Printing Custom Size Paper on Officejet Pro 8600

[julies45]

I'm trying to print 5x8 paper on the Officejet Pro 8600. I set up the Word document with the custom sice per the manual, but there are two problems: 1. The printer is not pulling in the paper from the tray even though I have the guides around the stack of paper. 2. When it does pull in a 8x11 sheet of paper, the copy is not centered as it should be for a 5x8 custom sheet. AARGH! My Epson was so much easier with custom printing. Can anyone help me??

[lenalcs]

I'm also having the same problem.  I made a hasty decision to purchase this printer because I saw the adaptable paper tray and assumed I could print on cards but no...there are only certain sizes and 1/4 inch difference prevents printing. The main purpose for selecting this printer was for the custom paper sizes.  Help!! After installing everything and moving furniture around I hate to take it back to the store.

[Binary_Zen]

Hi,

Unfortunately the driver that comes with the Officejet 8600 does not have the customer option. Try the workaround I listed below. This is how I was able to print on custom size media on my Officejet 8600. This is not a supported workaround but I do know that it works at least for my unit.

Download the Photosmart C310a software package using the link below

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/product?cc=us&lc=en&product=4231205

1. Double click the downloaded file and follow the onscreen instructions until you see the window where it is asking you how you want to connect your printer to the computer
2. Select  “Direct Connection using USB” and then Click Next
3. Place a checkmark on the option “If you were unable to connect…” and then click Next. Follow the on screen instructions to complete the install.

 Set your printer drivers to use the C310a driver by following the steps below

1. Click Start (or Windows Orb) and then Click Control Panel
2. Click Devices and Printers and then right click on your printer’s  icon
3. Click on Printer Properties and then Click on the Advanced tab
4. On the drop down menu for Driver,  select the Photosmart C310a from the list
5. Click Apply and then Ok.

 Print from your software application

1. Open the document or photo you would like to print
2. Click File and then Print (these steps depends on the software you are using)
3. Click Properties, Click the Features tab, Click the drop down box for Paper size and then Click custom
4. Enter the dimensions of the media you would like to use. Enter a name for this custom media and then click the Save button. Click OK to continue
5. Continue to print the photo or document

[russd]

I did OK until I tried to use the C310a driver.  It did not appear on the drop down list of drivers.  Any suggestions?

[russd]

I found a way to get the driver: Click New Driver, then Have Disk, select Hewlett-Packard as Manufacturer, choose HP Photosmart Prem C310 series.  But then it doesn't work - cannot print a test page.  Any ideas?

[MJozef33]

Just unpacked and setup my new printer and with the first job to print, invitations on Hallmark stationary, I ran into the same issue. The card stock specified the paper size as 4.6875 x 6.8125 and after setting up Word to use this custom size I found that the printer insisted it was not the size specified.

Not wanting to accept that the best course of action was to return the printer or install a driver meant for a completely different model printer I found that I could select a "standard" size from the printer properties dialog that was a close enough match to allow the job to print. In my case the 13cm x 18cm size was the option that worked.

Not really sure what the tolerence is that causes the printer to complain but I would suggest anyone who is experiencing this issue to look through the standard sizes and select the closest match. If you are lucky like me you will get by this major design flaw.

If this behavior was meant to reduce the waste of paper then the option to define new custom sizes should have been also provided. I find it quite presumptuous of HP to consider the paper size options pre-defined on the printer are all anyone will ever need.