The true cost of printing ink ?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Red Fox
  • Start date Start date
Today I paid over $40 for two dinky little ink cartridges. I bet the empty
cartridges cost no more than a $ or 2 to make, so why does the ink and
refilling cost so much?

It seems that the number of outfits refilling the cartridges is now becoming
an epidemic. Maybe that will bring the price down.

Could ink be bought in bulk, say in 4 or 6 oz bottles and then loaded into
the cartridges when needed, or is that task a difficult one? Undoubtedly
the ink has to be carefully protected from the air. Has anyone done this?

TIA

RF
Click to expand...

If you want big cartridges, get a laser. Frank and measekite both
have very small ones.

loving laser....
 
Today I paid over $40 for two dinky little ink cartridges. I bet the empty
cartridges cost no more than a $ or 2 to make, so why does the ink and
refilling cost so much?

It seems that the number of outfits refilling the cartridges is now becoming
an epidemic. Maybe that will bring the price down.

Could ink be bought in bulk, say in 4 or 6 oz bottles and then loaded into
the cartridges when needed, or is that task a difficult one? Undoubtedly
the ink has to be carefully protected from the air. Has anyone done this?

TIA

RF
Click to expand...

If you want some giant, extra large ones, get laser. Frank and
Measekites are so small. Franks leaks all the time. That's why he
wears the rubber, because he's worry that it will leak.

Loving laser because they are so big.....
 
Huge thanks to (almost ;-) ) everyone for this great discussion. I have all
the answers I need from here and will buy my own ink next time, if only to
satisfy my own curiosity.

Thanks again and happy filling and printing to (almost) you all :-)

RF
 
Jim Robinson said:
Very simple. Printer makers selling their own ink make a killing from
your wallet.


No. Printer makers will never reduce their prices as it is their cash
cow. They willingly give the printers away and then soak you royally for
their ink.


Yes, of course, millions are doing it. You can buy bottles sized from 2
oz to a gallon. But stick with smaller sizes if you don't print often as
ink does deterioriate over long periods of time.

It's usually a very simple task and not messy at all unless you're a born
klutz like Measekite who has admitted he spilt ink on his rug. Not sure
if he mean carpet or his toupee. But difficulty depends on the particular
cartridge type used. Canons are generally easiest to refill, so they all
say here.


No, the printhead has to be protected from air. Stick your spare set of
refilled cartridges in printer and then fill empty set. Never leave
printhead exposed without cartridges unless it's a Lexmark or HP which
have built in printheads in the carts. Then it's no problem removing them
at any time.


When you buy bulk or refill kits, you'll be given specific intructions
for refilling, follow them closely. Buy only ink made for your exact
printer type. Under no circumstances should you use ink that says it is
good for all printers. That's wishful thinking, not to mention a possible
waste of money. You will likely not be too pleased with the results, plus
it can possibly damage your printer.


Refilling can save you depending on print volume from several hundred to
several thousand dollars. I'm in the thousand dollar bracket. And it's
tax free since it never leaves your wallet.


Best of luck!



Jim Robinson, wife Wendy, and two printaholic teens!
Click to expand...


Hi Jim,

Thanks for that great reply. Could you share with us the names of one or
more of your ink suppliers?

TIA

RF
 
Jan Alter" ([email protected]) said:
Do a little Google search and you'll find an easy dozen companies selling
ink in bulk to do just that. You can also do a search for refilling
cartirdges. Some are easier than others. Additionally some of these
cartridges have little cb 's on then (circuit board) that are implanted
there by the manufacturer to thwart anyone from refilling. However, chip
resetters have been around almost as long as the cb's to reprogram the chips
to say 'full' again and thwart the printer companies. It's a vicious circle
that makes ink the bulk of the money for printer companies while buying the
ink in bulk and refilling saves it for the consumer.

Jan Alter
(e-mail address removed)
(e-mail address removed)12.pa.us
Click to expand...


If you choose to use manufacturer's carts (I do, for best print
quality--and don't tell me how "good" or "close to" replacment inks are;
they aren't) at least get your money's worth out of them. Office max, who
will refill an empty cart for not much less than a manufacturers' brand
name, which tell you something) will give you $3 off a purchase for the
empty. They sell them to refillers, whose products are (again) not much
cheaper than the maker's brand (I have to wonder why, given that bulk in
really is not all that expensive).

