Horizontal streaks HP LaserJet 3200m scans

It is an A4, Letter and limited banner printer. that means that the short edge (8 1/2") of a sheet enters the printer so that edge is parallel to the rollwers in the printer. Tony

Replace the cartridge/drum Assembly. From your clarification of terms you have a defective or damaged image drum. I've seen likely a hundred of them with that kind of problem (unable to see your image, but your keyboard art tells the story)

His first post tells us that it only when scanning or copying, later posts indicate (nearly but slightly unclearly) that it does not happen when printing from a computer. That makes it a scanner engine problem, and rollers don't cause scanner quality issues (only feed isues). Tony

And scanner problems will only cause streaks in the direction of paper flow in a sheet feed scanner - and then usually due to dirt on the glass rod.

I believe I am the only poster who gave instructions based on determining first if it is a printer or scanner issue.

We have both asked that question Tony

I can't find the start of this thread, but, the gist is that an HP LaserJet 3200m scans show multiple streaks in what seems to be the direction perpendicular to the movement of the page past the line.

In other words, it appears that entire scan lines are dropped, possibly related to mechanical motion.

If I remember correctly, the original poster has confirmed that the streaks don't appear in a printout made from a file or old scan without the problem. (The test was done to check for the unlikely possibility that a problem on the print side was affecting the scan side.)

My two suggestions are:

1. Determine if the streaks appear when a white page is scanned

1. Determine if a line is being added. (I don't have a good test for this. It would involve determining if something that was supposed to be 10 scan lines apart was 11 scan lines apart, or so such thing. Maybe scanning graph paper with a spacing of 0.1 inches or less would be measurable. Perhaps scanning something with diagonal lines would show a glitch in the diagonal line rather than just a horizontal line across the diagonal line.

2. Try using VueScan from
   formatting link
   instead of the software being used currently. I'm not sure VueScan supports the device since the VueScan description says it supports HP LaserJet 3200 and doesn't specify 3200m, but I think it is worth a try.

Here is part of the earlier thread: > >

I have al Brother printers and faxes and their service and support seem pretty good.

When I search for help on your HP Laserjet 3200, the HP support site seems almost useless. Not a good sign. (Incidentally, I recently bought two HP desktop computers, and I am amazed at how crappy they turned out to be -- just weird little stuff like the crappiest keyboard and mouse that I have ever seen, no indicator light to show that the hard rive is working, a hokey vertically mounted cd/dvd drive, etc. But, the computers were cheap, so I guess I got what I paid for).

Meanwhile, my Brother printers say that when there is a vertical streak running down the page, I need to open it up and wipe clean the narrow piece of glass inside that "sees"/"reads" the document. If it is horizontal lines, spaced 3.7 inches apart, it could mean a new drum is needed, or do the wire slide trick they tell you about in the Brother documents.

And, I can go online and get any Brother manual without having to pay for it.

Anyway, here's one HP link that might help, but it is worded poorly and I am not sure what it means you are supposed to do:

NOWHERE that I can find has the OP clarified whether the lines show up is simple prints. All I have found was in "copies" and "scans"

A 3200 is not a flatbed - so if there are lines in the scan, they will be from something contaminating the scan head and will run the "length" of the paper - in the direction of motion through the scanner. There is no other scanner failure mode that will produce any other pattern of lines.

If it is a PRINT error, there can be several patterns - with different causes - and generally the same solution.

If the lines are the "lenth" of the paper and present on prints as well as copies, there is a scratch in the drum - usually but not alwats preceded by "spots". If they are the width of the paper and evenly spaced by about the circumference of the drum, there is a defect line across the drum USUALLY this is not as crisp or clean or fine a line as the other possibilities. The solution to both PRINT issues is to replace the drum/cartridge.

The solution tu the scanner problem is a carefull and thorough cleaning of the scanner element (unless someone has scratched it by running a staple through it)

By and large, current HP product is pretty well all JUNK. Some of their pro products are reasonable quality - but by almost any measure

- over-priced. A well used 10 year old HP printer is very likely to outlast any of their current brand new product.

Diagonal line is an excellent idea. Easier to see that two lines aren't in line than to measure.

I had a copier, printerer, scanner that I got out of the trash and I found a broken plastic gear in it. I screwed up and glued it so that it had one empty space about the width of a tooth. Maybe it was smaller but it wouldn't have turned if it weren't close. But it worked and the problem didn't seem to show in the scans I made. I dind't have ink so I didn't print.

Hey this is great. If htey ghave a universal scanner, maybe it's only time before some hero writes a universal printer program/driver.

Very wise comment.

A scratch on the toner cartridge drum would make a vertical mark, but the edges of the aperture can also make a horizontal defect on the drum; it might be something simple (a dust line, removable by lifting it off with a piece of sticky tape) or it might be a defect caused by overheating and fusing of the toner.

True. One (outlier) possibility is that the scan movement is handled by a geartrain that has gotten slopppy. More likely, the scan head has a fluorescent lamp which has begun to get dim and flicker. Lamp replacement is usually possible, but not always supported by manufacturer repair parts stocks.

I actually have one of these. Not a wonderhorse. Plagued by a third party software package and deliberate NO NETWORK policy. I have seen streaks and generally they are caused by foreign objects on the glass or other scanner parts.

However, it could be a sensor starting to go, memory failure, or even an issue with the driver.

Is movement smooth with a repeating cadence during scan? Do you have a piece of paper from a previous paper jam floating around inside? Try some canned air.

Also try scanning COLOR photographs at high resolution and see if the error stays in the same place. If it does look for optical problems from glass to scanner. Reinstall your drivers.

Good luck!

Doesn't the word "only" mean it doens't happen when printing from a computer.