Falcon Jr no black inck!

[signgal01]

Okay, so I know there is a thread about no black ink already, but I think this problem different? We went from printing awesome to absolutely no black ink in the middle of a print, not even a drop. Ordered a new maintenance station, and the sponge for the black head isn't even getting wet. I can pull ink into the damper no problem, and I got a little bit when I pulled it through the waste line, but not what I would expect. I have tried the isopropayl alcohol on the sponge trick to no avail, I took the head out and tried to gingerly clean it, nothing. The dampers are holding ink, I replaced the O ring in the black damper just because I had one. This happened while my wife and I where gone for two weeks so the printer sat with no cleanings for two weeks. Is my head shot?? something else I can try? Of course being gone for a couple weeks we are behind and I really need to get this bad boy cranking!

 

[randya]

Check for fuse first.

 

[J Hill Designs]

not sure if iso is the right thing to be using, for 1...

 

[signgal01]

The ISO is just what we have been told to use in the past, not saying it's right or wrong, just what we have been told. Okay, so for the fuse, I know from reading other posts that this can be real tricky and I am far from a techy kind of guy, but we are a long ways from help and it is litterally like a $1,000 charge to have a tech come out and if they don't have the exact part with them we get hit twice. Is there anyway you could walk me through checking the fuse? From other posts, I know where they are at, but that's about it.

 

[randya]

Isopropyl alcohol will work, it is much slower than the cleaning solution from one of the cleaning carts.

The biggest drawback is that alcohol evaporates quickly, so you have to watch it to make sure the cloth stays wet.


07-22-2010, 11:57 AM
ahollow
Premium Subscriber Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Mount Holly, NJ
Posts: 597

Yep, two little squares less than 3/16". Labelled F1 and F2. On the motherboard, toward left side and back. I believe F2 (the one on the left) is the black head.

But yes, check with a meter to see if they are blown. But first, turn off power, unplug cord, turn power switch on for 5 min, turn off power switch, then test. If not, the charge in the power supply may blow the fuse, even if it's unplugged and turned off.
Ask me how I know.
__________________
Allan

In this day and age of email and the Internet, it should be considered criminal to lack the information to do a job correctly.

Mutoh Falcon Jr., Graphtec FC7000-75, FlexiPro 8.0, Corel Draw X4, CAPS 6/4 screenprinter, heat press, etc.

http://www.signs101.com/forums/showthread.php?t=68530&highlight=head+fuse+jr

 

[signgal01]

Thanks for the tips, I looked back at some old posts and found the photo walk through, helped a lot. I talked to the mutoh customer care line and they thought I was getting a bad seal between the capping station and the head. Can you confirm my thinking, I got the seal fixed because I can now pull ink out of the waste line easily? And if I am getting ink out of the waste line and the damper is full but still not printing, this means my head is not/no longer dried up? Any reason to do a head soak with cleaning solution or am I past that point now? Just wanted to check before I start messing with the fuse where i could do some real damage.

 

[signgal01]

Fuses are good, kind of relieved because I didn't really want to tackle that project, but still scratching my head.

 

[J Hill Designs]

might try a data cable swap now, or maybe a damper swap first?

 

[randya]

Sounds as if there is no need to do a head soak.

I dont remember for sure, but I dont think you can do a cable swap on a Jr.

If you are getting NO nozzles, it certainly could be the head, but I think it is pretty unusual for the head to die like that, not that it didnt, it just doesnt normally happen that I best of my memory.

 

[artbot]

this is really an ink supply 101 issue. there are numerous discussions on the board about damper swaps. they discuss the ability to isolate the lack of ink being cause by a vacuum issue below the head or a supply issue above.

considering you left your printer off for a while, i'd first flush out the pump lines. latent ink can coagulate there but even a slightly clogged line will give you a little black pattern.

when you do a cleaning cycle, pull you waste line and look for black ink flowing out. look for fresh black in your cap. unfortunately that printer, i believe, has brass damper lines. thus making damper swaps difficult. i'd plunk around this sight and read like nuts for a few hours. it will be well worth the time and education. the fix for your printer will most likely cost nearly nothing but knowledge.

after educating yourself a bit more it will be easier for the more mechanical guys on this site to discuss the fix with you.

search under

damper swap
ink starvation
data swap
clogged pump