Mimaki CJV 150-75 HeadStrike?

[LanceWest]

Hello all, I am troubled.

We had some fuzziness on a print yesterday. I figure it was from static.

My boss suggested running a nozzle check, just to make sure. it was not good. We had quite a few missing pieces. No big chunks but a few here and here all over the print. So I ran a cleaning. Now we have most of the print back in good shape, except for a big chunk missing between the black and yellow.

It looks like a head strike. But all I did between test prints was a cleaning. the thing sits and self cleans all the time. I am lost. Looking at $2,500 for a new print head. which wouldn't be so bad except this is the 3rd machine that has given us fits in the last 2 months.

 

[LanceWest]

Now, on more recent Nozzle checks, the black is overtaking the yellow and cyan

 

[Notarealsignguy]

Picture of latest?
Try some washes. Maybe it didnt cap good overnight. Weve had it happen a few times, no big deal.

 

[LanceWest]

This all started yesterday. We had a fuzzy print. Ran nozzle check, ran cleaning, and now it's a mess

 

[Notarealsignguy]

Its not a big deal. Theres nothing wrong with the head.
Go to test print/cleaning > station > custody wash (i think?)
Follow the prompts, then it lets you do a soak, try 2 mins. Test print and see. Might have to do it a couple times. Make sure your wash cartridge has solution in it.

 

[Solventinkjet]

Check the bottom of the head for damage. Usually if missing nozzles are being caused by a head strike you can see the scratches on the head. If the head looks undamaged, make sure your wiper is nice and flat and not bloated. If it's leaving ink on the head after cleaning it will cause issues like this. At the end of the day is the head is damaged, check out our site. We have the OEM head for cheaper and offer tech support.

 

[LanceWest]

I have done both Custody was and Nozzle Wash. Nozzle wash has set, twice, for 99 minutes. No luck.

 

[LanceWest]

I have inspected the head. I do not see any scratches or anything. It printed a good(ish) nozzle check first. It was good in the sense that there wasn't a large chunk missing. We ran it through an ultra cleaning then got the missing section. There was no chance for a typical head strike between nozzle checks. All I did was run it through a cleaning and then check again.

 

[Jim Hancock]

I see on the first pic there is a black smear on the right cyan on the first test draw. What caused this? As Solventinkjet has said, check the wiper and the bottom of the head for ink residue after cleaning. Sometimes internal print head damage doesn't show any visible external damage. The fact that the missing nozzles are consistent and all the others are perfect is an indication of print head damage, especially if you do not see any ink on the bottom of the head after doing the test draw. In addition, if you do see ink on the bottom of the head after cleaning and the wiper is in correctly, this is also an indication of internal head damage.

 

[LanceWest]

I see on the first pic there is a black smear on the right cyan on the first test draw. What caused this? As Solventinkjet has said, check the wiper and the bottom of the head for ink residue after cleaning. Sometimes internal print head damage doesn't show any visible external damage. The fact that the missing nozzles are consistent and all the others are perfect is an indication of print head damage, especially if you do not see any ink on the bottom of the head after doing the test draw. In addition, if you do see ink on the bottom of the head after cleaning and the wiper is in correctly, this is also an indication of internal head damage.

If this is an internal damage is there anything I might be able to do? The wiper hadn't been cleaned for a while, (running a skeleton crew. It is my machine but I was not here for a few weeks) and I thought maybe it had gummed up and jammed the nozzles. but I figured a few heavy soakings would clear it. Any ideas of something I may be able to do?

 

[Notarealsignguy]

I'm no expert but if you weren't there for a few weeks its clogged. Your test prints got progressively better and it just takes time and patience. Clean the rim of the captop first to ensure that the seal isnt being broke by a piece of trash. Then do the wash, 2 min soak, soft clean and test print. Then do it again and again. You dont need to soak it for 2 hours or use the nuclear clean. I have the same printer and it has done the same thing more than once, just went through this last week in fact.
It wont hurt to replace the wiper and captop either but this should come back without doing that.

 

[LanceWest]

It has the auto cleaning feature and it was being used. It just didn't receive a deeper, manual, cleaning.

 

[LanceWest]

I'm no expert but if you weren't there for a few weeks its clogged. Your test prints got progressively better and it just takes time and patience. Clean the rim of the captop first to ensure that the seal isnt being broke by a piece of trash. Then do the wash, 2 min soak, soft clean and test print. Then do it again and again. You dont need to soak it for 2 hours or use the nuclear clean. I have the same printer and it has done the same thing more than once, just went through this last week in fact.
It wont hurt to replace the wiper and captop either but this should come back without doing that.

You don't, by chance, have a picture of what your test print looked like when it happened do you? Just trying to compare symptoms so I can discuss options with my boss.

 

[Notarealsignguy]

It has the auto cleaning feature and it was being used. It just didn't receive a deeper, manual, cleaning.

Ours is always on too. After sitting for a week or 2, you will have some plugged nozzles. Don't get me wrong, I could be way off here but have experienced the same thing and it wasn't a big issue.
Another thing that has happened to us. You pick up the clamp lever at the end of cutting before its ready, get a clamp lever error and shut the machine off. It turns off right away rather than it doing its typical shut down and I think that the captop doesn't seal right. I did this the other day being in a hurry to leave and the next day was missing nozzles too

 

[Notarealsignguy]

You don't, by chance, have a picture of what your test print looked like when it happened do you? Just trying to compare symptoms so I can discuss options with my boss.

This is after 1 night when it didnt seat properly. The E was red and black

 

[MikePro]

not cleaning the wiper regularly could be what's causing your issue.
ink builds up on it, and eventually loses its squeegee-effect entirely while also smearing a clump of dried ink across your printhead, which then parks on the capping station and starts building-up ink on there as well, further allowing build-up of ink on the printhead and inhibiting ink flow to that (front) part of the printhead due to it not sealing with the head during its cycle.

start from scratch:
clean EVERYTHING to pristine condition, wiper & capping station, and scrub the perimeter of the printhead itself with foam swabs/cleaner (avoiding scrubbing the face of the printhead, of course)...only then, you can properly tackle the clogged nozzles with long soaks, additional cleanings, and nozzle checks.

 

[Jim Hancock]

What MikePro said...

 

[LanceWest]

I pulled the cover off of the printhead today. Just trying to see how difficult this head change is going to be. I know that the dampers have not been changed in 2+ years (it sat, basically unused, for the first year of my company having it).

The second damper is split between yellow and black. Could this be a damper problem? They need changed either way but I am hoping that, since yellow and black is where the problem is, that this may be the problem.

 

[L.D]

If you haven’t replaced the dampers in two years you might want to start there. Before replacement of a print head try replacing the dampers and the cap. Like you said you need to replace either way and if it’s a damper issue you save yourself the cost of a printhead.

 

[LanceWest]

I replaced the dampers this morning. No use. We still have the same section missing from the test print. Printing anything that uses yellow results in black lines in the print. No clue what is up with that other than a bad head.