Phaser 8560 Ink... 1

[kdw75]

We bought the Phaser 8560 printer the other day and need ink to run a project over the weekend. Oddly enough no one I have called seems to carry ink and I don't have time to order it. I live in the Kansas City area and did find one place that had solid ink for the 8860 and I am wondering if I could cut it down and use it in my printer. I am pretty desperate and need some options.

Thanks,
Keith

 

[Michael52x]

Xerox inks are pretty much designed for the specific machine because of differences in voltages, and melting points. I would expect that ink from an 8500/8550 would work for you, but unsure about the 8860 inks. I'll check the Xerox partner site, I am an ASP, and will post back today.

"Impatience will reward you with dissatisfaction" RMS Cosmics'97

 

[Michael52x]

cant find much on this, but the engines are the same, so are the print heads. Have you tried it yet?

"Impatience will reward you with dissatisfaction" RMS Cosmics'97

 

[kdw75]

No I haven't tried any yet. I ended up waiting until this morning to get the ink I needed. I am really tempted to try the 8860 ink because it is so much cheaper.

Keith

 

[nycprint]

I just received the new 8560 today and found out that the solid inks are much SMALLER than my old Phaser 840's solid inks. It looks like Xerox cut the size of the solid ink into half and selling around the same price of 8860's ink.

Anyone tried using the 8860's ink PRINTING ON the 8560 printer? Please kindly keep me posted a.s.a.p!

Thanks in advance!

sprint

 

[Michael52x]

The inks are specific to the various temps of the p-head.
The ink melt voltages vary too, so only use the ink for that unit.P-head can become clogged, and and if moved while still hot, can splash into the vacuum chambers, ruining the head.

"Impatience will reward you with dissatisfaction" RMS Cosmics'97

 

[kdw75]

I tried melting some 8860 ink and it ran fine for a little while but then I started having it overflowing ink out the bottom and wouldn't stop melting the ink. Very strange considering it is supposed to be the same ink and print head.

I found a new 8860 for $1400 after rebate so I bought one of those. Should be here in a few days. I don't see why they screw you on the $8560 ink when the 8860 is just a few hundred more for the printer.

 

[jet2black]

I am Xerox technician I can tell you the phaser 8860 and the 8560 are the same machine except for the ink loader. Yes the ink is the same. The only difference is the shape. cutting the ink stick to fit into the 8560 is a bad idea for two good reason. the first is when and not if the remodel ink stick get struck in the ink loader. it is impossible to unjam the loader. Second there is the problem of the ink stick count. Since the stick is not for a 8560, there going to be ISC error message and the printer will be lockup and not print.

 

[kdw75]

I don't see how the printer could tell the difference. Isn't it simply applying heat to the sticks and melting them? What your saying is exactly right but I don't see why. If the ink is the same shape how can the ink loader throw fits? When it was giving me problems I checked and the ink was up against the melting plates.

 

[jet2black]

There is a ink stick sensor on each row of ink which tell you "low ink". The other function of the sensor is to count ink stick and sent that information back to printer. if the ink stick count doesn't match a preset value then you will get an error. I think the ink stick count is based on the weight of the remaining stick on the sensor.

Melting the 8860 stick into a 8560 ink mold solve this problem and created a bigger problem. Meaning the wax stick is not just wax, can only be melted once never twice when it enter the printhead it will damage the sensors and flood the printhead and kill it. Now you need a new printhead.

There is no way around getting cheap Xerox ink other than buying a 8860.

 

[kdw75]

Interesting. We have moved to the 8860 and it works great. We bought the 8860 for $1900 new. Then we traded in an old Brother multifunction printer we had and got a $500 rebate. Then finally sold our 8560 for $800.

After rebate the 8560 was $750 and after rebates the 8860 was $1400. The 8860 is definitely worth the extra money.

 

[Kurt111780]

I'm thinking about getting one of the solid ink printers. Since there seems to be a few users in this thread that have them, I thought I would ask here if you don't mind.

1. We have small office and sit right next to the printer. Does it emit an odor or fumes that we should worry about?

2. Often we print shipping labels. Packages are probably sent across conveyor belts, rollers, and in hot vans. Would that cause it to scratch off?

Thanks

It's only easy when you know how.

http://www.seedandgarden.com

 

[bob144]

I have a Phaser 8560. In coming across some ink stix, I ended up with 2 boxes of regular (non metered) ink and 2 boxes of metered. The regular boxes are marked 8560 / 8560MFP where as the metered is 8550/8650/8560MFP. The shape is different, but am wondering if it is safe to use the metered. It seems from previous responses there is a problem using other model inks but I found nothing directly with the same model but different types (metered vs non metered. I also have a few left over 8550 stix (non metered) which looking at the metered reference to 8550 & 8560's would that be okay as well.

Thanks

 

[kdw75]

It does emit some odor but it is harmless and I actually kind of like the smell. Nothing too noticeable unless your within a foot or two of it and it is printing.

As for the durability it is pretty good but will scratch if you use something like your fingernail. Under normal use it is fine. Heat shouldn't be a problem unless you leave it in direct sunlight on a hot day in a closed up car.

 

[ITEM]

The electronics counts sticks used in the ink loader. Cut them down makes them too small to count and it keeps requesting more ink.

It's not Xerox's fault when someone bypasses sensors.

 

[kdw75]

Very frustrating though that they chose to do this. I would prefer the printer loader not try to second guess what I am doing. No matter what size or shape the ink I put in is it should use it. What is the advantage to me to have it reject certain sticks? Another thing about this printer that drives me up the wall is the way it has specific set sheet sizes in tray 2. This printer seems like it is designed to be idiot proof and the printer thinks it knows more than I do about what I am wanting to feed through it.

When it comes to pure cost you just can't beat ink-jet and they are getting faster all the time. We buy our ink-jet ink in gallon jugs that cost just a little more than 3 little wax sticks. And our Epson inkjet unmatched and they don't restrict what size paper I can print on. We use our Xerox to do short run color that isn't cost effective to put on the printing press but it seems like a toy instead of a professional machine.

 

[Michael52x]

yes, this is a media specific unit, and the ability to do a production run as on a press, is it's main function.
If a duplex unit, then it's great for brochures!
Stop whining about the cost of the ink. Use the machine correctly, and it will function perfectly.

"Impatience will reward you with dissatisfaction" RMS Cosmics'97

 

[Kurt111780]

Is the ink durable enough to use on shipping labels or will it scratch off when the box rolls and slides through UPS\Fedex equipment?

It's only easy when you know how.

http://www.seedandgarden.com

 

[kdw75]

I think it will do fine for shipping labels but there is of course no way to guarantee it. We have actually printed postcards with complete coverage on gloss stock and mailed it. The machines did scrape off a small amount but nothing too bad. That may not sound like much of an endorsement but even when we print them on a press they sometimes scrape that ink off along with the top layer of the paper!

Overall I think they are fine for most situations excluding long term high usage where abrasion will occur or very high heat environments where it is expected to last.

 

[DWlsn]

There doesn't seem to be any one perfect system for delivering ink. Large sticks, small sticks, and refillable ink cartridges all have their advantages, and disadvantages. There is a nice comparison of the various Xerox systems here:

http://www.frac.ws.