epson 3800 ink question????????

[ignatiusjk]

If you use a "refurbished or used" cartridge in your 3800 printer and the color's look messed up how bad will it screw up your printer? Can you run alot of paper thru it just to get rid of the bad ink or is it a major problem.I've never used anything but Epson ink but I found some ink cartridges that are half the price so I might be willing to try.

[Greg Lockrey]

you would be crazy if you do.... stay with Epson inks.

[Walter Foscari]

It all depends what ink you use. There's nothing magic about epson inks. In fact there're several third party sources of ink out there and, at least the best ones, provide you with a product that is just as good as epson. John Cone is well known for their b&w inksets and now they have some color ink as well which some say is just as good. MIS sells, what is in my opinion the best matte black (although I'm not sure about their color ink).
I've run a 7600 printer with a customized b&w inkset from MIS for several years now without any clogging problems or other printer issues. My prints never looked better and so does my wallet.
As with everything do your research and weight the alternatives. Just remember that you will need to recreate your profiles if you mix and match inks.

W

[Peter von Gaza]

I use MIS K4 inks and just profile my printers using cheap DataColor spectro. Been using MIS inks for over about 10 years or so. Saved thousands and thousands of dollars (we do a lot printing!). Why pay 5 times more for ink? Get cheap empty carts off ebay and buy good dependable 3rd party ink.

Peter

[coops]

Been using 3rd party inks for years without a problem on my 3800 and a 2200 before that. Initial outlay was about $250, but i get 120cc refills at about $20 each.

[Jim Jones]

Longivity of prints is another important consideration for some of us. The longivity of Epson ink and media is well documented. Some other combinations have short lives.

[sanking]

I've run a 7600 printer with a customized b&w inkset from MIS for several years now without any clogging problems or other printer issues. My prints never looked better and so does my wallet.

W

Which B&W MIS inkset are you using with the 7600? And can you print with QTR?

Sandy King

[Walter Foscari]

I'm using a variation on Paul Roark's 4k+ inkset. He developed this a few years ago but you can still find detailed info on his website. It's mostly MIS inks except for the LM which is epson. I've added a diluted LLLK with HP PK for extra smoothness and because I had that particular ink in house, but it's not strictly necessary. At one point I tried the ebony6 inkset because I liked the idea of all carbon ink. but I returned to this for the flexibilities that it offers and that weren't available with ebony6.
Yes this should be run from QTR and you should make your own profiles for best results.

W

[Peter von Gaza]

I've been using MIS inks and QTR for years. I have an old Epson 4000 that is dedicated to B&W, but also sometimes use our Epson 4880 and 7800. Clogging is not an issue. The little extra cleaning I might have to do is offset by the $$ saved not using Epson inks. For a while I used dedicated B&W inksets, but with QTR my results are so good using the standard color inkset that I don't bother anymore. QTR with the Epson 4880 using MIS K4 inks is a killer combination (IMHO). My market for sales is in the $30-$120 range so I'm not to concerned about ultimate archivalness.

Peter