Printer question

[stretch0069]

I have an old HP 1220 large format inkjet printer. I rarely use the silly thing. So rarely that every time I go to use it, the ink is messed up.

I print about 1 color document every 6 months. However, b&w docs about one every two or three weeks.

How are laser printers these days??? Does toner "go bad"?

I'd also like to print 11x17 if it isn't too much more.

I haven't been able to make heads or tails from all the ads and shi...errr....stuff.




Thanks guys

[dood]

Re: Printer question

11x17 color lasers are pricey... 8.5x14 is easy, but nothing wider than 8.5. Once you pass that, expect the big bucks. Ink is stupid... I just had an HP printer expire the light cyan cartridge... even though it was full, and had never been used. The printer wouldn't even print B+W until we replaced the "light cyan" cartridge... crock - o - shit, and I even like HP printers....

[NxB]

Re: Printer question

get a large format inkjet that uses a continuous ink feed system or one that takes an aftermarket one. Laser color costs too much for large format.

[momaka]

Re: Printer question

Ink is stupid...

I agree.
We got a B&W laser printer a few years ago and I couldn't be happier since then. Sometimes I have to print a lot of documents and papers for school, other times I don't need to print anything for weeks or even months. This is where laser printers are better - no heads to clog when you don't use them and the toner lasts much longer.

If you look on craigslist, you can sometimes find cheap or even free laser printers (mostly B&W, though).
New color laster printers are usually a bit more pricey.

I just had an HP printer expire the light cyan cartridge... even though it was full, and had never been used. The printer wouldn't even print B+W until we replaced the "light cyan" cartridge... crock - o - shit, and I even like HP printers....

Had a similar occurrence with an all-in-one Epson Stylus CX7400 - the black ink cartridge wasn't being recognized, even though it was brand new. What's even more frustrating is that I wasn't trying to print but just scan a document. The Epson websites says you can scan without ink, but that's not true because the printer kept looking for ink upon being turned on and wouldn't work until this cycle was complete.
After calling Epson tech support, they suggested I either bend over and buy new ink or send it in for out-of-warranty repair. No thanks, Epson!
I even asked them if there was a combination of buttons that I could press so that the printer could override the check-for-ink cycle. They said no, but after playing around with it a bit, I found that I can override that cycle by holding the Copy button while turning on the printer. So now, I only keep that printer as a scanner - kind of a waste, really. But at least the scanner is very good. In fact, it's excellent.

[stretch0069]

Re: Printer question

yeah.....guess i'll just take the files to a printer.

i just don't print enough oh well. Thanks for the input.

[Spitz]

Re: Printer question

I'd also like to print 11x17 if it isn't too much more.
Thanks guys

Brother makes an 11x17 inkjet printer that sells for $129.00. Its a model MFC-5895cw.

[MXM]

Re: Printer question

I have an old HP 1220 large format inkjet printer. I rarely use the silly thing. So rarely that every time I go to use it, the ink is messed up.

I print about 1 color document every 6 months. However, b&w docs about one every two or three weeks.

How are laser printers these days??? Does toner "go bad"?

I'd also like to print 11x17 if it isn't too much more.

I haven't been able to make heads or tails from all the ads and shi...errr....stuff.




Thanks guys

Laser printers are ok on these days... toner usually dont "go bad" (genuines, on regular basis) and can last longer than an ink and beat em as for quality and performance even on low use or almost none.

As for the specs it depends on your needs, i do not have on mind any specific model for your requirement but i bet there should be a good one cheap option.

I always advise Canon laser printers just because by experience they last ok, work fine and are easy to fix.

peace.

[Krankshaft]

Re: Printer question

Bought an HP 1200 back in 01 and never looked back to crappy inkjet. Just stay away from off brand cartridges I've had toner fusing problems where text would flake off. With the OEM cartridges there is a very light aroma during fusing completely unnoticeable unless you're right over the printer.

With the Staples brand I could clearly smell burning plastic from a good distance away from a cheap grade toner no doubt. It also explains why there was flaking from incomplete fusing.

Laser printers do have maintenance items every 50k pages or so (exact number specified in the service manual) like replacing the transfer roller checking the fuser and inspecting the pickup tire and separator plates for wear or cracking. But those items are cheap and relatively easy to replace.

What a colossal waste of money ink is. I've hated the inkjet manufacturers and have avoided them ever since they quashed the refill business by putting those on board monitors on the cartridges so they could keep their money grabbing monopoly. The only inkjet I have is strictly for photo printing.

Got two 1200s the first one is still chugging at 80k pages replaced the paper pickup tire, transfer roller, and separator once still on the original fuser. The other one on the second floor is at 30k.

[delaware74b]

Re: Printer question

Here's what I've done in my house:
HP LJ1300 on network with Hawking parallel-to-ethernet print server. All 4
computers that have access to the network are defaulted to this printer.
Only use genuine HP extended capacity cartridges and has 5K printjobs on
it.

Epson Workforce 630 (all in one print/scan/copy/fax) is wifi. Only my wife
and I have access to that printer. It has its second set of cartridges
installed.

