Terrible Nozzle Check Mutoh 1204

[New to Printing]

HELP!

So i started the week with a bad cross contamination issue. That is now officially fixed thanks to you guys. I then realized that ALL of the hose lines under the cap were 100% clogged. They have been cleaned and replaced. I now can watched the ink getting pulled through the two clear hoses. During the process of trying to clear the cross contamination I printed large squares the with of my media by about 6ft long with %100 saturation of Magenta and 0% of every other color. (I am still under warranty so I didn't want to start taking things apart and I had a feeling the cleaning wasn't doing anything). A - I proved the cleaning wasn't doing anything and B - after about 12 feet the color was back to normal and it was printing perfectly. I was advised to soak the head on the capping station with a folded cloth and some cleaning solution after that to make sure all the nozzles were clean and clear. I did this for about an hour... swapping the cloth every 15-20 minutes... I then ran a long clean and a nozzle check.....

This is where it all goes wrong.

The far left is Magenta the first box is almost empty maybe 6 small lines in the nozzle check....the next magenta is perfect..the yellow and cyan are perfect..the next black box is perfect.. the last black box is similar to the first Magenta box.. basically no lines.

I have suction in my lines and i can visually see the ink going into the waste station so i know its pulling ink..I don't know what to do next..

Any ideas?

 

[Signchief]

How did you fix the cross contamination?

 

[Signchief]

Maybe you pulled cleaning fluid into the head and that's why the nozzle check showed blanks. If it's under warranty I would go that route. I wouldn't mention anything about trying to fix it yourself incase of voiding the warranty. My 1604 is doing the same thing but no warranty so plz update.

 

[New to Printing]

How did you fix the cross contamination?

After clearing all the tubes under the capping station I was able to repeat a bunch of "little charges" and printing large squares of just Magenta.

 

[Signchief]

Did you ever get the nozzles to come back?

 

[New to Printing]

After clearing all the tubes under the capping station I was able to repeat a bunch of "little charges" and printing large squares of just Magenta.

I know it's a huge waste of ink but what if I put the cleaning cartilage

Did you ever get the nozzles to come back?

No.. soaked the head again.. 4-5 more cleanings... same result

 

[Signchief]

Here's what a service tech that's helped me in the past said regarding a very similar issue:

"I would take a look at the ink lines around the damper and check for air bubbles. If there are any bubbles at all, you need to change the o-ring and damper. If there are no air bubbles but the dampers are more than a year old, I would change them anyway.
Other than that, it could be failing cartridge/bulk system, a clogged sub tank valve and/or some other kind of air leak in the system.
I would also double check that the maintenance station is pulling ink properly and maybe test the cap top with a syringe."

There are several possibilities regarding the cause but I would not start at the print head, I just spent two weeks wasting ink and time trying to fix a similar issue and I think my biggest mistake was focusing on the print head. If you had a clog I don't think it would be affecting the whole print head. I would replace all of the dampers and o-rings, how old is the maintenance station? How old is the print head? It could also be a crack in your manifold. There are a lot of components above the print head that could be the issue but it definitely sounds like an air leak from what I've learned.

 

[New to Printing]

Here's what a service tech that's helped me in the past said regarding a very similar issue:

"I would take a look at the ink lines around the damper and check for air bubbles. If there are any bubbles at all, you need to change the o-ring and damper. If there are no air bubbles but the dampers are more than a year old, I would change them anyway.
Other than that, it could be failing cartridge/bulk system, a clogged sub tank valve and/or some other kind of air leak in the system.
I would also double check that the maintenance station is pulling ink properly and maybe test the cap top with a syringe."

There are several possibilities regarding the cause but I would not start at the print head, I just spent two weeks wasting ink and time trying to fix a similar issue and I think my biggest mistake was focusing on the print head. If you had a clog I don't think it would be affecting the whole print head. I would replace all of the dampers and o-rings, how old is the maintenance station? How old is the print head? It could also be a crack in your manifold. There are a lot of components above the print head that could be the issue but it definitely sounds like an air leak from what I've learned.

Yes I'm still afraid to touch anything or undo a screw... sounds like SW is gonna give me the shaft... not 100% but that's the feeling I'm getting.. I've been cleaning and soaking and printing all day.. getting some of the nozzles in my black and magenta back... I'm going to post a couple pictures when I get back to the computer.. maybe someone can see something I don't see..

 

[New to Printing]

Here are some pictures... SW said they think the capping station is pulling air from the sides.. That is why the center of the head is fine and the nozzles on the edges aren't clearing.. Any thoughts?

