iP4500 Light Cyan and Light Magenta Bands Missing

[msmart]

I just picked up another iP4500 off of craigslist for $15USD, score!! Well, maybe. The PGBK-5 cartridge was missing but the other CLI8 carts were OEM and full.

TPAGE=01202 not too bad.

After putting in a PGBK-5 cart, the very first nozzle check printed all color bands but the BK band was half normal and half light so I did an cleaning. On the next nozzle check, the light cyan and light magenta bands are missing. It's the same after subsequent cleanings and removing the print head to clean the contacts.

I haven't tried swapping print heads yet.

First nozzle check:

Subsequent checks:

 

[The Hat]

msmart

Congratulations on your great bargain, I would love to have gotten a printer for the price of a single cartridge.
I wouldnt be too worried about the print head it looks fine to me but suspect the problem lies with the cartridges instead.

Change the magenta and cyan cartridges or just put a couple of drops of alcohol on the outlet hole
of both cartridges and try another one or two nozzle checks.

You have no idea what condition these cartridges were stored in and could have even being left out of the print head
before the printer was put up for sale and had started to dry up.

If the alcohol doesnt quite do it then repeat the process again this time using Windex instead,
it wont matter because youll probably have to purge the cartridges later anyway?

 

[msmart]

I don't think this is a flow issue.

I swapped print heads with the one my daughter had at university. While it printed the light cyan and light magenta (with the same carts), the PGBK grid was missing the upper half vertical grid lines and has streak bands on the color bars. She had complained about her printer not working but admitted to taking it apart to get at something that had fallen in the paper feed area.

I put the print head this printer came with back in and it still doesn't print the light cyan and light magenta bars after further cleaning cycles. I downloaded a test sheet and it prints great with no discernible quality or color issues. All the colors in the color wheel look as they should so I'm going to have my daughter use it for her next year of schooling. I'll use the one she "experimented" with as my parts printer.

For $15, she gets a useable printer and I get Canon CLI carts to put into my refilling rotation.