Inkjet Printer Forum / Ink Jet Refill Forum

I have to say I have given up on Freedom filling, except maybe for pigment black.  It got better with practice, and I was optimistic about it, but in practice I found it rather difficult to carry out correctly.  It's also slow and requires a lot of cleanup.  It works very well for pigment black, but poorly for photo black and colors.  It would be quite a bit better if I didn't have to return excess ink to InkTec tubes.

Since it works well for some of you, I believe it must depend on the ink.  I use InkTec for HP564, and IS for black.

The main problem is that the cartridge blows bubbles and creates quite a durable foam, which should not be reinjected into the cartridge.  (The design of the syringe or adapter has little to do with this.  The cartridge makes most of the foam.)  Unfortunately, it takes quite a long time for the bubbles to break, and meanwhile you are trying to hold the vacuum with the syringe.  The last time I refilled, I found that I was removing ink instead of refilling.

I managed to solve the foam problem by putting a large excess of ink in the syringe, but that has some disadvantages.  In my case I have to return the excess ink to those stupid little InkTec tubes.  That must be done very carefully, under pressure.  The last time I did that I didn't realize how much ink I sucked out of the cartridge, and as a result I blew the end off my last tube of InkTec cyan.  For those who told me so, you were right.

I still like the idea of vacuum filling, and methods such as those described in this thread seem promising.  I tried it because I thought it would prevent any possibility of air in the sponge, which may not be the problem I thought it was going to be.  On the bright side, I managed to fill my cartridges VERY full, and they worked well without leaking, so I very likely did remove the air.

Last edited by ThrillaMozilla (03/23/2012 1:15:25 pm)

PeterBJ wrote:

An update on the Topcraft hot melt glue:

The glue failed. My small adapter came apart, when I used it for flushing a BCI-6 cartridge. I've found another hot melt glue that seems stronger. The brand is "Toolex" and I bought it at a local discount supermarket. I cannot give more info about the new glue sticks, apart from the color is more yellowish, where the Topcraft are a white opaque appearance. Time will tell if the new glue is any better.

The glue I use is yellow in colour (code PHPZ 32 A1) as well and goes on at a very high temp.
but I still wouldn’t use it for making the refill adapters; try the Araldite for a much better join..

I just figured out what the problem is.  I can be so dense sometimes (slapping forehead).

The HP564 CMY cartridges leak air at the top of the sponge chamber.  At least mine do.  They just won't hold a vacuum long enough to fill.

It could be that the joint between the top and the sides is not sealed above the sponge chamber.  Or it could be that the adhesive on the label has deteriorated.

Thanks, Peter.  I think that makes a lot of sense.  I like the aluminum tape replacing the label.

I can't see the problem, but ink does seem to attack the adhesive, and it wouldn't take much of a breach to spoil the vacuum.

It will be a few days until I can investigate.  For now I have to get some work done.  I succeeded in refilling partly, so I have enough ink for now.

I kept using the Freedom method until now because I am just curious and stubborn enough to want to know how these things work.  Besides, it really does have some advantages if you have nerves of steel and your wife doesn't mind a little magenta on the kitchen wall.  (Amazingly, it wipes off.  )

Last edited by ThrillaMozilla (12/19/2012 4:29:12 pm)

The reason you want to reduce the volume is that it subtracts from the vacuum that gets applied to the cartridge.