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HP Latex 360 Printheads dropping out after 3 days???

Aaron Mulka

New Member
I have a HP Latex 360, 3rd party limited warranty, I set it up 3 weeks ago, under 2 hours total print time but everything worked fine. Left for a week vacation, left the printer on so it could cycle, came back and got error code 98:03, and it looks like 3 printheads no longer work. tried the printhead cleaning option and no go. Is there a way to recover these, or manually clean them? They are brand new, seems odd that after a week of downtime on new heads and the printer on that they would drop out. Is this a vacuum issue, if so how would I check that? I am new to Latex, my background is in roland eco-sol. THX!
 

Dan360

New Member
If they're under warranty I would get new heads. I would clean the printhead contacts in the carriage before putting new ones in. Hopefully it's not an issue with the lines. Using HP ink I'm assuming?
 

ikarasu

Active Member
Both machines we got came with faulty heads.

The tech told me the proper way to do the heads is to flush a little bit of fluid into it or something like that before installing them, and the first tech didn't do it... Which is why two came out bad. He said lost techs don't do it.

No idea if he's making it up or not. But we had two bad heads in our first machin and one bad one in our last one. You just call hp.... They told us it takes 48 hours, but we've aways got it within 24. No hassles to return... They just ask you the serial number and send it over.
 

jpescobar

New Member
Something is wrong with Latex printers despite there are many owners who are happy and satisfied. Most of issues are user faults and bad manipulation but nobody can deny the tons of problems on those printers due to the thermal printheads. Just go on HP Latex Knowledge Center and see how many people are complaining about problems on their printers after few days and weeks of running.

I cancelled my purchase of a Latex Print & Cut 335 and I've ordered an Epson SC-S40600. Very good build, a real workhorse, the best printhead in all eco-solvent printer, 4 GS3-UltraChrome inks, extremely precise colors, reliability and wide media versatility.
 

Bly

New Member
But you have to wait 6 hours to laminate and the inks aren't as scratch resistant as latex..
 

jpescobar

New Member
But you have to wait 6 hours to laminate and the inks aren't as scratch resistant as latex..

For outgassing time 6h for an eco-solvent printer is a record compared to 24h on other printers. About the ink scratch resistance the new formula of the GS3 UltratChrome inks are certified GreenGuard Gold and are scratch resistant so the prints are safe and there are no risks of Voc emissions especially for indoor applications like wallpapers and canvas.
 

ikarasu

Active Member
$100 per printhead... We have a backup of each. When one fails... We call hp... They overnight a new one... We plop in our backup... And a new backup arrives. Not that difficult.


Let me know how you like your solvent in a few months when you get a head strike / rub and have to fork out $3000 for a new head, then tell me if it's worth it...

Latex isn't the catch all end all of printers. But head wise..it's much more costly and convenient than solvents.

Some solvent heads last 5-10 years. But any mishaps or operator errors. And it's a 5-40k mistake. Shit happens... Even to the best of us.

There isn't a problem with the printers.... It's the mindset. These are consumables now. They're mass produced... Sometimes faulty ones get through. So long as hp continues with their amazing support and quick turn around of replacing any bad heads... I don't mind a head here or there failing early.
 
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