PGI 520 & CLI 521 vs HP 564 normal & xl cartridge sizes

[fastscud]

Hi,

Does anyone know how large the HP 564 normal and xl cartridges (both pigmented black & photo black + colour) are compared to the Canon PGI 520 & CLI 521 cartridges? Specific volume in ml?

I'm interested in buying either the Canon MX860 or the HP Photosmart Premium C309a and am just wondering which one will require less refilling.

thanks a lot, cheers.

 

[pharmacist]

9 ml for the Canon PGI-520/CLI-521 cartridges and about 16 ml for the HP 564 XL cartridges (dye) and near 30 ml for the HP 564 XL pigment text black cartridge. The actual refill amounts are about 5-6 ml for the Canon and 10 (dye) to 22 (pigment) ml for the HP 364 cartridges.

Refilling the normal HP 364 normal capacity cartridges is utterly cumbersome since you need to drop the ink on the ink outlet drop by drop...

 

[fastscud]

Great, thanks for the info pharmacist, much appreciated!

Would you also have comments on the 'refill friendly' 564 cartridges? They're transparent so ink levels are clearly visible, and apparently larger:
http://www.inkbank.com.au/category73_1.htm

Though they don't have chips, so will need to transfer the ones from the original cartridges.

Also, any idea if something similar is available for the PGI521/CLI520 catridges? ie. larger capacity than normal?

thanks again for your time, much appreciated.

 

[pharmacist]

there are refillable PGI-520/CLI-521 cartridges with autoreset chips available. The problem is the design of HP making it extremely difficult to remove the chip for th HP 364 cartridges and I would stick to refill the original cartridges, because they have a double density sponge design not seen in alternative carts. This double density design is essential to guarantee a smooth ink flow towards your printhead.

The HP 364 XL cartridges have much larger capacity than the tiny Canon PGI-520/CLI-521 cartridges, but the latter one can accomodate autoreset chip to ensure proper ink level status.

 

[leo8088]

I heard that these auto reset chips will reset themselves each time the printer is turned on. Is this true? If this is true then how will ink level status accurate? If this is not true how do these chips know when to automatically reset?

 

[pharmacist]

Leo8088,

Therefore one should always keep the printer on and never shut it down... Better to have a false empty warning then a false full ink level message.

 

[fastscud]

Hi again,

... I would stick to refill the original cartridges, because they have a double density sponge design not seen in alternative carts. This double density design is essential to guarantee a smooth ink flow towards your printhead.

I have 2 more questions re. refilling the 364/564XL:

1) The 364/564XL cartridges are opaque (unlike Canon's CLI 521). So if we refill the 364/564 XL using the German "Durchstich" method, how do we know if it's been refilled to full? I'm guessing overfilling it will cause problems.

2) If we refill the original HP cartridges, how do we know when to refill next, since the ink level indicator now says empty? If we wait until the printout becomes patchy, that would damage the print head wouldn't it?

Thanks again for your time, it's much appreciated.

 

[pharmacist]

Fastcud,

There is a small transparant windows below the cartridge and using the dermgan durchstich refill method you will be able to see whether or not the cartridge is full.
The problem with no ink level is eminent when you refill cartridges whic can not be reset, so before executing a large print job, just manuall check the the ink level manually.

 

[fastscud]

Hi again Pharmacist,

I've been doing a bit more research and got some more questions. Hope you have some time:

The problem is the design of HP making it extremely difficult to remove the chip for th HP 364 cartridges ...

I found this youtube video showing how to remove the chip from the HP 364:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvVmEuagCO0&feature=related

Assuming it's the same as the HP 564, it appears the chip is fairly simple to remove.

Could you explain why you said it's difficult please? Are there tricks that's not shown on the video?

and I would stick to refill the original cartridges, because they have a double density sponge design not seen in alternative carts. This double density design is essential to guarantee a smooth ink flow towards your printhead.

Does this design rule out the possibility of using CISS on the Photosmart Premium C309a, since CISS will need their own compatible cartridges? (CISS appears to be available online for this printer though, but not sure how well they work)

Does is also mean that the Canon PGI-520/CLI-521 carts use fairly standard sponges, so that there are no problems with using compatible carts for them?

thanks again for your time, much appreciated.

 

[pharmacist]

Hi Fastcud,

Hmmm it seems to remove the chip is easier than I thought. However: since you have to physically make contact with the sharp knife to remove the chip, take care not to damage any electric circuit on the chip. I saw the video and the chip tends to be bend alot before you can reach the area to be cut away from the cartridge base, so be very careful, especially if this is the first time for you. Canon chips can easily be cut away by cutting away 2 plastic dots, without physically bend or insert the knife underneath it (which might scratch the delicate circuit of the chip).

Both original Canon and HP cartridges do have a double density sponge design, so stay away from aftermarket cartridges from either sides. Many members of this forum, including me, have not so good experiences with CISS system on Canon printers and since HP is now using the same design like Canon, the likelihood of getting similar disappointing results is very high. The problem is to get proper sealing of the grommet: the smallest amount of air able to penetrate through the grommet can cause ink flow problems, forcing you to perform more than usual amounts of print head cleaning cycles to overcome this problem.

And yes: I think HP 564 is similar to the HP 364.