Which printer to buy that can be refilled easily?

[SS]

My old printer has packed up (Epson Photo 870). Which printer to buy now
that has cartridges that can be successfully refilled? Lexmark is out as i
had a Z65 that never refilled successfully and the cartridges were
horrendously expensive. I mainly print documents but a photo here and there
is possible. The Epson was OK until I could not get the printhead to print a
full test - major cleaning makes no difference and I suspect the printhead.
Only a few nozzles work now and always the same pattern even after cleaning.

 

[SS]

Just an afterthought: Probably better to use cartridges that have built in
heads then these can be discarded if they clog or break and also I would
like if possible to get a combined printer scanner for photocopying

 

[Michael Johnson, PE]

Here's another chance for me to plug the MP780/MP760 all-in-one (AIO)
printers from Canon. I have used an MP780 for over a year and it has
performed very well. Plus it uses the BCI-6 series cartridges that are
available cheap and plentiful from the compatible ink sellers. Canon
has replaced these printers with newer ones that require a chipped
cartridge. There still isn't a replacement cartridge available for
these printers so you either have to refill or buy OEM ink. You can
still get a new MP780 on ebay. I buy compatible cartridges for less
than $1.70 each and they work 99% as good as OEM ink which costs $11 per
cartridge. I'll trade 1% performance for an 85% reduction of ink costs
any day. There are other good printer brands available but for a high
quality AIO with a very low cost of operation, I don't think there is a
better choice than the MP780.

Oh, I forgot to add that the MP780 prints great photos. It should since
it has the same print engine as the iP4000 photo printer.

 

[SS]

Here's another chance for me to plug the MP780/MP760 all-in-one (AIO)
printers from Canon. I have used an MP780 for over a year and it has
performed very well. Plus it uses the BCI-6 series cartridges that are
available cheap and plentiful from the compatible ink sellers. Canon
has replaced these printers with newer ones that require a chipped
cartridge. There still isn't a replacement cartridge available for
these printers so you either have to refill or buy OEM ink. You can
still get a new MP780 on ebay. I buy compatible cartridges for less
than $1.70 each and they work 99% as good as OEM ink which costs $11 per
cartridge. I'll trade 1% performance for an 85% reduction of ink costs
any day. There are other good printer brands available but for a high
quality AIO with a very low cost of operation, I don't think there is a
better choice than the MP780.

Oh, I forgot to add that the MP780 prints great photos. It should since
it has the same print engine as the iP4000 photo printer.

Well I have to tell you that I have taken your advice and ordered an MP780
(£165). Not cheap but after your advice and reading reviews it seems an
excellent choice. Besides which as I run my own business the fax and copy
functions will be very useful. I would like to refill myself (been doing it
for years for myself and others) but need to ensure only the best quality
inks so I will be on the group again for advice. This model is becoming rare
now, certainly in UK

Thanks for your invaluable help

 

[SS]

Here's another chance for me to plug the MP780/MP760 all-in-one (AIO)
printers from Canon. I have used an MP780 for over a year and it has
performed very well. Plus it uses the BCI-6 series cartridges that are
available cheap and plentiful from the compatible ink sellers. Canon
has replaced these printers with newer ones that require a chipped
cartridge. There still isn't a replacement cartridge available for
these printers so you either have to refill or buy OEM ink. You can
still get a new MP780 on ebay. I buy compatible cartridges for less
than $1.70 each and they work 99% as good as OEM ink which costs $11 per
cartridge. I'll trade 1% performance for an 85% reduction of ink costs
any day. There are other good printer brands available but for a high
quality AIO with a very low cost of operation, I don't think there is a
better choice than the MP780.

Oh, I forgot to add that the MP780 prints great photos. It should since
it has the same print engine as the iP4000 photo printer.

The other good thing i discovered was that you can buy and easily fit a
replacement printhead (OK £65 but better than scrapping the whole thing) AND
I am looking at a continuous ink supply system but I don't know how 'well'
these work. On the Epson you cannot easily remove the head its an engineer
job apparently. At least if you can remove the head then you can also clean
it.

 

[measekite]

Well I have to tell you that I have taken your advice and ordered an MP780
(£165). Not cheap but after your advice and reading reviews it seems an
excellent choice. Besides which as I run my own business the fax and copy
functions will be very useful. I would like to refill myself (been doing it
for years for myself and others) but need to ensure only the best quality
inks so I will be on the group again for advice. This model is becoming rare
now, certainly in UK

The thing is you can never tell the best quality inks because you will
not be able to find out the mfg/formulator from the relabeler you buy
from. You will not know if one formula of ink is being sold by multiple
relabelers and if it is satisfacory or not. You are not only risking a
printer buy a scanner and fax machine as well.

