I have been keeping a tab on prints on my t-jet 3 since I bought the EZ Pro system and a brand new print head. I have gotten a total of 963 prints or should I say runs, which I use photo 1140x72 2 pass. I hear of people saying they never change their printheads and one person said they had 27,000 prints on a print head. I am not sure how any of that is possible my t-jet, printhead, capping station is cleaner then my house. I clean it every single day. I could never get 27,000 prints. My nozzle check has all the colors showing with no gaps but the lines going across look jagged. So I am now getting banding in the yellow and cyan and not sharp edges around the black.
What do you think the average life cycle of a printhead is as far as t-shirt prints?
Do you run the HD cleaner through the head, or do you let the ink reside in the machine when its not in use? What I mean by that is if its even for overnight??
yes i leave the ink in the print head, but I put cleaning solution in the capping station to keep the head moist so there is no dry ink. Seemed to work for awhile, but of course doesnt last long. I must say this is the longest i went without replacing a head as far as runs are concerned.
I think putting the cleaning catridges in every day before i leave is alot of work added to the already 30 minutes per day cleaning at start up and the end of the day lol
I have the hm1 and the ink stays in my lines all the time. I have never had any issues with clogging, other then one time when it was my own fault I dont think its necessary to have to remove your inks from your lines each night, that seems way to much work. I would try putting about 15 drops or so of cleaning solution in your capping station, to where it is pretty full, turning off your machine for about an hour, then turn it back on, then clean the face of your printhead with a foam tip cleaner soaked it cleaning solution. See if this clears it up.
The way I get the cleaning solution in the capping station, to where it does not get sucked out is, I do a head clean and at the end of the clean, when the print head is over at the spit station, I hurry and use a syringe and fill the capping station. Then when the printhead comes back over to the capping station and docks itself I turn it off. This way the cleaning solution does not drain before you turn it off.
Let me know if this clears it up. It should work. If you are just getting banding and are still getting ink out of all the nozzles, it should clear right up with this method.
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Always do right; this will gratify some people and astonish the rest. ~~~Mark Twain BobbieLee
I was actually told by EquipmentZone to never try and clean the face of the printhead where the nozzles fire. I was told to only clean around the edges of the printhead. I was making that mistake for the last 2 years and that was probably my number one reason for buying so many printheads.
I think maybe to just put cleaning solution in the capping station every day before I leave and that way the head never dries out where ink is on it
Hmm I have been cleaning my printheads since I bought my machine. My first printhead lasted me almost a year and I am now on the second one. When I do it, I make sure I only wipe in one direction so that I dont pull more build up into the nozzles. I also just wipe with the foam cleaner very lightly, making sure it is very saturated with cleaning solution. I had noticed the first time I cleaned it this way, that there was a lot of buildup of ink on the bottom of the printhead that the wiper did not remove. I have a different printer then you do though, but alot of people do clean the face of the printhead. I guess it just comes down to what works best for each machine owner
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Always do right; this will gratify some people and astonish the rest. ~~~Mark Twain BobbieLee
I just started to leave cleaning solution in my capping station over night. Today the capping station doesn't drain. Tried to syringe the solution out at the waste bottle - hose, and could not get any suction. Any advice?
Had the same issue a couple months ago ... theres a clog in your line ... you'll need to take the side panel off and remove the clip from the hose and the little plastic tubing connecting the hose together ... after you've done that take your syringe and connect it to the hose leading to your capping station ... pull the mess out and you should be good.
Side note I gave up on the TJET3 after 18months of going back and fourth getting it repaired, due to faulty motherboards, bolts in the bed that weren't tighten causing registration issues , capping station malfunctioning.
The one thing everyone misses with the TJET3 that will screw everything up is the rubber wiper that cleans the bottom of the print head. You can only see it when cycling through a print head cleaning. You have to clean and peel dried ink off it or theres no point in doing a head cleaning because you'll just be smearing the ink across the printhead ... usually the first thing to go is the yellow and whites, then banding in your prints unless you arre printing on 1440.
I am glad to be reading this thread. I have been considering buying one of these machines and wondered about the maintenance. This is the stuff the sales people won't tell you. I think I'll stick to screen printing. Good luck with your problem.
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Mike
If you dig ditches be the best ditch digger you can be.
JazzyTees
Had my Tjet2 since this summer. When I got it, the bed was never allign up correctly to be able to print. Sent it in for repair and seems to be doing ok, the last few months, some gliches - but I am new and learning. (knock on wood)
Printhead finally calls is quits 
I dont think its necessary to have to remove your inks from your lines each night, that seems way to much work. I would try putting about 15 drops or so of cleaning solution in your capping station, to where it is pretty full, turning off your machine for about an hour, then turn it back on, then clean the face of your printhead with a foam tip cleaner soaked it cleaning solution. See if this clears it up.
