IBM 4232 Printer Problem

"Al Koke" wrote in message ...
My company recently purchased an IBM 4232 dot-matrix printer. Supposedly it
was new, but we bought it cheap off Ebay so we can't tell for sure. We got
the printer and set it up here, and the panel display said it was performing
some startup diagnostics. Then we ended up getting "042 Machine Error".

An 042 machine check is pointing to the form feed mechanism (forms
motor or system board). Here's what I'd do:

(1) Remove your forms module (probably an F2).

(2) With power off, open the top cover and move the large white forms
gear on the right side back and forth. It should move easily. If it
does not, you've got a mechanical problem (something jammed in the
gears or a broken gear).

(3) Re-install the forms module, making sure that you pull it all the
way forward. Move the white forms gear back and forth again. You
should have a bit more resistance than before, and the tractor bars on
the forms module should move with the gear movement. If you can't
move the white gear, you have a broken forms module.

(4) If everything checks out to this point, load paper and power on
the printer. If you get the 042 check again, either the forms motor
or the system board is bad.

Rick Ekblaw