Discussion Gerber Printer Dead Pixel Discussion

[Will308decals]

Hey all,

I got a question which will target mostly people who have had a pixel blown in their Gerber printer, or anyone who has knowledge on the subject.

I was just wondering, when a pixel is blown, is there anything you noticed about the printer that you had it doing? (Example: Printing for a long period of time, printing at 1200x300 or 600x300, or not cleaning the printhead, etc.)

If so I would love your input to limit myself and others from making the same mistake. Also, any other knowledge as to how to preserve the printhead would be great! I clean my printhead pretty religiously, but any other suggestions to keep it safe would be helpful for all!

Thanks,
Will

 

[netsol]

we have quite a bit of experience eith THIS TYPE OF TECHNOLOGY
the gerber edge printhead (i own 4 of the printers & use 2 regularly) is the same technology as
the zebra direct thermal label printers. i have changed a couple hundred zebra heads

most failures are because or dirt or dust on the printhead surface. kind of causing a. "hot spot" & blowing a pixel. the best way to avoid/delay printhead failure is to compulsively clean the printhead AS WELL as the vinyl you are printing on.

we use walgreens/walmart/CVS alohol wipes saturated with 91% isopropyl (they come with 70% in the container, but, are practically bone dry when you buy them)

 

[ego198]

based in my opinion always finally occur..what should be important its to know what things in daily routine help to last longer or in the opposite hand bad habits that make their life shorter..i dont know whats best, somebody says clean every day, every use, before and after, other not to clean so much, one in cold, others in hot, another question that bothers me if you use pretty much non oem foils, duracoat, zero9 and some other chea`per brands if that will potentially affect the surface of the head, due to abrasion of non oem foild and will short its life...also if using very old foils (bought many years ago..) can affect it...
also if you dont use oem wipes and clean with non gerber wipes though you use 99% isop alcohol will affect...also i ask myself if its the same to print very small decals that big surface of colour, if its the same to keep the machine powered on just to print x minutes and the turn off or keep it on during hours etc...also if its the same to print everyday in hot places like Mexico or cold like Canada etc..so many questions i done myself about this issue...
i doubt someone who uses their gerber so much, in years havent had this issue...but its good to hear experiences....for me theres no much diffirence and you cant do it so much about, its like a lottery, i had head that failled with less than 6k minutes on it..do you thing thats normal? Other says they had more than 80k mins in it problem free...i think its a lottery and i take so much care with them, i used to clean with 99% every every day and being conscient you must give it love..anyway it finally occurs irremediably...this is my humble experience. and iam gerber edge user for some years, i do love this machine but this is the true for me, working daily i have failled at least 4 heads...all from 2nd hand machines, but some of them as i said with very few minutes, less than 6k...others lasted longer, doing the same routine...i never had the chance to own a factory new one to see hom much lasts..but all my heads, from 2nd hand, none of them lasted for long...

 

[ego198]

we have quite a bit of experience eith THIS TYPE OF TECHNOLOGY
the gerber edge printhead (i own 4 of the printers & use 2 regularly) is the same technology as
the zebra direct thermal label printers. i have changed a couple hundred zebra heads

most failures are because or dirt or dust on the printhead surface. kind of causing a. "hot spot" & blowing a pixel. the best way to avoid/delay printhead failure is to compulsively clean the printhead AS WELL as the vinyl you are printing on.

we use walgreens/walmart/CVS alohol wipes saturated with 91% isopropyl (they come with 70% in the container, but, are practically bone dry when you buy them)

i dissagree, ive been doing cleaning with so much care, in cold temp, before printing, in cold temp, after printing and always keep my vinyls inside bags and clean before using, i can say 100% always cleaned perfectly everything........ and it finally occurs..based in my experience its a matter of time+jobs over it, call it firings+luck..but nobody is frree ot his to happen, no matter how cleanb you are...i suppose they designed it as a potentially piece that need to be changed like some parts of your car for example filters...oh and i used 99% ISOP alcohol, is waht instructions says..

