# Epson 4880 DTG print head cleaning strategies



## Sunro

Hello Everyone,

After having gone thru an "interesting" episode of a clogged print head in our 4880-based Blazer printer, I thought I would tap the collective wisdom of this group to start a best-practices thread regarding cleaning strategies.

I would be interested to know what procedures you use to keep your Epson print heads clear and operating properly, especially with a view to prevention of a slow build-up of clogged nozzles.

Here is our current strategy - your thoughts are encouraged:

1 - Ambient Humidity: We currently try to maintain 60% RH in the shop at all times.
2 - Ambient Temperature: We keep our shop at about 20C.
3 - "Standard" Head Cleaning: We usually do two normal head cleans every day, 7days/wk, whether we print or not. On really busy days, extra cleanings are sometimes done. (overkill?)
4 - Power Cleans: We try to avoid using them as much as possible, since they use up a lot of ink (!)
5 - Printer Jockey: We have found this to be a really valuable tool, and use it quite often.
6 - Capping Station and Wiper: We clean these at least once per day, even on days we don't print. We also put a few drops of either distilled water or dilute cleaning fluid on the station pad to keep it moist at all times.
7 - Print Head: We were very gently cleaning the underside of the print head with cleaning fluid (and once in a while with an alcohol swab), but this may have lead to our problem by pushing sticky ink into the nozzles. Now that we have a Teflon-coated print head, is this a necessary/useful/risky/dumb procedure?
8 - Cleaning Fluid: We have found that our most recent purchase of HD Cleaning Fluid (US Screen) seems a bit oily and thick, and foams up very easily. Earlier fluid was not the same. As suggested by the US Screen support techs, we now dilute the fluid 30% with distilled water and also add a small amount of isopropyl alcohol to the mix. We have only just started doing this, so the jury is still out.
9 - Encoder Strip: We clean this no less often than every other day, using 70% isopropyl alcohol swabs. So far so good, but I hope it won't wear out the pattern on the plastic!
10 - Ink Tanks: We gently "tilt" the white ink tanks every morning to keep the ink from settling. We have had a few issues with either rapid settling (ink replaced) or serious ink clots (also replaced). One annoying thing is that every time we do this a small amount of air is introduced into the ink tubes, but this generally doesn't seem to cause any serious problems. I would love to see someone invent a method for keeping the Blazer's tanks constantly stirred (like some other printers I've noticed).
11 - Extended Down-times: How long can the Blazer be left unattended before it is necessary to flush the system with cleaning fluid to prevent drying up? Practical data, not theoretical !

So, what are your thoughts regarding any of the above? Hopefully we can all benefit from collective suggestions.

Cheers to all, 
Chuck


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## calitrendz

Send them to me! I'll clean it! I take the whole thing apart and vacuum out the fluid. Use me as your first result because you can mess up the circuit board if you get it wet. I've made a professional safe cleaner! PM me!


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## PositiveDave

Running this maintenance programme - how often does your printer foul-up?


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## Sunro

calitrendz said:


> ..... I take the whole thing apart and vacuum out the fluid......


Interesting you should say that, because that's exactly what we discovered can work well. We place the print head in a flat-bottom container with just enough cleaning fluid to immerse the head to about 3 or 4 millimeters deep. You need to be *very* careful not to get the ribbon connectors or circuitry inside the head wet.

We seal the container and let the head sit in the fluid for a few days. Then we very gently pull fluid up thru the nozzles with a syringe and short plastic tube connected to the nipples on the top of the head ... one channel at a time.

This quite often will clear up blocked nozzles, but not always. This method requires a lot of care, especially when pulling fluid up thru the nozzles ... too much vacuum will damage the delicate seals inside the head.


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## Sunro

PositiveDave said:


> Running this maintenance programme - how often does your printer foul-up?


We have had really good luck with sticking to this regimen. One important rule is to clean the print head *every* day whether you use it or not.

We have also found that checking the integrity of the rubber seal on the capping station is important. As soon as it exhibits signs of roughness along the top edge, we replace the capping station. Failing to do this will seriously compromise the vacuum needed for good head cleaning (both regular and power cleans).

Another item ... when you replace the print head, also replace all of the damper valves. It's a good investment in peace of mind.

