Continuous Stationery - Shape and Form

Shape and Form

Continuous paper is usually perforated transversely at regular intervals with a line of small slits which form a tear edge that defines the top and bottom of each page. When unfolded into a flat continuous sheet, this slit perforation closes up to allow the printer to print across the perforated edge without stopping or jamming.

The paper is fed vertically through the printer, with the edges of the continuous paper forming the left and right edges of the page.

The paper is also punched longitudinally along both side edges with 5/32-inch (4 mm) diameter engagement holes at a regular 1/2-inch spacing. These holes engage with sprocket wheels or toothed belts, which push or pull the paper through the printer. The holes can either be of a serrated edge pattern (older production machinery) or with smooth plain edges (New Generation production method).

Better quality continuous paper also includes additional longitudinal slit perforations alongside the engagement holes, allowing the large holes to be torn off the printed page, allowing a general approximation to cut-sheet paper typically used in a press, typewriter, or other sheet-fed printer. File or ring binder holes can also be added to the main body of the form to allow for storage once the form has been divided in to individual sheets.

Older teleprinters often used continuous paper provided on a roll, which did not have regular, page-sized perforations. Instead, each printed document would be torn off as it completed printing, saving paper. This was especially typical in telegrams, or news agency ("wire service") dispatches, where most messages were much shorter than a single sheet of paper. As of 2012, these rolls are still available for sale.