Possibly bad printhead MX722

[jjstewart]

Having purchased a 5-cart Canon MX722 nearly a year ago and print 10-14,000 sheets/year, the Cyan won't print right. I am using an aftermarket cartridge system that has been very successful until recently, when it has become evident that the cart foams and therefore probably dries the printhead. Replacing the cartridge doesn't fix the problem, so that leaves the printhead as the likely problem.

Since I hadn't known about the foaming problem before, the situation has probably existed for a while. It would probably work if I flushed out the foam using air once in a while--at least I'd like to try it. I tried a water flush on another cartrdge, but machine wouldn't recognize the cart when I got done with that method. Or, I probably should replace the aftermarket cartridges more often, which would be more reasonable than going to OEM cartridges.

So:
1. Does this sound like a valid plan?
2. Do you agree that the printhead is the culprit?
3. If so, should i and can I replace the head myself economically?
4. Should I replace the machine at $100 and start over on the above plan using the aftermarket cartridges and ink?
5. Any other ideas?

Is a printhead replacement something I should get involved with? Is there a service manual available on how to do it?

 

[The Hat]

I reckon you’d be better off dumping the printer and getting a new one, which will work out far cheaper for you, and the money you save you can get yourself another set of new compatibles too.

Just take more care when filling the next set of cartridges..

 

[PeterBJ]

Is a printhead replacement something I should get involved with? Is there a service manual available on how to do it?

I searched the web for a service manual and found none, but here is a post showing how to remove the print head from the PGI-x50/CLI-x51 printers.

The quality of 3'rd party cartridges varies a lot. Some are OK, others are not. See this post.

I don't know which cartridges and inks you used, but maybe these cartridges from Precisioncolors are better? They also have ink for your printer.