nozzle check steps sometimes stay at same level or even slope up

[Paul W.]

I'm using an Epson 1400 with some miles on it but I've kept it up fairly well. Am using the Carbon 6 inkset and nozzle checks have been quite good except lately for the yellow position. That cart uses a blue toner and that's the cart with some irregular nozzle patterns. Each sloping line contains, as you know, about a dozen dashes. In about 5 or 6 areas the steps do not slope down... they either have a couple of dashes on the same level, ie they do not slope. In a couple cases a pair of dashes even goes up. Very rarely there's an empty spot.

I've done nozzle head cleaning which helps temporarily. I have yet to try the under head "shoe shine" technique so perhaps this message is premature. It's just that I've never seen patterns like this so I don't attribute these patterns to clogging. I hope it's not a sign of the dreaded delamination. This printer's age makes it a candidate for that malady.

TIA,

Paul

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

Could you please print, scan and attach an image file here with the nozzzle check pattern.
Are you missing any nozzles ?

You may check this thread whether your problem appears to be similar to the one I'm reporting there
https://www.printerknowledge.com/threads/inks-and-printing-quality.12761/page-2
Changing inks solved the problem in this case.


Edit:

 

[Paul W.]

Thanks for your reply...here you are: You'll note there's only one blank, on the lower left. All the rest are sloping wrong way or level.

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

Your picture shows the problem very well, I assume that it did not occur suddenly but was creeping in over time and slowly became visible.
I only can report from my experience, in my link above, that cleaning cycles were a short term remedy only, I switched to Epson genuine inks for the ink tank printers and the problem was gone in a rather short time.

Edit:

 

[Paul W.]

Am wondering... are you using OEM Epson color carts? My blue toner is in what would be the yellow cart in a color inkset. In black and white printing, the other five carts are various dilutions of a carbon ink known as Eboni ink. To my knowledge Epson doesn't make a black inkset.

But of course we are using color, blue, in that yellow position. Turns out there are various schools of thought on where to get, or mix, that blue toner. Maybe it's a particular mix of blue that causes those irregular lines in the nozzle check.

Paul W.

 

[Paul W.]

There is some validity to reviving this post, because now I'm using an Epson 1430 instead of a 1400. In fact I'm using two 1430's and same inkset as before. And I'm still getting the same results as shown in the photo. My understanding is that the 1430 has most of the same features as the 1400.

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

since you are using the same inkset you apparently carried over the problems from Nov. last year. I would recommend to use another brand for the cyan ink and test it.

 

[Paul W.]

Ink stained Fingers:

I think you're on to something. My toner is about to run out. Paul Roark's inkset actually uses a mixture of blue and cyan, but I'm using a toner of unknown contents. Paul's formula for the toner is supposed to be 13.75% blue and 11.25% cyan (Canon Lucia pigment inks), and 75% base fluid (a clear). I didn't have those ingredients on hand at the time and I assumed my toner mixture was the same.

Perhaps that's my error. They may not be the same. Now that I have those ingredients I can be assured I'm following Paul's carefully thought out percentages.

If that's the case, and those dashes behave themselves, I'll know the problem was my toner mixture. Your recommended use of OEM carts set me to thinking - true, my toner is not OEM, but I'll take that chance. Paul Roark is a trusted name in alternative inksets.

Thank you!

Paul