I got disappointed after searching high and low on Google for how to use Group Policy in order to set a default printer. Almost every article I read assumed the reader had a print server available, or would deploy a local printer connection right from the Group Policy Management Console. Finally, I found the solution!
In the environment that I support, we have “Printer Packages” by the manufacturer. These packages are essentially printer queues with default settings already entered for the Printer Preferences - you know, the items you CAN NOT change easily from a remote location, to many systems?