Ink Absorber Pads

Potsie5

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Does anyone have step by step instructions for removing ink pads on a Pixma MX860 Canon printer. Illustrations would also help. I will also need a program to reset waste ink counter. Any help would be appreciated. I have the enclosed service and parts manual but it does not go into enough detail.
 

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PeterBJ

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I noticed you had posted this on The Hat's profile:

I need a part number for an ink absorber pad for a pixma mx 860. Canon has long discontinued support for this machine. I inadvertently dropped my pad into the machine after cleaning. Please reply ASAP

What you dropped into the machine is not an ink absorber pad but a purge pad, which is part of the purge unit. Its purpose is to assist in nozzle cleaning by distributing vacuum evenly over the nozzles. The first image in this post shows two purge pads and the rubber gasket for holding them. Purge pads are not sold separately, so they have no parts number. Only a complete purge unit might be available.

Cleaning the nozzles might not work without it and a small hard piece of plastic could block some moving parts in the printer and cause mechanical damage, so the purge pad must be found and reinstalled in its proper place on the ourge unit.

The ink absorber pads are some pads of a felt like material that is placed at the bottom of the printer case. They are position 16 on page B-13 in the parts catalog section of your service manual and the parts number is QY5-0257-000. Here is a set for sale.

I guess you have got a warning or error message about the ink absorbers getting or being full of ink? Then you will need to reset the ink absorber counter, for which you will need a service tool. Service tool v3400 can be found as a .rar archive attached to this post by @CakeHole.

The procedure for entering service mode is not quite clear in the service manual. so I have edited it slightly to make it more clear:

i. With the printer power turned off, while pressing the Resume/Cancel button, press and hold the Power button. (DO NOT release the buttons).
ii. When the Power LED lights in green, while holding the Power and Resume/Cancel button, release the Resume/Cancel button. (DO NOT release the Power button.)
iii. While holding the Power button, press and release the Resume/Cancel button 2 times, and then release the Power button. (Each time the Resume/Cancel button is pressed, the Alarm and Power LEDs light alternately, Alarm in orange and Power in green,
starting with Alarm LED.)
iv. When the Power LED lights steadily in green, the printer is ready for the service mode operation.

Notice that the service tool only works with Windows (all versions since XP). You cannot use MacOS or Linux. The service tool only works with a USB connection, wireless cannot be used even if the printer might have this capability. Only the printer you want to perform service mode operations on must be connected to the computer. Having more printers connected to the computer can prevent the service tool from working even if the other printers are turned off!

Apart from a slightly different procedure for entering service mode, the procedure for absorber reset in this post is also valid for your printer.

Some say you can leave the absorbers in place after a reset if you only do it once, others say you risk a very nasty ink spill when the absorbers overflow.

So it is strongly recommended to wash or replace the ink absorbers. The absorbers can be washed with lots of warm, not hot water. Good rubber or PVC gloves are recommended.

To remove the absorbers you will have to take the printer apart:

1. Remove the scanner part, see page 24 to 27 inclusive in the service manual.
2. Remove the upper part of the casing, see page 28 to 29 inclusive.
3, Go to page 34
4. Remove the printer unit from the bottom part of the case. see page 34 to 35 inclusive.
5. Remove the absorbers from the bottom part of the case. Taking some photos might be helpful when the washed and dried or new absorbers are installed. The figure 16 on page B-13 in the parts catalog shows the absorbers. This might also help in installing the absorbers,
6. Install the cleaned or new absorbers.
7. Install the printer unit in the bottom part of the case.
8. Install the upper part of the case
9. Install the scanner unit, and you are done.

Hopefully the printer works now.

Your service manual is actually one of the best Canon service manuals I have seen. Other manuals are much less detailed and with no disassembly info.

Good luck with the project.
 
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Potsie5

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@Potsie5- were you able to fix it?
Your post inspired me to join this group- thank you.
I have not tried to fix yet. I purchased another printer- Canon MX532 and have put my MX860 on the shelf for a later day.
 
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