Abstract: A label imprinting machine has a feed hopper, a stacking hopper, an imprinting station, and a printing head at the imprinting station. Unimprinted labels are transported from the feed hopper to the imprinting station and imprinted labels from then to the stacking hopper. The machine further has a cartridge inking system including a holder for holding an ink cartridge, a pick up ring holding roll, an ink pick up ring on the pick up ring holding roll, an ink distribution roll in driving engagement with the pick up ring holding roll, and a power driven ink transfer roll engaging the printing head and frictionally engaging the ink distribution roll, to regulate the rotational speed of the ink distribution roll and the pick up ring holding roll. The ink distribution roll oscillates back and forth along its axis as it rotates about its axis.