Another 3880 or...pizza wheel markes resolved by epson?

[gevalia]

I had a 3880 for a few years (bought in '11 I think) that served me well. I was happy with it except for 1 thing that drove me nuts and that was the pizza wheel marks. Tried all the tricks, people would suggest and sometimes they worked for 1 paper/size but not for another. For personal reasons I took time away from photography and a friend bought the 3880 from me (after seeing its issues of course). Now that I am back, I am looking for a printer. Has Epson resolved the pizza wheel marks problem or does that still persist in the 3880? Is there another model you'd suggest?

I only print B&W and about 80% of the time 8x10 and 20% 16x20. Probably would not use rolls.

Regards,.
Ron

[jeroldharter]

I hope Epson has solved the problem. I just bought a 3880 and it is sitting in a box staring at me, ready to print its first print soon.

[Vaughn]

Front load instead? That seemed to help when I was watching someone make inkjet negs.

[gevalia]

Front load instead? That seemed to help when I was watching someone make inkjet negs.

yes, front load helped sometimes but was very finicky to load. The thing is all these tricks work sometimes. There was no consistency with my 3880 in which tricks worked and which didn't in a print session.

I'm just looking to hear if Epson has fixed the problem or if I'll be taking on the same issues as before in 2011. Other than this very frustrating issue (which wasted a lot of ink and paper, the machine was great).

[djdister]

I've had the 3880 for several years now with no pizza wheel marks at all (I used both the sheet feeder and rear load slot). Used to see them on the Epson 2200 from time to time. I also print mostly B&W with the printer, and the only real problem I've had is with paper that has too much edge curl (Harman by Hannemuhle) which leads to head strikes at the edge of the paper. So I won't use the rest of that paper... but no paper-related problems with Epson, Moab, Ilford and Museo papers at all.

[gevalia]

I've had the 3880 for several years now with no pizza wheel marks at all (I used both the sheet feeder and rear load slot). Used to see them on the Epson 2200 from time to time. I also print mostly B&W with the printer, and the only real problem I've had is with paper that has too much edge curl (Harman by Hannemuhle) which leads to head strikes at the edge of the paper. So I won't use the rest of that paper... but no paper-related problems with Epson, Moab, Ilford and Museo papers at all.

Thanks, that's what I was looking for.

[sanking]

Thanks, that's what I was looking for.


On the other hand, I have owned both a 3800 and a 3880 and got pizza wheel marks with both of them when printing digital negatives, and when printing glossy inkjet prints with some media. Bottom line for me is that Epson has not completely resolved the issue of pizza wheel marks and I am reluctant to recommend it for printing glossy prints, and for digital negatives on OHP, though some people use it for this and do not have problems.

And unfortunately, removing the pizza wheels is not as easy to do as it was with previous generation printers like the 2200.

I know you are not looking for this answer, but that is my experience.

Sandy

[SKimber]

I've had the 3880 for several years now with no pizza wheel marks at all (I used both the sheet feeder and rear load slot). Used to see them on the Epson 2200 from time to time. I also print mostly B&W with the printer, and the only real problem I've had is with paper that has too much edge curl (Harman by Hannemuhle) which leads to head strikes at the edge of the paper. So I won't use the rest of that paper... but no paper-related problems with Epson, Moab, Ilford and Museo papers at all.

I used to see the similar problem on 2200 too and simply got it resolved by using the following tips:
http://www.inkrepublic.com/KnowledgeBase/WheelMarks.asp

For the 3880 printer that I have, I have not seen this problem. And yes, I am using 3rd party inks and refillable carts from Inkrepublic too, http://www.inkrepublic.com/3880-iRefill.asp , no problem so far. When I was using Epson carts, I did not see pizza wheel problem either. Just tired of expansive inks from epson... so switched to 3rd party inks.

[gevalia]

I used to see the similar problem on 2200 too and simply got it resolved by using the following tips:
http://www.inkrepublic.com/KnowledgeBase/WheelMarks.asp

For the 3880 printer that I have, I have not seen this problem. And yes, I am using 3rd party inks and refillable carts from Inkrepublic too, http://www.inkrepublic.com/3880-iRefill.asp , no problem so far. When I was using Epson carts, I did not see pizza wheel problem either. Just tired of expansive inks from epson... so switched to 3rd party inks.

SKimber,

Are you using Epson paper? As I recall, I never had the issue with Epson paper but with Museo, Hahnemühle,and Canson Platine Fibre (favorite) I had it frequently.

[gevalia]

On the other hand, I have owned both a 3800 and a 3880 and got pizza wheel marks with both of them when printing digital negatives, and when printing glossy inkjet prints with some media. Bottom line for me is that Epson has not completely resolved the issue of pizza wheel marks and I am reluctant to recommend it for printing glossy prints, and for digital negatives on OHP, though some people use it for this and do not have problems.

And unfortunately, removing the pizza wheels is not as easy to do as it was with previous generation printers like the 2200.

I know you are not looking for this answer, but that is my experience.

Sandy

Sandy,

I was worried about that. How old is your 3880? Wondering if its possible it has been fixed by epson since.

I may just have to buy the 3880 going in knowing of its probable frustrations just because I can't seem to find an alternative.

[sanking]

Sandy,

I was worried about that. How old is your 3880? Wondering if its possible it has been fixed by epson since.

I may just have to buy the 3880 going in knowing of its probable frustrations just because I can't seem to find an alternative.

The 3880 in question was purchased in late 2012 or early 2013. I don't believe Epson has fixed this problem. They have pretty much ignored as people have been complaining about pizza wheel marks on virtually all of the previous generation of Epson printers that have those nasty little sharply pointed wheels. I would have removed them if the fix were easy but it seemed fairly complicated so I just decided to get rid of the 3880 and get a larger machine that uses suction to guide the media rather than the sharp wheels. The 4880 uses suction, not wheels, so it would be a better choice for printing with glossy media and on OHP, if you can stand the extra size, weight and expense.

I never had a problem printing with the 3800 or 3880 with matte papers of any kind, but the pizza wheel marks showed up with both glossy papers and with digital negatives on OHP. Fortunately, some people who use the 3880 do not have the problem, so there must be a fine line between having the pressure of the wheels adjusted correctly and too tight.

Sandy

[Peter York]

Sadly, I have been battling the pizza marks issue over the past few weeks. I'm working with color prints on Harman by Hahnemuhle Gloss Baryta, which admittedly is a very finicky paper. On 16x20 images with large areas of dark tone, the marks, and even more visible scratches, are ubiquitous. I've switched from auto to rear load, widened the platen gap to its fullest, set the paper thickness way beyond the actual thickness of the paper, set the print time so several seconds go by before each pass of the head, blasted a fan at the opening of the printer to help dry ink as soon as its laid down, and wiped the back of the paper with water to induce a reverse curl, all to no effect. In these areas of dark tone, the paper swells, and I get scratches and/or the roller marks.

The front feed rollers are different than those for the auto and rear loaders, and may mitigate the issue, but you are limited to a max. 16x20 paper size.

Matte papers should all be fine, and many glossy/luster papers should work as well, but you can't count on all papers not having this problem. Epson's classic response is to push their papers. For these dark-toned images I'll use another paper, but I'm quite partial to the Gloss Baryta. And, as soon as I can, I'm moving on to a suction-based printer and converting this to a dedicated matte B&W with Cone inks. That future printer will be an HP, used Roland, or other brand. I'm done with Epson. They have known about this issue for about 15 years. There is no excuse. Its sad, really, because in most ways the Epson 3880 is a magnificent printer.