My R3880 Could Be Dying

So in theory then, I won't be able to change over from MK which Im on now to PK ?

in theory i have no idea what part could be not working
either a seal? or sth else

imo its worth repairing but you have to make your own caluclation
how much did you print up to now with the printer

I am still confused as to how this device works.

I switched from PK to MK and have printed about 20 A4 sheets of Matte paper with no issues at all.

Today I needed to print on some lustre so I switched over from MK to PK and the status monitor for the PK shows 89%. I removed the PK cart and weighed it, it weighs 112g which to me does not represent 89% full.

I have printed a few A4 sheets of lustre with no issues and the PK still registers 89% hmmm....

Surely if there was an issue with the ink change mechanism, it would not be printing properly.

Trying to get accurate information on where the status monitor is getting its information from is frustrating.

when the ink switch doesnt work propely it wont SEAL the actual tubing to the "not active" black channel
when the printer starts pressurizing the carts it cant select individual carts ALL carts are beeing pressureized to let the ink flow
normaly the ink would flow to the printhead damper and from there to the printhead
what happens now is since the seal is not working propley both black ink "mix ingother" and the ink is almost doubled
typical is black ink leakage on prints or paper
very very dirty cleaning assembly comparemnt and almost soaked waste ink tank with way over 70% capacity

Only thing to do and I strongy recommend is finding a service center and replacing the part
you can even check Services that usually maintain and repair much "bigger" printers with epson technology
replacing the compartment is really a routine field repair

cheers
Serhat

I have just spoken to Epson who have told me that a fixed repair with a 3 months warrant will cost £540 plus any consumables like ink if required.

Time to decide if its un-economical

dont talk to Epson directly
they charge a hefty price for a repair since they calculate the WORST Case like Printhead replacemant and stuff
look for an Epson certified workshop

I always go to http://www.oti.de/ Oti GmbH they are like 20min drive from my place in Hamburg Germany

check on the epson uk page with your postcode for any serivce providers near by

and yeah 540 GBP is a ridicoulous

you could buy a brand new for 1000 GBP sell each ink cart for at least 40 GBP = 1000 - 360 = 640 GBP for a "brand" new unit

Ian Barber said:

I am still confused as to how this device works.

I switched from PK to MK and have printed about 20 A4 sheets of Matte paper with no issues at all.

Today I needed to print on some lustre so I switched over from MK to PK and the status monitor for the PK shows 89%. I removed the PK cart and weighed it, it weighs 112g which to me does not represent 89% full.

I have printed a few A4 sheets of lustre with no issues and the PK still registers 89% hmmm....

Surely if there was an issue with the ink change mechanism, it would not be printing properly.

Trying to get accurate information on where the status monitor is getting its information from is frustrating.

Click to expand...

Empty cart weighs 60 grams so at 112grams you still have 52 total MLs but remember that 10ml is the hidden unreported "Buffer" So a new cart actually contains 90ml of ink ) so as far as your printer chips goes, it has 42 ml. So officially your cart is a smidgen above 50%.
Joe

I have finally come to the conclusion that @cls is right. I never doubted his conclusion but I was hoping he was wrong. Very dissapointing to say that the printer has only clocked up 1700 pages since I bought it in June 2012.

Now is the time to either buy another 3880 or throw the sheets to the wind and go for the new Epson P800

The only downside to a brand new printer is the consumables options and more importantly the public knowledge on the "quirks" or outright problems/faults.

That said the R3880 has a pretty serious fault which may have been resolved in the P800...

EDIT:
Given the information on solenoid issues for the R3000 and those indicated for the R3880 it seems there's a potentially serious component failure that may since have been resolved in the P800.

Tough call but good luck.