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Thread ID: 22290	2002-07-16 10:17:00	printer cartridge problem	rustymum (1080)	Press F1

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
63059	2002-07-16 10:17:00	I have a Lexmark 1020 printer, black cartridge works O.K. I hardly ever use the colour, but the other day, I swapped them over. It just printed in blue, so I did a nozzle clean, and also cleaned everything else I could find, refilled the ink, redid the nozzle clean, blah blah........ needless to say, the damn thing is still only printing in blue! Any ideas before I take to it with a claw hammer??	rustymum (1080)
63060	2002-07-16 10:41:00	Not familiar with that model, but think its the one where you either use black or colour by swapping cartridges - otherwise in other types you cannot swap the cartridges.. If you havent used the colour much or for a while, the ink will probably have dried up in the very fine capilliaries. You can try soaking the print head on a moist paper towel, but you have done all that. Basically its possibly a lost cause, and wont be made easier by the fact that you have done a refill and lost any critical pressure/vacuum in the cartridge which also may impede inkflow (quite critical in some brands of inkjet) I have found that even a few hours when empty can be fatal.	godfather (25)
63061	2002-07-16 12:23:00	I can confirm that the 1020 is very picky when it comes to refilling and cartridges. With these and similar printers it pay to at least once a week, run the colour and the black to keep the ink flow - do a nozzle test pattern check thingy. The 1020 also doesn't like being refilled, although it is possible, it's a b@$!@rd to do. Chances are yer colour cart is toast. They do make handy door stops though. BTW I chucked my 1020 away years ago!	Elwin Way (229)
63062	2002-07-17 01:38:00	You could try, since it's either salvageable or not, giving it a bit of isopropyl alcohol on the nozzle area of the cartridge. That might open up what water won't. I think that inkjet printers are meant to be used until they empty the first cartridge, then replaced. That seems to be about the model lifetime.	Graham L (2)
63063	2002-07-17 02:17:00	Have you tried pouring some boiling water in an old china cup. When the cup is warmed up empty the water , put in enough boiling water to cover the cartridge head , leave the cartridge soaking for about 5 minutes, then gently dry the head and try it. Not 100% but it does work if the head has not dried out really hard. Presume as good practice you always put the cartridge directly init's holder when you remove it from the printer.	FrankS (257)
63064	2002-07-18 09:47:00	Thanx Elwin, my sentiments exactly, although the way me pc is going at the moment, the whole lot will end up as quite a sizeable doorstop!have successfully refilled the black cartridge twice, but am getting a tad tired of overall print quality- bands of white in solid blocks of black. BTW what are my chances of running a new printer with the pc I have- W98SE, Cyrix 200+, 64meg RAM- sick of not being able to run new software, is it the same for hardware?	rustymum (1080)
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