Digital BW, The Print

I have been running MIS Pro inks for a year or so in my 2200. My
images look better (matte included) and I can actually print to gloss
media now. However, they definitely require more "care and feeding"
than Epson Ultrachrome inks did.

I switch back and forth between Cone K7 inks and MIS inks.I will often
need a number of cleaning cycles to get the colour inks working and
have had subsequent problems where a cart that checked good, dropping
out unexpectedly. 

I believe the cause has been air in the cartridge, rather than nozzle
clogging. Keeping the cartridges topped up will likely take care of
this, along with an occasional cartridge prime. Although the problem
looks initially like a head clog / ink issue, I really think most/all
of my problems have been cartridge related. The MIS cartridges are
simply not as foolproof as Epson's. But then again, they are user
refillable.

The second problem I've had is when the humidity falls below 28%,
which happens every winter where I am in Canada. Things clog like
crazy. Running a humidifier in my studio addresses the issue. I never
had to worry about this with Epson Ultrachromes. 

I have also had chips fail, which can be a bit frustrating. The fix is
easy, as long as you have a few extras.

Bottom line. . .  the inks are a lot less expensive than Ultrachromes
and I can print on gloss media now. The learning curve was a bit
frustrating but I think/hope I've dealt with the key issues. I will
continue using them. If you're not prepared to invest some time to
learn the pitfalls and how to address them the cost savings
(significant) may not warranted.

Terry.

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, matt@... wrote:
>
> For what it's worth, I've been using the MIS inks (K4)(first, a set
of carts, then bulk inks filled into those same cartridges) in my 2400
for almost 2 years.
> 
> I find that I generally have had no clogs, except under two
circumstances: 1) when the printer has been unused for several weeks
and 2) right after I refill the carts, I generally must run 2 or 3
cleaning cycles, and then I'm fine.
> 
> I have had several chips go bad, but I've simply replaced them with
other MIS ones or Epson chips that I have around. 
> 
> -matt
> 
> 
> > -------- Original Message --------
> > Subject: [Digital BW] Re: What's with MIS?
> > From: "djon43" <djon43@...>
> > Date: Fri, August 17, 2007 12:32 pm
> > To: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com
> > 
> > Harry, I'm definitely no expert but I think the issue is that 
> > particles in MIS carbons (or anybody else's inks) are not as fine as
> > particles in Epson 2400 and 2200 OEM pigments. 
> > 
> > I think we're trying to run gravel through a hose. 
> > 
> > I hope somebody will correct this if I'm wrong.
> > 
> > John
> hoo.com/info/terms/
>