3880 head won't go side to side. Hangs in middle.

[W. Fisher]

Something happened to one of my 3880's. I heard it making a short sweep across the paper and then a yellow paper jam light came on and the head was stopped in the middle.

I hit the paper eject and paper rolled on out and was smooth. No crumple like it was ahead strike. Paper was just typing paper to do a nozzle check and clean. Thinking about it, this printer did have some serious head strike a year to two ago where it wadded up some 320 gm. paper on left side with a racket of noise so a cracked something might be in hiding.

Head seems to have some black plastic piece on a gray metal slide on the top back of the carriage. It appears to be loose as I can wiggle it and move the head manually if it is stuck. It catches elsewhere on sliding it and freezes up so I'm thinking the carriage has a busted piece in it.

Online I found a new 3880 carriage from China for about $85 including postage so I ordered it. Maybe a month to get it though.

Problem may become the head may get plugged in the meantime as I cannot get the print head to park and shut itself off over the capping station since it jams on moving on the slider when trying to turn it off after it is stuck elsewhere.

Might need another one of my serious unplugging routines that I did on the other printer (It still works and no nozzles plugs.), but now this one acts up.

I found the online repair manual for the 3800 and it seems straightforward and much the same for the 3880, but just a long time-consuming process to get the carriage out of the unit as it seems Epson installed it first and built the machine around it.

Anyone change a print head carriage out of the 3880 with any helpful ideas (Short of tossing it into a wood chipper.).

Tia.

W.F.

 

[W. Fisher]

Okay. Google found someone on the Luminous Landscape site who did take one apart in 2014 for what seems the same thing maybe. But it took him 10 hours (over two days?) to get it apart! It'll take me a week with the manual.

Ugh!

Why doesn't Epson make these things easier to work on.

W.F.

 

[The Hat]

Why doesn't Epson make these things easier to work on.

They do, its called a service centre, but they’ll tell you that it not worth the cost of repair and to get a new one..

(Short of tossing it into a wood chipper.).

That’s a much cheaper option, just move on, because that type of damage is usually terminal, even if the printer was still under warrantee...Sorry..

 

[W. Fisher]

Thanks Hat, but PayPal sent me an email this AM saying the China printer outfit is preparing shipment for a new carriage. Maybe 2-3 weeks out.

Given it took me two weeks to unplug the other Epson 3880, spending a few days tearing into the wonky carriage one might not be too bad. Don't know if I need the special Maintenance Repair Software i see in the repair manual or not. I'll try without it first and see how it goes.

Given the head will not park right in the capping station as it refuses to move unless assisted and just throws up the jam lights, I think I'll park it on a paper towel and apply water to it every couple of days while waiting for the part to show. Might keep the drying out and plugging up minimized. I still have some carts loaded with 99% alcohol from the last endeavor with the plugged head (Which is still working fine too!).

I wish the head was as easy to get to as some of my old Canons and HP were. This thing looks like a nightmare!

I cannot see the images on the Luminous Landscape site linked above as I'm not a member, if that's what it takes. Can't find the guy who posted it either as he appears to have vanished from it too.

More to come I'm sure....

W.F.

 

[berserk]

It might just be some dirt on the encoder strip or the the "reader" of it. Been there. Clean with isophropanol carefully!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGlpSz5sJ3U

 

[W. Fisher]

It might just be some dirt on the encoder strip or the the "reader" of it. Been there. Clean with isophropanol carefully!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGlpSz5sJ3U

I don't think it's that.

The carriage jumps a bit when it hits something and stops. It looks like it is striking some small paper-clip looking things on top of the long gray steel slider at the top rear of the carriage. The carriage assembly feels loose and wiggles. I can wiggle it while off and make it move by hand, but it will hang at another spot on the rail. Can't get it into the Park/Home position either as the jam LEDs come on and it stalls.

I suspect it was a head strike that busted something in the carriage. Maybe some 320 gm. paper curled up and caused some plastic bit to break or crack off?

