I would like to try refilling but need advice

[Frankd1]

Hi,
I have an MP530 that is approximately 4years old and has served me well, I would like to try my hand at refilling after I sort out a few issues I'm having with the printer - but thats for another thread!

Up to this point I have been using compatible cartridges that I have purchased from atlantic ink jet, these used to be True Star but I think they are different now that they have moved to California....

I have spent a few hours on this forum and I'm trying to put together a "materials list" to help me get started and for the ink it seems that ink from precision Colors (IS ink) comes highly recommended so I think I will try that.
Pigment for the PGI-5BK and dye for the CLI-8BK/C/Y/M right?

As far as the other materials:

Where is a good place to get syringes, needle tips, caps, plugs, chip resetter and whatever other tools I may need?

What are good cartridges to use? Should I buy them empty and ready to be filled? Should I buy cartridges that are already full and then fill them when required?

Some sources that I have found:
-compatible carts from inkgrabber.com
-compatible carts from Abacus private - least expensive
-remanufactured carts from Abacus private - middle of the road $ wise
-OEM Canon cartridges - big$$$$ but they are OEM......

I'm kind of thinking the remans from Abacus, I believe they are True Star and are supposed to be decent?

What about these guys:
http://cgi.ebay.com/PGI-5-CLI-8-Pri...cmdZViewItemQQptZBI_Toner?hash=item2eaa0afc81

What about filling methods? Is the German method the way to go? Can it be used for these series of cartridges or do these need to be refilled from the top and plugged?

If I can't find it in Canada, ordering from the USA is no problem as I also have an address in Michigan where my family lives (I visit on a regular basis) so shipping there is fine - I'm open to all options!!

Thanks for the help!
Frank

 

[ghwellsjr]

Welcome to the forum. You've come to the right place.

Buying your ink from Precision Colors has the advantage for you that it is in Canada and you are right that the Pigment is for the PGI-5BK and the others are dye.

You can get syringes, 2" needles and scabbards (covers for the needles) from howardelectronics.com. You can only buy these in much larger quantities than you will need but they are still cheaper than most other places for smaller quantities. The syringes are labeled for single-use and you can't pull the plunger out of the cylinder so I don't know if you can successfully clean them. I just leave any unused ink in them and put a scabbard on the needle.

I got the Redsetter from eBay and it works great for OEM Canon cartridges. I don't know if it works with any or all compatibles since I don't use or recommend them. I do recommend that you take all of your compatibles to Staples and recycle them for $3 each (up to ten per month). That eBay auction is for compatibles, not OEM, I wouldn't get them. I know it's expensive but you can use your $3 rewards from Staples to pay for new Canon OEM cartridges (except that it will take you a couple months before you can start cashing them in).

You will only need one set of cartridges.

I recommend as you use up one of your compatibles, put in a Canon OEM cartridge and use it until the reservoir gets empty, then refill it with the German Refill Method (GRM) without purging it, reset it and put it back in the printer. Later, when you have more than one refilled OEM cartridge in your printer and you have to refill one of the dye ink cartridges, top off and reset all the dye ink cartridges. This will minimize wasted ink.

One other suggestion I would offer is to get your dye inks from Inktec. They come in little syringes which means you don't have to buy syringes, clean syringes or worry about whether they will work if you reuse them. It's a little more expensive this way but a whole lot more convenient. You can buy them from here.

 

[Frankd1]

Thanks for the advice!

A couple of questions: Is there an advantage of using the German Refill Method vs filling from the top, or is it a matter of personal preference? I'm still researching the many threads on the forum and picking through all of the information!

As the cartridges get used and refilled over time does purging the cartridges revive them to a like new state?

Thanks!

 

[pharmacist]

Frankd1,

give both methods a try and then you will experience yourself...

 

[ghwellsjr]

Some experienced users have a well established procedure to refill through the top. They already have all the materials and know what to do. For someone who is just starting, the main advantage of GRM is that you don't have to concern yourself with sealing the hole on the top after you refill. This can be a tricky task and if not done exactly right, you will end up with all the ink in your cartridge leaking into your printer.

