My Switch to Maxify 2720

[stratman]

Foot note:

Are you sure this wasn't a "Hat tip"?

(http://www.recruitmentagenciesireland.com/news/tag/national-recruitment-federation/)

 

[palombian]

... you may not have ink monitoring but the printer will stop if it runs out of ink,
weighting the carts can prevent this.

...

As I understand these printers have a function to measure the ink flow (hence error B504), this protects the printhead.

I am used to weigh my PGI-9 carts (I also do it with 525/526), I will know how much ink is in.

And since the page counters are accessible via the panel, I could even refill after a fixed number of pages to avoid running dry.
70 ml and 20 ml is more than the 25 and 14 of the carts of my MX7600.

 

[The Hat]

Are you sure this wasn't a "Hat tip"?

I must have missed that...
As Neil would sing “Yesterday’s news don’t hang around long...

 

[Redbrickman]

As I understand these printers have a function to measure the ink flow (hence error B504), this protects the printhead.

I am used to weigh my PGI-9 carts (I also do it with 525/526), I will know how much ink is in.

And since the page counters are accessible via the panel, I could even refill after a fixed number of pages to avoid running dry.
70 ml and 20 ml is more than the 25 and 14 of the carts of my MX7600.

With the ARC chipped carts being translucent I'm thinking when filled with the recommended levels of ink for the first time one could mark the level on the outside of the cart with a line. Then periodically open the printer and check the level, topping up any that need it. It might even be possible to top up in the printer if the fill plugs are above the recommended fill levels

 

[palombian]

With the ARC chipped carts being translucent I'm thinking when filled with the recommended levels of ink for the first time one could mark the level on the outside of the cart with a line. Then periodically open the printer and check the level, topping up any that need it. It might even be possible to top up in the printer if the fill plugs are above the recommended fill levels

Not a bad idea.

As far as I understand the ARC's make an estimate of the ink level, so you still have to watch it.

From my experience with PGI-9 carts, who have also a bag with a spring, 3th party carts without this construction were a big mess, they leaked all the time.
Of coarse the ink flow in the PGI-9's is regulated by surface tension on the outlet maze, where in the Maxify's there is a needle directly in the bag (and Canon reports their carts leak when removed).

Nevertheless I am inclined to refill the OEM's, otherwise Canon sold the ink in plastic boxes also.
Ink level is not visible in them, don't know if putting ARC's will help.

 

[LumEtters]

UPDATE on ebay refund test and stupid ink test:
a) LD and E-Z Ink refunded full price when they received the unopened supposedly pigment black carts.
b) Double2Ink's 100 ml bottle of labeled pigment black may be a blend of dye and pigment. It is probably "Universal" and I would like to test that suspicion. Suggestions on how to do it will be welcomed.
c) mikling's (PrecisionColors) inks in a set of refillable carts with one cleaning make a perfect Canon Maxify test print.
d) The ink exit hole re-filler bought for the HP 902 carts was clever and filled carts. It came with filled (with I don't know what) cube shaped ink containers. In a moment of foolish curiosity I tried the ink in a Maxify 2720 refillable and saw what looked like ink starvation after printing maybe 15 pages. This is a guess: when the Canon OEM ink was out of the printhead, the non HP OEM ink did not flow and eventually almost no ink was on the paper. The test was not scientific and any blockage was resolved with mikling's ink and one cleaning. 70 pages of pigment black text printing now looks perfect (to foolish - but lucky - me)

There are no offers after a week on Craigslist at $50 for the HP refurbish 6968 and the ink exit hole refiller kit ($26 my cost). Refillable carts for the 6968 may be available in the future. So, the HP6968 will sit on the shelf as a backup. If trustworthy ink becomes available (mikling finds some to sell) I'd use it for the HP6968, if needed.

A little research on printers would have steered me to the Maxify and saved money. There are refillable carts and good ink for it. Not so for the HP6968, thus far.

When I had restaurant menus to print twice weekly, the Canon iP4200 and good ink running through a homemade CISS worked well. Now, refillable carts and good ink is all I need for printing a few copies of my books (for people goofy enough to think they want to read them ... which is a reminder to send a copy of my latest to The Whitehouse)

 

[stratman]

) Double2Ink's 100 ml bottle of labeled pigment black may be a blend of dye and pigment. It is probably "Universal" and I would like to test that suspicion. Suggestions on how to do it will be welcomed.

Print a page of text with the ink or apply a thin amount to a piece of paper, let dry completely, then let tap water gently run on the paper. Water-based Dye ink will smear and wash off, at least to some degree. Pigment ink, the "purer" it is, will be water resistant. To compare, do the same with Precision Colors or Canon pigment ink.

 

[LumEtters]

Stratman, thank you for a method to test how much pigment is in the Double2Ink bottle. So far, I've only tested the idea with the ink on my fingers. Chlorine bleach completely removes dye ink signs on fingers. Dish detergent removes pigment ink, it seems.

 

[stratman]

Dish detergent removes pigment ink, it seems.

Thanks for more empirical proof that liquid dish washing soap like Dawn and Fairy are useful for busting clogs in print heads. It is my current "go to" method for print head soaking.

 

[stratman]

Chlorine bleach completely removes dye ink signs on fingers.

And dissolves your skin. Careful!

If you rub the ink stained skin with something a bit rough, say a wash rag or kitchen pad or sponge of some sort, the ink will be removed with a little effort from your skin without injury. The key is to not wait. Refill and then wash.

Gloves may be useful to prevent ink stains.