Andy Pastuszak
Member 
Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
Posts: 1,533 
What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
|
Post by Andy Pastuszak on Nov 13, 2022 21:31:21 GMT
I'm designing some new pages that have a 15 mm border on all sides. I make the page, print it out, and the page does not look centered. I pull out the ruler and measure it, and looks like the left margin is 14 mm and the right margin is 16. Top margin is 14 mm and the bottom margin is 16 mm.
I print the same page out on my Brother laser printer and the margins are spot on.
So, I go into Scribus and adjust the margins. I make the left margin 16 mm, the right margin, 14mm, the top margin 16mm and the bottom margin is 14 mm. This should move the whole thing over by 1mm in each direction.
I print a test page, and it still off. Now the left margin is 0.5mm too small, and the right margin is 1 mm too big.
I add 0.5 to the left margin, and remove 1 mm from the right margin.
I print again, and now the left margin is 1 mm TOO BIG and the left margin is a ½mm too small.
No matter what I set these margins to, I can never get them to 15 mm all the way around when they print.
So, next I thought perhaps it's the way the paper is being fed. So, I printed 3 pages on the same paper and then 2 other pages on 2 different papers, and the margins on all 5 sheets line up perfectly on each sheet. I stacked all 5 pages together and shined a flashlight through it to confirm all the black lines are the same.
So, next I uninstalled the printer driver and deleted the printer and rebooted. After the reboot, I reinstalled the printer using the built in driver and had the same issue. Then I installed the latest and greatest driver from Epson, and had the same problem.
I repeated all this on another Mac, with the same issue. I then fired up my Linux laptop and had all the same issue.
I haven't tried a Windows machine yet. That's next.
I can't find any way to adjust the printout from the front panel of the printer.
This whole thing is driving me a bit crazy.
Logic dicatates that I should just use the laser printer, but the level of curling is quite unacceptable to me. On 65 lb white paper, this is what I get:
On 32 lb. cotton paper, this is what I get:
I'm debating building a DIY book press out of 2 cutting boards and some bolts and seeing if I can print a bunch of pages and clamp them for 24 hours to flatten them.
It's either that, or I am asking for a new printer for Christmas.
|
|
BermudaSailor
Member
Posts: 75
What I collect: British colonies, primary Bermuda
|
Post by BermudaSailor on Nov 14, 2022 14:34:12 GMT
I'd go with the tried and true Brother printer and the paper press. I've been using a Brother printer for 15 years without any issues whatsoever.
|
|
Andy Pastuszak
Member
Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
Posts: 1,533
What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
|
Post by Andy Pastuszak on Nov 14, 2022 14:47:53 GMT
The paper press requires I buy 2 cutting boards. With all the inflation we've been experiencing, cheap cutting boards no longer cost $10.00. They're now almost $20.00. I'm looking around for inexpensive cutting boards, and we'll see what I can find. Checked some thrift stores and didn't have any luck.
|
|
eggdog
Member
I want a new Harley!
Posts: 464
What I collect: It's complicated....
|
Post by eggdog on Nov 14, 2022 17:27:42 GMT
Can't you get a flexible cutting board or other thin, cleanable surface and put a bunch of books on it? I've never had copier/printer paper that refused to flatten out.
Also, you've probably looked this up already, but 14 or 15 mm may be approaching the limit of your printer. All printers need a certain amount of margin space, and the amount each printer needs is in the firmware.
|
|
|
|
Post by PostmasterGS on Nov 14, 2022 22:09:38 GMT
This is one of the reasons why all my pages are of an offset design -- meaning the border is offset to the right (to accommodate binder ring holes) and to the bottom (to accommodate the title). I found that no matter what I did, with a Canon S9000 inkjet and then an HP CP5225dn color laserjet, I couldn't get a consistent result WRT the border placement. By having it offset, it's not as obvious.
