I have formatted parts for my orchestra piece in the 10x13 size. My hope (and what I have done before) is to print onto tabloid paper and then have the printed pages cut at FedEx or some such place.
I am wondering what the best practice is. The parts will be bound, so ideally right pages will have a bit more space on the left, and vice versa for the right pages.
In the past I have used my printer’s driver to adjust the positioning of the 10x13 pages on the tabloid page, but I am wondering if there’s a way to set this up in Dorico directly. Ideally I’d like to position the image so that the pages only require two cuts (since you pay per cut). Having the image centered on the 11x17 page requires four cuts.
Eager for any advice from those who have experience doing this (including, of course, Dorico braintrust)!
Not having a tabloid size printer myself to try this on, I’m not sure this would work, but it occurs to me that one solution might be to set your Dorico document up on Tabloid size, then change the margins to create a wide cutaway area on two sides, say top and right on right hand page and top and left on left hand page. (Mirrored margins.). If these altered margins are wide enough, the result would be a good looking 10x13 finished product.
Another solution might be to scour the wholesale paper distributors in your area to see if any of them carry a 10x13 size in stock, which, if they won’t sell direct to you might tell you a retailer they work with who would do it. Then go ahead and do the setup you’re doing now. (I myself print parts on 9x12 paper, and use this latter method. However, the actual printing gets done at a Kindo’s, as my printer won’t go beyond legal size.)
I almost always print parts on 9.5" x 12.5" paper on my Ricoh 6330 printer at home. 9.5x12.5 is a particularly convenient size because 25x38 is a common Text weight size for paper suppliers, and each sheet of 25x38 can be cut to get exactly 8 sheets of 9.5x12.5 without any waste. I generally just get single sheets, but I know some copyists get paper cut 19x12.5 for 2-up printing as well. As our supplier charges a flat rate for cutting regardless of how many pages, a bunch of us in the NYC area go in together and place a bulk order every 6 months or so.
I would contact a local paper supplier (i.e. not FedEx), tell them what you need, and see what they will charge for paper. If possible, go to the supplier in person to see the exact shade and weight of the paper you want, or ask them to mail you some samples before ordering. Remember paper weights listed in lbs. or # are not equivalent across paper categories, so be sure you know exactly what you want, or compare the grammage. For example, 100lb Text is 150 gsm which is very close to 67lb Bristol at 145 gsm.