In other words, it's a racket, and you have to decide what you want. I
want trouble-free printing with best quality. Commercially refilled carts
can come close, and if you refill yourself, well, is the stuff in the
bottle just food dye? Read all the compaints hee and decide for yourself.

Brendan
 
measekite said:
Now if they just purchase it like other
supplies then that is a different story and I know for a fact that they
do not do that.
Click to expand...

Hmm, 'measekite' and 'fact' is an oyxmoron!

Jim Ford
 
Red said:
Could you share with us the names of one or
more of your ink suppliers?
Click to expand...

The suppliers of the ink I use for my CIS use:

http://www.ocp.de/

I've seen other non-oem cartridge supplies state that they also use OCP ink.

I've had profiles made for my printer/ink/paper combination, and get
great results, with _no_blockages_!

Jim Ford
 
Red Fox said:
Hi Jim,

Thanks for that great reply. Could you share with us the names of one or
more of your ink suppliers?

TIA

RF
Click to expand...

I've been using the ink from these folks for a year and a half to refill
cartridge in Epson printers at school and at home.

MIS www.inksupply.com
 
Frank said:
measekite wrote:
You're really kind of stupid after all aren't you?
Click to expand...

+-------------------+ .:\:\:/:/:.
| PLEASE DO NOT | :.:\:\:/:/:.:
| FEED THE TROLLS | :=.' - - '.=:
| | '=(\ 9 9 /)='
| Thank you, | ( (_) )
| Management | /`-vvv-'\
+-------------------+ / \
| | @@@ / /|,,,,,|\ \
| | @@@ /_// /^\ \\_\
@x@@x@ | | |/ WW( ( ) )WW
\||||/ | | \| __\,,\ /,,/__
\||/ | | | (______Y______)
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\//\/\\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
==================================================================

Because he's coming out from my killfile ;-(
 
Brendan R. Wehrung said:
If you choose to use manufacturer's carts (I do, for best print
quality--and don't tell me how "good" or "close to" replacment inks are;
they aren't) at least get your money's worth out of them. Office max, who
will refill an empty cart for not much less than a manufacturers' brand
name, which tell you something) will give you $3 off a purchase for the
empty. They sell them to refillers, whose products are (again) not much
cheaper than the maker's brand (I have to wonder why, given that bulk in
really is not all that expensive).

In other words, it's a racket, and you have to decide what you want. I
want trouble-free printing with best quality. Commercially refilled carts
can come close, and if you refill yourself, well, is the stuff in the
bottle just food dye? Read all the compaints hee and decide for yourself.

Brendan
Click to expand...

Brendan - are you on the same newsgroup as I am? I've read every post here
relating to canon printers and refilling carts now for about four years.
The majority of complaints I've seen about refill ink quality have been from
people who bought universal refill kits at a retail outlet. Otherwise, the
very few complaints about refill inks have been counterbalanced by the much
larger number of posts of people who are very happy with refilling their
carts. Perhaps you have been swayed by the continual biased diatribe from
our very own troll, Measekite, who has never used any aftermarket ink
products but spouts negatives as if he had used them and is the local
authority on how inferior they are. If you believe him, I've got a bridge
in New York to sell you.
 
Red Fox said:
Today I paid over $40 for two dinky little ink cartridges. I bet the empty
cartridges cost no more than a $ or 2 to make, so why does the ink and
refilling cost so much?

It seems that the number of outfits refilling the cartridges is now
becoming
an epidemic. Maybe that will bring the price down.

Could ink be bought in bulk, say in 4 or 6 oz bottles and then loaded into
the cartridges when needed, or is that task a difficult one? Undoubtedly
the ink has to be carefully protected from the air. Has anyone done this?

TIA

RF
Click to expand...

But you knew they were dinky when you bought your printer didn't you?
 
"measekite"
| >
| > I am in no way associate with a printer or ink manufacture. As to
quality
| > or supposed inferiority ... I can only judge by hard real world
experience.
| >
| > Since I make my living from my imagoes I'm careful what I do and use.
| >
| > Again hard world experience shows the variance in after market ink is on
a
| > par with the variance in OEM ink. Few, including many professional
artist
| > can tell the difference.
| >
| > Which leads me to the conclusion that you, sir, are full of sh|t.
| >
|
| Real professionals will not even use OEM dye ink because of longevity.
| Those real professionals produce their results using OEM pigmented ink,
| more from Epson and some from Canon.
|
| Now the people who buy fly by night ink sell their fly by night products
| to their fly by night or even worse unknowingly customers.

