SP-300 not printing yellow only

[Jim Hill]

Question:

On an Roland SP-300 which damper is used for the yellow?

Because of the problem with the ink flowing from the magenta I am now not sure which damper is which.

I have already placed an order for new dampers but I would love to try and get the printer working until they arrive.

I have been looking for a diagram for the SP-300 that might show which damper is for each color.

Thanks Bobby. Jim

 

[Banners Signs Etc.]

are the ink lines black? I haven't worked on one of these but it seems like you could see which line has yellow in it...maybe take off the back cover and follow it back to the carts if its that bad
hook your syringe to one of the two lines and pull see what color you get

 

[Jim Hill]

Lines are both magenta colored.

Dave:

I just checked the lines and they are both magenta colored which is the reason I had a hard time figuring out which one was the yellow line.

I think I will not only replace the dampers but also the plastic line.

This is the first time the printer has not given me a message the an ink cartridge was low or empty.

How much of the sheet metal from the read of the machine as to get removed to follow the line back to the cartridge?

Thanks Jim

 

[Jim Hill]

Cleaning cartridges

I just checked my cleaning cartridges and they don't have much left in them so I thinking I better place an order for two more.

Jim

 

[Banners Signs Etc.]

you could pop a cleaning cartridge into the yellow spot and then suck it through with the syringe...should be easy enough to remove the back cover...or just suck and suck with one line and then if no solution comes through try the other one...whats a little ink anyway

get some supplies from cibersupply (Bobby from above) they are in GA should be quick shipping

 

[Jim Hill]

Sringe question

Are you putting the syringe into the bottom of the damper or removing the plastic tubing and putting the syringe into the tube?

I have a few different syringes that I am using but I am not getting much of anything coming through the lines.

Should I be using the syringe with the needle or just how are you connecting the syringe.

I removed the yellow cartridge and installed a cleaning cartridge hoping to pull the cleaning fluid through the lines to clean them.

Jim

 

[Banners Signs Etc.]

its probably not recommended but I hook the syringe...minus the needle into the bottom of the damper and pull gently through it...
officially you should suck from the line connected to the damper without the needle.

I don't know where you get your syringe or what size it is...but I get mine from tractor supply in the cattle section

You are going to have to suck through the damper anyway to clear it, but you might want to clear the line first

 

[Jim Hill]

Dave Brown

I think I am going to replace the tubing from the damper back to the cartridge along with installing a new damper.

I want to make sure I start fresh and with no color contamination.

Thanks for all your help and advice. Jim Hill

 

[artbot]

dampers are like $8 each right? if you clear that line by backwards flushing it perfectly clean then there no reason to replace it. only replace it if it's damaged. otherwise never wash your car, just trade it in. you are real close to the printer working again. inspect for needle damage or obstruction, reverse flush the line, retest the pull (from the damper) order a few after market dampers (there really is no such thing as an OEM damper) and then update us.

 

[Banners Signs Etc.]

agreed, you're almost there!

Think of how great it will feel when you buy that monster steak to celebrate you fixing a machine that would have cost you thousands if you called a tech

if you are anything like me you can celebrate once a week when you have to fix it lol

 

[Jim Hill]

Artbot:

Would you explain how you back flush the damper.

I have a few different syringes that I have tried to use to pull the ink out of the damper and not much success.

What type of syringe are you using and please explain just how you are doing it.

I have the Roland cleaning solution just need to know how to do it.

Jim

 

[artbot]

my syringe has a small section of pump tube on the end, then a fitting that i've sanded down to the perfext size to fit into the end of a damper. when reverse flusing a line, i like to take off the damper. you'll want to get a good amount of pressure on the line and the membrane of the damper will not take that much pressure. for that i take the same syringe and carefully fit it to the end of the ink line. make sure you hold the whole thing together. you could make a mess of solution of the ink line pops off during the flush. don't as me how i figured this out.

when cleaning a damper i take it off, fill the syringe and force solution backwards through it, then soak the whole thing in solvent, then toss it in ultrasonic.

 

[Jim Hill]

Priming dampers question

When installing new dampers do you connect a syringe to the bottom of the damper and pull ink into the damper until it is about three quarters full first before printing?

No sure if this step is needed or not.

This is my first time replacing a damper and I want to make sure I do it right.

Thanks Jim

Artbot: thanks for you tips of using the syringe with a section of the tubing attached to the end for pulling ink and cleaning fluid into the damper.

 

[artbot]

put the fitting tip in the bottom of the syringe. gently pull until you see all the air has left the lines. when you get to that point you will see the ink pulling into the damper but down into the syringe, not filling the damper very well. now turn the damper upside down while pulling the vacuum. you will see the ink come into the damper but then pour off down to the "ceiling" of the damper which is now facing down. the top portion of the damper will start filling with ink. when you get to about the 2/3 mark quickly flip the damper right side up to look if the air space at the top of the damper is just about right. reinspect for any air bubbles in the line and that's about it.

i usually leave the damper hanging for a few minutes after fitting a new one on. if there is an air leak the ink will start leaching back toward the carts. if not, the level wills stay.

 

[Jim Hill]

Artbot

In one of your reply's to me you stated the following:

Did you make sure that your pumps were set open and also that the capping station was vertical parked?

My question how do I set the pumps to open and when you say was the capping station vertical parked did you means with the heads directly above it?

I thought the capping station was fixed in one position. Does it move?

Thanks again you are the man when comes to fixing these printers.

Jim