Pump or Capping Station?

[Rickey J]

I have a Roland SP-300. I was doing a medium head cleaning and it just did not seem to me like very much ink came out of the dump hose. How do I check to see if its the Pump or the Capping station?

 

[sfr table hockey]

It might be just plugged drain lines. If you can see where the line connects to the capping station from the pump, you can disconnect each one and push some cleaning solution through with a syringe.

Not 100% sure what the Sp300 looks like for setup compared to mine but should be similar.

 

[Gfx Signs]

I have a mutoh Falcon II with very similar parts, DX4 heads, Same pumps and Caps.

I'm not sure how the SP300 looks either but... I would say, Disconnect the pump from the caps, try and pull the ink through the head with a syringe. If your getting a lot of air it might be the cap..... You might be able to get the syringe from your local drug store.

Make sure the drain lines are clean!!!

If you grab the pump lines see if they are rigid. They should be soft. It is an easy rebuild. Solventinkonline.com (White flexible tubing) and some white grease..

 

[JET]

lines clogged

I just had this problem.
One of my drain lines was clogged going to the pump.

A simple way to check the lines is to do a cleaning with the drain bottle unscrewed. Hold it an inch away from the cap so you can see the two tubes. When it is doing the cleaning process you should see ink come out of both lines.

The next proceedure is to disconnect the drain lines at the tee and pull ink with a syringe from each capping station. If you hear a leak you may need new caps. If you do not get ink and no leaks you may need to remove the line and clean with a wire. Once all the lines are cleaned you want to see if the drain lines are clogged after the tee. Connect the syringe to the line with a little cleaning fluid in the tube and try to push fluid towards the drain bottle. If it is clogged remove the line carefully because it is connected to a cheap plastic connector that can break easily. Then run a wire down the line with cleaning fluid until it is cleaned. After you cleans all the lines you can squirt more fluid towards the bottle until it flows. Then do the machine cleaning while watching the drain tubes with the bottle disconnected.

 

[Rickey J]

Thanks Everyone

Thanks for the info everyone. Ok now I did all the above items. I got ink with a syringe from each cap, cleaned all lines before and after pump. Then i did a medium head cleaning and I got just a few bubbles from the dump line. Is that all I should get?

 

[sfr table hockey]

Again if it's anything like mine you should get more than bubbles. The last run of the pump usually spits out a bit of a stream from each drain hose. So you might have somthing not sealing right. Do a couple cleanings first. If they don't get better as you go then look for something else.

When you draw ink from the capping station with a syringe, do you hear an air leak sound or does the syringe have resistance as it pulls ink into it? You should be able to get ink drawing and not filled with bubbles. If the syringe gets bubbles with the little bit of ink then there is an air leak.

First after that is to look at the capping station.

Are all the dampers about 1/2 full?

 

[Rickey J]

All the dampers are full.

 

[sfr table hockey]

All the dampers are full.

Dampers should be just about 1/2 full and the rest air. To confirm are yours all the way full? If so you might try a new damper and see if it still the same or 1/2 full as would be normal.

Also if you can look at a damper, what color oring inside the area that goes to the print head. (ie: blue, red, black etc.)

What about drawing ink and hearing air loss or feeling resistance?

 

[SE SignSupply]

Dampers should be just about 1/2 full and the rest air. To confirm are yours all the way full? If so you might try a new damper and see if it still the same or 1/2 full as would be normal.

Also if you can look at a damper, what color oring inside the area that goes to the print head. (ie: blue, red, black etc.)

What about drawing ink and hearing air loss or feeling resistance?

Damper levels can vary, it's not uncommon for older machines to have nearly full dampers.

 

[petepaz]

how old is your machine ours is about 3-4 years old and
we had a different problem about 5-6 months ago and while they where fixing it they replaced the pump N/C because there was a recall or an up grade (something like that) but maybe if it is the pump they may fix it for free

 

[sfr table hockey]

Damper levels can vary, it's not uncommon for older machines to have nearly full dampers.

Thats good to know.

All I have ever seen are in my units (and they are old units CJ and FJ) and thus thought they would never fill further. When you talk older machines do you mean older worn dampers can do this or just a more used older printer can do this???

 

[Rickey J]

The printer is a Roland SP-300 and It was put in service in 2004.

 

[SE SignSupply]

Thats good to know.

All I have ever seen are in my units (and they are old units CJ and FJ) and thus thought they would never fill further. When you talk older machines do you mean older worn dampers can do this or just a more used older printer can do this???

Sorry I should have been clearer. I was speaking of eco-solvent Roland machines. The eco solvent ink actually absorbs the air in the top of the damper over time.

Aqueous based ink does not absorb water, these dampers will always have air in the top.

 

[Pacific Coast Sign]

Did you get the NEW style pump u[grade? If not...check the pump, if you see any ink around the gear area then you have a bad pump. Replace with the new style (+kit) and you won't have any further pump issues...the new style lasts a very long time. I believe the pump is about $80 +kit. You MUST change the LAST bit page 12 from "0" to "1" to make the pump work properly!!!