i865 - The appropriate print head is not installed

[Metallo]

Hi there,

It seems like my printer is ready to go...

The printhead burned out, so I bought a new one but now I get: The appropriate print head is not installed

I have new carts and new inks too.
Here is the background before getting to this point:

1) I installed the new printhead, together with the new fully refilled carts.
2) I did a nozzle check and the page came out blank (not a good sign as something should have printed )
3) I tried to do a cleaning and I got the orange light starts to blink 5 times.
4) I left the printer on (still with the orange button blinking) and went to lunch.
5) I came back to my desk, surprisingly the orange button was no longer blinking, the switch button is now green.
6) I tried to hit any button in the Maintenance window, 'Cleaning' or 'Print Head Alignment' or 'Nozzle Check' and I get: The appropriate print head is not installed

I tried multiple times to remove the printhead and re-install it, no change.

I love this printer, it gave me 14 years of trouble-free printing but now I no longer know what to try to keep it alive.

Do you see anything else I could try?

In the meantime, I am thinking of a new one, currently, I also have an MX922 which I bought 3 years ago, it appears to be easy to refill and refillable carts are reliable.

Starting from the same principle, what would be a printer which is easy and reliable to refill?
I do not need anything fancy, something similar to the MX922, nothing more than that.
Possibly, I'd rather stay with Canon.

As always, your help is much appreciated

Thank you!
Alex

 

[Artur5]

Hi Alex.
I don't know if you're aware that the printhead used by the i865 ( QY6-0049) was discontinued by Canon long ago. My Ip4000 used the same part and I had to discard it for another model when I was unable to find a new head.
Certainly It would be a miracle to find nowadays a new Canon QY6-0049 from a genuine retailer. Correct me if I’m wrong but, unless you had already a spare kept in a drawer for years, I expect that you purchased one of these “as new and working OK” refurbished products that you find on Ali-Express or Ebay ?. I’ve done this myself and it’s a gamble with much more chances of losing than winning. Most of the times you get a partially working unit with clogs or burned nozzles in one or more colors. Other times it doesn’t works at all.
Anyway, 14 working years are an excellent achievement for a Canon i865; much more than the average life of these printers. You have unrealistic expectations if you thought that this printer would survive you. For one thing, spare printheads are manufactured only a few years.

As for new options, I’ve been asking this question but I have no definite answer. When the printhead of my IP3000 dies, I’ll probably get an affordable B&W laser machine. Current inkjets of this range are not refill friendly and mechanically several steps below your i865 or the first generation Pixmas.
Having already a MX922 in good shape, I wouldn’t rush to buy another model (Canon or not) until you’ve gathered enough information about the possible candidates ( performance, maintenance cost, possibility of resetting, etc )
Staying on Canon territory, their most reliable and tough inkjet machines seems to be the Maxify series, but they’re big, not cheap at all and I don’t know about refilling possibilities.
Another option are the Megantank G series, where you simply pour the ink from a bottle into the printer reservoir. No fussy chips to reset and no sponge to deal with. Drawbacks seem to be an OEM ink of low quality compared to cartridge models (not a big deal if you refill). G series are also quite expensive for the specifications and availability of spare printheads is an incognito.

Sorry, I know nothing about current Epson, HP and the rest of brands. Surely other members here will be able to help you better with more information and personal experiences.
Regards.
Artur

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

I do not need anything fancy, something similar to the MX922

the MX922 is a combo, the I865 was a printer only. If you just look for a printer you may continue with an IP7250 which is rather cheap on the market, refill and 3rd party cartridges are available, and you may even put another unit as a spare somewhere, newer models to come will most likely use other cartridges. Printheads as spare parts won't be cheaper than a complete printer......
Epson offers a pretty wide range of Ecotank printers - the L-series and the ET-series - from low entry level printers like the L310 to photo printers like the ET-7750 or A3 L1800 or combo models like the ET-2750 up to ET-4750 . Canon offers a rather limited G1510.... series of models, some of all those may not be available in some business regions of this world. And depending of your country of residence you may find particular models offered with steep discounts, in promotional actions etc. And most printers today offer WLAN and related printing/connectivity tools - Airprint etc

 

[Metallo]

Hi Artur and Isf,

Thank you very much for your advice.

@Artur: yes you are right, the printhead comes from eBay as there are no originals around. I am struggleling because I know that with a new genuine printhead this printer would do wonders again and I really I have a hardtime to let it go

@Isf: Yes, I just need a simple printer or something like the MX922 which, actually, it is still sold here on sale and so far, I had no issue to refill it. Alternatively, I see also the MX532 which at a first glance, looks identical to the MX922, also below 100$.

I will look into their specs and go from there.

Thank you!
Alex

 

[The Hat]

I love this printer, it gave me 14 years of trouble-free printing but now I no longer know what to try to keep it alive.

I have a 14-year-old i865 too and on its second head, and printing perfectly on refilled OEM cart for ever, I love this printer to bits, but when the current head fails and goes bad then it will be consigned to the recycle bin, it will be a race to see who goes first, it or me...