[alt-photo] Re: Recommendations for Replacement Printer? Input Needed!

[Francesco Fragomeni]

Diana,

Thanks for you input! I would be very interested to hear what you'd be
willing to take for one of your 3800 printers. The 3800 seems to be the
favorite of all Epson printers ever and as long as Epson sticks to their
word on continuing to offer inks for all of their printers whether in
production or not then I wouldn't mind having a 3800 especially if its a
little easier on my wallet then buying a new or refurbished 3880 direct from
Epson.

If you wouldn't mind, please contact me directly so we can discuss it
further: fdfragomeni at gmail.com

Looking forward to hearing from you,
Francesco

On Sun, Sep 25, 2011 at 10:17 PM, Francesco Fragomeni <fdfragomeni at gmail.com
> wrote:

> Don,
>
> Thanks for the info. I've begun looking into refurbished machines. I've
> received a number of recommendations to go this route and I think that is
> definitely something to listen to. I think I'd rather spend the money and
> get a new machine rather then pay to have the 4800 rebuilt.
>
> Francis,
>
> Thanks to you as well for the input and info. I got the 4800 for the size
> and then never ended up using it for that. I liked the idea of roll paper
> but once I began using it I began to dislike it for my purposes. I was able
> to check out a 4900 last week when i went to buy new ink at the local Epson
> supply store (ink which is now nearly depleted from trying to unclog this
> damn printer) and it was a nice looking machine. The people there did tell
> me that the purge to go from one black to another does take considerably
> more ink then it does in the 3880 which was a turn off. One of the people
> there actually hinted that he liked the 4800 better for some reason that he
> wouldn't let me in on which gives me even less confidence in the 4900. Glad
> the printers are working out for you!
>
> -Francesco
>
> On Sun, Sep 25, 2011 at 9:09 PM, dhbloomfield <dhbloomfield at bellsouth.net>wrote:
>
>> Hi Francesco,
>>
>> I think you'll probably get a myriad of responses here-- but here's a
>> short
>> version of what I went through recently.  I had a 3800 which I'd had for
>> years.
>> and it never gave me a problem-- until a few months ago (clogged magenta
>> and one
>> of the black inks).  I took the printer to a nearby place that works on
>> Epson.
>> Though they promised me a repair  within 2 days, that didn't happen.  Seem
>> like
>> they worked on it forever.  Meanwhile, I bought a 3880-- brand new, from
>> B&H.
>>  It arrived, and didn't work at all-- I mean, no lights-- no nothing.  I
>> called
>> Epson support. He asked me to do a bunch of stuff with it, while he stayed
>> on
>> the phone-- and, in the end, he suggested it was "probably DOA" (which I
>> told
>> him from the get-go).  He suggested I simply return it, and order a new
>> one.  So
>> I returned it, but I didn't order another.
>>
>> Both the guy at Epson (and at the local repair shop) suggested that if I
>> liked
>> the 3800 (which I do), that I should buy a refurbished one.  They each,
>> independently, said that that's all they ever buy, simply because they
>> know that
>> the refurbished ones are carefully looked over and rebuilt.  So at a
>> reduced
>> price, you get what is, essentially, a new printer-- not a current version
>> of
>> whatever they're now making, of course, but the 3800 does everything I
>> need.
>>
>> So . . . I bought a refurbished 3800 straight from Epson.  The cost was
>> not bad
>> at all, considering you also get a full set of inks. A week later, the
>> local
>> repair shop basically rebuilt the 3800 for me, for about $475.  So I now
>> have 2
>> working 3800's.  I think they're great printers, especially for digital
>> negatives. I don't mind having  one as a back-up--  though I am happy to
>> sell
>> you one of them. :)
>>
>> So that's my story.  I'd go with a refurbished Epson 3800.  I question
>> Epson's
>> current quality control if one of their new printers/versions arrives in a
>> pristine box, completely dead. I have seen Canon printers in action, and
>> I'm
>> very impressed with them.  The reason I don't go that route is - still, at
>> this
>> point- Epson seems to be at the center of everything.  At this point, to
>> buy
>> another brand, seems like inviting trouble-- too much swimming against the
>> tide-- and that's just tiring after a while. That's my 2 cents.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> ________________________________
>> From: Francesco Fragomeni <fdfragomeni at gmail.com>
>> To: The alternative photographic processes mailing list
>> <alt-photo-process-list at lists.altphotolist.org>
>> Sent: Sun, September 25, 2011 2:56:01 PM
>> Subject: [alt-photo] Recommendations for Replacement Printer? Input