I found that even if the feed path was perfectly straight (Canon S9000) or if I used the manual feed tray to minimize the feed path (HP CP5225dn), I still couldn't get consistent results. All it takes is the tiniest slip of a single feed roller and the page will print offset or slightly crooked. I've learned to live with some of my hardcopy pages being slightly off, though I admittedly correct them in the digital scans before I post them to my website.
|
|
stainlessb
Member
qaStaHvIS yIn 'ej chep
Posts: 4,642
What I collect: currently focused on most of western Europe, much of which is spent on France, Belgium, Germany and Great Britain Queen Victoria
|
Post by stainlessb on Nov 14, 2022 22:17:21 GMT
I have a Brother HL 23200 and I use Scribus and all seems well, my outside border is 1/4" all the way around from edge of 8-1/2 x 11 vellume. I get the same curl, but it flattens out without a press just fine. (I stick them in my flatbed scanner)
Early on I had some issues printing on a Ricoh color printer at work when I wanted color, discovering the margins, despite my best efforts were wider... so now I only print the color portion and then print the B/W (with border at home)
I've also moved away from as much color printing as I've found a crips B/W image will convey the same informnation
|
|
Andy Pastuszak
Member
Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
Posts: 1,533
What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
|
Post by Andy Pastuszak on Nov 15, 2022 2:20:09 GMT
Can't you get a flexible cutting board or other thin, cleanable surface and put a bunch of books on it? I've never had copier/printer paper that refused to flatten out. Also, you've probably looked this up already, but 14 or 15 mm may be approaching the limit of your printer. All printers need a certain amount of margin space, and the amount each printer needs is in the firmware.
I found 2 cutting boards and some clamps at lunch time. I printed out 3 sheets, put them in between the cutting boards, clamped them down with maximum force. I just checked them now and the 65 lb paper I printed out is still curled. It's not as bad as it was when I pulled it out of the printer, but it's not staying flat. I'll leave it overnight and see if it gets better.
|
|
Andy Pastuszak
Member
Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
Posts: 1,533
What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
|
Post by Andy Pastuszak on Nov 15, 2022 2:25:31 GMT
Can't you get a flexible cutting board or other thin, cleanable surface and put a bunch of books on it? I've never had copier/printer paper that refused to flatten out. Also, you've probably looked this up already, but 14 or 15 mm may be approaching the limit of your printer. All printers need a certain amount of margin space, and the amount each printer needs is in the firmware. The minimum margin for this printer is 4 mm.
I also did more testing today with 20mm, and 30mm margins. They all give me the same problem.
|
|
Andy Pastuszak
Member
Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
Posts: 1,533
What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
|
Post by Andy Pastuszak on Nov 15, 2022 2:49:21 GMT
This is one of the reasons why all my pages are of an offset design -- meaning the border is offset to the right (to accommodate binder ring holes) and to the bottom (to accommodate the title). I found that no matter what I did, with a Canon S9000 inkjet and then an HP CP5225dn color laserjet, I couldn't get a consistent result WRT the border placement. By having it offset, it's not as obvious. I found that even if the feed path was perfectly straight (Canon S9000) or if I used the manual feed tray to minimize the feed path (HP CP5225dn), I still couldn't get consistent results. All it takes is the tiniest slip of a single feed roller and the page will print offset or slightly crooked. I've learned to live with some of my hardcopy pages being slightly off, though I admittedly correct them in the digital scans before I post them to my website.
So, here is the interesting part. I printed out the same file using Apple Preview, Adobe Reader and FoxIt PDF reader. I printed these out on both Macs, and my Windows machine (minus Preview). Then I printed out the same PDF on Linux using evince. When I laid them all over each other and shined the flashlight through the stack of papers, the lines were all dead on, showing me the printer is consistently printing at 14mm on the left across apps and operating systems.
For my last test I went into Scribus and made a document with 15mm left and right margins. I then made a box the same width as the margins, saved to PDF and printed. Again the left side was 14mm and the right side was 16 mm. So I went back into Scribus, left the margins the same and moved the box over by 1mm and exported to PDF. When I printed that page out, the left side was still 14mm, and now the right size was 15 mm.