We just recently replaced the print head after almost a year of service and several thousand shirts. It was a black teflon-coated head. Its replacement is one of the older shiny gold-color heads which has already developed a few clogged nozzles, so our next replacement will be a teflon-coated head again.


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## honus

Sunro said:


> We just recently replaced the print head after almost a year of service and several thousand shirts. It was a black teflon-coated head. Its replacement is one of the older shiny gold-color heads which has already developed a few clogged nozzles, so our next replacement will be a teflon-coated head again.


Where were you able to find the teflon coated printhead? Both the original printhead and the replacement for my 4880 were the gold-color, and it seems to clog after just a few hours.
Thanks!


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## equipmentzone

The print heads with the gold colored shiny bottom are the teflon coated ones. The ones with a black bottom are not.

Harry
Equipment Zone


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## chi2sj

Hi All,

I was trying to purchase an Epson 4880 print head from an Epson parts distributor but was told that Epson stopped selling all 8 channel print heads. He told me I had to pay a premium to purchase one of the few remaining print heads they had in stock. We can only purchase print heads directly through Epson with a printer serial number. Does anyone know if there any truth to this or am I getting hustled???


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## calitrendz

chi2sj said:


> Hi All,
> 
> I was trying to purchase an Epson 4880 print head from an Epson parts distributor but was told that Epson stopped selling all 8 channel print heads. He told me I had to pay a premium to purchase one of the few remaining print heads they had in stock. We can only purchase print heads directly through Epson with a printer serial number. Does anyone know if there any truth to this or am I getting hustled???


Yeah it's true, you have to go to Epson tech support and order. Don't buy it from the distributor, you can get them for $225 I believe because they quoted me today. If you need a new print head send me yours and I'll clean it out for you if you haven't damaged it.


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## aleph13

Sunro said:


> 5 - Printer Jockey: We have found this to be a really valuable tool, and use it quite often.


Hi, Chuck!

Can Printer Jockey flush individual channels on a T-Jet Blazer Pro?


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## DAGuide

aleph13 said:


> Hi, Chuck!
> 
> Can Printer Jockey flush individual channels on a T-Jet Blazer Pro?


I am not Chuck, but what the Channel Flush feature in Printer Jockey does is fire ink from whatever channels you specify. So if one channel is clogged, you can tell the printer to fire ink from just that one channel at the resolution you choose for the length you desire. Here is a video that explains what the Channel Flush feature does.

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMpzZNC4RKE[/media]

Hope this helps. Please note that the Printer Jockey software is currently on a huge sale at only $40.00. Feel free to ask additional questions if you have them.

Mark


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## aleph13

DAGuide said:


> I am not Chuck, but what the Channel Flush feature in Printer Jockey does is fire ink from whatever channels you specify. So if one channel is clogged, you can tell the printer to fire ink from just that one channel at the resolution you choose for the length you desire. Here is a video that explains what the Channel Flush feature does.
> 
> [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMpzZNC4RKE[/media]
> 
> Hope this helps. Please note that the Printer Jockey software is currently on a huge sale at only $40.00. Feel free to ask additional questions if you have them.
> 
> Mark


Thanks, Mark!

I went to their site, and saw that Printer Jockey's Channel Flush feature only works on specific models of Epson engines. That's why I was asking about the Blazer Pro in particular. Since he has the regular Blazer, it might work the same.

Saw the sale, too - good deal!


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## DAGuide

Yes it will work on the Epson 48X0 printers.


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## aleph13

DAGuide said:


> Yes it will work on the Epson 48X0 printers.


Excellent! Thanks, Mark!


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## ickywear

I am very new to the printing world and Have issues with mt 4880.

When it works it's great but it is for ever clogged OR out of ink OR some other thing that stops me from printing until I screw around with it for 2 days.

I have cleaned the capping station, flushing box and wiper now it wont let me do a test because there is 1 subjet ink is low.

I used the low side for Sub jet and the other for chromoblast.

I only need Chromoplast to work and there is plenty of ink there???????

I need all the help I can get!

Thanks


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## DAGuide

Adam,

Every piezo print head based printer (which is all Epson printers) requires that ink from all the channels be periodically spit into the maintenance station. If there is not enough ink in the printer in any one line, the printer will stop working until you get a new ink cartridge. If you tried to reset the ink cartridge chip and run the printer without ink, you are going to do damage to your print head. 