Lets see: I've made my living with professional images for 40+ years. I'm
also an engineer with a minor in Chemistry. Hint I know how to perform both
quantitative and qualitative analysis.

You and your post are a constant reminder that while 95% of the world's
population suffers from hemorrhoids the other 5% are perfect a**h***s.

Must be nice not to suffer from the constant itch.

Curious aside from being a professional shill aka a**h*** and full of sh|t
in the bargin what are your qualifications to speak on this matter?
 
In both cases, (the corn flakes and the inks) it is slightly more
complex, but the basic idea is the same, yes.

In both cases, it is unlikely the product inside the box (cartridge) is
identical, even if it is made by the same company in the same factory.

In each case, the distributor is likely to be offered a number of
formula, and they decide what price point they wish, and the formulation
is altered to meet the market and pricing.

For instance, you will often find the corn flakes in the off-brand box
will contain less costly ingredients, or contain more preservatives.
The reason is the "unbranded" product is probably only produced once or
twice a year, to keep quantity order high to lower cost, and the
warehouse is packed with the product, which is distributed for a year or
more. The brand name product is made daily or weekly, so there can be
more rapid turnover of stock, so it requires less inventory in storage
and therefore lower amounts of preservatives.

The same may be true of inks. Larger batches made, and dictates of the
3rd party to control pricing may lead to a different formulation.


Art
 
I haven't seen good ASCII art in years.

Art
+-------------------+ .:\:\:/:/:.
| PLEASE DO NOT | :.:\:\:/:/:.:
| FEED THE TROLLS | :=.' - - '.=:
| | '=(\ 9 9 /)='
| Thank you, | ( (_) )
| Management | /`-vvv-'\
+-------------------+ / \
| | @@@ / /|,,,,,|\ \
| | @@@ /_// /^\ \\_\
@x@@x@ | | |/ WW( ( ) )WW
\||||/ | | \| __\,,\ /,,/__
\||/ | | | (______Y______)
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\//\/\\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
==================================================================

Because he's coming out from my killfile ;-(
Click to expand...
 
| In both cases, (the corn flakes and the inks) it is slightly more
| complex, but the basic idea is the same, yes.
|
| In both cases, it is unlikely the product inside the box (cartridge) is
| identical, even if it is made by the same company in the same factory.
|
| In each case, the distributor is likely to be offered a number of
| formula, and they decide what price point they wish, and the formulation
| is altered to meet the market and pricing.
|
| For instance, you will often find the corn flakes in the off-brand box
| will contain less costly ingredients, or contain more preservatives.
| The reason is the "unbranded" product is probably only produced once or
| twice a year, to keep quantity order high to lower cost, and the
| warehouse is packed with the product, which is distributed for a year or
| more. The brand name product is made daily or weekly, so there can be
| more rapid turnover of stock, so it requires less inventory in storage
| and therefore lower amounts of preservatives.
|
| The same may be true of inks. Larger batches made, and dictates of the
| 3rd party to control pricing may lead to a different formulation.
|
|
| Art
|
<snip>

| > As I suspected. It's rather like the choice in a supermarket between
| > branded cornflakes like Kellogs and the supermarket's own brand - both
| > made by the same company, the difference being indistinguishable except
| > for the price and pretty packet.
| >
| > Jim Ford

The reality of band name vs house brand was demonstrated not too long ago
when there was a contamination of peanut butter in the USA. Seems one plant
was producing the majority of the PB sold at most of the box stores.

So the high end Peter Pan and low end Wal Mart carried the same codes (which
no one noticed) as they were the same product only difference was the label
and the price.

The distinction was clearly obvious as the TV and FDA were reporting the
same product code and there was a general shortage of those brands on the
store shelves.

I have observed some still claim they can taste the difference. Seems the
reality is the difference is ALL IN THEIR HEADS.
 