Also, you don't have to concern yourself with sealing the outlet hole during refilling, so it is faster.

But there is another big advantage which is that when you refill from the top, unless you follow a precise set of steps, you will end up with too much ink in the sponge compartment. You will notice that new Canon cartridges have a white area at the top of the sponge. Actually, the sponge is made of two different materials. The upper piece is designed to allow the flow of air through it while the bottom piece is designed to allow the flow of ink through it. If you get too much ink in the upper sponge, it can impede the flow of air on its way to the hole in the bottom of the wall separating the two compartments which will create flow problems. This usually occurs after subsequent refillings.

A second potential problem is allowing air to get into the lower sponge material and a third potential problem is allowing ink to dry out in the lower sponge material. All of these are factors that require purging to fix.

If you refill with GRM before the bottom sponge has been depleted of any ink and you are carefull to hold the cartridge so that the reservoir is down so a minimal amount of ink escapes into the sponge compartment, then you will not get any ink into the upper sponge material and I believe this will make the cartridge last a lot longer, maybe even precluding the need to purge the cartridge.

 

[Frankd1]

Thanks for the information thats most helpfull! It looks like the GRM is the way I will go!

ghwellsjr,
I took a look at those refill syringes from Inktec - definately convenient!

They show them as a kit or as single refills, but for the single refills they recommend them as an add on to the refill kit for doing additional refills. So, I took a look at the refill kit and although it comes with the necessary tools, from what I could tell these tools are for refilling from the top of the cartridge.

So its probably better to purchase the single refills ($2.95 each) and then purchase the needles separately from the source that you mentioned and then attach those needles to the pre-loaded refill bottle?

Is the ink from Inktec decent stuff? I noticed that they have the dye colors for the CLI 8 cartridges but I didn't see any pigment PGI 5BK refill bottles, it looks like it is dye as well, unless I'm missing something or not looking in the correct place?

Also, if I go the route of using the bigger bottles of IS ink from Precision Colors approximately how much ink should I draw into the syringe for the refill? Is there a specific amount of ink that goes into the reservoir or when its full its good?

I still have to sort out the issue I'm having of no black print and from what I have seen there seems to be plenty of threads from people who have had the same issue that I am having so I will read over those and start a new thread if I'm still having issues. Its interesting though that you mentioned an improper refill from the top of cartridge can cause problems because the PGI 5BK that is in the printer now was refilled from the top by a friend of mine so I'm wondering if it was done wrong which is contributing to the problem of no black print......

 

[ghwellsjr]

Yes, their kits are for refilling from the top, you want just the "single" refill bottles, although you will get more than a single refill out of them, especially if you are refilling as soon as the reservoir gets empty. And I always purchase their pack of ten to get a nice 17% discount and if you enter "discount" in the coupon field when checking out, you will get another 10% off.

The dye ink from Inktec is very good. I switched to it after learning about its fade resistance and color match to Canon on this website. And yes, get the needles and scabbards from Howard Electronics (2", 18 gauge) and leave the covered needles on the bottles after each refill so they will be ready the next time you need to refill. If you empty a bottle during a refill, don't forget to put the scabbard on when transferring the needle to the next bottle or you will have a mess to clean up.

I don't see any mention of dye vs pigment ink on inkjetcartridge's website. How do you conclude that they are all dye? They do offer bottles for PGI-5Bk on the same page I linked to on post #2 and they should come with pigment ink in them but I have become leary of Inktec's pigment ink. It has gotten a reputation from the Germans and I have reason to believe the same thing that this ink causes clogging problems. I never had a problem with it clogging the nozzles, but I have serviced many MP780 printers and every one of them developed clogs in their purge systems all within a matter of months. Until I learned that this problem could probably be cleared up by removing and cleaning the pads the print head parks on, I ruined a couple of these printers by trying to flush the purge system with Windex which just forced the clog down into the tubing where it couldn't be cleared up. So I'm in the process of deciding which other pigment black ink I want to use. In the meantime, I'm using Precision Colors.

