Copier/Printer Color Materials Usage Guide

ABOUT PAPER
Contact your local authorized Xerox distributor, or call Xerox at 1-800-822-2200 in the USA,
or 1-800-668-0199 in Canada for our full line of media.
6 COLOR MATERIALS USAGE GUIDE
• Grain Direction – The grain of a paper is the direction in
which most of the fibers lie. During the paper-making process,
the majority of the paper fibers align parallel with one another.
Depending on how the paper is cut to its finished size, it will be
either grain-long (the grain is parallel to the longer dimension
of the paper), or grain-short (the grain is parallel to the shorter
dimension of the paper).
One method used to determine the grain is to fold a sheet of
paper lengthwise, then make a crosswise fold. Compare the
two folds. Paper folds smoothly with the grain. Cross-grain
folds tend to be rough and cracked.
Another method you can use to determine the grain direction
of a sheet of paper is to tear the sheet widthwise. Paper
always tears straighter with the grain.
Grain direction is critical when running papers heavier than
120 g/m
2
in the copier/printer. These papers must be loaded in
the (Also Called Tray 5) with the grain direction parallel to the
leading edge of the sheet.
Hint: Choose short grain papers
when printing documents with
images that cross over folds
(i.e. brochure applications).