You could get by using some other type of ink or cleaning fluid in the printer, but that would land up costing you more money to get the expensive dye sub side back up and running properly. So the only real viable option you have is to get a new cartridge. 

Just a little background knowledge for you. Best wishes,

Mark


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## essen48183

I saw this today. Not affiliated, never used it. Looks promising though. Jet Genie.


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## JeridHill

essen48183 said:


> I saw this today. Not affiliated, never used it. Looks promising though. Jet Genie.


I've got one on order, I'll let you know how it works out!


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## essen48183

Cool. Hey thanks for that rush order of white ink last week. You got it to me fast enough that my head didn't get ruined. I appreciate it.


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## DAGuide

essen48183 said:


> I saw this today. Not affiliated, never used it. Looks promising though. Jet Genie.


This product is manufactured by the same company that makes Printer Jockey. I have seen this product being developed from a concept to a working product. A couple of key features with print head cleaner are 

1) the print head floats on the top of the liquid. So you don't have to be worried about the fluid being at a specific level (too high can hurt the electronics).

2) it uses suction instead of pushing fluid the print head. This helps prevent delamination from occuring.

3) the acoustic feature will help break up particles that have clogged the print head.

As soon as the results start to be talked about, the more you will hear about this product especially with the current cost of the 8-channel print heads. I have been told that print heads that the manufacturers had given up have been saved - including some that had white ink in them. It will not save all the print heads as some are just too bad, but it will help on the rest. I would almost suggest using this product as part of the monthly maintenance procedure to get the most out of the print head.

Just a little bit of what I know about this product. Best wishes,

Mark


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## ultrafashion

If anyone knows?
After putting a new head in the printer, after giving orders to the press, the head acts like the press, but color does not come out of it!
A printer does not report any malfunction of the display ... and the new head is not blocking ... so the problem is in electronics where we are very weak ...
So if someone can help us ...
Another thing, where we can get Joker ?

Thank in advance


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## Stitch-Up

JeridHill said:


> I've got one on order, I'll let you know how it works out!


When do you get it Jerid?


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## JeridHill

I think Wednesday, at least that's the ETA I got earlier today.


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## QV

ultrafashion said:


> If anyone knows?
> After putting a new head in the printer, after giving orders to the press, the head acts like the press, but color does not come out of it!
> A printer does not report any malfunction of the display ... and the new head is not blocking ... so the problem is in electronics where we are very weak ...
> So if someone can help us ...
> Another thing, where we can get Joker ?
> 
> Thank in advance


If I understand correctly, the printer acts like it's printing but nothing comes out. It sounds like it could be a fuse on the board.
-b


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## spiderx1

Anybody warming the cleaning fluid. Not hot just warm. I believe hot could contribute to delamination. Also I had heard some bad reports on using sonic type cleaners. Anybody know if the jet genie avoids this with different freq or how. The jet genie looks interesting. Looking forward to reports. Thanks Mark and Jarid.


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## calitrendz

ultrafashion said:


> If anyone knows?
> After putting a new head in the printer, after giving orders to the press, the head acts like the press, but color does not come out of it!
> A printer does not report any malfunction of the display ... and the new head is not blocking ... so the problem is in electronics where we are very weak ...
> So if someone can help us ...
> Another thing, where we can get Joker ?
> 
> Thank in advance


It looks like you may have blown the f6 fuse on the motherboard which controls ink to come out. I had to replace this before. You can attach a fuse holder to it and put in a 5 millamp fuse in the fuse holder I believe. It works fine after doing this. Also did you take out the print head with the electrical cord plugged in?


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## Stitch-Up

Hey Jerid, do you have a clogged printhead ready to work with on your Jet Genie?


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## JeridHill

Stitch-Up said:


> Hey Jerid, do you have a clogged printhead ready to work with on your Jet Genie?


Yes, I have a couple that were sent to me, thanks!


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## willkho

subscribe to this thread, I want to know how it is going.


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## Stitch-Up

JeridHill said:


> I've got one on order, I'll let you know how it works out!


Any update Jerid?


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## JeridHill

Stitch-Up said:


> Any update Jerid?


Still waiting....


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## BeachGraphix

Well did it ever show or work?


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## 21SPandD2G

would it be smart to clear out the lines and put in 70% Isopropyl Rubbing Alcohol and run a few power cleanings?