NotMe said:
| In both cases, (the corn flakes and the inks) it is slightly more
| complex, but the basic idea is the same, yes.
|
| In both cases, it is unlikely the product inside the box (cartridge) is
| identical, even if it is made by the same company in the same factory.
|
| In each case, the distributor is likely to be offered a number of
| formula, and they decide what price point they wish, and the formulation
| is altered to meet the market and pricing.
|
| For instance, you will often find the corn flakes in the off-brand box
| will contain less costly ingredients, or contain more preservatives.
| The reason is the "unbranded" product is probably only produced once or
| twice a year, to keep quantity order high to lower cost, and the
| warehouse is packed with the product, which is distributed for a year or
| more. The brand name product is made daily or weekly, so there can be
| more rapid turnover of stock, so it requires less inventory in storage
| and therefore lower amounts of preservatives.
|
| The same may be true of inks. Larger batches made, and dictates of the
| 3rd party to control pricing may lead to a different formulation.
|
|
| Art
|
<snip>

| > As I suspected. It's rather like the choice in a supermarket between
| > branded cornflakes like Kellogs and the supermarket's own brand - both
| > made by the same company, the difference being indistinguishable except
| > for the price and pretty packet.
| >
| > Jim Ford

The reality of band name vs house brand was demonstrated not too long ago
when there was a contamination of peanut butter in the USA. Seems one plant
was producing the majority of the PB sold at most of the box stores.

So the high end Peter Pan and low end Wal Mart carried the same codes (which
no one noticed) as they were the same product only difference was the label
and the price.

The distinction was clearly obvious as the TV and FDA were reporting the
same product code and there was a general shortage of those brands on the
store shelves.

I have observed some still claim they can taste the difference. Seems the
reality is the difference is ALL IN THEIR HEADS.
Click to expand...


Most of the peanut butters do indeed seem to be made by the same
company. I've been trying various brands this year - major brands and
store brands, even dollar store - and they all taste exactly the same
to me. Now unless they all share recipes... that should be an impossibility.

As for corn flakes... they've all tasted different so far. I prefer (in
Canada) IGA/Sobey's Compliments Corn Flakes over President's Choice,
Kellog's, and various others. Each has its unique taste, though all are
way to sweet. I've bought sugar free flakes at natural food stores and
they are much preferable.

Same with soft drinks - it's all in your head that "Things go better
with Coke" or Pepsi - at twice the price! The 85 cent (or less!) store
brands are every bit as good. My favorite right now is President's
Choice Pomegranate (diet).

-Taliesyn . . . getting hungry, gotta go - NOW!
 
Taliesyn said:
Most of the peanut butters do indeed seem to be made by the same
company. I've been trying various brands this year - major brands and
store brands, even dollar store - and they all taste exactly the same
to me. Now unless they all share recipes... that should be an
impossibility.

As for corn flakes... they've all tasted different so far. I prefer (in
Canada) IGA/Sobey's Compliments Corn Flakes over President's Choice,
Kellog's, and various others. Each has its unique taste, though all are
way to sweet. I've bought sugar free flakes at natural food stores and
they are much preferable.

Same with soft drinks - it's all in your head that "Things go better
with Coke" or Pepsi - at twice the price! The 85 cent (or less!) store
brands are every bit as good. My favorite right now is President's
Choice Pomegranate (diet).
Click to expand...

Not true. And the price difference between Coke and the noname is not
great when you buy Coke on sale. Most do not drink all that much to the
gross difference in spent capital is small. So most do not care.
 
Most of the peanut butters do indeed seem to be made by the same
company. I've been trying various brands this year - major brands and
store brands, even dollar store - and they all taste exactly the same
to me. Now unless they all share recipes... that should be an impossibility.
Click to expand...

Actually, there are a number of differences, and they don't taste the
same. The three major taste categories are:

Crazy Richard: peanuts.

A Few Others: peanuts, salt.

Most others: peanuts, sugar, sugar, sugar, salt, salt, salt, partially
hydrogenated peanut oil, preservatives, more preservatives. (Taste
differences between these brands are largely due to differing amounts
of sugar.)

Jim
 
measekite wrote:

Not true. And the price difference between Coke and the noname is not
great when you buy Coke on sale. Most do not drink all that much to the
gross difference in spent capital is small. So most do not care.
Click to expand...
Spare us your ill informed market wisdom! You know nothing...nothing at
all about the buying habits of the general public and you demonstrate it
with every ignorant post.
Get lost, ok?
And don't ever come back.
Frank
 
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