[vba] VBA - Run Time Error 1004 'Application Defined or Object Defined Error'

I have an Excel document that copies a template sheet into a new sheet on the first time it runs. Any more sheets that follow this template are appended to the newly created sheet.

I'm getting the error in the title in this section of code:

If Worksheets("User Configuration").Cells(9, 15).Value = 1 Then
  Worksheets("Cable Cards Template").Range("A1:J33").Copy

  With Worksheets("Cable Cards")
  **.Range(Cells(RangeStartRow, RangeStartColumn), Cells(RangeEndRow, RangeEndColumn)).PasteSpecial xlValues**
    .Range(Cells(RangeStartRow, RangeStartColumn), Cells(RangeEndRow, RangeEndColumn)).PasteSpecial xlFormats
  End With

  Worksheets("Cable Cards Template").Shapes("Picture 1").Copy
  Worksheets("Cable Cards").Paste Cells(RangeStartRow, RangeStartColumn)

  Call Sheets.FormatCableCardRows      
End If

Basically if the If statement is true (the cell = 1), then a range on a particular sheet should be copied and pasted into the new sheet at the range given using PasteSpecial for values and formatting. Following that, the "newly created" sheet should have an image copied into the top left cell of the template and then a subroutine is called to format the rows of the new sheet.

I'm getting the error at the first .Range call after the With Worksheets("Cable Cards") statement. I've tried not using the With statement, copying values directly instead of paste-special etc. The weird thing is that this will run on the first go, when the new sheet is created via:

If (RangeStartRow = 1) Then
  Worksheets.Add().Name = "Cable Cards" ' Create new sheet with given name only on first cable card
  Columns(1).ColumnWidth = 9.43
  Columns(6).ColumnWidth = 11
  Columns(10).ColumnWidth = 9
  Call FormatForA5Printing("Cable Cards", 71)
End If

but on the 2nd go, it fails entirely, with the Run Time Error 1004 'Application Defined or Object Defined Error'. I'd appreciate any help.

Solution #1: Your statement

.Range(Cells(RangeStartRow, RangeStartColumn), Cells(RangeEndRow, RangeEndColumn)).PasteSpecial xlValues

does not refer to a proper Range to act upon. Instead,

.Range(.Cells(RangeStartRow, RangeStartColumn), .Cells(RangeEndRow, RangeEndColumn)).PasteSpecial xlValues

does (and similarly in some other cases).

Solution #2: Activate Worksheets("Cable Cards") prior to using its cells.

Explanation: Cells(RangeStartRow, RangeStartColumn) (e.g.) gives you a Range, that would be ok, and that is why you often see Cells used in this way. But since it is not applied to a specific object, it applies to the ActiveSheet. Thus, your code attempts using .Range(rng1, rng2), where .Range is a method of one Worksheet object and rng1 and rng2 are in a different Worksheet.

There are two checks that you can do to make this quite evident:

1. Activate your Worksheets("Cable Cards") prior to executing your Sub and it will start working (now you have well-formed references to Ranges). For the code you posted, adding .Activate right after With... would indeed be a solution, although you might have a similar problem somewhere else in your code when referring to a Range in another Worksheet.

2. With a sheet other than Worksheets("Cable Cards") active, set a breakpoint at the line throwing the error, start your Sub, and when execution breaks, write at the immediate window

   Debug.Print Cells(RangeStartRow, RangeStartColumn).Address(external:=True)

   Debug.Print .Cells(RangeStartRow, RangeStartColumn).Address(external:=True)

   and see the different outcomes.

Conclusion: Using Cells or Range without a specified object (e.g., Worksheet, or Range) might be dangerous, especially when working with more than one Sheet, unless one is quite sure about what Sheet is active.

Assgining a value that starts with a "=" will kick in formula evaluation and gave in my case the above mentioned error #1004. Prepending it with a space was the ticket for me.

Your cells object is not fully qualified. You need to add a DOT before the cells object. For example

With Worksheets("Cable Cards")
    .Range(.Cells(RangeStartRow, RangeStartColumn), _
           .Cells(RangeEndRow, RangeEndColumn)).PasteSpecial xlValues

Similarly, fully qualify all your Cells object.