at times if on a bent part of the cable (which is often the case) I usually end up using horizontal mode anyway, as I can be more descriptive, and it uses less tape than vertical (even though I get more text)

And I SWEAR they intentionally design the devices to leave extra tape on each end, just to sell more tape.