I’ve had nothing but trouble with the 7800 over the last three or four days. I simply can’t get rid of the smudging on the left side (when facing the machine). Or to make it worse, it seemed to be getting better yesterday, and this morning it was there again. Sort of a bit of mostly black lines for each time the head passes by.
I have tried all the usual tricks that have fixed this in the past. Paper towel under the print head. Soaking up and cleaning the pump pad and the little black rubber wiper thing, and basically anything that I could see.
What else? After cleaning I’ve run sheets with a bit of writing on each line through so that the head would have to pass over the paper many times.
The nozzles aren’t clogged. It’s just this damned ink outside the print area, maybe a 1/4 of an inch on the left side. It can’t be on the rollers because it always changes depending on where the head is printing. In other words, if I print a vertical line, I’ll have the smudge shows up 1/4 inch to the left of the line, no matter where the line is.
So the head is either busted, i.e. spitting out some ink where it shouldn’t, or it is picking up or already has a hair stuck to the bottom of the printhead, which is why I ran a paper towel beneath the head (which did pick up some ink).
Even though the maintenance tank shows 33% left, I’m going to get a new one tomorrow and see if that fixes it. If not – then I’ll have to see what it would cost to get an Epson tech to come over. I’m told that buying a new head costs about as much as the printer… but I haven’t checked that, and don’t really know what the problem is.
In a fit of desperation, I even thought about out-sourcing the printing, but to get good b&w prints, I really only see two ways to go: LAMBDA WITH ILFOBROOM FIBER PAPER or a little cheaper with LAMBDA and RC paper. Or inkjet with silver rag. These options are just too expensive.
And then there are prints on Pearl or Luster — Endura etc. which are really not very good for black and white. I think I’ve tried them all and had some samples around which I just looked at and they just don’t have that “fine art” look. And there’s super-gloss paper and metalic paper… etc. Again, I haven’t been happy with them.
So then I was thinking – instead of putting up with all this nozzle cleaning and head cleaning – maybe I should jump to HP. In the past, the issue I had was that you needed to use their swellable paper. I don’t know if that’s still true. The good thing was that when you changed cartridges you changed heads as well. But really – this has been very bad and I’ve never been in this position before where I couldn’t find the culprit; and of course there are orders that have to go out. If I can’t fix the thing by Monday, I’ll have the orders done at WCI – and I may have to really re-think my approach to getting orders done.
If I were doing color work – I’d have an easier time of it – because it could be outsourced easily. But b&w is another story.
Oh yeah – my backup printer – the epson 4800, well that does have clogged nozzles. Okay, I can probably fix that, at least I’ve always been able to in the past. But sometimes it does feel like technology is out to get you. Great when it works, but tough to rely on.
One other nitpicking idea while I’m at it: would it be that hard for Epson to make cartridges that fit in the same line of printer, i.e. you could use the same magenta cartridge in the 4800 and the 7800? That alone would make life easier. A real lab doesn’t need to worry about that because they don’t bother with the smaller printers, and you can use the same cartridge for the 7880 and the 9880, or the 7800 and the 9800. But not for the 4800.
And how about making it possible to actually lift the print head so that you could clean or at least look at what’s stuck to the bottom of it? Even if it just involved loosening a screw or two. And while I’m at it – how about being able to lift up the part of the cover that’s over the wiper blade and ink pump. Wow, would that make life easier.
* * * UPDATE * * *
I was able to unclog the Epson 4800, and it’s working so I can continue getting most of my prints done. But the more I think about it, the more I like the idea of having prints done at West Coast Imaging. I’m going to have to rethink what I offer in terms of sizing and all that, and depend on the Epsons for proofs, but not for final production. So now I need to figure out how much increase my prices should be to incorporate the WCI costs, and make sure that they can do a fast enough turnaround (4 – 7 days) should be fine most of the time. Like I say, I’m not sure if this is feasible or not but that’s the direction I’m investigating. Basically how it works is that you give them the print and include borders etc. so if you are offering an 8 x 12, you’ve got to pay for a 9 x 13 if you want a 1/2 inch border. Of course, the key is to order more than one copy of the same print – and then the prices come down.
