7880 dampers in Canada

[wpp]

I have an old Epson 7880 printer that is working fine except the Light Magenta. It will print one page then lose all nozzles. I run a couple of cleaning cycles and can sometimes get the nozzles back. I can then print one or 2 pages then lose it again.
From reading the forum I believe that the damper may be clogged.
I am in Ontario, Canada and would like to know the best place, preferably in Canada, to get replacement dampers or other parts for my printer. I have the Service Manual and the ability to do the replacement myself.

[Mark D Segal]

Have you tried contacting Epson's Canadian HQ in Markham? Not sure whether they sell these components, but worth checking - if they don't maybe they can give you a lead. Otherwise I have no idea where one would find them. Perhaps others posting from the US would have leads there.

[Peter McLennan]

I have precisely the same problem with my 9800.  Same channel, even.  As far as I know, Epson won't sell parts to end users.  I have had good luck with Compass Micro out of Oregon.

[Larry Heath]

http://www.sign-in-global.us/products/3118/epson_dx5_ink_damper_for_epson_stylus_pro_4000_4800_7400_7800_9800_9400_9450.html

They have many Epson parts for sale at good prices. Is there a reason you have to deal with an in country supplier? You could also go with a Chinese manufacturer, the Epson stuff is likely made in China anyways.

Later Larry

[Royce Howland]

Epson usually restricts their parts from direct sale to end-users. Also authorized resellers frequently are prohibited from shipping out of their jurisdiction. For example I tried ordering some stuff from Compass Micro to do some maintenance on our 11880's, and CM would not ship to a Canadian address at that time. It's the same even with basic supplies like Epson OEM ink cartridges; all the authorized USA resellers I've tried will not ship to Canada. So I'd say talk to an Epson dealer and get them to order the parts for you. That's what I do here in Calgary.

Also, I personally would stay clear of the Chinese-made knockoff dampers that you can get through Ebay and such. I've tried various knock-offs before, and they fail in all kinds of ways -- damper valve stuck closed so no ink flows, valve sticky so nozzle "clogs" happen much more frequently, valve stuck open so ink just pours out of the head when the system pressures up, etc. I only use Epson OEM parts now. True, they are more expensive, but so far they have always worked, and the knock-offs for me have always been trouble. Usually I can see the differences in the manufacturing when I compare the parts side-by-side.

Ink and paper are more expensive over time than a few bucks for good printer parts, so now I don't try to economize on the maintenance side of things. Operationally I'm miles ahead by minimizing consumable waste. Part of that is not risking a compromise to the ink delivery system of the printer by installing bogus parts.

[Garnick]

I have an old Epson 7880 printer that is working fine except the Light Magenta. It will print one page then lose all nozzles. I run a couple of cleaning cycles and can sometimes get the nozzles back. I can then print one or 2 pages then lose it again.
From reading the forum I believe that the damper may be clogged.
I am in Ontario, Canada and would like to know the best place, preferably in Canada, to get replacement dampers or other parts for my printer. I have the Service Manual and the ability to do the replacement myself.

What part of Ontario?  I'm checking a possible source, but no guarantee.  It might take a couple of days to get a reply, but I'll let you know asap.

Gary 

[Garnick]

What part of Ontario?  I'm checking a possible source, but no guarantee.  It might take a couple of days to get a reply, but I'll let you know asap.

Gary

Hello again,

Just to let you know that I sent you a message offline late yesterday with the info you wanted for ordering the dampers here in Ontario.  It will come through as an email from Luminous Landscape, but you might want to check your "Junk" or "Spam" folders if you haven't seen it yet.  Sometimes such emails from an unknown source can get sidetracked to another folder and you might not have noticed.  When or if you do find it you can reply online or directly if you wish, to let me know you have the necessary information.

Gary