BCI-6 Cart.

  • Thread starter Thread starter herbzee
  • Start date Start date
Anyone with experience using BCI-6 cartidges from INKGRABBER for the
Canon i960?
Click to expand...

Use alotofthings because they use Formulabs ink in both their bulk and
carts.

They are rebuilding their web store right now and you can't do an
online order so call them at 951-694-6300 and ask for Joe. I just got
a double set of carts from Joe for the i960 last week (12 carts) and
the cost was $38.95 +Shipping.

You might be able to find the carts cheaper elsewhere, but do they
contain Formulabs Ink is the question.

Regards,
TR
 
You might be able to find the carts cheaper elsewhere, but do they
contain Formulabs Ink is the question.
Click to expand...

I'm truly interested in what is so good about Formulabs ink. Has this been
reviewed and compared to others? Or is this your personal experience?

OCP is a German ink that is in wide use in Europe. I've been using it in
Caboodle cartridges at local franchise stores here in the San Francisco bay
area, USA.

How do the 2 inks compare?

Thanks for any info you can provide.
--
Please, no "Go Google this" replies. I wouldn't
ask a question here if I hadn't done that already.

DaveC
(e-mail address removed)
This is an invalid return address
Please reply in the news group
 
I'm truly interested in what is so good about Formulabs ink. Has this been
reviewed and compared to others? Or is this your personal experience?

OCP is a German ink that is in wide use in Europe. I've been using it in
Caboodle cartridges at local franchise stores here in the San Francisco bay
area, USA.

How do the 2 inks compare?

Thanks for any info you can provide.
Click to expand...

Im currently using Formulabs ink in both Canon and Epson printers (NOT THE
SAME INK THOUGH!)

I very happy with the result.

Good color matching
Snappy prints
No more "clogs" than with OEM inks.

So far:

About a pint of each color through a Canon i960 and a canon ip4000

About a half pint of each color through an Epson R200.

LOTS of prints
Very little trouble.

I also have had very good results with ink from MIS Assosiates in Canon
printers.
 
I'm truly interested in what is so good about Formulabs ink. Has this been
reviewed and compared to others? Or is this your personal experience?
Click to expand...

I started off on this same NG last June when I first got my new i960
asking who, what & where is the best ink formula for this specific
printer that would render best color-to-original results plus offer
the least or no more wear and tear to the print heads than OEM ink
does. Over and over on this NG came the suggestion to get Formulabs
Bulk inks and make sure any 3rd party carts also contained Formulabs.

Instead of me searching and bringing forward all those threads from
the past 10 months, I think you probably have the same resources to do
the search for all those threads yourself and suggest that you do so
because you will find them rich with the information you require, just
like I did when I was making up my mind as to who, what & where to get
the best ink/carts for my specific printer.

Also, I think there were a couple of other venders using Formulabs but
can't remember who they were since I started with alotofthings and
stuck with them. They just need to get that web site fixed.

My personal experience is only between the original OEM carts and
alotofthings carts(Formulabs) and bulk ink(Formulabs) and all I can
say is that the Formulabs ink has rendered prints who's colors are as
close to the originals scans as the OEM was and I have had ZERO clogs
or flow problems and assume my print heads are not being abused.

Its not my personal experience that is as important as all the
information that was fed to me by people more in the know than myself
that led me to using a vender that provides Formulabs Ink in the first
place. Again, your will get better info, more in depth info, better
technical data, etc... by doing that NG Thread search than you will
get from a beginner as myself.

Hope this helps,
TR
 
I emailed alotofthings last week to ask if their prefilled carts listed on
their ebay site were filled with formulabs inks. They replied that the
Arrow carts are filled with formulab ink and the Rainow carts are not. On
another forum I read that alotofthings sends formulabs inks to China where
the Arrow carts are filled with that ink and shipped back to alotofthings.
 
