Pixma printer doesn't print black. Monochrome laser stupid buy?

[bluecrabby]

So my MP610's PGBK head seems to be half fried. I can still get by on the color tanks, and can print composite black by changing text to 'near' black in most applications.

I do a lot of B&W printing for ads and handouts, and appreciate good black quality, which I definitely have not gotten from the MP610 recently, even before the head boinked out. Would I be silly to buy a cheap Samsung B&W laser and use the old MP610 for color while I still have lots of refill ink left?

Re: the scanner, the copy feature on the MP610 seems so anemic that I would actually prefer scanning to an image and then printing in the rare instance that I want to do that.

Thanks for any input!

 

[ghwellsjr]

If you tell the printer you are printing on any photo paper, such as matte, it will use the dye black ink and allow you to print real black like you want to. It will be slower than when the pigment black was working but better than the way you are doing it now.

 

[bluecrabby]

Thanks for the idea, I'll try that.

If I use the 'fine' setting, the head passes twice as often and I can get full coverage. However, even with all the settings on the darkest possible, my PGBK only comes out as grey. I bought a brand new OEM cartridge to try to fix it, but the same problem persists. Any idea how to get rid of this?

Perhaps relevant: The new OEM cartridge is only the 2nd PGBK cartridge to be used in the machine, and it has been removed and re-inserted with ink remaining.

 

[The Hat]

Thanks for the idea, I'll try that.

If I use the 'fine' setting, the head passes twice as often and I can get full coverage. However, even with all the settings on the darkest possible, my PGBK only comes out as grey. I bought a brand new OEM cartridge to try to fix it, but the same problem persists. Any idea how to get rid of this?

Perhaps relevant: The new OEM cartridge is only the 2nd PGBK cartridge to be used in the machine, and it has been removed and re-inserted with ink remaining.

You seem to have several things going on all at once according to your posts,
so the best thing you can do is to post a nozzle check for us to visually see the extent of your problems.

The more you use your printer in the state that its in can only lead to further damage,
so if you could reframe from printing anything other than nozzle checks till you can get a definite answer either ways would help..

 

[turbguy]

A laser printer for text is a good move. They actually operate cheaper per page than an inkjet. Maintenance and troubles are much reduced, as well.

Wayne

 

[bluecrabby]

Thanks all for the input. Here's my test print ... I don't know what the flip is going on! The last time I did a test print, the top half of the PGBK row was simply blank. Now it's back on. I guess I won't complain.

Black ink density is terrible. After refilling the same cartridge for years I bought a new one to try and fix the problem, but am having the same issues with it too.

I ran out of PGBK on the new, full cartridge, and drilled a hole in the ink chamber to relieve vacuum pressure and plugged the hole with a standard refill plug. This worked to get ink flowing again but ink density was still bad.

Any ideas? Thanks!

edited for clarity

 

[The Hat]

bluecrabby

I ran out of PGBK on the new, full cartridge, and drilled a hole in the ink chamber to relieve vacuum pressure and plugged the hole with a standard refill plug.
This worked to get ink flowing again but ink density was still bad.

Any ideas? Thanks!

I can say I have never seen a nozzle check quite like yours before.
The PGBK look to be perfect but of course its not, its missing 50 % of the horizontal lines.

Because I havent seen this before I cant recommend a good or easy solution for you
but it does look like some of the black nozzles are just not firing at all. (As to why ?)

Are they blocked or damaged is the big question here so lets go on the assumption they are blocked for now.

Try soaking the print head overnight in a small bowl with 1 of Windex in it
and also dribble a bit of Windex onto the black large inlet where the cartridge usually sits.

Keep the rest of your cartridges safe for later by placing the orange clip back onto the outlets using a rubber band.

Now give both your PGBK cartridges a good washout and dry them properly
then fill one with Pigment ink and the other one with the BK (Photo) black.
You said already that you refill your cartridges by the top filling method but which inks are you using.

Dry off your print head on the outside and make sure that you didnt get any of the electronics on the back wet,
if you did then leave the head in a warm place for a couple of hours to dry properly.

Put the print head back into the printer with the cartridges but put in the large cartridge containing
the BK (Photo) black in and do just one normal head clean then a nozzle check.

Now compare your current nozzle check with the one you posted on here and see if any of the missing horizontal lines reappear
if they did that is good news but if they didnt then your print head is damaged beyond repair and a new one will be needed.

Here is what a normal nozzle check looks like note the PGBK area only.

You can use this method to dry your cartridge quite quickly, which was submitted by Nifty member lin awhile ago.
http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/uploads/2740_p1013234.jpg

 

[bluecrabby]

Woah! Yeah, that's a little different.

You mentioned photo and pigment inks. By this, do you mean the two types of black ink that are used in the printer? So I should fill one with PGBK ink, and the other from the ink used for the BCI-7BK cartridge?

I use ink from Sanwa Supply, sorry to say that I bought 500cc bottles for each type and they are not exactly new.

I'll do my best to follow your instructions but can start tomorrow at the earliest. Thanks!

 

[ghwellsjr]

Since the pattern of missing nozzles is regular, this usually means it's electrical and usually it's a fault in the print head and usually can't be fixed. However, since you said that before it was missing the top half, it's possible that the electrical problem is a poor and intermittent connection between the printer and the print head. You can try removing the cartridges and the print head and cleaning the contacts on the back of the print head and looking to see if any of the mating contacts on the carriage are bent or otherwise not springing like all the others. You could also clean off the bottom of the print head to make sure there is no dried ink on it. Try not to turn the print head upside down, just blot the bottom of the print head on a Windex-soaked paper towel. But be careful and don't take to much time to do this because you don't want any more ink to dry out on the nozzles. After you put the print head and cartridges back in the printer, if you see the same problem, it's probably electrical and can only be fixed with a new print head. However, you can still use the printer by telling it that you are printing on matte paper to make it use your dye black ink.

 

[turbguy]

Your nozzle check shows a definite electrical/electronic issue. A new printhead may or may not fix it (could be the motherboard). It is NOT a clogging issue.

Wayne