Common mistakes when ordering paper
Each Designjet has its own compatible paper, so you need to ensure that you purchase:
1. ordering the wrong width
Designjets come in many different sizes. As a general rule of thumb you should purchase 24" wide paper for an A1 printer and 36" wide paper for an A0 printer. However there are some A0 printers which will take up to 42" rolls (notably the 500 and 800 printers) and other printers which are capable of handling up to 44" or 60" paper widths. You need to check the specification of your printer to find out the maximum orderable paper width. If your printer is no longer a current model then find your specification here - for current models look here
2. ordering the wrong length
Most rolls of paper are approximately 45.7 metres long - and rolls of this length are suitable for all HP Designjet models. However rolls are also manufactured in longer lengths e.g. 91.7 metres long. While it's tempting to purchase bigger rolls on the basis of 'the longer the length the cheaper the cost', the fact remains that only certain Designjets can be fitted with rolls of this size and weight. Usually when you attempt to fit a 91.7 metre roll to a printer not built to run this size of roll, it is impossible to slot the spindle into the printer after attaching the larger roll because there is insufficient space between the roll and the printer itself
3. ordering the wrong type
You should always ensure that the type of paper or media you are using is compatible with your Designjet printer model. There are two key considerations: Firstly, the paper/media you use needs to be compatible with the type of ink used by your printer. Designjets use either Pigment based inks or Dye based inks (or a combination of both). Some papers or medias are designed to work best with a particular ink type. Often you will see the word "Universal" - e.g. in the case of "Universal Bond" - this indicates it is 'universally' suitable for ALL ink types. Secondly, the physical capabilities of the printer should be noted - Graphic Arts printers are designed to work with heavier media. This means that the physical capabilities of moving parts such as the automatic cutter are far more robust to enable cutting of, say, heavyweight Canvas versus normal bond paper. If you use a printer which has not been designed for heavyweight media then the cutter quickly becomes blunt and requires replacement after a small number of prints. The additional stress on the paper motor may also blow the motor and provide you with an unwelcome repair bill. One way around this problem is to disable the cutter and manually cut the media after printing e.g. if you are using a Designjet 500 printer to print on canvas.
A useful tool developed by HP is their 'HP Media Solutions Locator', although it only has a few Designjet models listed - it's worth a look nevertheless!
