timing strip lubrication with silicone?

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Hi, I noticed that the timing strip after some time begins to wear more and more. This is even more true after cleaning it.
So I think that it needs some silicone lubrication and it also would help to clean it better, because after some time if you leave it uncleaned especially in the area where print head parks the timing strip gets so dirty even ultrasonic cleaner can't clean it.

What do you think?
 

Grandad35

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Normally, timing strips like this aren't meant to touch the sensor.

Open the cover to get the carriage into the reload position, then pull the plug (don't turn the printer off first, since it will park the heads before powering off if you do). Use a small mirror to see if the strip is rubbing on the pickup as you move the head across the printer by hand. If it rubs, can you adjust the mounting points for the strip to get it in the middle of the sensor at both ends?
 

ghwellsjr

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I don't think you want to put any kind of lubrication on the timing strip. That would probably screw up the optics.
 

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Those timing strips don't need cleaning until you clean them with a lubricant.
 

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Well the silicone lubricant evaporates so I don't think it will interfere with optics, you just have to spray a tissue wipe the strip with it.
Then you must clean it with new tissue and install it. It's not so hard to do. Just wonder what do you think about it.

I've done so with my cheap i1900 printer so I wonder what you think before I get my hands on 6700D, pro9000 :)

I'm nor sure if they are lubricated by canon, but doing so will prevent the ink from sticking onto the timing strip like it is if left unlubricated and uncleaned for long periods of time or if you print allot of photos.
 

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I also noticed that the timing strip gets dirty more in the head park side of the printer. On some printers it's so dirty and unclean able that the sensor can't see the stop mark on the timing strip and printer has problems with print head positioning.
 

Grandad35

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1. If the timing strip doesn't touch anything, it doesn't need to be lubricated.
2. The silicone itself doesn't evaporate, only the carrier solvent. It's used in many high temperature applications, so it must leave a silicone residue behind after the solvent evaporates to have the desired effect.
3. While I agree with the other comments about "keep it dry", a silicone coating will make it more difficult for any ink to stick to the timing strip and make it easier to wipe it clean in the future. OTOH, are you sure that the solvents in the silicone spray won't attack the plastic used to make the timing strip?
 

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Well the silicone lubricated timing strip still works on my first printer after 4 days now. So if silicone lubricant is not compatible with it would have melted by now.

I also read that it's possible to use silicone lubricant on cine film now that normal lubricant is very hard to get. I'm still afraid to use it on my cine film :rolleyes:
 

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ghwellsjr said:
I don't think you want to put any kind of lubrication on the timing strip. That would probably screw up the optics.
Are you sure the strip is not magnetic? I think it works by hall effect not by optical means.
If it would work by optics there should be a sensor on the opposite side of the strip to pickup the light or vice versa. The strip is not reflective so the light can't reflect back to the sensor if it's in the same unit.
 

Grandad35

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My i9900 has an optical strip. The sensor (constructed as a "U") has both a transmit and receive unit on opposite sides of the strip.
 
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