Epson CX7800 AIO. USB only and connected to my netbook only. It's at the
end of its life. The envelope/plain paper sensor doesn't know it's in plain
paper mode. Still prints well but uses more ink than the 630 with high
capacity inks.

[stretch0069]

Re: Printer question

yeah...we have a piece of equipment at work that came with 4 laser printers. We turn them off so they don't fry the fuser......or some sort action like that.

The large format would just have been a plus. Oh well.

Off to check out some printers.

[acstech]

Re: Printer question

Yep, some HP's will expire the print cartridges regardless of actual ink level.

Sometimes you can fool it if you change your computers clock back, however.

[lti]

Re: Printer question

My HP Deskjet F4580 has already used half of its "200-page" black ink cartridge, according to the ink level display. It couldn't have printed more than 20 pages. Also, the first few pages would streak and have missing sections in the text. My old HP Deskjet 712C would run for almost a year without replacing ink cartridges, but all local stores stopped selling the ink cartridges, forcing me to buy a new printer.

[stretch0069]

Re: Printer question

that brings up another question.......back around '95 or so....our shop had a copy machine. When the toner got low, we just refilled the toner cartridge and emptied out the used/leftover/whatever toner that was in sort of a catch container.

I'm guessing that is no longer the case and you'll have to buy a whole new cartridge. I can see where I might actually run into an issue of not being able to get replacements.

[dood]

Re: Printer question

All our copiers have toner cartridges. Unlike a laser printer toner cartridge, they don't have the drum built into them. The cartridge is really just a long tube with loose toner in it, that gets rotated by the copy machine. The waste container still exists, but it just gets replace during the PM cycle.

All of our copiers are leased with service plans, so toner is provided and we just pay a per-page price. Two of our copiers do over 50,000 pages per month, every month.

[Krankshaft]

Re: Printer question

Older copiers like my Xeroxes (manufactured by Sharp in the mid to late 90s) have the separate toner and drum cartridges. These are the tinier desktop office models like the Sharp Z85 for example.

Newer copier cartridges are of the laser printer design where the drum and toner cartridge are one. They still have a plug to refill but extensive disassembly is required to get to it. Either that or you drill a tiny hole into the toner reservoir and plug it afterwards.

My guess on the newer models is the waste receptacle is a separate reservoir molded into the cartridge.

On my older Xeroxes I just remove a screw pull out the toner waste bottle and pull out the larger toner fill plug on the cartridge put a funnel in there and dump more toner in. I get it from a copier repair site.

Empty out the waste bottle and reinstall it and you're done. The smaller plug is for developer. You can usually get 2-3 fills before you need developer.

I also refurbish the drum cartridges too I can buy new drums and wiper blades when they fail just a few screws to do that too. They made it almost too easy on these models.

I had an even older 80s Xerox where it actually at a 6" toner door on the side that you flipped open and filled with toner. Man was that thing heavy! I ended up giving it away and got one of these smaller models. Easier to repair much lighter and I know them like the back of my hand.

[MXM]

Re: Printer question

that brings up another question.......back around '95 or so....our shop had a copy machine. When the toner got low, we just refilled the toner cartridge and emptied out the used/leftover/whatever toner that was in sort of a catch container.

I'm guessing that is no longer the case and you'll have to buy a whole new cartridge. I can see where I might actually run into an issue of not being able to get replacements.

hey, this really depends.

some current models still work with separated cartdridges, some others are of those named 3-in-1 (exposure, develop and transfer) where the drum is attached to the developing roller and transfer roller and also with the toner load.

You are right this new models also contain the waste toner container in it.

I'd suggest you to get one of those if you dont plan to print a lot, the separeted schemma i recommend for volume users (and they tend to be more expensive since the 3-in-1 technology changes most many of the pieces that requiere service often when the quality turns bad).

replacements availability would definetly depend on where you live.

i am not married to Canon and recieve nothing from them, and still i'd recommend it.

peace.

[dood]

Re: Printer question

Older copiers like my Xeroxes (manufactured by Sharp in the mid to late 90s) have the separate toner and drum cartridges. These are the tinier desktop office models like the Sharp Z85 for example.

Newer copier cartridges are of the laser printer design where the drum and toner cartridge are one. They still have a plug to refill but extensive disassembly is required to get to it. Either that or you drill a tiny hole into the toner reservoir and plug it afterwards.

My guess on the newer models is the waste receptacle is a separate reservoir molded into the cartridge.

On my older Xeroxes I just remove a screw pull out the toner waste bottle and pull out the larger toner fill plug on the cartridge put a funnel in there and dump more toner in. I get it from a copier repair site.

Empty out the waste bottle and reinstall it and you're done. The smaller plug is for developer. You can usually get 2-3 fills before you need developer.

I also refurbish the drum cartridges too I can buy new drums and wiper blades when they fail just a few screws to do that too. They made it almost too easy on these models.

I had an even older 80s Xerox where it actually at a 6" toner door on the side that you flipped open and filled with toner. Man was that thing heavy! I ended up giving it away and got one of these smaller models. Easier to repair much lighter and I know them like the back of my hand.

All of our newer Konica Minolta copiers have separate toner, waste, and drum. I haven't seen a bottle of developer in years...

These are large, floorstanding models that churn out, on average, 50,000 copies per month in our office.