Epson Claria Standard Ink 502

Ink stained Fingers

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vanix

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OK, so I can sell them cheaper, and if somebody wants to collect my artwork, they should pay more for expensive ink and extended time. Am I right
How can you expect your customers to take you serious when your knowingly selling them poor quality prints that are going to fade big time.

You need to use the best quality inks and paper you can get, and then your customers will keep coming back to you for more of your quality work, that’s the only way to stay in business..
Otherwise give your prints away for free and no one will complain..
 

vanix

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How can you expect your customers to take you serious when your knowingly selling them poor quality prints that are going to fade big time.

You need to use the best quality inks and paper you can get, and then your customers will keep coming back to you for more of your quality work, that’s the only way to stay in business..
Otherwise give your prints away for free and no one will complain..
Because I tell them before selling. :) Do you want a picture with brilliant colors as the artist designed on your wall for 10-15 years, or do you want to collect a picture for a long time but is more expensive? And most important, the dye ink gives such colors and gradations which I never saw on any other printers, and I had a lot. :)
 

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I think we can basically close this thread dealing with dye inks for the L1800.

the dye ink gives such colors and gradations which I never saw on any other printers, and I had a lot.
Differences between dye and pigment inks as stated should be discussed in a separate thread if needed or of interest, I would not support such statement in such general terms . Pigment inks can deliver a similar gamut as dye inks. I do not like large format high gloss prints, the gloss transports too much of the ambient situation into the image, I rather prefer a slightly muted gloss but that's a personal matter of perception and preference - as glossy as possible is fine for me for smaller prints up to A4.
 

vanix

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I think we can basically close this thread dealing with dye inks for the L1800.


Differences between dye and pigment inks as stated should be discussed in a separate thread if needed or of interest, I would not support such statement in such general terms . Pigment inks can deliver a similar gamut as dye inks. I do not like large format high gloss prints, the gloss transports too much of the ambient situation into the image, I rather prefer a slightly muted gloss but that's a personal matter of perception and preference - as glossy as possible is fine for me for smaller prints up to A4.
I really don't want to open a discussion on this topic. Only printed out for testing my latest work. And on that paper I saw such colors which never before. And I just wanted to know, how long these colors will keep their brilliance. If 10-15 years, that could be a deal.1-2 years of course not.
 

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And I just wanted to know, how long these colors will keep their brilliance. If 10-15 years, that could be a deal.1-2 years of course not
As mentioned before fading is a gradual process, and the performance range is very wide - very well performing ink/paper combinations may give you a permanence display rating (by Wilhelm Research) up to 75 or 100 years, but there is an element you may not have control over - how and where is your print being displayed - you cannot control the environmental conditions the buyer places your prints into - light - ozone - these over years, and another factor is there as well - how is the print exposed to the environment - open - under glass - framed under UV protective glass , so yes - lots of your prints will last 15 years but some may not . But since this applies to both - prints with pigment or dye inks - there is no guarantee you can get from Epson for the inks nor from Hahnemuehle for the paper.
I tested some FineArt papers incl. Hahnemuehle - some time ago - Baryta etc - they didn't really stand out - they performed in an average range for the longevity performance; I didn't test other properties like black level or gamut.
 
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I saw the Epson T502 ink on shelf at office supply. $20 for 127ml bottle, or about the same as selling for at B&H Photo. https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1371593-REG/epson_t502120_s_t502_ink_bottle_with.html

Is this a dye or pigment?

If it's a pigment, how does it compare to a refiller's ink, i.e Jon Cone's High-Density Photo Black pigment which is three time more expensive ($66 for 110ml) ? https://shop.inkjetmall.com/ConeCol...+asc#attr=55771,36042,13555,14316,17186,15548

Surprised if the Epson T502 is better at a third the price of a refiller's ink.

WF
 

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I did a test of the matte - supermatte Conecolor ink 15 months ago with the findings here

https://www.printerknowledge.com/threads/matte-inks-for-epson-printers.14396/#post-124829

It depends on the paper - the Epson ink is slightly better - lower black level - on this paper and Conecolor on another.
Be aware that I tested at that time the matte ink of the Ecotank printer ET-7750 - it's the T105 black here and the T512 inks in the U.S.

There is a T512 black, that's a matte ink, all other incl. the T512 photo black are dye inks.

The same applies to the T502 inkset - the CMY colors are dye inks - the T502 black is a matte pigment black, but I didn't test this version, it could be identical with the T512 - or not - who knows.

And there is another bottled pigment ink at a similar price - the matte black for the newer Ecotank model ET8550 with the T552 inks - the same applies here - there is a matte black pigment ink - and all T552 CMY+photo black are dye inks.

So I don't see a benefit with the Conecolor matte black which would justify the much higher price you address vs. the Epson matte bottled inks for the Ecotank printers.

Surprised if the Epson T502 is better at a third the price of a refiller's ink.
I'm not - really - some Epson Ecotank dye inks are very good performers at a pretty low price - compared to the same inks in cartridges - and some other Epson inks - at a similar price don't perform that well -no better than 3rd party dye refill inks - it's all kept as a secret, and only detailed testing can uncover the performance differences.
 

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Thank you a lot! Yes I know, dye-inks are fading faster. But I read your tests earlier and started to think about the dye inks because they have a time-limit, and that's OK, so I can sell them cheaper, and if somebody wants to collect my artwork, they should pay more for expensive ink and extended time. Am I right according to your opinion?
As an aside, we had an ink that was particularly poor when it came to fade resistance and it was actually sought by one of our customers specifically because of this. He was a wedding photographer who was fed up of clients keeping the samples (even with watermarks) as their final prints so switching to the fade promoting inks actually increased his sales of final prints because they didn't last more than a couple of months.

Just thought I'd throw that in as a factor to consider as it sounds like it might actually be relevant.
 
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