Workaround to print with PK Photo Black on Epson 3800 3880 with Leaking Black ink problem

[martin0reg]

BTW I once refilled a OEM PK cartridge for my 3880 with the new HD ink from a OEM cart for the p800. Sucked out of the p800 cartridge and injected in a "modified" 3880 cart.
The "modification" (according to jtoolman), in other words poking the one way valve so that ink can go in, was probably sub-optimal... though the cart wasn't leaking visibly, strange things happened:
After installing the refilled PK cartridge it run empty in no time... I was shocked, installed a new OEM cartridge (not poked) ... first prints was missing PK ... but after some test prints and cleaning cycles black came back ... can't say how happy I was. But I never found out where the 80ml of PK had gone, always expecting black ink running out of the printer, what also did not happen.

Beside this rare and special experience..

- let's go back to defective ink selectors: please tell your story:
How it gets broken? Did you switch or did you avoide it?

.thanks in advance for letting us know.

 

[wannaby]

Who am I to contradict Mr Chan’s, he may know what he’s talking about, so I must apologise for my complete ignorance regarding the auto switching of inks.

But, if he’s right then a period of six months inactivity with the Matte black cartridge would I reckon lead to a severe blockage and most likely cause the early demise of the switch, due to the build-up of the unused old ink.

I personally would prefer if Dr. Chan was incorrect in this case. For these two broken printers, it doesn't matter if the switch breaks once I switch to MK. I would delete all my Photo-paper presets to prevent accidentally swapping to the PK cart.

Either way, I’d still recommend the pharmacist solution because it will prevent the likelihood of a build-ups in your ink system, it’s used friendly...
P.S. I wonder why it is that guys who don’t switch inks over the years never repost any problems caused by leakage...

I'm with you on the pharmacist's solution over Piezoflush. However, please check out this other FAQ on the same page from Dr. Chan:

and I quote…

“Why does changing the ink from Matte Black ink to Photo Black ink take more time and use more ink than changing it from Photo Black to Matte Black? When switching from MK to PK, the 3800 must flush all the MK ink from the 3800's ink damper and print head so that the PK ink will appear consistent and uniform when you print on glossy or semi-gloss media. The printer does not need to flush as much PK ink when changing from PK to MK.“

… end quote.

So it seems to me there would be residual cleaner in the head when going from a PK to MK swap (since there is less flushed out going in that direction).

Having said all that, it would seem anyone already following this workaround would have less than optimal prints following the auto-swap. At least after the 6-month period has elapsed. So we need to know how long they have been following this practice.

 

[jtoolman]

BTW I once refilled a OEM PK cartridge for my 3880 with the new HD ink from a OEM cart for the p800. Sucked out of the p800 cartridge and injected in a "modified" 3880 cart.
The "modification" (according to jtoolman), in other words poking the one way valve so that ink can go in, was probably sub-optimal... though the cart wasn't leaking visibly, strange things happened:
After installing the refilled PK cartridge it run empty in no time... I was shocked, installed a new OEM cartridge (not poked) ... first prints was missing PK ... but after some test prints and cleaning cycles black came back ... can't say how happy I was. But I never found out where the 80ml of PK had gone, always expecting black ink running out of the printer, what also did not happen.

Beside this rare and special experience..

- let's go back to defective ink selectors: please tell your story:
How it gets broken? Did you switch or did you avoide it?

.thanks in advance for letting us know.

You have to have done something wrong when you " poked "the rear valve flap as I currently running nothing but modified T58 carts on both the 3880/3800 with zero leaks, ink delivery problems or ink disappearing.
You do not have to poke anything.
You slightly dislodge on of the two sides tabs of the rear valve cap. Just slightly loose and that it will allow to be refilled and not leak out when pressurized.
When that occurs is because you somehow damaged the poppet valve spring support. Thus the poppet no longer seals against the exit O ring gasket seal.

Joe

 

[Roy Sletcher]

You have to have done something wrong when you " poked "the rear valve flap as I currently running nothing but modified T58 carts on both the 3880/3800 with zero leaks, ink delivery problems or ink disappearing.
You do not have to poke anything.
You slightly dislodge on of the two sides tabs of the rear valve cap. Just slightly loose and that it will allow to be refilled and not leak out when pressurized.
When that occurs is because you somehow damaged the poppet valve spring support. Thus the poppet no longer seals against the exit O ring gasket seal.

Joe

Thanks for ther clarification Joe. Could you give a link to a detailed description of the exact procedure. I think I need to review my technique?

