[Alt-photo] Re: Third party inks

Sandy King sanking at clemson.edu
Mon Sep 9 20:42:33 UTC 2013


Cleaning the print head with Windex (non-ammonia type recommended), and/or cleaning the capping station and wiper blade are all good practices that should be done on a regular basis, like housekeeping. 

However,  keeping all of the nozzles firing is not in my experience an either/or issue. Some times cleaning as above helps, at other times you need to run a regular cleaning cycle (which uses just a bit of each ink) , and at other times you have to run a power cleaning cycle (which uses a lot of ink). 

Unfortunately if you allow the printer to go unused for long periods of time you may get a nozzle clog that will not clear, no matter what you do. And the probability of this happening is much greater in arid climates. Andy's suggestion to place something inside the printer near the head that maintains constant humidity is a good one that has been used in many professional printing establishments. 

Regarding the 3800, many people I know got a permanent nozzle clog with the  Magenta. And you can read about it all over the internet. In fact, my deep suspicion is that Epson changed the name to the 3880 with the new Vivid Magenta and Vivid Light Magenta because of the problem of the Magenta ink in the 3800, but have never publicly recognized the problem. Or perhaps I am just too skeptical?

Sandy







On Sep 9, 2013, at 4:19 PM, Jeremy Moore wrote:

> My suggestion is to not use the cleaning option to clear clogs when one or a few colors is the problem. Instead, print blocks of that color onto typing paper until the clog is cleared. If no color comes out at all, then use windex on the print heads. Those cleaning options usually kill every color and not just the one you need to get working.
> 
> - Jeremy
> 
> On Sep 9, 2013, at 11:19 AM, Diana Bloomfield <dlhbloomfield at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
>> Yeah . . . that comment stopped me short, too.  Given that nozzle-clogging seems to be the main problem that the 3800 has (in my experience)-- I wouldn't like to encourage that.  And the cleaning just eats up so much ink.  I just got rid of my last 3800.  I've had two and really loved them, but the constant cleaning and clogging and replacement of inks (mainly because of all that clogging and cleaning) was enough to just say-- enough.  I recently bought a refurbished 3880, and so far that seems to be working great.  My main problem with Epson (all brands of printers?) is what I call their Polaroid business plan.  While the printers (in Polaroid's case, the cameras) are wonderful and relatively inexpensive, the cost of the inks (film) can put you in the poor house.
>> 
>> 
>> On Sep 9, 2013, at 12:07 PM, Marek Matusz wrote:
>> 
>>> Sam
>>> 
>>> I am a little concerned about your nozzle cleaning comments. Do u use your printer on regular basis ?
>>> 
>>> Marek
>>> 
>>> Sent from my iPhone
>>> 
>>> On Sep 8, 2013, at 8:36 PM, "sam wang" <samwang864 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> 
>>>> I have just started using the Inkjet Mall cartridges in my 3800 - just PK and LK so far. They seem to be very much like the Epson inks except that the PK blocks more UV light so you'd need to redo your curves. The PK also needs more nozzle cleaning, it seems. But the cost is definitely a big draw. Their video instruction is excellent.
>>>> 
>>>> Sam
>> 
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