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## vinyl signs

Isopropyl Rubbing Alcohol is not a good idea, since it dries out rubber!


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## etchy

where did you get the quote for replacement 4880 print head i need one and have been quoted almost $700!!


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## Jamboree88

etchy said:


> where did you get the quote for replacement 4880 print head i need one and have been quoted almost $700!!


Etchy, did you ever find a better price for a 4880 print head?


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## JonWye

Call Epson directly. Heads around about $250. Just need the serial number from your epson based machine (should be a sticker on the back) and they will happily sell you one. The only reason these other fools are charging more is because they know many people don't/won't know where to get the heads. I used to pay about $500 for them until someone told me to go straight to epson. 

Also if you need other epson parts cut out most of the middle men and go straight to an epson parts distributor such as Compass Micro - Your Authorized Epson and Canon Printer Service Center --


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## apipromo

I've seen them for $293 @ dtginks.com, I think that is a very fair price.

Welcome to DTGInks.com


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## JonWye

apipromo said:


> I've seen them for $293 @ dtginks.com, I think that is a very fair price.
> 
> Welcome to DTGInks.com



It is and I've ordered from them before, but it doesn't make sense to pay over $50 more when you could get them directly from Epson. If my logic isn't sound please let me know. But $50 is $50.


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## apipromo

JonWye said:


> It is and I've ordered from them before, but it doesn't make sense to pay over $50 more when you could get them directly from Epson. If my logic isn't sound please let me know. But $50 is $50.


I completely agree, a few dollars saved in our business buys quite a few t-shirts! I was more stating on the prices some re-sellers are charging, seeing a price of $293 is a fair price after seeing prices still in the $400-$700 range around... which is outrageous. But seeing it is possible to buy direct is great.


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## calitrendz

It depends on the head you are buying too R1900's are more expensive than a 4880. Jon's right though. All of these DTG machines use Epson heads. They have opened up the market this year, which sucks for some people that are in the machine manufacturing business and they will lose out this year but at the same time it has been hurting the consumer for a long time like myself. Yes compass micro has great prices if anyone needs a good price I know a source too that will beat or match the R1900 head. PM me if wanted.


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## apipromo

The 4880 and R1900 both use the DX5 print head which can also be retrofitted into the 4800 and R1800.


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## haory

JeridHill said:


> I've got one on order, I'll let you know how it works out!


Hi 
Could you share your thought about jet genie? Does it work?


Thanks


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## DTGPRINTERPARTS

I tried to buy one and they never fulfilled my order. In my experience once you get a clog with these machines and you can't push through manually then a machine won't push through. If it does it will blow out some internal components. Had a customer use acetone and got it unclogged but dried up the manifold. You can buy a new manifold but I wonder if he ate up the teflon bottom. I'll never know because he threw it away.


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## Stitch-Up

I have one and it does work.

It doesn't try to push any blockage out, it sucks it back.

The machine certainly takes the tedium out of the cleaning/recovery process.

John


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## ozstockman

Jamboree88 said:


> Etchy, did you ever find a better price for a 4880 print head?


you can try this company Encompass Parts: Replacement parts and accessories
They sell all Epson printer parts for low prices and they even order some from epson directly if they do not have them in stock.

I have bought a lot of parts including print heads for my Freejet from them. The price I paid for the printhead(1290 model) was at least 60% cheaper than listed on ebay.

I believe you need to know a part # for a print head to find it on their website.

Update:

I have found one for just $229 there but it is not available. See it at http://www.encompassparts.com/item/7642571/Epson/F187000/Print_Head_Sp4880_7880

Just make sure your printer has the same part # (F187000) I guess that part # was used in earlier versions of these printers and there should be a new part #.

If you need to replace anything else just google for your model parts list. You will find a pdf/doc or whatever format is in there and then you can find an original number for parts you are looking for. Then you can just serach for this part # on encompass website and you will get the best price.

If you cannot find your printer part list there are some websites that sells them and all kind of manual including service manuals for $2-5. I used one of them to find epson service utility and a part list for my Epson 1290 based flatbed printer.


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## DTGPRINTERPARTS

Stitch-Up said:


> I have one and it does work.
> 
> It doesn't try to push any blockage out, it sucks it back.
> 
> The machine certainly takes the tedium out of the cleaning/recovery process.
> 
> John


How bad of a clog did it recover?


