Epson Stylus Pro 3880

I'm thinking about getting this printer after the New Year. In reading the specs, it says that the inks have a life of six months after loading them into the printer. Since my use will probably be low volume, I may not use up all the ink in six months. Is there any way to extend the useful time of the inks? One person I talked to said that you could back date your computer's time to fool the printer. Will that work? Does anyone have any experience doing this?

Thanks, Jon

Pigments do settle eventually, so removing the cartridges and gently agitating might be a good idea after a long period of inactivity. Beyond that, you just hope for the best. The biggest problem will probably be clogged nozzles. Changing the computer time doesn't alter the passage of time in the printer

jon.oman said:

I'm thinking about getting this printer after the New Year. In reading the specs, it says that the inks have a life of six months after loading them into the printer. Since my use will probably be low volume, I may not use up all the ink in six months. Is there any way to extend the useful time of the inks? One person I talked to said that you could back date your computer's time to fool the printer. Will that work? Does anyone have any experience doing this?

Thanks, Jon

Click to expand...

Phil touched on something, but I wanted to expand on it a little to more fully answer Jon's question.

The dates that Epson prints on the cartridge box, and their recommendation of 6 months life in the printer is based on the material properties of the ink, and the performance level that Epson guarantees for their "Pro" printers. They do not "expire" / stop working after a certain date (as was alleged that some HP(?) cartridges did).

Many people use inks beyond their expiration dates, and some think that up to 2 years is OK, as long as you're willing to monitor the quality of the output (and re-profile if necessary). Phil's advice to remove and agitate the cartridges every 4-6 weeks of inactivity is sound, and additionally, I'd recommend printing a nozzle test or purge pattern (CMYK color bars to exercise all the nozzles) every week (if you're not printing anything else) to prevent clogging and pigment from settling in the lines

I've only had my 3880 for ~3 months, but I'm really loving it. Hope you enjoy yours.

--Greg

I'm a very low volume user of a 3800. About all it ever prints is digital negatives and my digi negs don't use a whole lotta ink. As best I can tell I'm still using the light light black that came with the printer nearly two years ago.

Love the printer. Makes great digi negs and lovely prints on those rare occasions.

Thanks for the feedback everyone! I wont worry that much about it. I'll be out of town the first of the year, but I should have the 3880 ordered by the first week of February.

Jon

I'm with R Shaffer. Having owned the 3800 for just over two years, I'm still on the original inks, printing mostly diginegs, and scarcely at that. My printer has been in storage for the better part of the last year. I'll be pulling it out for a test run mid-january. I plan to shake up the cartridges, nozzle test, and that's about it. I don't expect any significant differences in print, regardless of what Epson "recommends". Their recommendations typically carry a $500 full-ink-rack price tag, and I take test results over any recommendation.

Well, plans changed, and I ordered the 3880 today! I should have it by next Wednesday. You will probably see more questions from me in the future!

jon.oman said:

Well, plans changed, and I ordered the 3880 today! I should have it by next Wednesday. You will probably see more questions from me in the future!

Click to expand...

Congrats Jon,

I don't think you will be regretting your decision. Makes awesome digi-negs & prints and when you consider the cost of ink ( especially what comes with the printer ) it is an excellent value.