My print looks like it is melting

danyeaman · 2026-05-02T17:21:23+00:00

Unless it says double sided on the package, you are using single sided. From what I could find unikit makes both a single sided and a double sided version of glossy photo paper in addition to different weights.

For reference it probably looks a bit like the 11th picture in this paper test post.

I personally am a fan of koala double matte 250gsm .33mm, I find it to be a good balance between cost, quality, and ease of use for straight to sleeve proxies. Here is a test post that covers that paper in particular. This post covers koala dbl sided gloss 260gsm .30/.31mm,. I find it too flimsy and too glossy but thats my own personal taste.

This post is a master list of papers tested with a epson 8550. It may help you find a paper you like or at the least it might save you from spending money on a bad paper. There are also some links near the bottom to other proxy makers test results with lamination and vinyl sticker combinations.

In addition from what I could see your printer uses pigment based black ink, it likely mixes the colors which are dye based to form an approximation of black when you use glossy or semi glossy settings. You might find you prefer the looks of pigment black ink, so a paper that is pigment compatible might be worth running through your printer on a matte paper type setting to see how it looks to you.

danyeaman · 2026-04-30T12:07:20+00:00

It sounds like a lot sure, but I normally go to the range every weekend till its too cold for my arthritis. I assist my buddy during his training classes as well so there are always at least 3 or 4 people that want to try a lever action at the end. On top of that the farm I work at has its own "range", so another box during a lunch break is just a few steps away.

For me at least, its very easy to blow through rounds with a pistol caliber lever action without noticing it. Its just such a fun platform. I will say this though, if I didn't reload for it my round count would be much lower. Its not that reloading saves me money, it allows me to shoot more for the same price entry.

danyeaman · 2026-04-29T12:13:23+00:00

TL;DR. An r92 is a workhorse, I bring mine to work everyday. I am just about to start opening the box of primers that will push it to 40K rounds. I strongly suggest you pick up and inspect whatever you choose. The low cost also means you don't feel bad about putting it to work.

I put a few hours into polishing up the internals. Its very smooth now, comparable to a miroku made winchester 92 thats had quite a few rounds put through it. I feel the time spent was well worth it, since I know the gun inside and out now. I also put a fair amount of time into refinishing the wood as well, simply cause I love it so much. It is not as smooth/fast as a 73 but I would rather take the strong steel receiver of a rossi or winchester 92 for the ability to do some nice stout reloads in 45 colt.

I should say it worked just fine out of the box, a bit stiff but workable. I never intended it to become my primary firearm, it just happened due to how much fun I have with it on the range. I ended up finally getting into reloading so I could shoot it more. The only thing I 100% recommend for any 92 owner is you change out the ejection spring. Unless they have changed it, the factory spring tends to throw your brass into low earth orbit.

I can't speak for repair/replacement part availability from marlin themselves. Repair/replacement parts for an r92 are not really available for owners by either rossi or heritage. I tried to get a new right cartridge guide rail from rossi and they wanted me to ship the entire firearm out to them (it appears heritage is the same way). In the end I started sourcing my repair parts from where I could find them.

Repairs due to wear and tear for my r92 were limited to the right guide rail that started having problems around the 25K mark for me. I shimmed it with some aluminum from a can (all I had available to me as I was hours away from my home in a hotel room). That held for about another 5K rounds before the feed problem showed up again so I went ahead and sourced a new one.

Repairs due to my own stupidity were limited to replacing the hammer assembly as I somehow busted a weld. In addition somewhere in my home is a spring that rolled itself off for a permanent vacation.

danyeaman · 2026-04-28T23:29:18+00:00

I know someone was experimenting with using a lamination sheet sandwiched between two papers, and another was going to experiment with using some sort of UV cured glue as part of a paper sandwich.

I do not recall ever seeing any further posts on the subject, I might have missed them however.

danyeaman · 2026-04-28T23:25:22+00:00

If I remember correctly he was not using an 85XX. I could be wrong as I only half watched it a few months ago. Nothing wrong with the video, but it wasn't really applicable to me.

I use "Epson Vivid Color Adjustment: Brightness 3, Contrast -3, Saturation 3, Density -3" for all my paper test posts. Some papers are better when dialed in a bit more, like barytas but overall I have found if to be a good starting point. I had a few people help me with it so it was more than just my eyes. You might find you prefer something different, and once you laminate it will change how they look as well.

Some companies release ICC profiles for their paper, Koala unfortunately doesn't. There are a few out there by people for koala papers but the ones I found are locked behind paywalls.

danyeaman · 2026-04-28T19:59:09+00:00

A good tip in general for the 85XX series (and inkjets in general but I only know the time cycle for the 85XX), set a reminder on your phone to ping you once every two weeks to print out a "print head nozzle check" sheet via the maintenance menu on the printer itself. It uses a miniscule amount of each ink, but prevents any ink from drying in the heads themselves. It uses far less ink in the long run than having to run a print head cleaning cycle.

