VG2-540 problems with dampers filling and emptying (Damper Fill Sensors?)

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Hi I have a VG2-540 I completely refurbished with brand new heads with brand new dampers. I checked all the choke valves, pressure pumps, waste pumps and all Ink lines throughout and everything was flushed and ink renewed with brand new ink.

The problem I have is some of the dampers seem to be emptying when sitting overnight after I checked they were full. The dampers aren’t completely empty but I notice a good amount missing in some of them. I suspect it is happening after the automatic daily cleaning.

I read somewhere that a lot of problems are with the damper fill sensors on these machines if the machine wasn’t always serviced regularly which is why I might suspect the damper fill sensors causing my problems. Does anybody have any suggestions on how to check the damper fill sensors? Also how full should the dampers be? Should all dampers be at the same level? Should all damper arms be the same amount apart outside the damper fill sensors?

If the damper loses ink and the damper arm moves in front of the damper fill sensor it should automatically turn the pressure pump on and fill the damper? Do the damper fill sensors need adjusting? At what exact point should the damper fill sensor be triggering the damper fill?

Most importantly should you ever manually push on the damper arm to manually fill the damper because watching some videos online I saw somebody do that and think that is probably wrong to do since damper fill sensors are there for a reason and why would you manually push on the damper arm to manually fill the damper when the VG series printers are supposed to fill the dampers automatically when it gets low?

 

[netsol]

are all the orings on the effected lines changed?
the ones where the line connects to the needles are a pain in the ass & i rarely change them, and it has bitten me in the ass before

 

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OK I narrowed it down to the Magenta ink line now in head 1. I'm going to recheck the choke valve again and see if there is a problem. I will also check if there is air getting in from the o-ring behind the cartridge.

 

[cornholio]

I had cases, where the seal between the head and damper wasn't good. Don't know how good and cleanly the "refurbisher" attached the dampers to the heads... If the filler sensor goes bad, you get error 0380 or 0400, i always have to look them up... The second number describes the affected channels.
Failing filler sensors affected only first generation VGs in my experience.

 

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I have dug further and can see that the magenta side on head 1 can not discharge the ink out of the damper causing a service error 0400 (no ink line code). I checked the magenta ink line flow and choke valve pressure pump all work so it’s not a clogged magenta line.

Head 1 is a new head I just replaced and all was working fine but now a couple days later the magenta started to do this. The cyan side in head one is working normal even in the nozzle test print. So does that mean I have a clog in the magenta side of the print head? Or does it mean my damper on the magenta side might be bad?

What do I do if I have service error 0400 because I cannot discharge the ink out of the damper? Should I pull head 1 out of the machine and see if the magenta side is clogged by syringing gently with cleaning solution and see if the damper and head clears the blockage? I flushed the line thoroughly but maybe some coagulated ink still attached got free and made its way in head 1 magenta side.

I originally thought the magenta side of the damper was emptying overnight because air but it actually does make sense that if the magenta side of head 1 is clogged and is restricting the damper discharge so then the fill sensor won’t refill the damper.

 

[cornholio]

I'd just do a "empty damper" or "fill damper" to see how it behaves. For just checking the fillers, there is the sensor check menu.

You can also wet a small piece of cling wrap with cleaning solution and cling it to the cleaned nozzle plate. (Or place it on the cap) Take a syringe and give a light suction at the damper. The filler should move inward and stay there. If it moves out, you have a leak between head and damper.

 

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I found out the problem. The air was getting into the waste pumps because the tubes were not tight onto the pump connectors so because of air getting into the pumps there was no suction so the dampers couldn’t discharge properly.

After I cut the ends on all the pump tubes now so they had a tighter seal I did a empty damper and a fill damper and everything is back to normal.

I don't know why Roland changed the design of their waste pump connectors to be a thinner tubing than before.