Need Help Epson S60600 Headstrikes - Possible Media Sensor Issue

[zanro]

Just found this page the other day and was hoping for some help.

Been using a epson s60600 for the last few years at my local sign shop. Recently we've been getting headstrikes on our prints and the media clamps. Usually I keep the platen gap to 2.0 but the other day it still had headstrikes after cleaning the nozzles and even moving the platen gap up to 2.5 (material is ij35c) I don't believe it's a media issue since the media clamps themselves get strikes on them too.

When doing a manual cleaning I noticed the Media Sensor seemed to be slightly loose and hanging lower on one side towards the back.

Not sure if we'll need a new sensor from Epson or if I can just fix the loose side myself

Any help would be appreciated

I noticed back in 2019 someone appeared to have the same issue but I'm not sure how it got resolved.

 

[netsol]

the epsons i am familiarwith are the much older aqueous ones.
but, are you sure your issues aren't vacuum related (not holding material,flat?)
or feed issues, getting a "rise" or a wave in the material as it feeds?

i may be wrong, but, head height is a mechanical adjustment, not electronic.

when my older roland gets cranky and causes this type of problem, it is because of feed issues, heat, or tension.

 

[zanro]

I was thinking that but visually it doesn't appear to have any wrinkles or buckles in the material. I increased the vacuum suction but it still did it. Never had to adjust the tension but I will mess around some more with settings and attach photos today when I get in.

I appreciate the feedback

 

[netsol]

can you manually move the carriage across the media? and then have a look at the clearance
perhaps something is loose.
my media clamps always make me nervous, but there is enough clearance they never cause a strike

 

[zanro]

can you manually move the carriage across the media? and then have a look at the clearance
perhaps something is loose.
my media clamps always make me nervous, but there is enough clearance they never cause a strike

 

[Graphic Extremes]

It looks like there is something hanging down in the third picture. Not sure what that is. Could be something that is bent.

 

[cmoist]

Agreed. That cover that is hanging down in the third pic is just a clear plastic piece and it's held on by two sided tape around the perimeter. The whole bottom comes off the carriage with a few screws from underneath. The sensor is housed inside the carriage. The clear plastic just protects it. I would take the bottom of the carriage off, remove that piece, clean and reinstall with some new tape.

 

[evoprinting]

We have an S40 and just started having a similar issue. We haven't had this happen so often in 3 years.
I've increased the Platten Gap to the max, increased vacuum to the max, increased tension. Ive also decreaed the preheat and platten heat. All of that has helped a little but not solved the issue completely. Now there is no more room for adjustments.
I'll check the sensor on Monday. Thanks for posting.

 

[Saturn]

Depending on the material, it could be worth trying more heat as well as less. I could never get bi-directional to print well (because of slight warping) until I upped the pre-heat. This was on GF-203. The heavier paper backing would flatten with more heat.

The vacuum on the Epson seems pretty wimpy...

 

[evoprinting]

Agreed. That cover that is hanging down in the third pic is just a clear plastic piece and it's held on by two sided tape around the perimeter. The whole bottom comes off the carriage with a few screws from underneath. The sensor is housed inside the carriage. The clear plastic just protects it. I would take the bottom of the carriage off, remove that piece, clean and reinstall with some new tape.

Thanks for this post. Like the original post, we were having the head strike problem as well. Today, when checking the plastic cover, it just fell off. The double sided tape around the edge was kinda gooey.
I cleaned the clear plastic and ready to try and reapply it. I need to clean the bottom of the carriage. I see two screws in the area where the clear plastic cover was. Are those the screws you were referring to? Is there anything else that needs to be done in order to remove the plastic carriage? Otherwise, I may just try to clean it and put the clear cover back on.
Thanks again for the info!

 

[cmoist]

Here is a photo of the position of the four mounting screws. I seem to remember there was another screw off to the right side of the photo that I had to remove as well.

 

[evoprinting]

Here is a photo of the position of the four mounting screws. I seem to remember there was another screw off to the right side of the photo that I had to remove as well.
View attachment 165250

Awesome! Thank you very much!

 

[evoprinting]

There is indeed one additional screw to the right when looking up. It was pretty easy to take off and re-apply the clear plastic. Just ran a new job and NO HEAD STRIKES!!! Thanks again!