Alotofthings.com is an excellent vendor to buy from. Great prices and
customer service, but as TR noted the web site makes them look otherwise.
Joe has left it up as an information resource and he's said that it should
soon be back up to full function. As I noted in an earlier reply in this
same thread, alotofthings has an eBay store that's alive and well. I put the
link in that reply. I've seen the same post you refer to about them shipping
ink to China. However, I have doubts about the accuracy of that. They are a
U.S. vendor of Sensient-Formulabs ink. Unlike too many online vendors they
actually list their real business address which is in Temecula, CA.
Sensient-Formulabs is in San Diego so the two are located within a few miles
of each other. Formulabs has a very interesting web site which will give a
much better picture of the company than anything one of us may write in a
newsgroup. Check out www.formulabs.com. This company has been around a very
long time (way before inkjet printers) and is no Mom & Pop operation. They
would be the ones shipping to China. I've also found www.arrowinkjet.com
which appears to be the manufacturer of the Arrow cartridges (the Arrow logo
on the cartridge box and the web site is identical).

FWIW, I've used a variety of refill inks over the years and have had nothing
to complain about (MIS, Atlascopy & Computer Friends). I just like dealing
with alotofthings and the quality of the Formulabs ink has been first rate.
When I got my latest iP4000 I printed several sets of reference photos and
color charts using the OEM Canon ink tanks that came with the printer and
then printed them again with refilled cartridges that I removed from the
i950 I was giving to my daughter. The ink in those cartridges was bulk
Formulabs ink purchased in late 2002. I also printed the same items using
new Arrow cartridges I'd just received from alotofthings. That was three
different sets of prints using ink from three different sources which were
obviously manufactured at different times. All three sets were identical
making it impossible to tell which ink was used to print them. The only way
I can identify the source of the inks for each print is the notations I
wrote on the reverse side of the paper. I've also used Rainbow carts that I
got from www.tylermartin.com. Once again, no problem. Color was fine. Once
empty, they were refilled with Formulabs ink and are still in my sets of
refilled tanks that I keep in rotation.
 
Since you have had experience with several brands of aftermarket carts I
would like to know your exprerience with refilling various carts. I have
used the Computer Friends plugs on OEM carts with MIS inks but have not yet
tried the Computer Friends inks as I had MIS inks that I have used
successfully. I had purchased MIS empty carts and would echo Neil Slade's
comment that the plugs are a pain! Do the Arrow carts have a fill hole
similar to the OEM carts? I also recently purchased a starter refill kit
from Hobi-colors, primarily to try their empty carts with the plastic screws
to seal the fill hole. The Computer friends plugs with OEM carts are very
easy to manage.

Thank you for the very informative response regarding the several inks you
have used.
 
I approach refilling a little differently than most other users. Instead
messing around with plugs and seals on the top of the cartridge, I make a
small hole on the side of the reservoir about 3/16" from the top. I've used
push pins (two holes needed this way - one for the syringe and the other for
as an air vent), but drilling a hole with a 1/8" bit is better. On the last
set I worked on I didn't have any bits handy so I used a #4 finishing nail.
From now on I'll be using the nail to drill in the plastic tanks. No mess or
chips to fall into the reservoir, which even if it did happen wouldn't be a
problem anyway. If a ridge develops from making the opening it can be shaved
off with a razor blade or X-Acto knife. There are various ways of sealing
the opening. My preferred method is to use a small spot of duct tape. I
prefer duct tape due to the heavy adhesive bond and thickness of the
material. It doesn't leak and won't come off unless you remove it. The whole
point to doing it this way (drill & fill) is that the cartridge remains
essentially unchanged. The tape or seals on top are never disturbed and if
the cartridge was performing ok prior to the refill then there isn't any
reason that it wouldn't afterwards. It isn't a visually attractive method
compared to using little screws or plugs, but I couldn't care less about
appearances. I just want something that works and is easy to do. This method
will work with any BCI-3 or 6 cartridge. OTOH, if I was using cartridges
such as the Hobi-Colors or Computer Friends there wouldn't be a need to use
the procedure I described since these are already refill friendly. I've seen
the Hobi-Colors and like the idea of how they use a nylon screw. I'm going
to send you a short PDF file I created describing (with pictures) my refill
technique. In case you don't receive it, send me a private email so I can
attach the file to the response.
 
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