It looks like the carriage is in two separate pieces held together with a lot of springs in the diagrams with the print head within that assembly. Could be a spring fell off in it somewhere, but where? Somewhere I read where someone was getting streaks of ink across the paper and the print head was dragging because of a broken carriage.

Oh well. The replacement carriage has left China via China Post. Seems that stuff always takes about 2-3 weeks once it leaves there and probably comes by boat from past experience buying out of China via eBay. Just hope the thing doesn't plug up like the other one did that took me two weeks to unplug it (Least I'm getting some fix-it experience with this stuff, and already got my CPR ink cart made in case to force the ink through it.).

W.F.

 

[W. Fisher]

Seems some flat spring by the upper right white gear in the carriage may have fatigued the plastic there and broke it loose. I wiggled it and fished it out and can see the underside where it snapped off the carriage and was jamming the thing.

I may try and re-glue the piece with the spring off and let it sit for a day, maybe some fresh medium-thick CA glue? Then try and screw the spring back on but it won't be easy given it is under the hood.

W.F.

 

[berserk]

That seems to be an ideal job with the "baking soda + super glue trick".
If You didn't now this trick google the above.

If You touched the broken surfaces - clean em with isoprophanol and if possible grit the surfaces - very fine wet sanding paper taped to a stick. Be prepared - the mix hardens very fast.

(Learnt that trick years ago in my car restorer club. Also enables You also to build up missing material to work on afterwards).

I'm sure You can fix that!
If You cannot cancel the order - having a spare print head don't hurt.
...and if the fix works...You don't have to spend days dismantling the printer and then assembling it and perhaps get it work again - wondering where the left over screws should be.

 

[W. Fisher]

That seems to be an ideal job with the "baking soda + super glue trick".
If You didn't now this trick google the above.

If You touched the broken surfaces - clean em with isoprophanol and if possible grit the surfaces - very fine wet sanding paper taped to a stick. Be prepared - the mix hardens very fast.

(Learnt that trick years ago in my car restorer club. Also enables You also to build up missing material to work on afterwards).

I'm sure You can fix that!
If You cannot cancel the order - having a spare print head don't hurt.
...and if the fix works...You don't have to spend days dismantling the printer and then assembling it and perhaps get it work again - wondering where the left over screws should be.

I've used the CA glue + baking powder in model airplanes and balsa wood when I was into that stuff.

The problem with the broken piece is trying to get it back into where it came out. I pried and wiggled the piece before it came out, and it was like working a puzzle. I don't know how to get the glue on it without making a mess trying to get the thing back into position. There are also two ribbon cables under part of it so don't want glue there. I tried to take off the top cover and move it forward, but there just isn't enough working room. Seems it goes under the downward metal lip at the top of the printer. They did build the printer around the part and the carriage has to slide off the right side rails to change it.

Don't know what the white gear goes against. Must be in the capping station.

When I turned it back on to see if the thing would park the carriage properly, it took maybe 5 minutes to do a bunch of ink primes and moving about before it acted like it wanted to work again. I turned it off and it parked on the capping station as it should. I also filled the two sponges there with head cleaner so I may leave it until the new carriage shows up.

I may try and pry it back into the machine and see if I can wick glue onto it before the new carriage shows up. It seems it broke loose in three parts on the black piece so dunno.

W.F.

 

[berserk]

I tried to take off the top cover and move it forward, but there just isn't enough working room.

I would suggest, whatever you do, to free the working area as much as possible - You must see the problem and make the right decision on what and how to do the gluing. Tools not to forget. Coffee breaks and thinking helps.

Anyhow - if You intended to change the printing head - You should perhaps do more dissembling than this.

In this Youtube film I see a aluminum bar behind the print head.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSQbhQbEvd8

I presume that the thingy you are going to glue is under that bar. It seems as there some screws on top of that bar.
Could You study them and try to loosen them to come into/near Your working area for gluing?

AND - if it's there - changing just the print head does not help Your problem - You must then mend that part anyhow! So do not change print head until You have studied and solved what that thingy does and how it's mounted.

Edit: I see that it's the carriage to be switched. It seems anyhow that the bar I talked about above hinder the access to the working area.