 

[measekite]

The other good thing i discovered was that you can buy and easily fit a
replacement printhead (OK £65 but better than scrapping the whole thing) AND
I am looking at a continuous ink supply system but I don't know how 'well'
these work. On the Epson you cannot easily remove the head its an engineer
job apparently. At least if you can remove the head then you can also clean
it.

I like Canon. I have an IP4000. I am not sure how cleanable the
printhead is. I have used OEM ink for 18 months and have never had a
problem and never done a cleaning cycle. I do use the printer once a week.

 

[Michael Johnson, PE]

Well I have to tell you that I have taken your advice and ordered an MP780
(£165). Not cheap but after your advice and reading reviews it seems an
excellent choice. Besides which as I run my own business the fax and copy
functions will be very useful. I would like to refill myself (been doing it
for years for myself and others) but need to ensure only the best quality
inks so I will be on the group again for advice. This model is becoming rare
now, certainly in UK

Thanks for your invaluable help

I think you will be pleased with it. I also run a small business and
find the MP780 a great unit for this use. The document feeder is very
convenient for faxing, scanning or copying multipage documents. One
thing I find very useful is being able to scan one or more sheets and
then save them as a single PDF file for electronic storage or attaching
to emails.

They are becoming rare since Canon has stopped manufacturing them. I
have thought about buying one and storing it for use when mine finally
stops working. I save a lot of money from using compatible inks and I
like the fact I can buy prefilled cartridges for 15% of the price of OEM
ink. What I have saved in ink cost has paid for the MP780 I own
several times over.

 

[Taliesyn]

The thing is you can never tell the best quality inks because you will
not be able to find out the mfg/formulator from the relabeler you buy
from.

Ask that same information from Canon, if you want a good laugh. They
won't tell you either.

-Taliesyn

 

[Taliesyn]

I like Canon. I have an IP4000. I am not sure how cleanable the
printhead is. I have used OEM ink for 18 months and have never had a
problem and never done a cleaning cycle. I do use the printer once a week.

I like Canon too. I have an IP4000 and an iP500. The printheads are
very cleanable should you wish to clean them. I have used non OEM ink
for over 18 months and 12 months respectively and have never had a
problem and always do a cleaning cycle when installing new cartridges.
You have to run the cleaning cycle in order to prime the ink to the
printhead. Measekite didn't call this a cleaning so you know he lies
about everything else.

-Taliesyn

 

[Michael Johnson, PE]

The other good thing i discovered was that you can buy and easily fit a
replacement printhead (OK £65 but better than scrapping the whole thing) AND
I am looking at a continuous ink supply system but I don't know how 'well'
these work. On the Epson you cannot easily remove the head its an engineer
job apparently. At least if you can remove the head then you can also clean
it.

Replacing the print head on Canon printers is very easy. Also,
replacement heads are relatively inexpensive. I bought one on ebay as a
spare for $65US. I have never had a reason to replace or even clean the
print head outside of the cleaning cycles available in the software.

Since I can buy prefilled cartridges for less than $1.70US I really
can't justify the hassle of a CIS system or even refilling cartridges.
I don't know how well the CIS systems work as I have never used one.

 

[frank]

Ask that same information from Canon, if you want a good laugh. They
won't tell you either.

-Taliesyn

Good grief T!
That moron actually thinks anyone could understand or even gives a shit
what the formulation of ink actually is or should be. he's been posting
that crap now for months. How thick in the brain is this idiot?
Kill file his stuck-on-stupid ass and be done with the imbecile.
Frank

 

[SS]

Replacing the print head on Canon printers is very easy. Also,
replacement heads are relatively inexpensive. I bought one on ebay as a
spare for $65US. I have never had a reason to replace or even clean the
print head outside of the cleaning cycles available in the software.

Since I can buy prefilled cartridges for less than $1.70US I really
can't justify the hassle of a CIS system or even refilling cartridges.
I don't know how well the CIS systems work as I have never used one.

Well I can tell you that in UK the cartridges are more expensive than you
pay, but then isn't everything here!! I must check ebay for a spare
printhead while they are available.

My epsons have been excellent for photos but they do clog even using epson
cartridges if you leave them a week or so without use. Anyway if you can get
6" x 4" photos printed at Asda (Wallmart) for around 5p each then its not
even worth considering doing them at home

 

[Michael Johnson, PE]

Well I can tell you that in UK the cartridges are more expensive than you
pay, but then isn't everything here!! I must check ebay for a spare
printhead while they are available.

The print head for the MP780 should be available for quite some time.
It is also used in other printers like the iP4000, MP760 etc. I got a
spare because I use mine for business printing and with my luck the head
will die while I am working on something with a critical deadline.
Since I have a spare head the original one will now last forever.