The Vault
Troubleshooting guide
The printhead is smearing ink or scraping the paper — how do I prevent and recover from a head strike/crash?
Posted by the SuperPrinters team · 7/26/2026
Ink smears in the media-travel direction, the sheet or web shows scuff/scrape marks or jams at the print zone, and the press may flag a head-strike/collision error. Afterward, nozzles are frequently missing or misfiring. Most often caused by media not flat — curl, cockle, wrinkles, dog-ears, or lifted edges rising into the head, among other possible causes — a full step-by-step diagnostic and fix follows below.
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