Dell Laser Printer 1700 - paper jams

HI,

I have 2 Dell 1700 Laser Printers with the same problem. The paper does
not feed from the tray. We can feed page by page thru the bypass but
that's not ideal, as you can imagine. It appears that the arm that
should lower the feed wheels is not lowering. Before I dig down too
deep below the gears I was hoping to get some advice from anyone who
has had the same problem.

Also, does anyone know who to contact to get a service manual for this
printer. I've tried to call Dell but never get a person.

Thanks in advance,
B

wrote:

> HI,
>
> I have 2 Dell 1700 Laser Printers with the same problem. The paper does
> not feed from the tray. We can feed page by page thru the bypass but
> that's not ideal, as you can imagine. It appears that the arm that
> should lower the feed wheels is not lowering. Before I dig down too
> deep below the gears I was hoping to get some advice from anyone who
> has had the same problem.
>
> Also, does anyone know who to contact to get a service manual for this
> printer. I've tried to call Dell but never get a person.

Are you using decent paper? Is the paper exposed to humidity?

Bob

wrote:
> HI,
>
> I have 2 Dell 1700 Laser Printers with the same problem. The paper does
> not feed from the tray. We can feed page by page thru the bypass but
> that's not ideal, as you can imagine. It appears that the arm that
> should lower the feed wheels is not lowering. Before I dig down too
> deep below the gears I was hoping to get some advice from anyone who
> has had the same problem.

Is there a strip that that roller contacts on the tray which the paper
rubs up against (as there is in most HP, Xerox and Brother lasers?).

If so, a tip one Brother engineer gave me was to periodically stick some
selotape over that pad and rub it with your finger for a bit to clean it
thoroughly. Ditto with the pickup roller. Apparently paper fibres stick
to the rollers and make them less grippy.

It's worked for me pleanty of times in the past, so it may be worth a
go. If you're going to try it, make sure you get all the tape back of
afterwards and that you don't force any rollers round in the process.

Usual disclaimers apply, YMMV etc etc.

Alex

you probably need new pickup rollers. you could try to clean them with
rubbing alcohol and keeping the paper tray close to full but those fixes
probably won't last very long. if you have a high page count you may just
want to consider buying replacement machines. your time is money.
http://www.impactcomputers.com/j4465.html
this place has other parts too. they are pricey but i don't know of other
sources for dell printer parts. please post if you find any.

<> wrote in message
news: oups.com...
> HI,
>
> I have 2 Dell 1700 Laser Printers with the same problem. The paper does
> not feed from the tray. We can feed page by page thru the bypass but
> that's not ideal, as you can imagine. It appears that the arm that
> should lower the feed wheels is not lowering. Before I dig down too
> deep below the gears I was hoping to get some advice from anyone who
> has had the same problem.
>
> Also, does anyone know who to contact to get a service manual for this
> printer. I've tried to call Dell but never get a person.
>
> Thanks in advance,
> B
>

my source for all printer repairs is fixyourownprinter.com
they have great kits, unfortunately, they have nothing specific for dell
but they do have lexmark paper jam kits for the 4000 series, etc.
so this may work.
i have used their solutions for years and they work.


Christopher Muto wrote:
> you probably need new pickup rollers. you could try to clean them with
> rubbing alcohol and keeping the paper tray close to full but those fixes
> probably won't last very long. if you have a high page count you may just
> want to consider buying replacement machines. your time is money.
> http://www.impactcomputers.com/j4465.html
> this place has other parts too. they are pricey but i don't know of other
> sources for dell printer parts. please post if you find any.
>
> <> wrote in message
> news: oups.com...
>> HI,
>>
>> I have 2 Dell 1700 Laser Printers with the same problem. The paper does
>> not feed from the tray. We can feed page by page thru the bypass but
>> that's not ideal, as you can imagine. It appears that the arm that
>> should lower the feed wheels is not lowering. Before I dig down too
>> deep below the gears I was hoping to get some advice from anyone who
>> has had the same problem.
>>
>> Also, does anyone know who to contact to get a service manual for this
>> printer. I've tried to call Dell but never get a person.
>>
>> Thanks in advance,
>> B
>>
>
>

Thanks for all the advice. We did clean the rollers, etc. but the
problem is the arm is not dropping down to allow the rollers to reach
the paper. I worked in a copy shop for a long time so I can appreciate
the affect poor paper and humidity have on a printer. The paper is okay
it's just the arm won't lower to get at it.

We simply replaced the printers and i have set up a little shop in our
warehouse to work on these and other things. I look forward to going
back to hands on mechanical repair for a bit, time away from my users,
you know? :-)

If anyone knows where I can get Dell printer service manuals, please
let me know.

Thanks again!! and everyone have a Happy Thanksgiving.

b

I had the same problem that the paper wouldn't get to second set of rollers. So I tried all the usual things - cleaning with tape and rubbing alcohol, but didn't work. I noticed that on the drop down arm that grabs the paper from the stack, the rubber parts on the wheels were easy to take off. So I took them off, turned them inside-out, and put them back on. So far this has solved the problem completely. Keep in mind that this is not quite what dell would suggest, but if you don't want to spend the money to buy new rollers this may be something you want to try. Good luck.

Thanks "spjutster". Reversing the rubber bands on the feeder rollers, as you suggested, worked for me and saved me a considerable amount of time and money. Your help is much appreciated.

Thank you for the information on reversing the pickup roller contacts. I was ready to discard my printer. It works great now.

Thanks for the tip. Reversing the roller bands did the trick. Hopefully this will last 3 plus years like they did the other way. Thanks.