QTR-Quadtone RIP

Denis wrote, in part:

>I had an InkjetFly Small Foot CIS loaded with 3 Eboni Channels 
>and 5 clear base channels for months and never had any issue. 
>That is also with leaving the printer off and not printing for
> 2-3 weeks.

>Then I decided to flush the CIS, clean it completely and 
>fill it with MIS color pigments for the R1800.

>After 2 weeks of non use, all nozzle check patterns where 
> missing many lines.
> ...
>I suspect the type of ink might play a part. The binders in 
>the Eboni are of a lesser quantity and it must play a role.
>...

I've seen the same pattern -- color pigments designed to stick onto glossy
paper seem more prone to clogging than matte paper only pigments.

Carbon-6 actually started as a project to make a "workable" carbon inkset
for watercolor painters -- but it failed.  Even with no binder at all in the
Carbon-6 base, the carbon pigment would barely move at all with a wet brush.
It simply takes almost no binder to make these carbon pigments stick on
matte paper. 

I set up a CIS with a C88+ for my daughter to take away to her college dorm
room.  Reliability was paramount.  At first I had Eboni and 3 colors in the
CIS.  The 3 colors clogged when left un-used for a few weeks.  The Eboni did
not.  I removed the color pigments and put Carbon 13.5% in the color spots.
The printer no longer clogs even when left for weeks.

I've seen the same basic pattern enough to be convinced.  While 100% Eboni
will clog, it typically seems to do so significantly less than the color
pigments or PK I've used.  When diluted with either the MIS base in Eboni-6
or with the no-binder base of Carbon-6, I've seen almost no clogging of the
dilute inks in any of the 4 printers I have loaded with these mixes.  

You can actually feel the difference in the amount of binder when you rub
the dilution base between your fingers.  The glossy base is slightly sticky
-- not so the matte only bases I have.  The amount of binder and the pigment
load of an ink seem to be 2 important factors in clogging.

Paul
www.PaulRoark.com