Type of paper?

[rich2k4]

SO after reading through this site I see that you need Legal sized paper.  Anyone know where i can get legal sized photo gloss paper for cheap?

Also, my printer is able to do borderless printing.  Does that mean that i can use regular 8.5x11 sized paper?  What other settings would I need to change?  (I use GIMP)

[segamer]

I use 8.5x11 sized paper. I print through Photoshop and use the "scale to fit media" option. It will downscale it ever so slightly, not enough to notice in my opinion (DVD, Genesis, NES, SNES covers). What kind of cover are you trying to print and what kind of boxes are you using? Universal Boxes are a little larger than Genesis boxes, that's why I ask.  I would try printing in Black and White before using color to see if this works for you.

[wiggy]

Whatever you use, you'll most likely want to order online, unless you're ok with really basic paper. 

UGC covers are 11.2" wide, so borderless won't help with letter sized paper.

[rich2k4]

ok, well where can i order good photo paper that is legal size, for a cheap price?

[wiggy]

ok, well where can i order good photo paper that is legal size, for a cheap price?

Well you really can't have both, more like one or the other.  I'm sort of a snob about it though, so I may not be the best person to ask.  Also, there are no really nice papers in that size since it's not a proportion that's ever used in photo printing or the art world.  

Personally I use Super B iszed paper (13"x19") trimmed down into 2 pieces of 8.5"x13" for these covers.  I really like Epson papers, but there are plenty of good options.  This is exactly what I use for mine:

http://www.amazon.com/Epson%C2%AE-Professional-Enhanced-Inkjet-Sheets/dp/B002XJZ5GA/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1352763753&sr=8-3&keywords=epson+enhanced+matte+super+b


Amazon is a pretty good place to find decent deals.  eBay is not the best market for photo papers in my experience.

[Quazimoto]

I actually had this same question not too long ago after being utterly unsatisfied with standard weight legal sized paper.  A fellow TCP member suggested this...

http://www.redrivercatalog.com/browse/50lb-premium-matte-double-sided.html


I must say, I am very happy with it.  I only have a simple, off-the-shelf Kodak printer and so long as I set the printer up correctly (best quality print & make sure to select photo matte paper) in the options the covers I've printed turned out great.  It might not technically be the best paper around and I'm certianly not using the best printer, but it is most assuredly a gigantic leap ahead of any other paper I've tried.  It's really not too pricey either, so I'd very much recommend it.

[eastman415]

Wiggy, I have a question. When you use those sheets cut in half with your printer, do you have to tell the printer it's a custom/non-standard size? Or just set it to the closest size (on my printer I'd be stuck setting it to letter) and use some sort of setting to tell it not to try to shrink it to fit?

[wiggy]

I tell my computer that it's a 13" long piece of paper.  But, if you tell it that it's 14" long (legal size) and just justify the image to the leading edge, then you'll have no problems at all

[Moviefan2k4]

Another alternative would be to visit a paper center in your area, and bring in a sample of what you're after (like the official cover from a DVD or Blu-Ray film). They'd probably be able to give you a pretty good match.

[wiggy]

What's a paper center?

[eastman415]

Thanks for the info! I have been using (supposedly) good laser printers on my campus, but my snes covers end up so dark and blurry that the grey snes logo isn't even visible against the black background. This is using nicer paper too. I've been wanting to try out an inkjet to see if I can get some better results.

[Moviefan2k4]

What's a paper center?

It's a place that sells different varieties of paper for printing purposes. You can get almost anything from a single ream to multiple boxes. I live in Dallas TX, and there's one called the Olmsted-Kirk Paper Company. Another is Clampitt Paper, which has locations in a few southern states like Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico.

I found one website so far that offers something similar, called The Papermill Store. You might want to check your local area for similar places, even if it means looking in the phone book.

[wiggy]

Thanks for the info! I have been using (supposedly) good laser printers on my campus, but my snes covers end up so dark and blurry that the grey snes logo isn't even visible against the black background. This is using nicer paper too. I've been wanting to try out an inkjet to see if I can get some better results.

I'm willing to bet it will.  I'm not a fan of laserjet myself.

What's a paper center?

It's a place that sells different varieties of paper for printing purposes. You can get almost anything from a single ream to multiple boxes. I live in Dallas TX, and there's one called the Olmsted-Kirk Paper Company. Another is Clampitt Paper, which has locations in a few southern states like Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico.

I found one website so far that offers something similar, called The Papermill Store. You might want to check your local area for similar places, even if it means looking in the phone book.

Hmm, never heard of anything like that, although I haven't had a phonebook in 5 or so years LOL!

Goes to google...

[SasoriSoren]

I am trying to get cozy with the people at the UPS Store near my house so maybe they can print my covers on their fancy color laser printer on a 24# legal paper (which I find just as heavy as real covers so it works really well). Usually it's $1 per page but they do discounts after a certain amount and given I don't want to spend $60 to replace my ink cartridges every 10-20 of these, it is worth the effort.