IP4200 service test print- What is it telling me?

[DaveSlater]

1) Start by describing the printer problem in general that you want help in fixing.

My problem is the Pigment Black cart does not pass the nozzle test nor the service test print. It misses the lower half of the
nozzle test and some blocks of the lower half of the service test print. Assuming the service test print does 8 blocks on top half and 8 blocks on bottom half I find blocks 2,4, 6, 8 on the bottom half are not printed.

Do you know what specific problem that indicates?


(2) Please say when you first noticed there was a problem also what do you think may have caused it,
does your printer still function now? (Will it turn on or print)

I have been using IP4200 for years, refilling carts with bulk ink from Printer Filling Station and using a chip resetter.

The print head has been successuflly restored from clogs by soaking in water overnight several times. Once I discovered the AUTO OFF setting there have been far fewer clogs.

I noticed the problem a couple months ago when grayscale printing became light here and there. I was not able to investigate the problem until last week when I ran a nozzle check and noted the bottom half was missing. I did many deep cleans (they worked because the waste ink pad became very wet) and did thorough manual printhead water soaks and flushes. I finally came to believe the printhead nozzles were open when I put ink in the printhead and it produced a full line of ink when the printhead was placed on a damp paper towel.

At present the printer prints nicely in color and poorly in grayscale in text and photo.

I think it may be a problem with connections between the printhead eeprom and the nozzles, but have been afraid to try and disassemble the nozzles. I did completely disassemble the printer, clean the wast ink pads, clean and lubricate all moving parts, reassamble, found service manual, ran service test print, ran eeprom staus print, ran waste ink reset, ran eeprom status print.... priinted a bunch of photos..... found this site


(3) Then tell us what your printers make and model number is,
how long you have it and how often you use it. (Text, photo or both)

I have been using the Canon IP4200 for years, refilling carts with bulk ink from Printer Filling Station and using a chip resetter. I do a lot of grayscale text printing and a fair amount of color photo printing.

(4) Follow this with what type of ink youre using i.e. Canon inks and cartridges (OEM)
or third party (Brand Name) and last pre-filled aftermarket cartridges.

I use canon cartridges but refill them with Printer Filling Station ink and reset them with a chip resetter.

(5) If youre refilling do you use OEM or compatible cartridges and which refilling method is used
also how long have you being refilling, please avoid doing any prints till the problem is resolve other than a nozzle check.

I use canon cartridges. I fill them with a syringe/needle thru a drilled hole later plugged with RTV and have been doing so since purchasing printer. I also own a 9000 mark 2.

(6) The more forthcoming you are with good information the better chances there are
of a quick remedy, your location can also be very helpful.

I live in Murrysville, PA about 22 miles due east of Pittsburgh, PA.

My analysis of the service manual cable pin outs lead me to believe there is an eeprom located inside the printhead. The signals coming from the main board look like data thats clocked into the eeprom. I am wondering if there may be a busted connection within the printhead I might be able to repair.

I WILL TRY THE WINDEX AMMONIA TREATMENT WHILE I WAIT FOR MORE IDEAS. I WILL UPLOAD TEST IMAGES WHEN ALLOWED. THANKS FOR YOUR HELP !

 

[turbguy]

The nozzle test you describe appears to be a regular, periodic pattern. This is classic evidence of a print head electronic failure, repairable only by a print head replacement. Sorry....no user-servicable components enclosed.

It appears to me that all conductors to the print head have the same "gauge". A thermal print head uses high current density to fire the nozzles, so I always suspected the nozzles were fired with timed current pulses into the matrix of connections.

Wayne

 

[turbguy]

A potential work-around is to set the paper type to photo matte and see if text and greyscale quality improves (at a slower printing speed).

Wayne

 

[The Hat]

By the way you describe your PGBK printouts; it is all leaning towards a fried print head,
to check this out run a normal nozzle check then do a head clean on the black and repeat the nozzle check.

If both printouts are exactly the same then it most certainly would point to damaged black nozzles
but you could run a deep clean on the black again and follow up with another nozzle check just to be extra certain.

I would use a known good cartridge for your test prints just to rule out
the possibility that your current cartridge may not have a good ink flow.

There is one other possibility and that is the purge unit,
but when that is involved your black printouts would get less ink with every head clean which is not the case.. !

Good luck with your test prints..