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This magnesium print head carrier is used in small portable printers, such as label printers, and can be used in a variety of environments and circumstances. Given these demands, the carrier has to be lightweight and rigid. Magnesium die casting was the perfect choice for this application since it is 25% the weight of any ferrous alloy and yet strong enough to substitute for steel. Del Mar Die Casting casts this component almost to print, minimizing secondary machining and therefore offering a complicated geometry at a very economic cost. Adding to the cost savings of die casting is the alloy used, AZ91D. Since the product can be used in extremely humid environments, corrosion was an original concern, but magnesium has proven its worth. AZ91D was developed for automotive applications and as such is designed to be relatively inert and suffers little oxidation in corrosive environments. This print head carrier is used without any plated coating and is performing remarkably well with no corrosion issues.