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Author Topic: epson 3800 fatal? ink block  (Read 7692 times)

stever

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epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« on: June 19, 2014, 10:18:18 pm »

had sudden complete loss of photo black not cured by nozzle clean or 20 hour ammonia soak of heads.  also tried switch to matte black as black - only clean. no luck.  essentially complete loss of black.  have it soaking again

has anyone experience with head cleaning cartridges or refillable cartridges filled with cleaning solution?  don't want to invest time and money in cleaning cartridges without some hope of success as this is not a new printer that's had an incurable minor magenta block for the last 2 years.  on the other hand, not excited about buying a new printer - but 3880 has $200 rebate until the end of June.

any suggestions welcome
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dgillilan

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #1 on: June 19, 2014, 10:54:38 pm »

SteveR,
I also have an Epson R3800, but cannot help with your ink clog, I do hope it comes clean somehow. I suppose that you have run the "power clean" cycle that uses the most ink ?
You probably know, but you can reuse most of your cartridges with the 3880 if you have to replace the 3800, that would be a good option and with the rebate you mentioned, if it does not come clean before then, I would probably get a 3880.
Mine probably has a limited life left, since 2007, but I'm gonna use it till it dies,
Debra
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shadowblade

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #2 on: June 19, 2014, 11:16:40 pm »

had sudden complete loss of photo black not cured by nozzle clean or 20 hour ammonia soak of heads.  also tried switch to matte black as black - only clean. no luck.  essentially complete loss of black.  have it soaking again

has anyone experience with head cleaning cartridges or refillable cartridges filled with cleaning solution?  don't want to invest time and money in cleaning cartridges without some hope of success as this is not a new printer that's had an incurable minor magenta block for the last 2 years.  on the other hand, not excited about buying a new printer - but 3880 has $200 rebate until the end of June.

any suggestions welcome

Is there air in the line/damper? If it's a sudden, complete loss, it's probably not the head.
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stever

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #3 on: June 19, 2014, 11:21:41 pm »

thanks Shadowblade, but I don't know what the line damper is or what to do about air.
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huguito

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #4 on: June 20, 2014, 02:05:31 am »

You can try making a page with a solid block of the color that went missing, in your case black.
If the air bubble is in that ink line it could flush out
Print a couple of letter sheets of pure black

Hugo
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stever

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #5 on: June 20, 2014, 03:17:45 pm »

after another overnight ammonia soak,  printed half a dozen black images with 2 ink changes from matte to photo black.  got light mottled gray prints.  black still doesn't even show up on nozzle check
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Some Guy

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #6 on: June 20, 2014, 03:41:46 pm »

Here's a site that has some "Purge Pages" you can download to address individual inks: http://www.marruttusa.com/printer/support/epson-stylus-pro-3880-help.php#purge

SG
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stever

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #7 on: June 20, 2014, 04:26:07 pm »

it appears that the photo black is empty even tho the display shows 2/3 full!?
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Wayne Fox

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #8 on: June 21, 2014, 01:57:25 am »

it appears that the photo black is empty even tho the display shows 2/3 full!?

Most missing nozzles are not clogs, and if you lose a full channel, it definitely isn't a result of clogs, its the result of no ink getting to the head.  Although very
rare, but I have heard cartridges running dry but showing not empty because of a chip fault on the cartridge.

As mentioned, a complete channel drop is normally not a head problem, nor is it a clog problem, but a damper/air problem.  The damper is designed to bleed air as it gets to the head to avoid nozzle skips.

If the cartridge has indeed run dry, then it will take some time to purge the air.  I think you are better purging it with cleaning cycles, not with trying to print black.

I hope ammonia hasn't killed your head however .... based on the symptoms, soaking won't help at all, and ammonia can ruin the delicate internals of the head, although the 79/9900 heads seem to be more sensitive than the other printers to windex/ammonia.
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Rick Popham

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #9 on: June 21, 2014, 05:31:15 am »

had sudden complete loss of photo black not cured by nozzle clean or 20 hour ammonia soak of heads.  also tried switch to matte black as black - only clean. no luck.  essentially complete loss of black.  have it soaking again

has anyone experience with head cleaning cartridges or refillable cartridges filled with cleaning solution?  don't want to invest time and money in cleaning cartridges without some hope of success as this is not a new printer that's had an incurable minor magenta block for the last 2 years.  on the other hand, not excited about buying a new printer - but 3880 has $200 rebate until the end of June.

any suggestions welcome

Have you checked the ink cartridge?  Just last month I lost Photo Black entirely.  Cleaning did not work, nor did an attempt to switch  to MB.  I pulled the PB cartridge and found it empty, despite the software indicating that it had 33% of the ink left.  A new PB cartridge brought everything back after a couple of nozzle checks.
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keithrsmith

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #10 on: June 21, 2014, 05:55:26 am »

I found that doing a head soak draws ink from the cart, which of course isn't counted by the printer.  Si I had a complete photoblack loss, and thought the head was dead.  Pulled the cart and weighed it.  It was empty. New cart and all was well.  Still got a small gap in light magenta which won't clear though.

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pflower

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #11 on: June 21, 2014, 06:00:33 am »

Have you tried a conversation with someone from Epson?  I had the same problem with a magenta channel on my 3800 and was about to throw it away as uneconomical (since there was then a massive discount on the 3880) until someone I was talking to at Epson offered me a deal on a visit from an engineer.  He arrived and replaced the whole head for £150 - cost of 3 cartridges and, from what I can tell, less than the cost of a head as a spare part.  In discussion with him it would appear that there is, at least in the UK and at least last year, some considerable flexibility as to repairs depending on the whim of those in charge and circumstances.  Polite and calm discussion can sometimes work wonders.

As a last ditch possibility it might be worth a go.
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JohnBrew

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #12 on: June 21, 2014, 07:26:47 am »

When I developed a clog in my 3800 after three years of hard usage and all attempts at clearing were futile, I called Epson who advised me to send it to an Epson center for repair. The shipping costs and quote given deterred me so I bought a 3880 with a rebate.

stever

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #13 on: June 21, 2014, 04:50:40 pm »

thanks everyone, should have realized the entire color wouldn't go away from a clog - too bad Epson doesn't provide a realistic troubleshooting guide.  I've used a fair number of cartridges and this was my first bad one.

Certainly hope it was just the cartridge.
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stever

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #14 on: June 21, 2014, 07:12:44 pm »

as long as I'm in Epson research mode, does anyone have experience with re-fillable ink cartridges for the 3800/3880?
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deanwork

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #15 on: June 21, 2014, 08:22:09 pm »

If this were me and you were not running low on the pk and that wasn't the issue I would put one of these refillable carts in and put the cone flush fluid in it. This is the best stuff I know of for dissolving ink in the dampers and lines. I've had it solve problems for me more than once on much bigger printers than this.

http://shopping.netsuite.com/s.nl/c.362672/sc.18/category.39452/.f

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Wayne Fox

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Re: epson 3800 fatal? ink block
« Reply #16 on: June 21, 2014, 10:34:24 pm »

as long as I'm in Epson research mode, does anyone have experience with re-fillable ink cartridges for the 3800/3880?
there are many threads about this, search CIS or similar terms.

 Except for possibly converting to a Cone peizo inkiest, I would only consider alternative inks/cartridges if I was printing non critical stuff like POP signage.

While ink seems expensive, in the overall pricing of prints the paper is far more expensive, and I lose more money with issues with paper than I do with ink.
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