I brought 12 carts for another Epson. Half were in boxes and the other half were in their sealed bag. I examined them all very carefully.
All but one appeared to be new/unused. The Photo Black Cart had obvious signs of having been inserted into a machine (ink smudges)
The most telling sign, was that the hole where the ink comes out had been pierced. I think that is the tell-tell, if someone is selling you carts that
have been refilled.
The Deal was so good, I still came out on top. I asked my Dealer and was told, someone could have purchased the wrong carts
and had inserted/tried to insert the Black (it was full)
Anyway, I look at that hole and look for signs of ink or smudges. You would never signs these things on a new Cart.
That whole has a small piece of plastic sealing it. I doubt if any one could replace that.