When you refill any of the cartridges, hold the cartridge so that the reservoir is down or tilted slightly so that the needle is at the high point and completely fill the reservoir. Just leave any leftover pigment ink in the syringe, like you do for the Inktec bottles, cover it and reuse it the next time. Have you seen my Youtube video showing how to do GRM? In your case, you would want to follow the process in the second video after you had poked a hole in the cartridge. Don't do it like I did in the first video, I did it that way to get everything in one video shot. Instead, place the cartridge on its side near the edge of a counter and hold it in place while poking it from the side.

I doubt that your problem with your pigment black not working is from an improper refill. That kind of problem results in slow ink flow, not no ink flow. Please start a new thread if you want more help on this issue.

 

[BOYNTONSTU]

Yes, their kits are for refilling from the top, you want just the "single" refill bottles, although you will get more than a single refill out of them, especially if you are refilling as soon as the reservoir gets empty. And I always purchase their pack of ten to get a nice 17% discount and if you enter "discount" in the coupon field when checking out, you will get another 10% off.

The dye ink from Inktec is very good. I switched to it after learning about its fade resistance and color match to Canon on this website. And yes, get the needles and scabbards from Howard Electronics (2", 18 gauge) and leave the covered needles on the bottles after each refill so they will be ready the next time you need to refill. If you empty a bottle during a refill, don't forget to put the scabbard on when transferring the needle to the next bottle or you will have a mess to clean up.

I don't see any mention of dye vs pigment ink on inkjetcartridge's website. How do you conclude that they are all dye? They do offer bottles for PGI-5Bk on the same page I linked to on post #2 and they should come with pigment ink in them but I have become leary of Inktec's pigment ink. It has gotten a reputation from the Germans and I have reason to believe the same thing that this ink causes clogging problems. I never had a problem with it clogging the nozzles, but I have serviced many MP780 printers and every one of them developed clogs in their purge systems all within a matter of months. Until I learned that this problem could probably be cleared up by removing and cleaning the pads the print head parks on, I ruined a couple of these printers by trying to flush the purge system with Windex which just forced the clog down into the tubing where it couldn't be cleared up. So I'm in the process of deciding which other pigment black ink I want to use. In the meantime, I'm using Precision Colors.

When you refill any of the cartridges, hold the cartridge so that the reservoir is down or tilted slightly so that the needle is at the high point and completely fill the reservoir. Just leave any leftover pigment ink in the syringe, like you do for the Inktec bottles, cover it and reuse it the next time. Have you seen my Youtube video showing how to do GRM? In your case, you would want to follow the process in the second video after you had poked a hole in the cartridge. Don't do it like I did in the first video, I did it that way to get everything in one video shot. Instead, place the cartridge on its side near the edge of a counter and hold it in place while poking it from the side.

I doubt that your problem with your pigment black not working is from an improper refill. That kind of problem results in slow ink flow, not no ink flow. Please start a new thread if you want more help on this issue.

Good advice.

Is it possible to use black dye ink to prevent the printer from dying?

 

[Frankd1]

Thanks for the information ghwellsjr!

The only reason I was thinking the PGI-5BK single use refill bottles were not pigment was because I noticed under their remanufactured cartridge section that it shows the PGI-5BK as being non-pigmented, but you are correct, there is no mention of dye vs. pigment on the single use bottles, it was more of an observation that I made and thought it might also apply to the single use refill bottles and refill kits. I will also go with the pigment ink from Precision Colors.

I did in fact watch your videos and they were most helpfull!

I'm going to start working on the printer when I get home from work in a couple of days, I will definately start a new thread describing the issues and my progress.

 

[ghwellsjr]

I never noticed that the PGI-5Bk cartridge did not contain pigment ink. I do not recommend buying any cartridges from this website because they are not necessarily made by Inktec and I don't recommend any compatible cartridges anyway, no matter who makes them. Stick with refilling Canon cartridges.