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Can any of you give me a recommendation. I am really frustrated. I have a HP officejet printer and I cannot get my digital stamps to quit smearing with my copic markers. I am doing a project for 12 people with a digital stamp and if I can't figure this out, it's not going to be much fun:( I have tried heat setting right out of the printer and even heat setting that again later and leaving it for 24hours, no luck. It still smears. I am hopeful that one of you ladies has already figured it out. Thanks in advance. Help.....
actually, I have found that it is the paper. You need to make sure that you have a highly absorbant paper, not one with a sheen. Most of the higher end papers have a nice coating to them that allow the pens to flow. I use the Walmart GP 110 in my printer (HP) when doing digi's.
If you don't want to spend the money for a ream before trying, let me know...I can send you some images (some of dustin pike's freebies) and you can try it and see if that helps. I've done this for two others and it has turned out to be the paper.
hth! pam
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I had the same problem, and also have the HP officejet printer and had a thread on here about it, what works best for me is the recollections white cardstock from michaels. it's 8.5x11 and sold in a pack of 50 for $3.99 (here in indiana). That's the best thing i can find to work, have tried several things!
Thanks so much for the help. I tried the GP cardstock and it still smears. I went to Officemax and tried out a bunch of printers and the Epson ink does not smear. I think it is just the HP ink. It seems that everywhere you go HP has the most printers and the best selection. Guess I am getting a new printer. I will be coloring smear free digi stamps before long. Thanks again!
Sorry your having problems. I have an HP printer and use GP paper and I just let mine sit over night before I color with my copics and I have no issues.
__________________ Carrie
"Exercise is a dirty word. Everytime I hear it I wash my mouth out with chocolate." -Charles M. Shultz
just a thought: the inks in most deskjet printers are wet. You might want to try printing using a laser printer if it is available to you. The 'ink' from the laser printer is actually a powder that gets coated on paper. It is mostly smudge-proof.
The ink from inkjet printer are water or liquid soluble. I would suggest you to go to a photocopy center and make photocopy of your image. Photocopy machine use dried powder ink which we call warm photocopy I am pretty sure it will work.
I have an epson and if I leave it sit overnight it is fine, however, be warned that printer is an ink sucker. Sure the cartridges are cheaper than my Lexmarks were, but I go through them twice as fast, and it is the noisest printer ever.
I got a new color laser printer about two months ago...it is able to print on even the thickest cardstock and since it is laser it is heatset and the ink will not smear.
I am very happy with this printer.
blessings.
actually, I have found that it is the paper. You need to make sure that you have a highly absorbant paper, not one with a sheen. Most of the higher end papers have a nice coating to them that allow the pens to flow. I use the Walmart GP 110 in my printer (HP) when doing digi's.
If you don't want to spend the money for a ream before trying, let me know...I can send you some images (some of dustin pike's freebies) and you can try it and see if that helps. I've done this for two others and it has turned out to be the paper.
hth! pam
Exactly what I would have said...I use the Cdn equivalent of GP paper for my digis and the copics do not smear...it's very absorbant...couldn't possibly emboss it.
I have an epson and if I leave it sit overnight it is fine, however, be warned that printer is an ink sucker. Sure the cartridges are cheaper than my Lexmarks were, but I go through them twice as fast, and it is the noisest printer ever.
Which Epson do you have? I was looking at the WorkForce 545 today.. considering it as my HP Photosmart smears badly.. I've heat set, embossed, printed using the fastest/draft and highest quality settings and even had images sit for 2 months and they still smear. I ended up having to buy some cheap construction paper type cardstock, which is horrible with copics. I think I need a new printer, but don't know which to get.
Which Epson do you have? I was looking at the WorkForce 545 today.. considering it as my HP Photosmart smears badly.. I've heat set, embossed, printed using the fastest/draft and highest quality settings and even had images sit for 2 months and they still smear. I ended up having to buy some cheap construction paper type cardstock, which is horrible with copics. I think I need a new printer, but don't know which to get.
I also have an HP Photosmart. Before you buy a new printer, if you have a choice of black ink cartridge for yours, try switching it. For mine, the normal black ink smears badly, but its "Photo" ink cartridge works great with Copics. No smearing.
I also have an HP Photosmart. Before you buy a new printer, if you have a choice of black ink cartridge for yours, try switching it. For mine, the normal black ink smears badly, but its "Photo" ink cartridge works great with Copics. No smearing.
Thank you! I will try that! What paper are you using?
Thank you! I will try that! What paper are you using?
For my printer, the type of ink cartridge makes a huge difference but the paper itself doesn't matter that much. There are a lot of different models of Photosmart printers. For mine, it's the black cartridge #56 that smears badly. Photo cartridge #58 works great and doesn't smear with Copics.
My current favorite paper is Hammermill Color Copy Cover, 80 lb for the image layer and 100 lb for the card base. If you have an Xpedx Store in your area, they sell it by the ream and probably can give you a free sample to try before you buy. Amazon also sells it.
Check your printer's settings too... putting it on draft quality and grayscale uses less ink, so it will dry faster and won't have the tendency to smear. You can also heat set the images... the key is to make sure the ink is completely dry.
__________________ Colleen Schaan - Education Specialist at Imagination International Inc.,/Copic Marker
Blog - Distinctive Touches;My Copic Books!
Which Epson do you have? I was looking at the WorkForce 545 today.. considering it as my HP Photosmart smears badly.. I've heat set, embossed, printed using the fastest/draft and highest quality settings and even had images sit for 2 months and they still smear. I ended up having to buy some cheap construction paper type cardstock, which is horrible with copics. I think I need a new printer, but don't know which to get.
Well, I no longer have the Epson. I think I posted that a couple of years ago. I now own a Canon Pixma and have not had any smearing problems with it either. I use either Neenah or Bazzill Smooth most of the time, once in a while GP. None of them smear for me even when I color it immediatley.
Check your printer's settings too... putting it on draft quality and grayscale uses less ink, so it will dry faster and won't have the tendency to smear. You can also heat set the images... the key is to make sure the ink is completely dry.
I've tried all of that. I've done draft and photo (best), heat set.. I've even left images for two moths and they still smear. The only thing I haven't done is change my ink to the photo ink. So far the only way I have kept them from smearing is to use 80# CS by Canvas but it's a construction paper type CS, so it absorbs a lot and does not blend hardly at all.
I have an HP Photosmart and I've found that the best setting is when you go to print, set it for a borderless photo print. That will set it to us the 'Photo Black' instead of the regular black ink. I've had no problems, even when printing on the X-Press It blending card stock.
Play with your settings and run test pieces. I had tried doing mine on 'draft' and hated it--the lines were turned into dotty lines instead of solid, and it was grey instead of black.
Good luck--you'll grow to love digis!!!!!
Deb
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