ink wastage

[diarmuidrobson]

Hi,

Mimaki jv3160s flushing alot of ink down the waste line. Think it has sucked a full 440ml cyan, about half magenta and some light cyan almost overnight.

Any ideas what would cause this.

 

[genericname]

1. Capping station not sealing to head properly.
2. Busted lines or o-rings.
3. Pump broken or stuck in open position.

 

[diarmuidrobson]

Hi,

Just changed the caps recently, Think i am getting a good seal as the syringe pulls back when pressure is applied.

Also changed the O-Rings at the damper end but can't see any ink split anywhere.

I am 99% sure its all gone into the waste as it was almost full. Just emptied it about 2 nights ago.

Pumps were changed about 2 months ago.

Had to do a few strong cleans yesterday to revive nozzles but can't see that sucking that amount of ink?

Totally bewilderd...

 

[genericname]

Could still be a bad pump. If it's sealing the line, there shouldn't be any possibility of ink syphoning through. Move the carriage out, and drop some cleaning solution in the caps. If they drain all by themselves, then you either have a busted gate in your pump, or the pump's gear needs a partial turn to move it to the closed position.

This being a JV3, would I be correct in assuming that your caps have the metal guard in them, and not some kind of felt material? Wicking can still be a concern though, if contact is made between the inner bits of the cap, and the head. Make sure they're not pressing so hard against the head that it's forcing contact in the center. You should just have a light seal on them.

 

[J Hill Designs]

I'd vote swollen sponges in the captops creating a wick

 

[SightLine]

Are the new pumps actual Mimaki pumps or just some aftermarket pumps that looks the same? I ask because there are so horrid aftermarket pumps out. When I still had our JV3, in 6 months time I went through about 8 aftermarket pumps. One set lasted a whopping 2 weeks they were so crappy but all gave a myriad of problems. I later realized most were due to not a single one giving the correct amount of suction, some not sealing properly, improper type of tubing used (MUST be Tygon tubing for perastatic pumps like this). inferior materials, etc. One somehow chewed though the ink lines inside, another set looked and acted great making all the right sounds, just did not actually make any suction, another set simply cracked apart in places. Funny that the original Mimaki pumps lasted 5 years and as soon as a put a set of original Mimaki pumps in again - the problems immediatley stopped.

 

[thewood]

I'd vote swollen sponges in the captops creating a wick

I agree that your issue is most likely wicking. Do your capping stations have sponges? My old JV3 had the metal screens instead of sponges. Every time I witnessed your issue it was due to a cap top that didn't drain properly due to a bad pump or blocked waste line.

 

[diarmuidrobson]

The inserts in the caps are the stainless mesh type. The pumps were purchased from digiprint and i would say there not mimaki parts, Could be wrong, no way of telling.

Would overseal or too tight of a seal of the rubber on the cap to the head cause this type of problem?

True enough the solution don't stay in the caps for very long but i thought this was always the case. I find if i do a nozzle wash this holds the solution in the caps.

I cleaned the tank out today around 2pm and the cleaning cycle came on around 3 times til 6pm and there was very little in the tank.

Will know more tomorrow morning ...

 

[Freese]

Make sure the capping station alignment is OK, if the bottom of the head is making contact with the cap in an improper way, it will act as a siphon.

 

[MikePro]

if you changed the capping station recently, i'm more inclined to lean that way... if not for the mesh screens possibly being convexed and wicking, you could be getting the same result with a bad carriage-park and essentially having the same result but wicking down the rubber cap instead.

couldn't hurt to run a soft clean, carriage-out, and smear some ink on the capping station so that when you park and carriage-out again you can examine the underside of the printheads and see your targets.

edited 30sec. later:
hah, way for me to not even make it through all the posts before typing this... 5hrs ago I was beaten to it:

Make sure the capping station alignment is OK, if the bottom of the head is making contact with the cap in an improper way, it will act as a siphon.