Inkjet Refil Strategies

wrote:
I'm wondering if we can't start a discussion of refilling inkjets. I've
been doing it about a decade and sometimes I fail miserably and others it
works just fine. I was hoping folks would tell us more and explain why some
things work the way they did. Maybe someone better versed in "FAQ" can use
this to make a "FAQ" and place it in the appropriate online library. Greeks
say "The Start is the Half of Everything", so here goes..

Just now I had forgotten to close the HP26 holes before filling it with
ink and although I then redid the equalise procedure the way I wasposta, now
it doesn't write a thing. I don't know if I should take the time to totally
empty it or just add a little ink. I'm a fluid mechanics chemical engineer
and I should be better at this, maybe if I better understood why some things
are set up in some ways.

Most of the problem is simple.
Chemical engineers are still the only people
who either make, buy, or sell ink.




Of course, now it is next to impossible to get brand
new HP26 cartridges, so my old method of replacing the cartridge every two
years may not last. Gosh, I wish I hadn't thrown out my Oki 82a - for over a
decade, it used off-the-shelf standard spool typwriter ribbons. I've taken to
using my printer for three months then doing without for three months then
refilling. Most of the time, printing at a library is just fine.
I used to send my bulk printing to CompuServe but they discontinued that.

As for previous experience: (1) I've had it dry out prematurely because
the stopper had worn out and was no longer tight fitting (2) I've found that
sometimes leaving it upside down or blowing air (witht he equalising bellows
pipette) into the bottom breathing hole helps (3) I've found the fountain pen
technique of cleaning with running water (even blowing with my mouth through
the filling hole) sometimes helps revive a cartridge that appears to be
dead. (4) I destroyed one cartidge's top valve by trying to equalise with a
syringe instead of those little plastic bellows pipettes.


The following is probably mostly attributable to a fellow named Steve
Rayner from Victoria BC CA and some "jim xprtec" and was extracted from the
usenet. (See I did my homework before posting.)

If the printhead is clogged, sit it in a shallow container, with a
50/50 mixture of vinegar and water. An overnight soak will usually clear
the jets. Then a rinse under the hot water tap, dry, and wipe with
isopropyl alcohol.

I did post it here a few years ago. Someone repeated the "formula"
here very recently. Basically, Mix Carters Stamp pad ink 50/50 with
distilled water, then double the volume with propylene glycol. This
works as is in my Cannon BJC 4300ex. For Lexmark printers, add glycerine
until it doesn't splatter when printing. If you add the glycerine to the
cartridge, give it a few hours to mix. For HP printers, flush the old ink
out first. Clean the printhead with isopropyl alcohol, then refill.

Note, that the stock Cannon ink has some isopropyl alcohol in it,
probably as a dryer. Mine works fine without it.

Black biological stain can be used to make the base, but costs way
more than stamp pad ink.

Use the home made ink in an expendable cartridge, so there is no loss
if it clogs!

When the quality becomes unsatisfactory or they leak, streak etc.

We recapture the ink to be re-used if a newly loaded cartridge doesn't
work well, by removing ink with a hypodermic needle.

Have done thousands (commercially) and have found that most carts
will accept 3-5 loads.

Our average "failure rate" on first time reloads is about 10%. It
goes up on subsequent reloads if you are not careful.

Some tips we have found that seem to help:

1. Try to reload BEFORE the cart runs out.

2. If cart sets before reloading, put some print head cleaning
fluid in cart and let set for 24 hours. Blot on paper to open plugged
holes on print head, then refill.

3. Try to use the type ink the cartridge had in it before reloading.
In other words use oil-based or water based. Water based will give poor
performance in an oil based ink cart.

4. Put the thin mylar film over ink nozzles in print head after
loading and set cartridge in plastic bag until used. Will capture
spills and also allow the pressure to equalize in carts that have
foam inserts.


- = -
Vasos Panagiotopoulos, Columbia'81+, Reagan, Mozart, Pindus, BioStrategist
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/vjp2/vasos.htm
---{Nothing herein constitutes advice. Everything fully disclaimed.}---
[Homeland Security means private firearms not lazy obstructive guards]
[Urb sprawl confounds terror] [Remorse begets zeal] [Windows is for Bimbos]

wrote:
Most of the problem is simple.

In what way?

Chemical engineers are still the only people
who either make...

They may have a hand in designing ink, or at least its components, but they
don't make it.

...buy, or sell ink.

Chemical engineers do neither of those, except as private individuals.

What are you talking about?

Brian
--

Brian Ketterling wrote:
wrote:
Most of the problem is simple.

In what way?

In all infinite possible moron Goedelian Quantun Multiverse Ways.
Since the only morons who even sell
Ink Jet Printers are George Steinbrenner, Al Gore,
and imbelices from The ACLU.



Chemical engineers are still the only people
who either make...

They may have a hand in designing ink, or at least its components, but they
don't make it.

...buy, or sell ink.

Chemical engineers do neither of those, except as private individuals.

What are you talking about?

Brian
--