Just a quick tip in case someone searches this forum with the same problem that I had.
I was happily printing on Epson papers with my new 3800 until I decided to try out the much lauded Hahnemuhle Photo Rag 308. This was therefore the first time I was using non-Epson papers. I've been feeding the 3800 for weeks through the manual rear slot with A4 Epson Traditional Photo Paper (which I believe is called Exhibition Fiber in the US) without a single hitch. However, while doing *exactly* the same thing with the 308 (after downloading the ICC profile and configuring the driver properly), the printer complained with a paper error and constantly asked me to remove the paper and try again. The exact message on the printer's LCD was: "Paper error. Press the down button. Load paper correctly." The only suggestion from the Epson 3800 manual was to flatten the media, which was already as flat as the Netherlands.
I was very disappointed and frankly slightly panicked (the 308 isn't the cheapest paper you can buy).
A call to the local (French) Epson experts, who were very nice and willing to help, made me discover a couple of things that new users such as myself could find useful:
- "This normally shouldn't happen."
- "This *does* happen on occasion because the 3800 is known to be temperamental about papers."
- "The printer doesn't have a logical mechanism for determining what is fed to it, so this isn't a compatibility issue. There is no way the printer can tell what type of paper is physically inserted."
- "Have you made sure the paper is completely flat, with no curls or anything?" – Yes, I have.
- "You should try printing with the auto-sheet feeder instead of the manual rear feeder, although this will prevent you from selecting Velvet Fine Art in the driver settings, which is the option specified by Hahnemuhle in the PDF accompanying their profile." – Yes, right, well...
- "The rear feeder is badly designed and we've had some luck pushing it slightly inwards while feeding paper, as if it was pressed up against a wall."
- "You might have some luck with the front feeder, although you will have reduced margins."
My 2c? Don't push your printer against a wall. When you insert your sheet through the rear feeder, the printer starts the mechanical process of checking the sheet load, whether it's skewed etc. Just keep your fingers slightly pressing on the sheet, pushing it against whatever bit of plastic is preventing it from going completely inside the printer. At a certain point (after several seconds), the printer will push out the sheet for half an inch before pulling it back in. When you feel the outward movement starting, release the pressure on the paper so that it meets no resistance sliding out of the rear feed. The sheet will then be properly loaded with no complaints from the printer.
Turning the sheet around 180 degrees also works, sometimes. The above method works every time for me.
The 308, by the way, is worth every praise it got
