PGI-9 bellows stuck at halfway point, 9500 Mk II

[Tandberg]

Thanks to the eccelent information here I have started to put together a "refill tool kit" with all the necessary hardware.

With the last of the Canon ink I'm going to print some pages with color patches to generate profiles before and after the
switchover. Trying to do so I first tried to run the nozzle cleaning procedure a few times (the printer has been idle for
almost half a year). The MBK field of the printout got worse all the time even after a deep cleaning. The MBK tank was
full when I started but I replaced it anyway with a new (Canon) one and the problem disappeared.

Looking closer at the replaced tank shows the metal plate in the bellows sitting on the diagonal with the top part far inside
the tank and the bottom part has not moved at all. So there is lots of ink left but it is not accessible any more.

Now to my question -
Is this tank permanently damaged and useless or can it be restored by some magical rituals?

So far I have not made many b/w prints but I intend to do much more b/w printing in the future.
Collecting two sets of empty tanks is my main task right now.

Are the black tanks more prone to go bad after longish periods of no use?

 

[The Hat]

Tandberg
Now to my question -
Is this tank permanently damaged and useless or can it be restored by some magical rituals?

Are the black tanks more prone to go bad after longish periods of no use?

Answer: - is no it can be easily fixed and the ink inside is still reusable.

To that question the answer is yes / no and not really, I have had two black cartridges give poor ink flow problems in the past, but I had used and refilled them both dozens of times before any problem arose and are now back working perfectly.

If you make or buy a special orange clip for the outlet of the cartridge (your choice)
you can also remove the ink and reuse later while using this special clip.

Completely flush the empty cartridge with water, then refill it with about one ml of ink, then suck out that ink and discard it you should then repeat this process a second time, now you can refill the cartridge with 16 ml of ink and keep the full cartridge for later by covering the outlet with the orange clip or use it straight away.

There are some helpful tips in the links below:-

http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=59370#p59370
http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=48202#p48202
http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=44195#p44195


Here are two places to go for the PGI-9s and everything you'll ever need to get started refilling them whichever side of the pond youre on.

http://www.octoink.co.uk/categories/Refill-Tools{47}Kits/PGI%2d9-Refilling/
http://www.precisioncolors.com/C10A.html

 

[Tandberg]

Thanks for the suggested remedies.

Before I could try them out I got sidetracked into a project in a completely different area.
I had replaced the stuck cartridge with a new one and stored the stuck one upside down
for a week or so. I also turned the "evil eye" on it and gave it a shake now and then.
It seems to be pigment sediment on the bottom that caused the problem, suddenly the
cartridge was back to normal again.