Digital BW, The Print

I bought an R1800 specifically for 3MK printing plus the possibility  
of color.

I use MIS refillable, spongeless cartridges and MIS pigment inks for  
the 1800.

I have had very good results with the 3-matte-black (Eboni) printing.   
The tone might be a bit warm for some people, but I like it,  
especially on Lasal, Kayenta and similar bright white papers.

I normally stick with matte paper for color as well, but it is no big  
thing to switch the black cartridges.  I usually drop a little of the  
MIS clear base on the cartridge opening and valve at the bottom just  
before putting it in the printer. This seems to reduce the likelihood  
of an air bubble causing trouble.

My R1800 has two annoying problems (and has always been like this):

1) The paper feed is really finicky.  It often takes two or three  
tries to get the paper to feed, even from the normal auto-feed slot.   
Some people seem to have this problem while others don't.

2) MIS color inks tend to clog the heads (mildly!!!) if the printer  
isn't used for a few days.  This is much more pronounced than with the  
2200 or the C84/86/88 printers. Usually one cleaning cycle will get  
everything going, but it is an annoyance not to be able to rely on the  
printer without first testing it.  The 3 Eboni black cartridges never  
seem to give me any trouble... just the color ones.

When I *do* print color glossy with the 1800, I just don't fret about  
"gloss differential", glop, etc.  If I think someone is going to  
decide that viewing the image at 80 degrees away from perpendicular is  
the only way to go, I use some kind of spray.

More commonly, though, when I want a glossy surface, or the increased  
dMax of a glossy print, I use my ordinary matte paper, let the print  
dry well for a couple days, and then laminate it.

Bottom line:   The R1800 produces very nice carbon-black-only prints  
and can produce fairly decent color prints (not as subtle as a printer  
with more color cartridges), but the paper transport mechanism is not  
Epson's best design, and the heads tend to be a bit more subject to  
minor clogging than some other Epson printers.

I have never used the 1400, so cannot comment on its problems or lack  
of them.

My Epson 4880 is vastly more reliable...  as well as expensive, heavy,  
and incapable of 3MK printing...

Myron