Paper Handling. Epson P-4500, 4500, ActionPrinter 4500

Paper Handling

The following section guides you through problems in handling single sheets and continuous paper. If you are having problems using the optional cut sheet feeder or pull tractor, see the section on options later in this chapter.

Problem Solution

Single sheets do not feed properly.

The LOAD/EJECT button was pressed, but the platen did not move and paper was not fed.

You may be trying to feed paper using one of the control panel buttons while the printer is on line (ON LINE light is on). Press the ON LINE button once to set the printer off line; then feed the paper. After feeding the paper, press the ON LINE button again to set the printer on line. See Chapter 3.

The left edge guide may be set too far to the right so that the paper detector cannot sense it. Move the paper a little to the left.

The PAPER OUT light should go off.

7-14 Troubleshooting

Paper

Handling

Problem

Single sheets do not feed properly

(continued).

The LOAD/EJECT button was pressed and the platen rotated, but paper was not fed.

When the LOAD/EJECT button is pressed, the paper jams.

Solution

The paper release lever may be set in the wrong position. Push paper release lever back to the single-sheet position. See

Chapter 2.

The left and right edge guides may be too close together, preventing the paper from feeding smoothly. Adjust the position of the edge guides so that the paper can move up and down freely. See Chapter 2.

The paper may not be firmly inserted.

When feeding thicker than normal paper, press down lightly on the paper while pressing the LOAD/EJECT button.

The cut sheet feeder mode may be turned on (DIP switch 1-8 is on). When the cut sheet feeder is not in use, DIP switch 1-8 should be off. See Chapter 3.

The edge guides may be too far apart.

Adjust the edge guides to the width of the paper.

The dimensions of the paper may exceed the specified limitations. Use only paper sizes that are within the specified range.

Multi-part forms cannot be used with this printer’s single-sheet feeding system. See

Chapter 8.

Troubleshooting

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Paper Handling

Problem

Single sheets do not feed properly

(continued).

When the LOAD/EJECT button is pressed, the paper feeds through and then out of the printer.

The paper feed is crooked.

Solution

The paper does not fully eject.

The paper may have been between the edge guides before the printer was turned on.

When loading single sheets, be sure that paper is not in the paper guide before you turn the printer on.

The paper guide may not be attached, or it may not be in the correct position. When printing on single sheets, use the paper guide in its upright position.

The paper may be dog-eared. Use new paper.

You may be trying to eject the paper using the FORM FEED button. Always press the

LOAD/EJECT button to eject the paper.

The page length setting may be wrong. If the page length is incorrectly set by your software, the paper may not fully eject.

Check your software settings.

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Troubleshooting

Paper Handling

Problem

Continuous paper does not feed properly.

When the LOAD/EJECT button is pressed, the platen does not rotate and paper does not feed.

When the LOAD/EJECT button is pressed, the platen rotates but paper does not feed.

Solution

You may be trying to feed paper using the control panel buttons while the printer is on line (ON LINE light on). Press the ON LINE button once to set the printer off line, then try feeding paper. After feeding paper, press the ON LINE button again to set the printer on line. See Chapter 3.

The paper release lever may be pushed back to the single-sheet position. When using the pull tractor, be sure the paper release lever is pulled forward to the continuous paper position. See Chapter 2.

Continuous paper may have already been in the paper path. (In this case, the paper feeds backward to the standby position.)

Press the LOAD/EJECT button again to load the paper.

Troubleshooting 7-17

Paper Handling

Problem

Continuous paper does not feed properly

(continued).

The paper feed is crooked or the paper jams.

Solution

The paper supply may be obstructed by a cable or some other object. Make sure that the paper feeds smoothly into the printer.

See Chapter 2.

Your supply of continuous paper may be too far from the printer. Position your paper supply within

3 feet (1 meter) of the printer. See Chapter 2.

The paper may be caught on the edge guides. When using continuous paper, make sure that the paper guide is lowered to the horizontal position and that the edge guides are positioned as far apart as possible. See Chapter 2.

The holes on the sides of the paper may not be aligned with each other. Reposition the paper on the tractor pins. See

Chapter 2.

The sprocket units are incorrectly positioned for the paper width. Move the right sprocket unit to remove any slack across the width of the paper. See

Chapter 2.

The position of your paper supply may be preventing it from feeding straight. See

Chapter 2.

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Paper Handling

Problem

Continuous paper does not feed properly

(continued).

The paper feed is crooked or the paper jams (continued).

Regular gaps occur in the printout.

Skip over perforation does not function.

Solution

The sprocket lock levers may be unlocked, or the sprocket covers may be open.