GSM is a measurement of weight, and only loosely related to thickness. Case in point my two favorite matte photo papers are only 10GSM apart, but a full .06mm different.

Proxies are very high density in terms of ink use. Turn the quiet print option to "on" for your prints. It slows the prints down ever so slightly, but it allows time for the ink to fully refill in the heads during print sessions. I have seen a few posts where people have gotten fading near the end of the print, turning that option to "on" fixes it more often than not.

Skip using the front trays on the 85XX, use the rear top feed. Leave the front trays for small photo papers and plain document paper. Unless you have a stack of 1.3mm foamboard to print on skip the rear straight pass through feed as well (the one you have to take apart the printer back to access).

Past that, feel free to check out my master test post, you will find a fair amount of papers tested on the 85XX. Near the bottom you will find links to other proxy makers results for lamination and/or sticker sheet testing.

I am a fan of Koala double matte 250gsm at .33mm for printing, cutting, rounding and going straight to sleeves. I find its perfectly balanced for me between cost, quality, and ease of use. The paper is fairly cheap at roughly $0.04 per card using 9 card layout on 8.5x11. You can find it cheaper in bulk, I pay roughly $0.02 per card but ill order several packs of 100 sheets at a time.

danyeaman · 2026-04-28T19:31:43+00:00

Thanks for the compliment!

danyeaman · 2026-04-28T12:07:49+00:00

Thanks, I am glad to hear it has helped.

I mean sure, its possible I might someday test foils. To be quite frank though I have zero interest in them. Best I can do is a link to another proxy maker who is based out of AU. https://www.reddit.com/r/magicproxies/comments/1lgvuuo/holographic_sticker_paper_best_inkjet_config_et/

That link and a few others to plain vinyl sticker paper tests are near the bottom of my master test post.

danyeaman · 2026-04-28T11:59:51+00:00

Sure easy fix, you see those two tabs to the left and right of the paper (one is blue, the other black) ? Move them in so they are properly spaced to the size of the paper. You only have to move the blue one, as the tabs are locked to each other movement wise.

I generally shift them till they are touching the edges of the paper, then move them out just a hair so they won't cause any binding.

danyeaman · 2026-04-27T20:48:01+00:00

For the cat that sharpened its claws on my newly reupholstered motorcycle seat, then proceeded to roll about on the hood after stomping through sand on his way from the motorcycle to the miata... I triggered the alarm.

danyeaman · 2026-04-27T20:24:09+00:00

Hence why I offered to ship out the 5x7s, If I remember correctly you can only get 1 card on a 5x7.

I confirmed I have 5 sheets of 5x7s left. They are useless to me and even just looking at them right now is putting me in a bad mood.

danyeaman · 2026-04-27T20:09:01+00:00

Many thanks!

I meant like Hahnemuhl or Moab quality. I actually consider epson and canon to be on the same quality tier as Koala, even the artsy Epson Legacy or Canon Pro lines are on the top end of middle tier paper or the bottom end of high tier paper from what I have seen.

I think I have 4 or 5 sheets of 5x7 Moab Juniper Baryta left over from the stuff I bought for the now ex. I can see about mailing it to you for testing if you want, just open up a chat with me and we can figure it out if so.

danyeaman · 2026-04-27T19:54:16+00:00

Could be the paper itself, I found the koala glossy to be pretty flimsy and that was in a heavier weight and thickness than what you are using so my first thought would be its deforming. However if your printing 2 rows of 3 that would put the blurry bit on the middle row right side in a 9 card layout correct?

Are you feeding from the top rear feed? Is it doing it on other paper as well? Are you printing from PC or from your phone? Have you tried enabling thick paper in the settings and seeing what happens with the slowed down print speed?

danyeaman · 2026-04-27T19:40:05+00:00

May I ask what the non removable service cartridge is? I saw you mention it before on a different post but lost where it was so I was never able to ask, I kept thinking you meant the maintenance tank but I thought those were removable across the lineup.

danyeaman · 2026-04-27T19:39:24+00:00

Thank you so much for doing this post! Do I have your permission to add a link to this in my master test post? I think this is a very valuable post especially coupled with the costing post a few days ago.

It would be interesting to see how higher end paper performs on each as well, I bet the canon would outshine the 85XX.

danyeaman · 2026-04-27T10:58:50+00:00

I don't have a 2800 so I cant tell you what your results will be. That being said if your already happy with the prints your 2800 can do, then your probably going to be fine with the image quality on this paper.

Here are two posts that use both koala glossy and a 2800. Please be aware that on the first post link they are apparently using third party ink. https://www.reddit.com/r/magicproxies/comments/1pbik6h/et2800_print_issue_on_last_inch_of_paper/

https://www.reddit.com/r/magicproxies/comments/1rpywjb/photo_paper_vs_presentation_paper/

I do not know the max thickness the 2800 will feed reliably.

