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Thread

How many missing lines is too many?

2017-06-19 by rdeloe1@...

I print from QTR with an Epson 3880 using Paul Roark's lovely Eboni Variable Tone inkset. Happily, it's working great! (Touch wood.) But I'm looking down the road to the eventual day my 3880 dies. North American P800 printers won't take refill carts more than once, and the refillers may never crack the code. To plan ahead, I picked up a used 3880 for a song as a backup that I plan to put into storage until needed. I have it mostly working, but it's stubbornly refusing to print a perfect nozzle check. It's always the same two missing lines on Cyan. I've done all the recommended cleaning procedures (e.g., cleaning the capping station and wiper blades; soaking the head on a folded piece of Bounty in the platen area; running cleaning solution through the carts; careful and limited use of cleaning cycles). My cleaning solution is 70% distilled water, 10% PhotoFlo and 20% rubbing alcohol.

Anyway, let's assume it won't get better. I'd obviously prefer to put a perfect printer into storage. What I'm wondering is whether or not QTR, because of the way the curves overlap, will hide whatever effects the two missing nozzles would produce. If yes, then I'm good to go. But if the consensus is "no", the effects of the missing Cyan position will be visible, then I hope it's still worth keeping as backup.

Would any of the following options work:

* I'm currently using the Y position as the toner. Could I switch the toner to the C position in the hope that because it's the toner, any gaps in the nozzle check will have less impact?

* I could just "turn off" the C position and build a 6 color plus toner curve for use with this printer.

Thanks, Rob

Re: [QuadtoneRIP] How many missing lines is too many?

2017-06-19 by Paul Roark

I'd go for option 2, with clear fluid (like my generic clear base, for example) in the defective channel. You still have plenty of carbon channels.

Paul

www.PaulRoark.com

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On Mon, Jun 19, 2017 at 2:51 PM, rdeloe1@... [QuadtoneRIP] <QuadtoneRIP@yahoogroups.com> wrote:

I print from QTR with an Epson 3880 using Paul Roark's lovely Eboni Variable Tone inkset. Happily, it's working great! (Touch wood.) But I'm looking down the road to the eventual day my 3880 dies. North American P800 printers won't take refill carts more than once, and the refillers may never crack the code. To plan ahead, I picked up a used 3880 for a song as a backup that I plan to put into storage until needed. I have it mostly working, but it's stubbornly refusing to print a perfect nozzle check. It's always the same two missing lines on Cyan. I've done all the recommended cleaning procedures (e.g., cleaning the capping station and wiper blades; soaking the head on a folded piece of Bounty in the platen area; running cleaning solution through the carts; careful and limited use of cleaning cycles). My cleaning solution is 70% distilled water, 10% PhotoFlo and 20% rubbing alcohol.

Anyway, let's assume it won't get better. I'd obviously prefer to put a perfect printer into storage. What I'm wondering is whether or not QTR, because of the way the curves overlap, will hide whatever effects the two missing nozzles would produce. If yes, then I'm good to go. But if the consensus is "no", the effects of the missing Cyan position will be visible, then I hope it's still worth keeping as backup.

Would any of the following options work:

* I'm currently using the Y position as the toner. Could I switch the toner to the C position in the hope that because it's the toner, any gaps in the nozzle check will have less impact?

* I could just "turn off" the C position and build a 6 color plus toner curve for use with this printer.

Thanks, Rob

Re: How many missing lines is too many?

2017-06-19 by rdeloe1@...

Thanks Paul. I was hoping you'd answer! ;)

For the Option 2 plan (clear fluid in the defective Cyan channel and then work with the rest), would it make sense to drop one of LK or LLK? I'm mentioning those two channels because in my current setup, for my proofing paper, K has a limit of 65 and all channels except LK and LLK have limits of 45.5. LK and LLK both have limits of 19.5.

Rob

Re: [QuadtoneRIP] Re: How many missing lines is too many?

2017-06-20 by Paul Roark

Without doing more work than I have time for now, I'm not sure I understand the question.

You have 7 working channels. You could have a toner plus 6 carbons -- using the full Eb6 set for the carbon.

Occasionally I've made profiles for Eb6 in an 8 ink printer than used the extra positions for a secondary carbon partition. You don't really need this. It was mostly a way to just use the channels.

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On Mon, Jun 19, 2017 at 4:34 PM, rdeloe1@... [QuadtoneRIP] <QuadtoneRIP@yahoogroups.com> wrote:

Thanks Paul. I was hoping you'd answer! ;)

For the Option 2 plan (clear fluid in the defective Cyan channel and then work with the rest), would it make sense to drop one of LK or LLK? I'm mentioning those two channels because in my current setup, for my proofing paper, K has a limit of 65 and all channels except LK and LLK have limits of 45.5. LK and LLK both have limits of 19.5.

