Let's look at the rules that defcon2k stated in his
original declaration of the German method and from his follow-on comments:
He specifically says to pierce a long needle through the sponge and his third picture clearly shows the needle going through half the sponge and emerging at the bottom of the cartridge on its way to the hole between the two chambers.
He also specifically says to "Fill the ink reserve chamber, let the sponge absorb ink till it's full, and fill the chamber again nearly completly."
On that same original post (#15) he has a link to a second video where he shows topping off all five cartridges in his printer long before they are empty.
Two posts later (#17) he says "don't let the sponge become too dry for best results."
On that same post he says "you also can use the syringe on it's way out to force some ink into a dry sponge."
On post #21 he says his needle is 0.9 mm which is 20 gauge and he says other sizes will probably work.
In post #47 he says he refills before the reservoir gets empty which is when the printer reports a low condition--long before the printer reports empty.
In that same post he says he fills the reservoir to 99% with only a little bubble in it.
In post #62 he specifically says that a sharp needle will allow you to steer the direction of the path of the needle by rotating it.
In post #75 he says "you can plug up the refill hole after the refill, but it is considered unnecessary."
In post #79 he recommends refilling the cart while the sponge is still wet.
On
another thread, he states that the reason he uses sharp needles is because that's what his refill shop sent him and since they worked he never tried blunt needles.
In
this post, he once again states that he injects ink directly into a dry sponge before refilling with the German method.
So to summarizw defcon2k's opinion about these rules:
#1 Although he doesn't seal the refill hole, he sees no problem doing it.
#2 We all agree that we should only use OEM cartridges.
#3 He disagrees, he injects ink into a dry sponge before or after refilling the reservoir.
#4 He disagrees, he always refills before the reservoir is empty, long before the cartridge is empty.
#5 He never discusses where the hole should be but he did put his above the bottom of the cartridge and he has only used sharp needles, but we don't know what he would have done if he had been delivered blunt needles.
#6 He disagrees, he always completely fills the reservoir to 99%.
#7 We all agree that we should use good quality ink.
So the only rule in question that he might agree with is one the pharmacist specifically disagreed with in the thread that you linked to in your first post. It's post #78 where pharmacist says "The best way is to go under the sponge."
So now your acclaimed experts both disagree with your stated rules. In fact, defcon2k never set himself up as expert, he merely described what worked for him.
It is entirely possible that you happened to have stumbled on a set of procedures that is the best but please don't claim that these procedures were "the method as it was introduced to the forum by Defcon2k and later streamlined by Pharmacist" as you stated in post #9.
However, if we want to promote your procedures as being the best, don't you think you should disclose your needle size and whether it is sharp? I think that could be just as important as all your other rules.