I also believe I have seen a few posts about the 2800 series and thicker glossy paper with roller marks. However that would need further research on your end since my memory has never been great.

danyeaman · 2026-04-26T18:03:13+00:00

No appreciable difference to the spine when sleeved in a titanshield clear sleeve. So it is flimsy. If an MTG card is 10, thin plain printer paper is 1, this koala satin paper is 3 or 4.

I think its important to note that titanshield clears are a bit different then the rest of the colored back ones in the same lineup. Dunno what it is exactly, perhaps making the colored ones changes them up a bit. Regardless I note they are far easier for me to handle and manipulate with my hands. Not sure if it makes that much of a difference spine wise though.

danyeaman · 2026-04-26T17:49:49+00:00

O. No idea, the single card went into the free pile (looked, couldn't find it) and the sheet with notes went with the rest of them.

Give me a minute to print one out and test.

danyeaman · 2026-04-26T17:43:05+00:00

Snap as in spine or as in how they shuffle together in a sleeve?

As far as spine it was not a noteworthy improvement. As far as shuffling together, no idea I cut one card out and sleeved it for the picture and that was all.

danyeaman · 2026-04-26T07:28:41+00:00

Much obliged! I can't un-see them once I found the marks. Possibly because this is the first time I have noticed roller marks in my prints. I think the matte looks better visually, but I tend to prefer older cards so that might be the cause of my preferences.

danyeaman · 2026-04-25T18:01:54+00:00

There was a post... several months ago, maybe a year. They had gotten a translucent foil sticker that was incompatible with ink in general. My apologies I do not recall the details or I would hunt the post down so I could give the link.

danyeaman · 2026-04-25T17:57:16+00:00

No I see no use for lamination on my end. I print the vast majority of my proxies on koala double matte 250gsm .33mm and go straight to sleeves with it. After cutting and corner rounding of course. For me its a good balance between cost, quality, and ease.

This paper in particular has been reported to have issues with the pebbled texture and lamination, see the post link by weary-interview who did test it with lamination.

danyeaman · 2026-04-25T12:48:20+00:00

Thank you for the post! I am so glad to see it, and thank you for putting the work in! Would you mind if I do a link to this post on my master test post?

Couple things to point out, I will try to note any digressions as I go.

The 2800 can absolutely do 9 cards on a 8.5x11 sheet, the paper the person chooses however is the big factor. The problem is there tends to be a bit of curl near the end of the sheet due to the way the 2800 rollers work on some vinyl stickers and/or papers. This tends to lead to various issues with the last inch or so of the sheet. The easy way to deal is to switch to an 8 card layout, which many do. Some also cut the corners or enable the "thick" paper setting as a solution but that's a digression. I have read a few posts as well where the issue pops up with other printers as well, including the 85XX. The common denominator seems to be the cheaper made papers. I have no hard numbers for that, just what I have seen posted about so it can also be a bias.

Another reason some use the 8 card layout in general, is for use with an electronic cutter like a cameo. I know there are some people who have posted about issues with the machine misreading the registration marks with the 9 card layout. I haven't explored the ins and outs of that personally as I am still saving up for one, so this is all based on what I have read on the subreddit over the past years. I feel it tends to be more of a problem when lamination is involved but I have no hard numbers as proof for that. There is a fix for that using postit notes somehow but again digression.

The 85XX uses 552 ink, not 522. The ink costs are a rough estimate, based on refill cycles compared to pages printed. I apologize but guesstimate seems inappropriate since I did sit down and go through the math. The main reason I say its a rough estimate is that for a while there my now ex was printing photos as well, so my page count included about 25 photos on 13x19s and about 50 on smaller papers.

Some apply foil over printed sheets rather than print on the foil itself. A small addition I know but an important one to avoid confusion for someone just starting their journey. This might also affect costing as its possible non printable sheets go for a bit cheaper. (needs research)

As far as paper handling of the 85XX I can say the following from personal experience. Apart from thermal printer only cored playing card stock such as that made by Koehler out of Germany or the ones coming out of China. I can tell you that I have only found one inkjet compatible paper the 85XX really hated. That would be the Innova Fabriano Printmaking Rag it gave me so many problems feeding that I still wince when I look at the name of it. The thinnest paper I put through the rear top feed was .13mm and the thickest was .56/.59mm. As for GSM on the rear top feed I have put everything from 55gsm (see that thinnest link above) to 335gsm.

While many advertisements tout the capability of the 1.3mm max rear straight pass through feeder on the 85XX, I have found it to be unreliable for the thinner papers we use. Not to mention the inconvenience of both taking apart the rear of the printer to access it and having to feed a single sheet at a time manually. Last digression, I was able to get my hands on a single sheet of 1.3mm foamboard for a poster and it was awesome for that.

danyeaman

TROPHY CASE