Did I break a good print head with a faulty MG5450?

[Jorik]

Indeed it seems clear that the printer/print head can get irrecoverably faulty with bad inks and/or bad cleaning actions.

I haven't been at my parents yet, but next time I'm going to check if the dispersed pattern can be resolved by cleaning the timing strip. It still seems a bit strange to me that it seems that all nozzles (or at least enough nozzles for each line of the pattern) do fire, but the timing is so off that I see this dispersed pattern. I'm no printer expert ;-), but to me that seems like the print head itself does not have a permanent failure in blocked nozzles, but something in the timing of firing the nozzles is wrong? Can that be caused by something in the print head itself?

Thanks!
Jorik

 

[PeterBJ]

Here is one more print head failure of this kind and here is a Google translation. The attached images only work in the original posts, not in the translation. In the translation DK means print head (DK = Druckkopf).

I have noticed that the printers affected by this kind of print head failure all seem to be of the PGI-x50/CLI-x51 cartridge generation and unsuitable ink seems to be the cause of the failure. I wonder if these newer print heads are more fragile or need ink with properties different from the inks for older Canon cartridge generations? Another cause of the failure could be ink starvation caused by 3rd party cartridges, compatible or refillable. A reliable ink supply is needed to cool thermal print heads to prevent overheating.

 

[Jorik]

Thanks Peter,.Delete Yes, with all the examples given, it really does seem to be a print head and/or electronic failure. I think I'll have to replace both MG5450's then...

I like the idea of the Maxify's: large carts, solid print heads, however the devices are just a bit too big for my taste (both height and depth). My MG5450 currently fits very nicely in an area that has about 40cm depth, the Maxify's with A4 paper loaded require 46cm of depth.

The logical replacement of my MG5450 seems to be the MG7750 instead of the MG5750. Both MG5450 and MG7750 have 2 bottom trays, where 1 can hold A4 paper and the other photo paper, while the front panel is closed. The current MG6600 and lower models do not seem to be able to hold A4 paper, while closed. Must be related to cost savings...

An alternative I'm considering is getting the MX925 instead of the MG7750. 5 instead of 6 cartridges (I don't really need the grey photo ink) and as a bonus: ADF for scanning documents and they're about the same price!
For my parents maybe the new TS6050 series, which is even more compact than the MG5/7xxx series!

As you can see I haven't really decided yet. But in any case, when there are new printers, I'll make sure to print regularly and order OEM ink or 123inkt.nl as they have been recommended on this forum.

 

[Jorik]

To close up this thread, let me explain what I did in the end.

I replaced my own MG5450 with an MX925. Same print engine, somewhat newer software/User Interface and scanner with duplex ADF. Of course a bit bigger than MG5450, but still fits in the designated area.

For the MG5450 of my parents, it was a bit more adventurous . First I tried getting a replacement print head from eBay. (Even though this was not recommended by some of more experienced people in this forum.) In my defense the seller on eBay had good reviews and I could get my money back (including return shipping) if it didn't function correctly. And indeed it was no good. I installed the "new genuine OEM" (yeah right) print head in the MG5450 of my parents and while the nozzle check was better for PGBK (less of an alignment issue), it was actually worse for the colors. Now in my mind this seemed to point that an actual good replacement print head could completely fix this MFC!

So I got my money back for this print head from eBay and I can confirm to anybody else considering this: do not get a print head from some Chinese eBay seller that seems like a good deal compared to an actual new part from Canon!

Instead of an expensive new print head, I was looking on some website like eBay, for individuals selling their stuff. And after a few days I found an offer for an iP7250 printer for just about €20 incl shipping! This printer has the exact same print head as my MG5450, but it lacks the scanner and (therefor) copier functionality. I made sure I received a good scan of a nozzle check from this printer. So yesterday I received the printer, took the print head and it put in the MG5450 of my parents and success! Nozzle check is now again as perfect as for my new MX925, so we're back in business!

 

[stratman]

Thank you for the follow up. Great news. Congratulations!

 

[The Hat]

+1,,