I am using cheap Chinese inks, and decided to profile my printer for such particular conditions.
I got Wolf Faust's Kodak R1 target.
The hardware is simple,
Epson V33 (aka S630) scanner,
Epson PX-204 4-color printer
Fujitsu WPHS PRO paper.
The results I get is tanned skin goes pinky, greenish ocean water goes sky-blue. Like too little green. But I wouldn't say printer saves Y&C inks... it drinks them by galons.
If I tell you the process in Argyll I use, maybe you can find a flaw?
1. I scan IT8 with a black photo-envelope at the back (the lid is white) in VueScan RAW TIFF mode. Clean the dust in photoshop or GIMP without adding a profile.
2. Read values with Argyll and create a profile in "colorimeter"-mode with "absolute" intention. High quality regime. Ultra fails for some reason with "out of gamut WP".
>> following is a calibration+profiling sequence for the printer >>
3. Print one page test pattern, created with "-p 1.2" bias for dot-gain. (240 with something patches per page in Argyll, if I am not mistaken)
**I print it from MS Paint, since Photoshop keeps transforming colors, even when "printer manages" is selected and "no management" is in Epson driver settings. (Photoshop add "proofing" like paper tint, while white in Paint it is just zero-ink on paper in "no management" driver mode)
4. Scan it raw and read with Argyll, taking into account the scanner profile created in step-2.
5. Make a .cal calibration, and build .mpp model for the printer.
6. print a profiling target, taking into account the model and calibration from step-5.
6. Scan it, read it with the same scanner profile fed to Argyll.
7. make a temporary profile "colprof -v -qm -b -cmt -dpp Prn_prof"
8. Since I did not get how to use -kz and -kx options, I just try making all curves appear monotonously growing at least up to 75% and not disappear (like M disappears with defaults)
It may be like "xicclu -g -kp .005 10 .98 .78 0.5 -l260 -fif -ir PrinterBt.icm
-l260 is just a guess, since above 260 the curves do not grow, or distort.
I didn't make a screenshot, but it was approximately like on the hand-drawn image below.
9. I create ICC for .cal, ICC for the profile with sRGB.icm provided as a source space, and -kp with K-curve above.
10. Link them collink -v -qm -s -ip -op cal.icm profile.icm EpsonPX240.icm
Print, and get tints a bit wrong. Particularly fresh pink skin where it should be sun-tanned is a problem.