Forum Home
Press F1
Thread ID: 63936	2005-11-27 10:30:00	scrunched envelopes	kidsoutside (4977)	Press F1

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
408112	2005-11-27 10:30:00	I have recently bought a Brother MFC laser, fax, scanner. Printing in general is great until it comes to envelopes. One end is always wrinkled up. I have tried other brands of envelopes, putting the letter in first & sealing etc. Always the same - a very unprofessional looking envelope. I am unable to feed wide side first as paper feed not wide enough as been suggested. This issue is not just my printer but the model in general. I have been advised (by Brother & shop that sold the printer) that unless I spend in the region of "several thousand" dollars for a more business oriented printer, them basically I am out of luck and have unreaslitic expectations. I am not satisfied with this answer as I currently have a HP laserjet 5L (on it's last legs & having trouble with A5 under WinXP - but that is another story)) & previous to that an earlier model HP - both printed great looking envelopes (even when the paper feed was "down & up" rather than "down & straight out the front"). As I print about 1500 envelopes a year, I want them to look good! Does anyone have any advise, suggestions? Is any one able to recommend a good printer - must be a laser, hopefully less than $600 and if more, a multi function. Not many retailers seem to have much variety in the way of laser printers on show, so not easy to test functionality. I am in Wellington. Who has HP printers on show these days? or Canon? Looking forward to getting my printing issues resolved & getting on with some real work !	kidsoutside (4977)
408113	2005-11-27 11:22:00	I think you already know what a good brand is and what is a bad brand, look here (http://www.corpcons.co.nz/) and choose what fits your buget.	Rob99 (151)
408114	2005-11-27 18:02:00	Check out the Consumer Guarantees Act. If the advertising/manual says you can print brochures you should have a reasonable expectation that they are of an acceptable quality. Consumer Guarantees Act (www.consumer.org.nz) I have a Brother HL-5040 Laser with the same problem but i just push out the scrunched end with a ruler - but I only print approx 100 a year. It's a shame because in other use it's great - and i like the fact that you cn replace the toner cartridge without replacing the drum components - when it comes the time to replace the drum (5 years I hope) it makes more sense to me to replace the printer.	TeejayR (4271)
408115	2005-11-27 19:13:00	Hi Even some of the late model HP laser printers do this and I don't think it has anything to do with the Consumer Guarantee Act because some printers are not designed to take envelopes. Very often one side of the envelope is marginally longer than the other and when it passes through the rollers in the fuser, the side that is slightly longer can do nothing except get scrunched. Some models have an 'envelope mode' and they lift one of the fusing rollers just as the last piece of the envelope is about to pass through to prevent this. So the manufacturers have known about this for a while but I also suspect the quality of the envelopes is deteriorating. As a workaround, can you use either window envelopes and print on the document inside the envelope, or print the addresses on labels? Lame I know but you don't want to hand write the addresses and I think buying a new printer (if your one is already new) might be a bit expensive. What is wrong with the 5L printer? Andrew P.S. Can you buy envelopes that open from the side? Much like the ones lawyers use?	andrew93 (249)
408116	2005-11-27 19:18:00	If you are otherwise happy with the printer you could print the addresses on address labels and stick those on the envelopes instead of running the envelopes through the printer. Or perhaps use envelopes with windows if you are sending standard letters with the recipient's address on the letter. Edit: Oops, too slow. Andrew beat me to it. :rolleyes:	FoxyMX (5)
408117	2005-11-27 19:50:00	Smash it with a sledge hammer, set her afire, launch it though the window of whatever shop you got it from. Job done. :thumbs:	Metla (12)
408118	2005-11-27 21:15:00	Thanks for all your wonderful suggestions. Window envelopes not an option as I am posting out brochures for a product enquiry, not letters. Labels also only a half solution as I print the return address in top left corner - would have to double handle with stamp on back or similar. Returning printer is not a problem - shop said they wil take it back. Problems is - what to replace it with as nowhere seems to have any variety of models on display, so can't test what will & won't work easily. 5L problems - probably a memory issue & paper feeding. Jams or double feeds - I could replace paper rollers again - did so a few years ago. Other prob is, I print product assemly instructions on it regularly which include graphics. Document is A4 Word which when printed is scaled to A5. After about printing 5 pages, printer looses the plot & only get part pages that take forever. Used to be OK till I upgraded PC with Win XP. So .... decide I would treat myself to a lovely new all in one printer & regain some desk space.	kidsoutside (4977)
408119	2005-11-28 00:31:00	Hi Just a few thoughts : Don't ever put a window envelope through a laser printer (not that one would but we have seen it) - it's not pretty and it's expensive to repair. Make sure your self-seal envelopes have the glue under the flap - otherwise the glue melts onto the fusing unit and you end up accelerating the decline of the fuser. If I were you, I would get my money back for the Brother. They may charge a re-stocking fee (given it is used) but IMO you won't regret giving the Brother the heave-ho. I know the 5L is old but buying a pick up roller and separtion pad is much cheaper than buying a whole new printer, if you can fit them yourself. PM if you can't find where to buy these. Also, the separation pad deteriorates with UV light so keep the 5L away from the window. You might even consider using the 5L just for the envelopes and your other printer / device for everything else. If desk space is a constraint, just hook up the 5L via the parallel cable when you need it - the rest of the time, leave it under the desk. If you wanted to use a later model printer to print on envelopes, then the HP LaserJet 2100 & 4000 are good reliable workhorses that can handle envelopes. You should be able to get a used one locally via TradeMe for not too much. There are later model printers (like the 2200, 4100) but they tend to be more expensive. The brand new HP LaserJet 1022 can handle envelopes and has quite a small footprint, speedy too. This series is not known for its reliability (this series hasn't been around long enough) but at $400 or thereabouts including GST, it's not that bad - although the toner cartridges are a lot more expensive (on a cost per page basis) than the bigger printers. Personally I'm not keen on multi function devices but that's just my opinion. The HP 11022 (or the older models) don't provide the copy/scan/fax functionality so I haven't addressed that issue. Just my thoughts.... Andrew	andrew93 (249)
408120	2005-11-28 00:58:00	Oh and make sure the 5L has the correct settings in XP. Click Start -> Printers -> right click 5L -> Properties -> Printing Preferences -> Advanced -> make sure it is A4 -> Ok -> Device Settings -> make sure it is A4 -> printer memory -> make sure it is 2MB -> Ok. Check the 5L actually has 2MB by printing a test page from the printer - just hold press the button on the printer and release it. A page will pop out and you can check it it has 2MB or more. You can get a memory expansion for these but they are quite rare. They sometimes show up on TradeMe. Andrew	andrew93 (249)
408121	2005-11-28 01:21:00	Does the 5L take the older EDO memory? I got 8 x IBM 8MB 70ns EDO ram which fits my 5p laserjet	bob_doe_nz (92)
1 2