Another i860, another problem with clogs

[popsy]

I gave up on my other i860 for the time being. I had another that I thought I'd give a try at unclogging. Its main problem had been the pigment black clogging. I tried soaking, warm water, alcohol, air, nothing I've done has made an appreciable difference. I soaked all night and day. I was also having a problem with magenta clogs. This is a nozzle check after everything I tried. Please ignore, if you can, the fact that I've printed on the opposite side. Also the lower check is after I had a leaky magenta cartridge.

This is the print I made after cleaning up the magenta leak. Something happened to the cyan.

Here's the nozzle check after that.

I'm completely at wit's end. I don't know what to do next but order another print head and hope for the best. I really don't want to give up on the i860s. I don't understand why I keep losing the cyan. The cartridge seems okay. Ink will wick out the bottom, and it was printing, then...poof!

 

[turbguy]

Check the purge pads for proper function. It does appear that the print head is being starved for ink for some reason. Could be the cart not delivering ink, could be a bad seal between the cart and print head inlet (little rubber gaskets not sealing perfectly).

In some cases, I have used a plastic turkey baster with hand pressure on the bulb, on the inlets to force through Windex to prove the passageways in the head are clear. Messy job.

Wayne

 

[turbguy]

Also you initial blocks of cyan "B" and "D" show striping, that may be an electronic issue.

Wayne

 

[Tin Ho]

This printer has clogs all over every channel not just the 3ebk. This printer is grossly neglected or abused. The purge unit could be all dried up and malfunctioned. The print head, however, is not dead yet. It can be saved. Soak it with ammonia solution for a few days. It can be recovered if you are patient and do it carefully. Replace your BCI-3ebk with one refilled with a good dye black ink. A dye black ink in a bci-3ebk can unclog the 3ebk print head. Been there, done that. The hard part is the color channels. Soaking, soaking, and more soaking is the only way to unclog them.

 

[popsy]

You're right Tin Ho, this printhead has been neglected for some time. Actually, I had been going to discard it because I couldn't get the pigment channels unclogged. The printer itself has been stored in a hot, dry environment. Not optimal, I know, but I was just saving it as a standby. When my other 2 printers came undone, I got this one out to try again. I will do as you suggest.

 

[popsy]

Update: after soaking for a week, the colors all work fine. Getting ready to fill a cart with dye ink to use instead of pigment black. I'll repost with the results.

BTW all you guys ROCK!

 

[Tin Ho]

Job well done, Popsy. Try the photo black ink on the 3ebk cartridge. Just don't print aggressively too quickly. Start with a cleaning cycle and print some text, not too much text. Gradually increase the amount of text in your file. It will slowly clear the clog. This is particularly effective for minor clog in 3eBK print head which could get much worse if not dealt with correctly.

 

[popsy]

Tin Ho, I thank you so much for your advice on replacing pigment cart with dye cart. My printer black pigment clog seems to be fully cleared. When is it safe to install the pigment cart again?

I love my printer again.