Keep on getting the message to clear carriage jam. Is the printer wearing out or what?

Question edited for clarity, full 'make model (what it is)'.
Question moved to model category.

It is a known issue on that model.

Solved: clear carriage jam on my HP Photosmart C5280

HP Support Community https://h30434.www3.hp.com > td-p
Jul 14, 2017 - I have the same issue. Almost new machine. Screen says "clear carriage jam", but there's no paper jammed in there. Can't do anything with the printer, since ...

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More results from h30434.www3.hp.com

A 'Carriage Jam' or 'Carriage Blocked' Message Displays ...

Hewlett-Packard https://support.hp.com > us-en > document
Solution · Make sure the printer is turned on. · Open the print cartridge access door, and then wait until the print carriage is idle and silent. · Press down ...

Fix Carriage Jam Issues

Hewlett-Packard https://support.hp.com > Support home > Printer issues
These jams occur when the carriage holding the ink cartridges stalls in the printer. Carriage jams sometimes occur after a paper jam. Our automated Virtual ... ..

It seems you mistook Carriage Jam as Paper Jam, but they are different issues. Carriage jam means the carriage that carries the cartridges is jammed which needs to be moved or be cleared manually after opening the door.

Please follow the instructions mentioned here (Click Here) [source HP Support].

Good Luck.

Let me know if you need further help.

Thanks for using FixYa.

HP support has extensive documentation for both paper and carriage jams for your model:

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c00304007&lc=en&dlc=en&cc=us&lang=en&product=391182

I hope this helps!

the silver bar the carrige slides on has lost all its lubrication. Try putting some chapstick on the silver bar

I’m happy to assist further over the phone at https://www.6ya.com/expert/dan_91204789c5bd4b93

Hi and welcome to FixYa,

If you have verified that there is no obstruction, nothing preventing the carriage from moving, then most likely fault is dirt, ink smudge or bits of paper on the encoder strip. The encoder strip would be the narrow long plastic strip with barcode like markings. These has to be clear in between markings as they serve as guide for the carriage to tell the printer where the print head is. Cleaning could be done with a soft cotton cloth that leaves no lint.

Good luck and thank you for using FixYa.

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replace the carriage

Make sure you can move the print cartridge holder freely and that it isn't being blocked by anything inside the printer, also check if the cleaning station is in the right position, maybe it is locking the cartridges.

I was able to run run a piece of photo paper through a couple of times and printer now seems to be working again. The theory was that running a heavy piece of paper through might help clear little piece of paper that was not visible. The photo paper is less likely to tear if it gets jammed too.

SolutionStep one: Perform a power reset and connect the printer directly into the electrical outlet Remove all the paper loaded in the main input tray.
Make sure that the product is turned off. 
Disconnect the USB cable from the back of the product.
Disconnect the power cord from the product.
Disconnect the power cord from the electrical outlet and wait 10 seconds.
Reconnect the power cord directly into the electrical outlet and check for the following.
Make sure that the power cord used is the one provided with the product.
If a computer is connected to the product, make sure that the computer is connected to a grounded (three-prong) wall outlet.
Make sure that the power cord is firmly connected to both the product and the power supply.
Reconnect the power cord to the back of the product.
Press the power button ( ) to turn on the product.
Reconnect the USB cable to the back of the product.
If the issue is resolved, proceed to Step six: Print a self-test page.
If the issue continues, proceed to the next step.

for more information please go to below link>>

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c01458822&cc=us&lc=en&dlc=en

Thanks for using FixYa.