QTR-Quadtone RIP

I learned how to make palladium prints using digital negatives in a workshop with Kerik Kouklis. Now I am trying to make the digital negatives and palladium prints at home using my Epson r2400. I seem to have been successful doing the calibration by printing step wedge negatives and then determining the QTR print profile using the scanned step wedge prints.

However now that I am trying to make prints I am running into a problem. My printer doesn't want to recognize the thin sheets of Pictorico using the top feed, so I am taping the sheets to cardboard and using the front feed. That part seems to work ok.

However when I get near the end of the printed digital negative, I am getting a dark band (i.e. light on the palladium print). It starts about .75 inches from the end of the sheet. I thought this was an aberration so I printed another negative. Same problem however this time the band was a bit thinner but still near the end of the sheet.

Can anyone tell me what is happening and how to fix the problem.

I have created an album and uploaded a scan of the print which shows the problem.

thanks for your help

Frank