Should I feel remorse?
I have been struggling for over a month with a variety of technical issues in getting an MIS CFS system using their archival inks working with my Epson 1280. The stated archival characteristics of their inks were intriguing, and I was getting tired of paying Epson a lot of money for (dye) prints that faded noticeably within a year. I bought the system almost 18 months ago, then stopped when kid #2 was born, but recently decided to install it. I won't bore with details, but I have a bright magenta patch on my carpet, and some experience with two-part epoxy and syringes to show for my efforts. Despite profiling the paper/ink combination carefully with spyder, I found my prints were still only in the ballpark, and needed heavy mods post "calibration", which was not reassuring.
I like the chase. I like the hard way of doing things. I like working with my hands, and I can get pretty technical if needed. There is really something cool about all the neat colored ink bottles and tubing going back and forth. And there's something fun and perhaps a little subversive about getting this printer to do something the engineers didn't set out to do. But I think the system just spat out yet another $30 auto-reset chip on what I was going to say was perhaps my second reasonable print in about twenty.
Is there anyone else out there that uses this system? I have trawled the various forums and have yet to come up with much discussion of MIS inks outside their relatively well-known UT-2 system. I thought perhaps I might find some old explorers lurking here. I just gave up and availed myself of the Epson rebate for the 3800, but I'm willing to keep tinkering with the old system if I hear words of encouragement that maybe I'm giving up too easily.
Separately, I also have a 1280 set up with UT-2 (which also needs help). Is it worth keep this around for B&W, or would Epson 3800 trump the quality/longevity of that system (when it's actually working)?
Thoughts, comments, etc.?
Thanks.