 

[New to Printing]

Yes I'm still afraid to touch anything or undo a screw... sounds like SW is gonna give me the shaft... not 100% but that's the feeling I'm getting.. I've been cleaning and soaking and printing all day.. getting some of the nozzles in my black and magenta back... I'm going to post a couple pictures when I get back to the computer.. maybe someone can see something I don't see..

The machine is less than 8 months old. Once I get the final answer from SW that they aren't going to honor the warranty I guess I will start replacing stuff and see where that gets me..

 

[Signchief]

I would be careful, I've read that it's possible to damage the head by continuously doing head cleanings also if you accidentally get cleaning fluid on the data cable connected to the head you can burn the head out. If there is an air leak in the ink system the only way to get the printer working is to fix the cause of the leak, from what you've described it seems like you have a leak somewhere, head cleanings won't fix that. I'm trying to share what I've learned from trial and error, the print head is the most expensive and sensitive component in the equation and from what you've described the print head is either ruined or the issue is not being caused by the print head. It's like if your car won't start, the first thing you check is the starter, you don't keep pouring gas into the engine and expect that to fix it; if your printer is missing nozzles it's a sign that there is an issue with the ink system. Don't ruin a $2000 print head because you don't want to replace a $5 damper, if you don't feel you're capable of replacing the dampers you should stop trying to fix the printer and hire a professional.

 

[Signchief]

It all goes back to what you're capable of or willing to do, if you're print head was clogged and it was possible to clear it doing head soaks it would be clear by now. If it's under warranty than take advantage of the warranty you paid for. The only way to fix the problem is to locate and replace the defective component which means replacing at least the capping station if not the whole maintenance station and replacing all of the dampers and o-rings. You aren't gonna get it working with out turning some screws, sorry to be the bearer of bad news but I've spent days and days and days on my printer and that is the cold hard truth. In the future spend some time once a week cleaning the maintenance station lines and the seal around the cap and the wiper, all of the issues I've had with my Valuejet not printing properly can be traced back to the maintenance station or a leak in the dampers or manifold.

 

[New to Printing]

I would be careful, I've read that it's possible to damage the head by continuously doing head cleanings also if you accidentally get cleaning fluid on the data cable connected to the head you can burn the head out. If there is an air leak in the ink system the only way to get the printer working is to fix the cause of the leak, from what you've described it seems like you have a leak somewhere, head cleanings won't fix that. I'm trying to share what I've learned from trial and error, the print head is the most expensive and sensitive component in the equation and from what you've described the print head is either ruined or the issue is not being caused by the print head. It's like if your car won't start, the first thing you check is the starter, you don't keep pouring gas into the engine and expect that to fix it; if your printer is missing nozzles it's a sign that there is an issue with the ink system. Don't ruin a $2000 print head because you don't want to replace a $5 damper, if you don't feel you're capable of replacing the dampers you should stop trying to fix the printer and hire a professional.

It all goes back to what you're capable of or willing to do, if you're print head was clogged and it was possible to clear it doing head soaks it would be clear by now. If it's under warranty than take advantage of the warranty you paid for. The only way to fix the problem is to locate and replace the defective component which means replacing at least the capping station if not the whole maintenance station and replacing all of the dampers and o-rings. You aren't gonna get it working with out turning some screws, sorry to be the bearer of bad news but I've spent days and days and days on my printer and that is the cold hard truth. In the future spend some time once a week cleaning the maintenance station lines and the seal around the cap and the wiper, all of the issues I've had with my Valuejet not printing properly can be traced back to the maintenance station or a leak in the dampers or manifold.

Yes Agreed. Just ordered all new dampers and a new MS.. I will let you know how it goes..

 

[Signchief]

You can order a rebuild kit for the maintenance station for $350 from solventinkjet.com, it gives you all the parts you need and you just re-use the sheet metal base from your existing maintenance station.

 

[New to Printing]

You can order a rebuild kit for the maintenance station for $350 from solventinkjet.com, it gives you all the parts you need and you just re-use the sheet metal base from your existing maintenance station.

Thank you.

 

[Signchief]

Yes Agreed. Just ordered all new dampers and a new MS.. I will let you know how it goes..

What was the outcome?

 

[New to Printing]

What was the outcome?

I swapped out the MS no change.. the new MS came with extra long tubes that go into the waste station. I was able to put a syringe on the end of the tubes and was pulling nothing but air.

I "re-seated" the print head and I'm back in busniess. Thank you again for the help!