Paper Too Long

[Bruthabuz]

I have been printing family event (birthday, anniversary) greeting cards on 8.5x11 card stock for a few years now, using the same card software with the same settings I have always used.  A few days ago, my printer, OfficeJet Pro 8710, did a software upgrade.  Ever since then, the print jobs either come out wrong (way off-center) or get jammed.  When I clear the paper jam, I get an error message, "Paper Too Long  The printer only supports two-sided printing for certain paper sizes..." when I am printing on standard 8.5x11 card stock.  I have tried modifying the printer setting to thick plain paper, but it didn't solve the problem.  Everything works fine if I print on plain paper, but I don't want to print greeting cards on plain paper.    

[VikramTheGreat]

Hi @Bruthabuz,

Welcome to the HP Support Community.
 

Thank you for posting your query. I will be glad to help you.

Thank you for bringing this to our attention, and we're very sorry for the inconvenience caused. We appreciate your continued use of the HP OfficeJet Pro 8710 for your greeting card projects, and we understand how frustrating it must be to encounter these issues following a recent firmware update.

Based on the symptoms you've described — misaligned prints, paper jams, and the "Paper Too Long" error when using 8.5x11 cardstock — it’s possible that the firmware update may have reset or changed internal media handling defaults, especially for duplex (two-sided) printing.

1. Turn Off Two-Sided Printing

Your printer may now be trying to auto-duplex cardstock, which it doesn't support. To prevent that:

• In your Print dialog box, select Printer Properties or Preferences.
• Go to the Finishing or Layout tab.
• Set Two-Sided Printing (Duplex) to Off or None.
• Click OK, then print again.

2. Manually Set Paper Type and Size

Before printing:

• On your printer’s control panel, go to Paper Handling > Paper Settings.
• Set the paper Type to Cardstock or Heavyweight Plain Paper.
• Set the Size to Letter (8.5 x 11) explicitly.

Then, in your printing software, match the same paper type and size.

3. Use Rear Feed Tray (If Available) or Manual Feed One Sheet at a Time

Cardstock is thicker and may feed more reliably when:

• Only one sheet is in the input tray.
• It's loaded in the center and supported firmly on the guides.

4. Check for a Driver Rollback

If the issue began only after a firmware update, consider rolling back the printer firmware:

• Go to HP OfficeJet Pro 8710 All-in-One Printer series Software and Driver Downloads | HP® Support
• Search for your model and check if an earlier version of firmware is available.
• You can also contact HP support to request a firmware rollback if the latest version is incompatible with your typical media use.

I hope this helps.

Take care and have a good day.

Please click “Accepted Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue, as it will help others find the solution. Click the “Kudos/Thumbs Up" on the bottom right to say “Thanks” for helping!

VikramTheGreat

HP Support

[Bruthabuz]

I made all of the changes suggested, except for the driver rollback, and it helped somewhat.  I printed a card using one sheet of 8.5x11 65-lb card stock in the manual feed tray.  It did not jam and I did not get a Paper Too Long error message.  But it still printed off-center.  It cuts off the print on the same edge of both sides, i.e. the left edge of one side and the right edge of the other side (so the print is cut off on both sides of the same edge).

I tested again by printing another card on plain paper and it came out perfect.  It's just when using card stock that it messes up.

Thank you for your reply!

[Kuroi_Kenshi]

Hi @Bruthabuz,

Since the previous agent is not available at the moment, I'll be assisting you furthr

Thanks for the update, and I’m really glad to hear that the changes helped reduce the jamming and “Paper Too Long” errors.

Since the issue is now limited to off-center printing on cardstock only, here are a few more things you can try to fine-tune the alignment:

Check Page Setup in Your Card Software

Make sure the page size in your greeting card software is set to 8.5 x 11 inches and that margins aren’t pushing content beyond printable bounds. Even a slight misalignment in layout can cause content to be cropped when using thicker media.

Set Printer Margins to Zero (or Custom Margins)

In the Print Settings or Printer Properties, check if there is an option for borderless printing or adjusting margins.

Choose "Maximum printable area" or set custom margins if available, especially when working with thicker media like cardstock.

Disable Scaling or Fit-to-Page

Sometimes auto-scaling leads to misalignment:

In the print dialog, disable any option like “Fit to Page” or “Scale to Fit.”

Instead, choose “Actual size” or 100% scaling.

Adjust for Cardstock Skew

Cardstock can slightly shift during manual feed due to its rigidity. To help:

Manually pre-align the sheet carefully in the tray and hold it gently as it starts feeding (if your printer allows manual feed assist).

Try printing with different orientation (flip the design 180°) to see if the cutoff shifts.

I hope this helps.

I'm glad I could help! 😊 If this resolved your issue, please mark it as "Accepted Solution" and click "Yes" on "Was this reply helpful?" Your feedback not only keeps us going but also helps others find the solution faster! 👍✨

Take care and have an amazing day ahead! 🚀

Best regards,

[Bruthabuz · Accepted solution]

I checked all of the settings on my card program and they were all correct already.  I tried all of your other suggestions that I was able to, and was still having problems.  But each step I tried got me closer to working correctly.  The only hindrance I encountered in your steps was that I got a conflict when I tried to set "Plain Paper, Thick" and "Borderless Printing."  It would not allow me to set both simultaneously.  I kept on trying different combinations of settings until  I found one that works.  I now have "Borderless Printing" on "HP Matte Presentation Paper" and everything is working satisfactorily now.  The strange thing is that this is the same setting I was using before I started having the problems.

Anyway, thank you for your suggestions.  They did help by getting me started on the right track!

[Kuroi_Kenshi]

Hi @Bruthabuz,

A huge thank you for marking this post as the 'Accepted Solution'! We're thrilled that we could help resolve your issue. 

If you have any more questions or need further assistance, please don't hesitate to ask. We're here to help! 

Thanks again for your confirmation, and we wish you an amazing day ahead! 

Best Regards,