Q: My Microtek ScanMaker 3840 works normally, and this problem has occurred before and also healed normally after few days. Now again, the light is stuck to its position and isn't moving all over, So I cant scan....Solve my problem pls!
A: You have a broken drive gear. My 3840 had the exact same thing happen. Basically, the light is on a carriage that has a white plastic wheel on its end. This gear is connected to a plastic band that acts like the chain on your bicycle. The band is turned by a little motor that has a gear on its end. This gear has little "teeth" on it to be able to turn the band in very small increments (depending on the resolution you asked it to scan at). These teeth break off very easily and once they do, the motor turns, but the gear can't grip the band so your carriage just sits there vibrating. If one or two teeth break off, the motor might still be able to grip the drive band enough for the scanner to work for a while (thus why yours seemed to "heal" itself for a while). After another tooth or two comes off, it starts jamming more often, till the day comes when it just sits there vibrating permanently. If your scanner is under warranty, definitely return it since this part is not supposed to break under normal use. If your scanner is out of warranty, buy a new scanner because the cost of the piece is almost $39, and for a few dollars more you could buy an equally good brand new scanner.