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losing color on cj500
- Thread starter jpro
- Start date
artbot
New Member
that's classic ink starvation. it can be caused by issue above and below the print head. first do a damper/ink line swap (observe to see that the ink level in that damper is holding). if the issue stays as the magenta head, then you have a cap/pump/vacuum issue (by the way, is there the usual amount of magenta sitting in the cap or more or less). if the issue follows the damper/ink line than you have a clogged line, clogged cartridge needle, bad cartridge, or bad batch of ink.
is there anything that you did different to the printer since this showed up?
this can be pesky if you don't do proper isolation diagnostics. don't just throw parts at the machine.!!! there's lots of knowledge on this board about fixing this. it shouldn't take long.
(if you are unfamiliar about damper swaps, do a search on the word swap)
is there anything that you did different to the printer since this showed up?
this can be pesky if you don't do proper isolation diagnostics. don't just throw parts at the machine.!!! there's lots of knowledge on this board about fixing this. it shouldn't take long.
(if you are unfamiliar about damper swaps, do a search on the word swap)
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J Hill Designs
New Member
so you pull ink through the mag head just fine, but still no print? I would say bad orings/dampers not letting ink stay in line...
sfr table hockey
New Member
I think you have converted to solvent.... correct?
You might have a blockage in the drain lines.
Make sure the drain lines are not plugged. Remove the two lines from the capping station that go to the pump and force some cleaning fluid through and into the drain bottle. Watch for ink to drain into the drain bottle. You might get pressure building in the line if it's blocked bad so have a rag handy to cover over the syringe end. If both those lines were ok then look at the clear line that runs from under each of the caps to the small rectangular box on the left side of the capping station. These lines should be clear and if blocked can cause drop out.
Once you are sure the lines are clear then put the heads back on the capping station and use the syringe and a small length of white tube to connect direct to the capping station and now draw ink through the captops into the syringe. If you get lots of bubbles you might have an air leak. Once the problem side head is loaded with ink do a reg cleaning and a test print.
You might have a blockage in the drain lines.
Make sure the drain lines are not plugged. Remove the two lines from the capping station that go to the pump and force some cleaning fluid through and into the drain bottle. Watch for ink to drain into the drain bottle. You might get pressure building in the line if it's blocked bad so have a rag handy to cover over the syringe end. If both those lines were ok then look at the clear line that runs from under each of the caps to the small rectangular box on the left side of the capping station. These lines should be clear and if blocked can cause drop out.
Once you are sure the lines are clear then put the heads back on the capping station and use the syringe and a small length of white tube to connect direct to the capping station and now draw ink through the captops into the syringe. If you get lots of bubbles you might have an air leak. Once the problem side head is loaded with ink do a reg cleaning and a test print.
artbot
New Member
so you did the damper swap. AND the magenta head did nothing. but the new magenta line printed magenta? AND you looked in the capping station and there's no latent magenta pooling in the cap (do you mean there's no magenta in the cap while the magenta line is properly fitted to the magenta head?).
that means you have bad vacuum at the cap and it's not properly priming the head. printers run ink through them by syphoning the ink. and the magenta cap might be sitting askew or a hair is sitting across the seal. or the pump tube below has come loose and is hanging, or the pump is clogged or not working well.
to check if your o-rings are bad. pull ink into the damper with a syringe. do you see tiny bubbles or just fluid coming in at the bottom of the damper. also, hang that damper out for a while unattached to a head. does it hold it's ink level or slowly lose it. if it loses level. you either have a compression fitting that is loose or an o-ring that is not straight or aged. of course first tighten fittings (remember when you rotate the dampers to connect them you can sometime loosen the fittings) and repeat the test.
it is very doubtful that you need a new head. this is ink starvation caused by loss of prime.
that means you have bad vacuum at the cap and it's not properly priming the head. printers run ink through them by syphoning the ink. and the magenta cap might be sitting askew or a hair is sitting across the seal. or the pump tube below has come loose and is hanging, or the pump is clogged or not working well.
to check if your o-rings are bad. pull ink into the damper with a syringe. do you see tiny bubbles or just fluid coming in at the bottom of the damper. also, hang that damper out for a while unattached to a head. does it hold it's ink level or slowly lose it. if it loses level. you either have a compression fitting that is loose or an o-ring that is not straight or aged. of course first tighten fittings (remember when you rotate the dampers to connect them you can sometime loosen the fittings) and repeat the test.
it is very doubtful that you need a new head. this is ink starvation caused by loss of prime.
now when i clean and do a test print the test print looks great then when it starts to print to prints 2 to 3 lines then the magenta stops printing. when i abort and do a test print the magenta only has a few lines it is like it runs out of ink. THANKS FOR ALL YOUR ANSWER SO FAR!!!!! I am right in the middle of election signs and have a printer down.
