How do I enable stapler when printing? - vba

Question

I'm trying to print a word document from excel.
This works except I need to enable the stapler for this print job.
My printer, a Xerox workcentre 5755, can put one or two staples in the top left corner.
Excel apparently can manage this, I do NOT need to go into printer driver properties to enable the stapling, I can enable that directly from File-Print page.
When I go to this page, below "Settings" there is a dropdown written "No Staples" with a stapler symbol.
If I click that, I get choice of "No Staples", "Staple Top Left" and "Two Staples on Top Left" as well as other choices that are greyed out.
I tried recording a macro to print with staple top left and duplex printing.
This is what it gave me.
ActiveWindow.SelectedSheets.PrintOut Copies:=1, Collate:=True, _
IgnorePrintAreas:=False
This does neither stapling nor duplex printing.
I read multiple threads on the subject but they are all old and don't really answer the question since in all cases the asker needed to change driver settings in properties so that is not my case. I have a printer that exposes the stapler function to excel.
Still I had to resort to one of the answers I found and that is to use sendkeys, which is highly unreliable.
Here is what my code looks like.
Sub PrintChecklist()
Dim myprinter As String
Dim PrintersList() As String
Dim printer_name As String
Dim x As Long
Dim wordapp As Word.Application
Dim CBC As CommandBarControl
Set wordapp = CreateObject("word.Application")
wordapp.Documents.Open "C:\Users\XXXXX\Desktop\pool3.doc"
wordapp.Visible = True
myprinter = Application.ActivePrinter
wordapp.WindowState = wdWindowStateMaximize
PrintersList() = GetPrinterFullNames
For x = 1 To UBound(PrintersList)
If InStr(1, PrintersList(x), "MYPRINTERNAME", vbTextCompare) > 0 Then _
printer_name = PrintersList(x)
Next x
wordapp.ActivePrinter = printer_name
DoEvents
wordapp.Application.Activate
' only works in only one word opened
Dim lRet As Long
lRet = FindWindow("OpusApp", vbNullString)
SetForegroundWindow lRet
On Error Resume Next
Set CBC = Application.VBE.CommandBars.FindControl(ID:=752)
On Error GoTo 0
If Not CBC Is Nothing Then
CBC.Execute
DoEvents
'~~> File --> Print
SendKeys "%fp"
Sleep 3000
SendKeys "k"
Sleep 100
SendKeys "{DOWN}"
Sleep 100
SendKeys "~"
Sleep 100
SendKeys "%fp"
Sleep 100
Sleep 1000
SendKeys "s"
SendKeys "3-5,1-2"
SendKeys "%fp"
Sleep 1000
SendKeys "d"
SendKeys "{DOWN}"
SendKeys "~"
SendKeys "%fp"
Sleep 2000
SendKeys "p"
SendKeys "{NUMLOCK}"
End If
Sleep 5000
wordapp.ActivePrinter = myprinter
wordapp.Quit SaveChanges:=wdDoNotSaveChanges
End Sub
It works but if there is a delay or if the user touches anything in that 10 second span, then it all goes wrong very quickly.
Any advice welcomed !

Answer 1

Since this has gotten attention but no official answer, here is how I have dealt with this.
My printer is a network printer, so I have added it a second time to my computer under a different name. I set the default for that printer to be "with top left staple"
Now if I want to print with a staple, I print to that printer name instead of the other.
A bit quirky but it works reliably