I too am refilling original T58 carts with several sets of complete refills under my belt and have experienced what martin O describes twice. Both times it was with previously well behaved carts which had been refilled more than once that suddenly emptied for no apparant reason.

First one was a PK, and suspecting my technique was faulty, replaced it with a new OEM cart which solved the problem. It is now empty and I need to modify it and want to make sure my technique is good.

Thanks for all your contributions here and elswhere. Don't know where you get all the time with your other hobbies and being Grandpa to Nathan.


rs

 

[wannaby]

Is that really so?

Now this is my question - and my idea is the same as the suspected auto cleaning/flushing of the unused channel would suggest: periodical switching keeps the ink selector working smooth ... while long time of no switching don't..

It would be worth to collect the facts and background of as many failed ink selectors as possible
- to see how many are failing after normal or heavy use of switching MK / PK
- and how many are failing after long time of no switching or avoiding any switch

Victims of a defective ink selector please report....!!

Here’s my printer history on ink swapping and when the yellow/black contamination occurred:

Routine for my first Epson 3800:
- I alternated printing on matte and photo papers, swapping regularly… maybe every month or two.
- After 5 years, yellow was contaminated with black only in PK printing. (I guess that’s not so bad.)
- My PK cart only weighs 2.5 oz, but the LCD says there’s 57%. So this printer (which has been used exclusively for MK printing) has also been leaking PK ink.

Routine for my second Epson 3800:
- I don’t have the full history on my second 3800 since I got it second-handed. The contamination issue happened after 3 months of photo paper printing. I didn't perform a swap. However, I had just done an Auto Nozzle Check which puts lots of ink into the capping station. Then I did a test print which had black lines (see below). Of course it is possible an auto maintenance swap (per Dr. Chan) occurred due to the 6-month clock.
- As I mentioned before, this printer has been leaking PK ink.

P. S. I've only used OEM carts so far. I just checked my maintenance carts and they don't look too full. I hope the ink isn't pooling somewhere inside the printer.

 

[The Hat]

@wannaby, When you carry out an auto nozzle check the printer will switch and use both inks, but if you do a manual nozzle check then the printer will only use the ink it is currently set too, so maybe this is where Mr Chan got his information from, the moral of the story, doesn’t run an automatic nozzle check..

 

[martin0reg]

Sorry for being slightly off-topic, this concerns refilling more than the PK-MK-Workaround...

..
When that occurs is because you somehow damaged the poppet valve spring support. Thus the poppet no longer seals against the exit O ring gasket seal.

The cart seemed to leak out in the slot, so this or something similar I'm suspecting too.
Some carts I had modified without dismounting anything, just by inserting the nail/needle beside the poppet valve, the tricky version which you had once posted as "the even more simple way to.." . Rather to try out the process and disecting the result. But this poppet valve seems very "touchy" and next time I will dismount it first.


Regarding MK-PK, I am still curious to hear about a failure which would support my idea...no such story yet...

 

[jtoolman]

That is why i removed that video from my T58 Mod Playlist. I could see how a lot of people would end up with a damaged valve.
I can dismantle and pop off on of the sides of the rear cap so it remains in place but no longer blocks you from injecting ink. It is Much safer and more unlikely to cause damage by the modifier.
It is video #6 in the series I believe.
Joe

 

[jtoolman]

Thanks for ther clarification Joe. Could you give a link to a detailed description of the exact procedure. I think I need to review my technique?

I too am refilling original T58 carts with several sets of complete refills under my belt and have experienced what martin O describes twice. Both times it was with previously well behaved carts which had been refilled more than once that suddenly emptied for no apparant reason.

First one was a PK, and suspecting my technique was faulty, replaced it with a new OEM cart which solved the problem. It is now empty and I need to modify it and want to make sure my technique is good.

Thanks for all your contributions here and elswhere. Don't know where you get all the time with your other hobbies and being Grandpa to Nathan.


rs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kCc5fwssVM
If the chip is empty it will not reset.
It must be over 15% of at least a total weight or 90 Grams or more.
Joe

 

[wannaby]

@wannaby, When you carry out an auto nozzle check the printer will switch and use both inks, but if you do a manual nozzle check then the printer will only use the ink it is currently set too, so maybe this is where Mr Chan got his information from, the moral of the story, doesn’t run an automatic nozzle check..

OK, I will make sure not to do that if cleaner is sitting in the inactive cart.

Replacing the ink supply system would be the best option if only I were handy. In my case, the next step is to choose a refillablle cart, third-pary ink and test it out.

Thank you everyone for your advice!