My idea, again I’m just thinking outloud, is that I’d let a few orders pile up over a few days, and do the uploading as they come in (your files get to stay on their site) and when I place the order it would be for several different prints, and if they’re popular prints, I’ll order at least a second copy to have in stock. The key to all this is to narrow the number of sizes that I offer.
I think it’s at least time to talk with an Epson rep, or the retailer you purchased it from. Someone knows the answer to this problem. If you decide to move on to another printer, don’t discount the Canon line. I don’t own one, but I play a professional photographer online.
Brent
D. Brent Miller
6 Feb 10 at 7:01 pm
I had a similar problem with my Canon i9900. Black lines. Turned out it was the black ink cartridge. This never happens on my HP 8750.
Craig Nisnewitz
6 Feb 10 at 7:13 pm
Keep us appraised; one of my goals this year was to get my printing act together, and it’s always good to know where the demons lie in this process.
Chris Klug
6 Feb 10 at 7:27 pm
I’m a big fan of the 12-ink HP z3200 printer with its gloss optimizer and integrated X-Rite spectrophotometer, but don’t think people aren’t occasionally having problems with that printer either. And you’ll probably just get the same image quality.
One advantage to going non-Epson is eliminating most clogging issues. Epson printers require something like 30% humidity to prevent clogging, and I know pros who keep humidifiers on all the time where their Epsons are, and one who covers his printers at night with a plastic bag, putting damp sponges under the bag to help with the humidity level.
I went to a seminar in which Andrew Darlow (author of “301 Inkjet Tips & Techniques,” and former Editorial Director of Digital Imaging Techniques Magazine) discussed the printers he was using or testing. He started rhapsodizing about the then newly-released Z3200 and a woman responded with a detailed tale of woe about her Z3100 which went back to HP three times and still did not work properly. That example probably is an exception, but it’s also an example of ‘the grass is always greener.’
Get your Epson looked at.
Elliot
6 Feb 10 at 7:34 pm
My own favorite solution, is to let someone else deal with the printing. West Coast Imaging prints on Silver Rag, I’ve used them over the years for extra large prints, and they do wonderful work. The question is, and I’m going to talk with them about this – turnaround time – can they get work back to me in a week on a regular basis; and whether I can justify the extra expense.
They do such a great job with packaging, that all I’d have to do is change the label, and reship to the customer, or maybe (if the customer could live without my signature on the print) it could be drop shipped directly to the customer.
They do have a service (express prints) with a fast turnaround 48 – 72 hours…
“Light-Sensitive Photo Papers
It is possible to use our Chromira to print onto light-sensitive photo papers and make B&W prints, but we prefer the results of inkjet printing for B&W over light-sensitive papers. However, unique results can be obtained with Fuji SuperGloss and Kodak Metallic paper.”
I tried the Metallic paper for b&w and didn’t care for the look. I haven’t tried the Fuji Supergloss. In other words, to get fast turnaround time and silver rag – I’m not sure if I can add that cost to the price or not.
I really do need to talk with them. So on Monday, I’ll be talking with WCI and also with an Epson Rep (hopefully). I really don’t want to chuck the 7800 and get another printer, no matter who raves about it. Other considerations: if I used an outside source, the amount of stuff I have in the house for shipping, and printing, and all the various sizes I’m offering — I could probably make the apartment a decent place to live; and have time to work on my photography.
I’m from the school of HCB – ie. you find a printer that knows how you like your work, and circle a few images on (in those days the contact sheet) and get to spend more time with your creative life rather than being a production manager.
WCI has a very nice system for uploading and managing your files online. It would make more sense to find a place in New York that offered the same services, but so far I haven’t found one that offers high-end fine art printing and upload capabilities – though there must be one.
dave
6 Feb 10 at 7:57 pm
I have not tried them but have seen their work and its great. They are in NYC.
Here is the link:
http://www.duggal.com/
Craig Nisnewitz
6 Feb 10 at 8:12 pm
I used them for a long time for developing negs. Expensive. They don’t seem to have a clear system for uploading files; and since they don’t offer price lists online, they’re bound to be expensive.
