Digital BW, The Print

I'll throw in my $.02 as one who has had 1280 success for many years. 

I think there is production variance in the 1280's. There is no other
way to resolve the fact that some knowledgable folks have had 1280
problems while others have not. I didn't believe this for a while
until some posters who have earned respect reported 1280 problems.  

But, I think many people have issues that are related to carts
problems  and not nozzle problems. The result is the same, bad nozzle
checks and banding. But they pursue the nozzle when the problem lies
in the cart. One way to tell for sure is to swap back to real Epson
dye carts and see if you can clean up the problem. 

I have not seen the problems from combining Eboni with dye that Paul
Roark has. But, he's another of those whose opinion I value. At least
it's easy to clean the parking pad, so I do. 

I think some have problems from an unwillingness to give the printer 
time to rest and clean up. If you have the attitude that you are not
going to stop working until you solve the problem, it will frustrate
you. Sometimes leaving the cart sit and soak overnight solves a lot.
Reference my earlier comment about cart problems vs. nozzle problems. 

Also there is a great deal of trouble shooting info on the MIS site in
 the CFS section. Even though you don't have a CFS, everything is
valid for trouble shooting. I used a CFS for several years and
realized I almost never had a nozzle problem. It was always the carts. 

The prior suggestion to print every day or so with pigments in a 1280
is good. But I never do. Sometimes my 1280 sits for weeks and still
never has a real clog problem. 

Lastly, 1280's only last a few years with pigments before they develop
a fatal problem with an increased tendency to clog. That may be from
accumulated ink in the heads. It's fatal only because they are cheaper
to replace than spend the time to fix. But the price justifies that. 
Several years ago, my 1280 developed a tendency to clog more frequenty
with pigments. I got frustrated and just bought another to replace it.
 It was the best $275 I spent as far as solving a problem. That
replacement has been printing good for several years now. 

Howard: I suggest you follow Paul Roark's thought about just getting
some refillable carts and filling them with Windex. Run a few cleaning
cycles, then let it sit overnight. Do that for a few days in a row and
 then if it doesn't come back, spend $199 and get a new Epson refurb
1280. 



 --- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "how786"
<how786@...> wrote:
>
> Do you have any idea at all as to why some people have no problems
> with the 1280 BO and other are plagued by clogs? I'd love to solve my
> clog issue
>  (I might break out my 1280 again for large photos.)
>  Best Regards
>  Howard