Digital BW, The Print

> ...
> >> The "N" of EZ inks is produced by adding similar amounts of cyan +
> >> magenta = blue to the otherwise warm carbon inks. So, imagine if the
> >> pigments in your ink settled over time and the amount of settling was
> >> different for cyan and magenta. Now you may have filled the inks with
> >> a cyan-rich (or maganta-defient) fraction from the bottle.
> >>
> >> So, I would try shaking the bottle thorougly before extracting ink
> >> from it. ...

> >
> > I've ordered the EZW set,...

They are very warm compared to the EZ-N.

If this was in a CIS, the lines and cart may have separated ink in them that
should be pulled through the system.


> That may have been the case with older MIS inks but the blue
> toner used today is a single pigment as far as I know. For the
> reasons mentioned above and better fade properties the CM mix
> was replaced with a blue pigment. Like the one used in the
> R800/R1800 ink set.
> 

The R800 blue (clone) ink still needs to be mixed with cyan to get the
appropriate shade of blue to offset the yellowish carbon.  It was an
incremental improvement over the magenta, but, unfortunately, did not
completely cure the problem.  I still have to print several large purge
patterns on butcher paper if my 7500 has sat unused for a while.

Most desktop printers do not have these problems because the carts are
agitated when used.  CFSs and large format printers that are not used
regularly is where most of the separation problems exist.  I used to agitate
my Piezo CIS carts to avoid this.

I'm testing some alternative pigments right now that show some promise to
improve the situation and be even more lightfast.

Paul
www.PaulRoark.com