Some people love them. Others don’t. But they’re worth a call to see if they offer the solution I’m looking for. They’ve got to be the hugest digital / print / everything lab in NYC.
dave
6 Feb 10 at 8:19 pm
WCI is great. So’s MPIX Pro (same company as MPIX and also Miller’s, but the Pro division works bends over backwards for pros).
http://mpixpro.com/HowItWorks.aspx
I haven’t gone back to Duggal since they went all-digital, but word is that they now usually only pay the best attention to the most famous customers.
Elliot
7 Feb 10 at 12:04 am
Dave,
These things happen sometimes. You have been printing alot. It could just be a wad of paper fuzz, or a cat hair strategically placed. I would do the windexed paper towel under the head again, sliding the carriage over it each direction. It will pick up ink, because ink in the nozzles will wick out over the wet paper towel, but you are trying to get goo or hair or fuzz off the edge of the head. You might have to do it a few times. Then a normal cleaning cycle.
You can save the money for a maintenace tank, by popping the plastic grid off the top, dumping the felt-like pads, and replacing them with women’s maxi-pads. Snap the grill back on. Then you can reset the chip with a resetter, cheap on the e-auction site. It works.
If you had the right cover off, you could stand behind the printer, and actually see the heads.
It doesn’t make sense that all is well and then it has a sudden demise. I just think it has to be debris. Is it a smudge, or a spit of ink? If it is spitting ink, it could be air in the cartridge. If you look at the ink spot, around the edges, with a lupe, you can discern if it is a color, or black. The spot itself will look like black. If you could replace the offending cartridge, run a cleaning cycle, you could get rid of it.
Oh, look for air bubbles in the ink delivery tubes. Maybe that will give you a clue.
most of all, don’t give up. It is just a machine, and I bet it is a simple problem/solution.
ken
Ken Smith
7 Feb 10 at 1:36 am
I really think you’re on the right track with this outsourcing issue. Taking it to the next level with the drop shipping method would truly free you up to pursue the capture end of the equation. The only glitch might be the signature aspect, but perhaps you could have a custom stamp/signature designed that WCI would apply to each print prior to packaging/shipping.
Greg L'E
7 Feb 10 at 3:33 am
Dave its been obvious to me as a regular reader of your blog that your homeprinting arrangements are to say the least impractical and probably not sensable now that your volumes have increased.
I think you should at least outsource a percentage of your printing and see how it pans out,ultimately you should be able to concentrate on the artistic side of things rather than printing and shipping.
Regards Michael
Michael Roche
7 Feb 10 at 9:40 am
Michael, I am definitely going to begin doing some percentage of my work with West Coast Imaging. I’m just working out the price stuff now. I’m going to talk with WCI about using some sort of stamp with my signature so that prints can be drop shipped to the customer. The last six months have really been crazy in terms of chaining me to the process of printing and packaging.
And I’m not giving up on the printer — Ken you really do know your stuff. I’m going to do the Windex trick again. Love the idea of not having to keep buying maintenance tanks. I’m sure it’s just a bit of debris that I haven’t gotten to.
dave
7 Feb 10 at 11:30 am
My 2 cents – outsource it. Look at what your spending your time thinking about – cat hairs, maxipads, windexing print heads – not to mention the money wasted on paper, ink, etc. What’s that stuff got to do with photography? Maybe create a seperate product for “handprinted images by the artist” and really bump the price for them, so you can still keep your hand in the full process, if you want.
Dave W.
7 Feb 10 at 12:21 pm
Dave,
Let’s just split a Lamda machine and be done with it.
Teach Buddy which buttons to push and when you come
home from a long day of shooting, a perfect stack of prints
will await you…
MattW
7 Feb 10 at 12:52 pm
I’ve tried using the cat before. He’s not a reliable worker. I setup a webcam so that I could watch him when I left the house – and I found him curled up in a ball sound asleep… then when he heard the my keys in the lock, he’d go back to the Epson and continue printing.
dave
7 Feb 10 at 1:25 pm
Hey dave. You should check out Digital Silver Imaging for black and white.
http://digitalsilverimaging.com/
They are a black and white only lab printing on the Ilford FB or the Ilfospeed RC.
Christopher
12 Feb 10 at 10:26 am