I adjusted the box again and saved. and now the left side is 15mm and the right side is 18 mm.
I spent an HOUR on the phone with Epson support. I got bumped to level 2, and I BEGGED THE WOMAN to let me email her the PDF I made and have her print it out on a ET-2750 and see if she can duplicate my results. She kept insisting that it's the app that I am using and not the printer. When I told her it followed me across computers, operating systems and apps. she still insisted it was the app. Then I told her the app printed just fine on my Brother laser printer.
Then she had me fire up Apple's Photos app and print a photo and measure the margins. The Photos app prints a full page photo, so it doesn't have margins. She said if Photos is working, then it's not the printer.
At this point I BEGGED HER to please just let me attach the PDF file to the ticket and let her do a test print. Instead she told me print out some pages, take pictures of them, and attach those to the ticket.
It's times like this that I wish Apple still made printers. You can love or hate Apple as a company, but they at least have competent US-BASED tech support.
I really wish they made Inkjet printers that supported Adobe PostScript.
What really irks me is that I have been in IT since 1996. If I need to call you for help, you can be damn sure I've been through your knowledgebase and combed through all the resources available to me. I've already rebooted it and I've uninstalled it and reinstalled it.
I was staring at a Brother MFCJ5855DW on Staples' website. It's $270 and can print up to 11x17. Technically, it's a "tank" printer, but it doesn't use ink bottles that fill a tank. It uses really big ink cartridges. There are no generic cartrdiges for it yet, because the printer is pretty new, and I have no idea if there jumbo-sized cartridges are chipped.
|
|
Andy Pastuszak
Member
Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
Posts: 1,533
What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
|
Post by Andy Pastuszak on Nov 15, 2022 3:16:45 GMT
You know, back in the 90s, I bought an HP Deskjet 932C. The thing was quiet. It was built like a tank, with most of the internals made of metal. I had that thing for close to a decade. I would clean the print heads as needed and buy refilled ink cartridges for cheap from LD Products.
Then I decided to buy a duplexer for it. And that worked great, but it made the printer stick out a few more inches from the shelf it was on, and somehow it got knocked over. It hit the ground. The paper tray snapped off of it and something internal snapped, so I could not get another paper tray to fit inside.
After having that thing for over a decade, every other inkjet I bought was garbage. I went through 3 HP inkjets, 1 Canon Inkjet, and 2 Epson inkjets, in just over a decade. One of my HPs broke 2 days after the warranty ran out and they would not honor the warranty. Another time, I sent the printer back under warranty and they denied my claim because the printer had to be sent back with "cartridges installed" so they could verify they were "Genuine HP cartridges." Third time I sent it in with FULL cartridges and they sent me back a refurbished printer with starter ink cartridges.
The brother laser printer has been a champ. It's just the curling pages that are bothering me. I went through my Ukraine album, and pages I printed out years ago, are still curled on the very edges.
Ok, rant over.
|
|
Andy Pastuszak
Member
Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
Posts: 1,533
What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
|
Post by Andy Pastuszak on Nov 16, 2022 3:33:11 GMT
Now I am even more confused. When I print from Apple Pages, or LibreOffice, the margins are all off. When I print a PDF I generated in Scribus, the margins are just fine now.
|
|
angore
Member
Posts: 5,348
What I collect: WW, focus on British Empire
|
Post by angore on Nov 16, 2022 11:36:14 GMT
I am not surprised that different software gives different results. I have had to use a certain program to accomplish something the way I want. For example, printing pictures from image apps give varying results as they try to "help" you print it.
|
|
Andy Pastuszak
Member
Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
Posts: 1,533
What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
|
Post by Andy Pastuszak on Nov 16, 2022 13:27:09 GMT
The thing I a dealing with now is vertical margins. They are completely contingent on how the printer grabs the paper. On 20 lb paper, the margins are off by 1mm. On 65 lb paper, the margins are off by 2-3 mm.
My problem is, I am expecting professional results out of a home printer.
|
|