Rob

Re: How many missing lines is too many?

2017-06-20 by rdeloe1@...

I based my 3880 profiles off the ones you've provided. In those, as you noted, I saw all 8 channels being used, but with the lightest tones split up as I explained above. Here's your what I mean from your EbVT-EpsonHPn-Neutral curve, where you split the density for LK and LLK between them:

BOOST_K=90
LIMIT_K=50
LIMIT_C=35
LIMIT_M=35
LIMIT_Y=17.7
LIMIT_LC=35
LIMIT_LM=35
LIMIT_LK=15
LIMIT_LLK=15

But, as you pointed out, it is Eboni 6! So no need to get fancy.

This is really good news because the printer is otherwise in great shape. I'll pack it away as a backup.

Thanks for the help.

Re: How many missing lines is too many?

2017-06-20 by paulmwhiting@...

This is a very helpful thread. It gives me a similar idea for my 1430/Eb6 setup. (I should say 1430/VTEb.) Rob and I have connected off the group about my iffy C position nozzle check... and I believe I've mentioned it here as well. Right now, the Y position nozzle check is perfect and the C check is consistently missing a full line and a few dashes. (I've used all the various cleaning techniques mentioned by Rob.) I could use the C position ink for the toner and the Y position for the Cyan position ink - which I believe is 30% carbon. My preferred mix so far is using each curve 50%, one with the toner and one without. So if the toner is running at 50% and if it's missing a line and a half it wouldn't be too critical. In fact my prints look good to me even now, without switching the two.

Paul W.

Re: How many missing lines is too many?

2017-06-20 by paulmwhiting@...

make that: I could use the C position ink in the toner position

Re: [QuadtoneRIP] How many missing lines is too many?

2017-06-20 by Brubaker family

I have seen it recommended that cleaning solution for the pigment inks should be 50% original Windex and 50%alcohol.

Mike Brubaker

--------------------------------------------
On Mon, 6/19/17, rdeloe1@... [QuadtoneRIP] <QuadtoneRIP@yahoogroups.com> wrote:

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 Subject: [QuadtoneRIP] How many missing lines is too many?
 To: QuadtoneRIP@yahoogroups.com
 Date: Monday, June 19, 2017, 5:51 PM

       I print from QTR with an Epson 3880
 using Paul Roark's lovely Eboni Variable Tone inkset.
 Happily, it's working great! (Touch wood.) But I'm
 looking down the road to the eventual day my 3880 dies.
 North American P800 printers won't take refill carts
 more than once, and the refillers may never crack the code.
 To plan ahead, I picked up a used 3880 for a song as a
 backup that I plan to put into storage until needed. I have
 it mostly working, but it's stubbornly refusing to print
 a perfect nozzle check. It's always the same two missing
 lines on Cyan. I've done all the recommended cleaning
 procedures (e.g., cleaning the capping station and wiper
 blades; soaking the head on a folded piece of Bounty in the
 platen area; running cleaning solution through the carts;
 careful and limited use of cleaning cycles). My cleaning
 solution is 70% distilled water, 10% PhotoFlo and 20%
 rubbing alcohol. 

 Anyway, let's assume it
 won't get better. I'd obviously prefer to put a
 perfect printer into storage. What I'm wondering is
 whether or not QTR, because of the way the curves overlap,
 will hide whatever effects the two missing nozzles would
 produce. If yes, then I'm good to go. But if the
 consensus is "no", the effects of the missing Cyan
 position will be visible, then I hope it's still worth
 keeping as backup. 

 Would any of the following
 options work:
 * I'm currently using
 the Y position as the toner. Could I switch the toner to the
 C position in the hope that because it's the toner, any
 gaps in the nozzle check will have less
 impact?
 * I could just "turn
 off" the C position and build a 6 color plus toner
 curve for use with this printer.  

 Thanks, Rob

 #yiv5486785458 #yiv5486785458 --

Re: [QuadtoneRIP] How many missing lines is too many?

2017-06-20 by Paul Roark

...

I have seen it recommended that cleaning solution for the pigment inks should be 50% original Windex and 50%alcohol.

That seems very strong. An Epson repair person warned me against using Windex for more than a short while to clear a clog. The ammonia can apparently attack gaskets in the Epson heads.

Paul

www.PaulRoark.com