 

[netsol]

i dissagree, ive been doing cleaning with so much care, in cold temp, before printing, in cold temp, after printing and always keep my vinyls inside bags and clean before using, i can say 100% always cleaned perfectly everything........ and it finally occurs..based in my experience its a matter of time+jobs over it, call it firings+luck..but nobody is frree ot his to happen, no matter how cleanb you are...i suppose they designed it as a potentially piece that need to be changed like some parts of your car for example filters...oh and i used 99% ISOP alcohol, is waht instructions says..

while i can't guarantee following my recommendtions will keep your head from going bad, it gives an idea
of "good practice"

it does give an idea of BAD HABITS, thst will cause the head to failmore quickly

A FEW WEEKS BACK, i replied to a post & mentioned the routine i use on my rolands & mutoh (printing a color wheel EVERY DAY & keeping cptops wet.

FULL DISCLOSURE, i probably buy as many heads as any of you and print a hell of. lot less than many of you

 

[ego198]

while i can't guarantee following my recommendtions will keep your head from going bad, it gives an idea
of "good practice"

it does give an idea of BAD HABITS, thst will cause the head to failmore quickly

A FEW WEEKS BACK, i replied to a post & mentioned the routine i use on my rolands & mutoh (printing a color wheel EVERY DAY & keeping cptops wet.

FULL DISCLOSURE, i probably buy as many heads as any of you and print a hell of. lot less than many of you

Yes, as recommendations it's fine, that's what the manual says, but I think that in the end what's really important is the workload that you carry... maybe there's some secret that we don't know and some old user can give us... What worries me the most right now is knowing if the use of non-original or very old cartridges can "negatively" affect the head due to a formulation of the material that is different from the original Gerber...basically...something like a simil to put a different oil than the one recommended by the manufacturer of your vehicle... and the life of your engine....

 

[netsol]

as i said earlier, my zebra clients print 1,000,000 labels per year/ per printer [1per department or product type] (1 label for every line item, for each order, filling. 20 ft box truck) and typically, they get a year out of. a print head. 4x6 labels.

but VERY DUSTY warehouse. even with sweeper running every day
if i could get them to clean every day, the head would last much longer

 

[FunkotronXL]

as i said earlier, my zebra clients print 1,000,000 labels per year/ per printer [1per department or product type] (1 label for every line item, for each order, filling. 20 ft box truck) and typically, they get a year out of. a print head. 4x6 labels.

but VERY DUSTY warehouse. even with sweeper running every day
if i could get them to clean every day, the head would last much longer

Are those Zebra's direct thermal or do they use thermal transfer ribbons like the Gerber?

Direct thermal is much more forgiving for contaminant buildup that is common with precut label rolls.

In regards to head cleaning routine. Cleaning it all the time is preferred for my usage, really depends on operating environment and how much dust or contaminants build up. Usually a daily full clean using OEM style wipes for buildup and then periodic throughout the day using 99% IPA and disposable non scratch wipes made for optics.

 

[netsol]

Are those Zebra's direct thermal or do they use thermal transfer ribbons like the Gerber?

Direct thermal is much more forgiving for contaminant buildup that is common with precut label rolls.

In regards to head cleaning routine. Cleaning it all the time is preferred for my usage, really depends on operating environment and how much dust or contaminants build up. Usually a daily full clean using OEM style wipes for buildup and then periodic throughout the day using 99% IPA and disposable non scratch wipes made for optics.

both
the ones with the ribbon can use one head for 5-7 years
(take that! those of you that don't believe cleaning is 90% of head life)

i had 2 140xi2's we bought USED in 2005 (they were 12 years old then) and they have each gone through 2heads in 18 years
printing 100,000's of labels a year

 

[jfiscus]

Best thing you can do to keep your heads on Gerber running is to keep their area (catch baskets both sides) very clean and free of dust/debris. If every time you use the machine you give it a quick wipe down (not the head) and a blow from canned air it'll remove even more dust. Also, choose a day of the year, every year, to take the covers off of your machine and clean out the internals; this will help the entire machine last longer and reduce other issues.

However, even brand new rolls of punched vinyl come with the little punchouts throughout the roll, so standing there wiping the dust (OMG where does it all come from???) as the vinyl travels back and forth through the machine is the best thing you can do to extend head life. Sometimes you have to stop/cancel mid-print due to material flaws/issues, but losing a decent amount of vinyl is still less than replacing a head.