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## DTGPRINTERPARTS

ozstockman said:


> you can try this company Encompass Parts: Replacement parts and accessories
> They sell all Epson printer parts for low prices and they even order some from epson directly if they do not have them in stock.
> 
> I have bought a lot of parts including print heads for my Freejet from them. The price I paid for the printhead(1290 model) was at least 60% cheaper than listed on ebay.
> 
> I believe you need to know a part # for a print head to find it on their website.
> 
> Update:
> 
> I have found one for just $229 there but it is not available. See it at Encompass Parts: Epson F187000 Print Head Sp4880 7880
> 
> Just make sure your printer has the same part # (F187000) I guess that part # was used in earlier versions of these printers and there should be a new part #.
> 
> If you need to replace anything else just google for your model parts list. You will find a pdf/doc or whatever format is in there and then you can find an original number for parts you are looking for. Then you can just serach for this part # on encompass website and you will get the best price.
> 
> If you cannot find your printer part list there are some websites that sells them and all kind of manual including service manuals for $2-5. I used one of them to find epson service utility and a part list for my Epson 1290 based flatbed printer.



That website is really outdated. They aren't available because print heads don't exist for $229 anymore nor did an F187000 print head. Back 8 months ago you could buy from Epson for about that much then get hit with tax. My price is nowhere near $400 so a consumers price isn't either.You can't get F187000 heads anymore anyways unless you need one you can request it but they cost more from Epson.


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## ozstockman

DTGPRINTERPARTS said:


> That website is really outdated.


It is not outdated, it just has and shows all parts in their database. If they are discontinued then you will get "not available".

I just used the part # I could find for a 4880 print head. I do not have 4880 and I have googled to find it. That was the first one I found. Unfortunately their search based on printer model does not work at all.

If you use the last part # with their search you will get both the price and availability.

Anyway it is up to you. If you do not to buy from them it is your choice. Everybody else will save a lot on parts if they do.


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## DTGPRINTERPARTS

Don't know if you saw my username but I know what Epson can/can't sell and at what price. Not trying to be a know it all but they don't sell heads at that price anymore, 6 months ago they hiked up the price by $250 so that $299 price doesn't exist nor will it for a long time. If you do find one at that price then it will have to be refurbished and outside the U.S. and if you do get one like that it won't work good. Lots of my customers fork out the money, get one and pop it in the printer with a bunch of clogged nozzles or will pop in the head and its guts are fried. Just a fair warning "Don't do it man!"


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## dzprints

i have no idea how to clean the printer heads and what liquids to use...what can i use that i can find in a hardware store? i live 2000 miles away from the USA so help please.


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## FulStory

Sunro said:


> We have had really good luck with sticking to this regimen. One important rule is to clean the print head *every* day whether you use it or not.
> 
> We have also found that checking the integrity of the rubber seal on the capping station is important. As soon as it exhibits signs of roughness along the top edge, we replace the capping station. Failing to do this will seriously compromise the vacuum needed for good head cleaning (both regular and power cleans).
> 
> Another item ... when you replace the print head, also replace all of the damper valves. It's a good investment in peace of mind.
> 
> We just recently replaced the print head after almost a year of service and several thousand shirts. It was a black teflon-coated head. Its replacement is one of the older shiny gold-color heads which has already developed a few clogged nozzles, so our next replacement will be a teflon-coated head again.


Hi if you dont mind, can you do a video for all of your cleaning strategies when you are free. since you do it everyday and I can see you are really care of your machine. I am great to see how you maintain it with your heart.


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## Zenergy

Sorry to gravedig on this thread, but somebody mentioned retrofitting a DX5 onto a 4880 machine. I've got a T-Jet Blazer Express - is that something that's possible on my unit?


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## EricDeem

Zenergy said:


> Sorry to gravedig on this thread, but somebody mentioned retrofitting a DX5 onto a 4880 machine. I've got a T-Jet Blazer Express - is that something that's possible on my unit?



It's not retrofitting anything...the DX5 is what came with the 4880.


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## duprint

Would Service Code 00010028 be resolved without changing printhead.. I think my printhead is severely clogged.. It does not even process nozzle check and print white strip of ink instead proper lines.. 
Any thoughts and help would be appreciated> Thanks


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## Stitch-Up

Are you able to or have you attempted to flush the printhead?


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