Position the sprocket units to match the width of your paper. Then, lock them in place by pressing the sprocket lock levers away from you. See Chapter 2.

The paper guide may be in the upright position. When using continuous paper, make sure that the paper guide is in the lowered position so that it can act as a paper separator. See Chapter 2.

The paper thickness lever may be in the wrong position. For printing on ordinary paper, always set the lever to position 2.

The paper dimensions may exceed the specified limitations. Use only paper sizes that are within the specified range. Your printer can print on continuous multi-part forms consisting of 1 original and 1 or 2 copies. See Chapter 8.

Skip over perforation may be interfering with your application program settings. Set

DIP switch 2-3 to off.

You may not have turned off the power after setting DIP switch 2-3 to on. To make new DIP switch settings effective, turn the power off, then on again.

Troubleshooting

7-19

Paper Handling

Problem

Continuous paper does not feed properly

(continued).

Skip over perforation is set, but the perforation does not fall in the center of the skip.

Solution

The loading position of the paper shifts slightly while printing several pages.

After printing stops, the paper automatically feeds forward.

The short tear-off function is selected

(DIP switch 2-2 is on), but it does not work.

The page length for one page of continuous paper may be set incorrectly. Change the setting of DIP switch 2-1.

The loading position of the paper may be too high or too low. Use the microadjustment to reset the loading position.

The paper you are trying to feed may be too heavy for the built-in push tractor.

When highly accurate paper feed is necessary, such as when printing carbon copies, use the optional pull tractor.

The short tear-off function may be selected.

When you resume printing, the paper feeds backward to its loading position. If you do not need this function, set DIP switch 2-2 to off. See Chapter 3.

You may not have turned off the power after setting the DIP switch. To make new

DIP switch settings effective, turn the power off, then on again.

There may still be data in the print buffer.

The short tear-off function works only if the data in the print buffer is completely printed and the next print position is at the top of the next page.

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Troubleshooting

Paper Handling

Problem

Continuous paper does not feed properly

(continued).

The short tear-off function is selected

(DIP switch 2-2 is on), but it does not work

(continued).

The LOAD/EJECT button is pressed to eject the paper, the paper feed stops, and paper does not fully eject or it jams.

Solution

Your program may not be sending a form feed command to the printer. At the end of your program or the page, send a form feed (FF). If you are using BASIC, be sure to add a semicolon (;) after the FF code to prevent any additional codes from being sent to the printer.

You may have tried to back feed too many pages. Before ejecting the paper, always tear off the last printed page. See Chapter 3.

You may be trying to eject labels. Labels may jam when they are fed backward, so always use the FORM FEED button and feed labels forward to eject them.

Switching between single sheets and continuous paper cannot be performed properly.

When the LOAD/EJECT button is pressed to load continuous paper, the platen does not rotate and the paper is not loaded.

Pull the paper release lever forward to the continuous paper position, set the paper, then press the LOAD/EJECT button.

Troubleshooting

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Paper Handling

Problem

Switching between single sheets and continuous paper cannot be performed properly (continued).

The paper release lever is correctly set for continuous paper, but when the LOAD/EJECT button is pressed, the platen rotates backward and the paper comes of the sprockets.

When the LOAD/EJECT button is pressed to load a single sheet from the sheet guide, the platen rotates in reverse, the single sheet does not load, and the continuous paper comes off the sprockets.

Solution

A single sheet may be in the paper guide, causing the continuous paper to back out and to come off the sprockets. When using continuous paper, always make sure to remove any single sheets remaining in the paper guide.

The paper release lever may not be in the proper position. Push the lever back to the single-sheet position.

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Troubleshooting

Paper Handling

Problem

Switching between single sheets and continuous paper cannot be performed properly (continued).

Even with the paper release lever set correctly to the single-sheet position, the single sheet and continuous paper feed together and jam.

Solution

The continuous paper may not have fed backward far enough to reach the standby position before you changed the position of the paper release lever. Remove the jammed paper and try again. Also, check that the PAPER OUT light comes on before changing the position of the paper release lever to make sure that the continuous paper is completely ejected. When there is more than one page to feed backward to eject, you must press the LOAD/EJECT button at least two times.

The short tear-off function does not operate properly.

One page is completely printed, but the paper does not feed,

Printing ended in the middle of a page.

DIP switch 2-2, short tear-off mode, may be set to off. Set DIP switch 2-2 to on to turn on the short tear-off mode.

One page of data may not have been sent to the printer. Finish the page by sending a form feed code (FF) to the printer or by sending enough line feed codes (LF) to advance the remainder of the page.

Troubleshooting

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