>> Needed!
>>
>> Hi all,
>>
>> I need your help here. I have an Epson 4800 that I've had for about a year
>> and a half. I HATE the thing. It gets persistent nozzle clogs no matter
>> what
>> I do which cause such a waste of ink in getting rid of them. I've read
>> everything on the net about preventing such clogs and I've found no
>> solution. I bought it used and part of me thinks something has been wrong
>> with it all along even though there's never been any problem with prints
>> it
>> produces. At this point, the thing has a moist sponge inside the paper
>> tray
>> to raise the humidity. This is supposed to help keep the nozzles from
>> clogging in dry climates (I live in Phoenix). In addition to the sponge,
>> the
>> whole printer is kept wrapped in plastic to prevent the escape of moisture
>> from the sponge. This has made a slight improvement to the frequency of
>> the
>> clogs. What seemed to work for a while along with the sponge and plastic
>> was
>> to simply print off a  full color pallet maintenance print each morning
>> which
>> I do like clockwork. The maintenance print allows the printer to go
>> through
>> every color and doesn't waste anywhere near as much ink as running a
>> nozzle
>> check every day which is what the Epson rep I spoke to said to do. This
>> appeared to be working for about a month. No clogs! You can imagine how
>> happy I've been. Well yesterday, for seemingly no reason (no drop in
>> humidity and no skipping of the maintenance prints) the thing clogged as
>> if
>> it hadn't been used in a year. I'm talking a serious clog. I'm currently
>> still trying to get it unclogged and I've already wasted probably half of
>> my
>> newly bought ink. I have the print heads sitting on a Windex soaked towel
>> at
>> the moment (the ammonia is supposed to release clogs) and its been there
>> for
>> 12 hours and still clogged. Anyway, I'll keep plugging away at it.
>>
>> Anyway, I've had it with this thing. I'm going to replace it  but need
>> some
>> help figuring out what I should go with. I've realized that I don't really
>> need the size of the 4800 and I think I would be more then happy with the
>> 3880 or similar size printer. I thought about the 4900 but the price is
>> high
>> and like I said, I don't think I need the size. I've found conflicting
>> reports all over the internet regarding the 3880's predisposition to clogs
>> and other problems. I've also heard reports that some Epson printers are
>> more prone then others to the problem of "venetian blinds". I asked the
>> Epson rep about this and the guy had the gall to acknowledge that one of
>> the
>> printer models is especially prone to this but refused to tell me which
>> one.
>>
>> I need some guidance here. I'm trying to figure out if I should get
>> another
>> Epson or change brands. Epson is pretty undeniably the standard but I'm
>> hesitant to get another because of this year and a half long bad
>> experience
>> and waste of  thousands in ink. If i could confirm that the output and
>> rendering of a Canon or some other system would match or surpass the Epson
>> systems without the incessant clogging I would have no problem looking at
>> another brand. My needs vary but over all 17x20 is probably all I need but
>> it would be nice to have the option to go larger (which is why I got the
>> 4800). I vary rarely ever print anything in color so its rendering of B&W/
>> greyscale is much more important to me. I use the printer to print paper
>> inter-negatives which I then print in the darkroom. Also I use the printer
>> to print inter-positives on high quality paper like Museo which I then use
>> in the darkroom as part of a copy print process. My primary concern is the
>> highest quality print rendering, everything else comes second. Hope that
>> clarifies things.
>>
>> I'm basically stuck between the Epson 3880 and the Canon Pro9500 Mark II.
>> The Canon has a smaller max  paper size but it uses smaller ink cartridges
>> which purportedly keeps the ink from settling and clogging. I've not heard
>> any reports of clogs with the Canon. I've seen a report that the blacks
>> are
>> not as rich on the Canon. Both printers hold photo and matte black inks at
>> the same time but the Epson purges more ink when switching between the
>> two.
>> The Epson uses larger $80 ink cartridges but it has a larger max paper
>> size.
>> I've head conflicting reviews about the Epson's propensity to clog. I
>> don't
>> print everyday but I have no problem running a maintenance print through
>> the
>> printer every day to keep things flowing as long as it actually does keep
>> things clog free unlike with my 4800.
>>
>> If anyone could offer insight it would be very much appreciated. Thanks!
>>
>> -Francesco
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