Also, replacing the wipers and lint tassels helps a decent amount with keeping debris off the print area.

 

[ego198]

Anybody knows if the classic hoprizontal line with no colour=missing pixel, apart from dead pixel due to dust debris etc..could be caused by loosing connections on the internals or coming from something the power?

 

[FunkotronXL]

Anybody knows if the classic hoprizontal line with no colour=missing pixel, apart from dead pixel due to dust debris etc..could be caused by loosing connections on the internals or coming from something the power?

Reseating the connection for the printhead data cable can sometimes fix a misfiring pixel if there is no physical damage to the head visible. You'll need to gently reseat the connection both at the head itself and the board inside the lower assy.

 

[ego198]

Reseating the connection for the printhead data cable can sometimes fix a misfiring pixel if there is no physical damage to the head visible. You'll need to gently reseat the connection both at the head itself and the board inside the lower assy.

thanks so much, will try that, good cleand and reseat, ive reseated connection before but from the head itself, never done from the board side, good trick! Got some to try....

 

[netsol]

thanks so much, will try that, good cleand and reseat, ive reseated connection before but from the head itself, never done from the board side, good trick! Got some to try....

we often advise blowing out with air compressor or using a hepa vacuum to get all dust out, resoldering all the heavy/high current connections & reseating or flushing (with non lubricant) contact cleaner AND RESEATING, to try to clear out all sorts of gerber edge failures, but, truthfully the classinc 1 bad pixel is always 1 bad pixel (as freud said, sometimes a cigar is JUST a cigar)

it couldn't hurt to prove me wrong & i wish you all the luck in the world, but, i don't think i have ever seen a single pixel be anything but a bad single pixel

 

[netsol]

it can however just be a "piece of s**t" stuck to the head, which dislodges after a good GENTLE cleaning
if your eyesight is good enough to spot a fleck of dust covering a single pixel, my hat is off to you
a good GENTLE cleaning with 91% or 99% isopropyl may surprise us

 

[ego198]

it can however just be a "piece of s**t" stuck to the head, which dislodges after a good GENTLE cleaning
if your eyesight is good enough to spot a fleck of dust covering a single pixel, my hat is off to you
a good GENTLE cleaning with 91% or 99% isopropyl may surprise us

thanks netsol!

 

[Jburns]

when I have had an area out that looked like a dead pixel, I have taken a flashlight and jewelers loop and found that it was a stubborn fleck from a foil. I had an old tomato red foil that kept leaving the head dirty.

 

[ego198]

Right now 3 deaths in the same head, all 3 have appeared in a matter of less than 6 months. Using the machine daily. Curiously, one appeared at the upper limit, another almost in the middle, approximately 5" and another at the lower limit. First one, then another and finally the third. In less than 6 months... I have been using a lot somedifferent foils from an unrecognized brand that i was given, although they behave well in printing and look very nice and last very well, I think they may be the cause of this, i used to print "large areas of solid colour, specially red and yellow with this unbranded foils" and im start thinking if i would have done with gerber originals my head would be 100%..shame on me!... I have looked very carefully at the head and I do not see anything strange or physical damage... you were able to recover your head after the incident tomato red? In what way, rubbing with isopropyl alcohol? I've tried it, free lynth clothe and 99% isop alcohol and I haven't made any progress, I think the damage is permanent and I can't recover it... it would be incredible to be able to recover some pixels...1 or 2 out of the 3 i have dead...

the unbranded foils is not a brand like zeronine duracoat or other known brands..this were a very strange brand from Venezuela i was given, i have dozens of them and they work very well but i can figure out the cause of this damage in the head...only this foils..i use to clean head, vinyl everything daily very well...i think maybe the foil formula is very aggresive for the head compared to Gerber originals and it shortens the head life....

 

[netsol]

jburns,
the loupe or one of those weird little microscopes would probably work, but remember,
there are many ways for the print head to fail
flecks of foil sticking to the printhea is easily reversible, but,most of the other failures ARE NOT