ddarlak
Go Bills!
sounds like your pump is clogged.
try and push fluid thru it and see if it comes into the waste bottle.
if it doesn't, then u r clogged, clean it out. run a cleaning.
if it's not clogged, take damper off, slide head over. crumple up paper towel and place under head. take syringe, attach small tube, suck cleaninf fluid into it, place on nipple of magenta and blow out the head. watch underneath the head with flashlight and see the head open up. put back together and run a few cleaning cycles....
try and push fluid thru it and see if it comes into the waste bottle.
if it doesn't, then u r clogged, clean it out. run a cleaning.
if it's not clogged, take damper off, slide head over. crumple up paper towel and place under head. take syringe, attach small tube, suck cleaninf fluid into it, place on nipple of magenta and blow out the head. watch underneath the head with flashlight and see the head open up. put back together and run a few cleaning cycles....
artbot
New Member
grrr.... sorry. did you do the diagnostic protocol of swapping lines/dampers. i.e. putting the magenta line/damper on say the black print head position and the black line/damper on the magenta head position (do not disconnect dampers from the lines. just unplug and cross lines and plug back in.) run a file of a black square and a magenta square. if the black square starts having ink issues, than it is a vacuum issue. if the magenta square has issues, it is a supply problem.
you don't need new dampers. using new dampers ruins the experiment. use what is on the machine.
did you do this or something similar to this diagnostic test?
you don't need new dampers. using new dampers ruins the experiment. use what is on the machine.
did you do this or something similar to this diagnostic test?
tomence
New Member
This is interesting problem that you have. You say your pump works well, capping station works well and you have no clogged lines. Also you said you pushed fluid thru the magenta pring head and no cloggs. I mean really what can it be wrong.
ddarlak and sfr table hockey i know you guys know a lot about this printer so what can be the problem. He says everything he checked was working ok. So what other things can go wrong.
ddarlak and sfr table hockey i know you guys know a lot about this printer so what can be the problem. He says everything he checked was working ok. So what other things can go wrong.
artbot
New Member
so officially, everywhere you put the magenta line/damper you get a problem? if so, than you have a supply problem, all being that the line holds ink and doesn't take on air.
start with cleaning out the magenta ink line. don't do this by pulling ink toward the carriage. it works better by forcing fluid backwards towards the cartridges.
get a basic empty plastic cartridge (if you only have factory carts, just be a little gentle, you'll need an empty). mount a syringe on to the ink line without the damper attached. and push about six syringes worth of fluid into the mounted cartridge. you could have a cartridge needle block. this will only come out by reverse pressure. had a major issue with yellow and went nuts trying to find it and finally cleaning the line was what fixed it. also, observe the magenta ink. paint a swatch of it next to another color on some aluminum foil. see if over a few minutes is stays cleanly mixed (no particles, etc). the only other thing that it might be is a cartridge that has the inner bag collapsing incorrectly. and it is starving the magenta under demand.
although it's frustrating, this is the cheapest thing that can go wrong with your printer. next time you will fly through the diagnosis and be back printing in an hour.
YOU CAN DO IT JPRO!!!!! CLEAN THAT INK LINE!!! AND PRINT THOSE ELECTION THINGS!!!
start with cleaning out the magenta ink line. don't do this by pulling ink toward the carriage. it works better by forcing fluid backwards towards the cartridges.
get a basic empty plastic cartridge (if you only have factory carts, just be a little gentle, you'll need an empty). mount a syringe on to the ink line without the damper attached. and push about six syringes worth of fluid into the mounted cartridge. you could have a cartridge needle block. this will only come out by reverse pressure. had a major issue with yellow and went nuts trying to find it and finally cleaning the line was what fixed it. also, observe the magenta ink. paint a swatch of it next to another color on some aluminum foil. see if over a few minutes is stays cleanly mixed (no particles, etc). the only other thing that it might be is a cartridge that has the inner bag collapsing incorrectly. and it is starving the magenta under demand.
although it's frustrating, this is the cheapest thing that can go wrong with your printer. next time you will fly through the diagnosis and be back printing in an hour.
YOU CAN DO IT JPRO!!!!! CLEAN THAT INK LINE!!! AND PRINT THOSE ELECTION THINGS!!!
THANKS GUYS FOR ALL YOUR TIME AND INFO. it turned out to be a stopped up head when you pushed ink through it was fine it would bubble up. but i had a old head that came with the machine and pushed cleaner through it and it would spray instead of bubbleing so change the heads and it is working great. THANKS AGAIN CAN'T SAY IT ENOUGH!!!!!!