MP780 scratches print

[Kefp]

Hi - A great forum!

I was wondering if anybody has any experience with prints being scratched/marked by the roller mechanism? It looks as though it's from the top part of the mechanism-above the print. It runs across the entire page as a straight line, much like knife cut. The thicker the paper, the worse it is.

Canon has suggested cleaning the roller but no change. What needs to be done looks like I need to easing off the pressure from the top rollers as print comes out.

Any thoughts?

Thx.

 

[Smile]

Hi - A great forum!

I was wondering if anybody has any experience with prints being scratched/marked by the roller mechanism? It looks as though it's from the top part of the mechanism-above the print. It runs across the entire page as a straight line, much like knife cut. The thicker the paper, the worse it is.

Canon has suggested cleaning the roller but no change. What needs to be done looks like I need to easing off the pressure from the top rollers as print comes out.

Any thoughts?

Thx.

On some printers the roller mechanism can be loosened by unscewing one screw that holds it. On other models it is not possible at all.

 

[Kefp]

Thx - A quick look at the printer does not reveal an obvious way to access the screw you mention. Does the whole thing has to be disassembled?

 

[fotofreek]

Epson printers have had this problem - there are small toothed wheels above the print as it comes out of the printer. These are called "pizza wheels" - similar to a toothed pizza cutting implement. My canon i960 also has them but they have never marked the top of the print. Take a very close look to see if the line is actually a broken line like a tear-off end of a statement.

On my i960 printer driver opening page I can click on the maintenance tab and one of the advanced utilities is to prevent scratching of the print. I am not where I can check the exact terminology, but you can check this out on your printer. this adjustment is for heavier paper stock. Some printers accomodated thicker papers and some don't.

The Epson problem I mentioned was solved by removing the pizza wheel support and replacing it with thin washers to increase the clearance for the paper. I believe that the Canon printer driver adjustment probably does the same thing.

If you still have this problem after making this adjustment (if it is available on your printer) and no one on this forum can solve the problem, there is a participant on the printer newsgroup named Tony who sells and repairs printers. He is very helpful and has no conflict of interest unless you live in New Zealand.

 

[Kefp]

Thx Photofreek.
Yes, it's caused by the "pizza wheel". The 3rd one from the left. I also have performed "prevent paper abrasion" (suggested also by Canon) but to no avail.

How do I contact Tony?

Thank you again.
I actually lived in New Zealand for a few yrs but live in San Diego now.

 

[fotofreek]

Funny (well, not really funny) - one of my "pizza wheels" just popped out of my three year old i960! It came out with a short length of closed wound spring which was probably its axle. I had just done a fairly long run of heavy matte paper prints. Probably too heavy for the printer, although I had used the same paper for a few years. It still feeds just fine, so I will not bother to try to repair it. I am not at my desktop computer and will have to send you Tony's email address when I get to it.

 

[fotofreek]

OK, Kefp - I sent your email address to Tony. Sounds to me like the wheel that is causing marks is dislodged and is lower than it is supposed to be. I remember dislodging one of these wheels on an Epson printer I had before buying the Canon printers. I read that you could clean the drive wheels by lighly spraying windex on a piece of good quality water color paper and running it through the printer. I didn't have the art paper on hand and used a piece of toweling paper that is touted as having great wet strength. Guess what - it snagged one of the pizza wheels and when I pulled the paper out I screwed up one of the wheels. I did manage to get it back in place with some very thin tools (I'm a dentist and have all sorts of things to use for such problems). Worst case - with a strong light and a thin probe you might look to see if you can nudge it upward back into place. better to check with Tony first. Also, if this unit is still under warranty I would let Canon deal with it. Luckily, the wheel that came off my i960 this week is the one all the way to the left, so the paper is still guided properly except for the far left edge.

 

[Smile]

Thx Photofreek.
Yes, it's caused by the "pizza wheel". The 3rd one from the left. I also have performed "prevent paper abrasion" (suggested also by Canon) but to no avail.

How do I contact Tony?

Thank you again.
I actually lived in New Zealand for a few yrs but live in San Diego now.

If there is only 1 wheel causing the problem and the printer is out of warranty, then you can use some thin tools to remove the wheel without damaging others. That will solve your problem and the printer will work fine.

 

[geffklusner]

Once you start looking at certain models, make sure you check the recommended print volume; if you typically print 100 pages a day, you wouldnt want to buy a printer that's rated for 500 pages a month.
Replacement ink cartridge costs represent a major part of your long-term printing expenses. Expect to pay $10 to $40 for an ink cartridge, and $60 or more for a toner cartridge.

Many cheap laser printers come with starter cartridges that last anywhere from 60 percent to as little as 33 percent as long as a regular cartridge. If you know you'll be printing 100 pages per month, find a printer that comes with a full-size cartridge

 

[Kefp]

Again - thank you Fotofreek and Smile for the advise (and an email address). I'm going to try to remove the offending pizza wheel. If unsuccessful, I will look into getting a new printer like the MP970 or something similar. Any recommendation? My main usage are printing text (son's homework) and photos (vacations), so not really heavy duty stuff. Scanning ability is nice to have and I can always use this current one for scanning. Have not used any chipped cart before but I will read up.

I actually have 2 Epson printers (R260 and R340) but have never open the boxes yet. They came with some stuff I purchased at nominal cost.