Ink Refill Recommendation.

[TomBrown]

Hi,

I've got a Canon MP638 Inkjet printer and the ink cartridges have just gone empty.

I'm considering taking the printer to a shop in tukcom to install the external ink tanks as a more cost effective option.

However I only print occasionally and have read different reports here of print heads wearing down and ink drying up if not used for a period of time. Are they true?

Does anyone have any recommendation on which company to use (Inkman, other, does it matter)?

[Lost in LOS]

i have the cmax external tanks, they are great and no problems in the last 6 months

[TomBrown]

Are cmax in tukcom and how much did it cost?

[GungaDin]

I had a local printer vendor bring a new printer with the tanks to my house last week.

I'm glad I did, the quality of printing was crap, I'll keep using my Canon 988 and print less.

Just glad I did not pay up front.

[Rabbi]

Interesting that you pose your question today as I have just decided to look at a new colour printer with external tanks so I will be interested in responses to your topic.

I will of course advise you of the results of my research and having been in the IT industry for many years I have an idea of what to look out for and print head deteriation & volumes etc are paramount.

I also am looking at a multi-function centre [scan, fax, copy & print] and hopefully A3 capability

[phetaroi]

I did have a problem back in the States with printing parts drying up. I finally learned that if I just printed at least a page or two a week -- with lots of color (didn't need to be high resolution), I wouldn't have the problem.

[Theo007]

External tanks great money saver!

[hazz]

rabbi, take a look at the brother multifunction ink jets, these printers use ink tanks from the start making it very easy to use third party ink. I have had one for 14 months and can only say that its works fine and I am only just getting close to emptying the initial set of tanks so I have not tried any third party inks in it yet.

[Rabbi]

rabbi, take a look at the brother multifunction ink jets, these printers use ink tanks from the start making it very easy to use third party ink. I have had one for 14 months and can only say that its works fine and I am only just getting close to emptying the initial set of tanks so I have not tried any third party inks in it yet.

Thanks Hazz

I looked at the Brother MFC Ink & LED yesterday think I will go with Ink with tanks but without the screen to view photos. 1st price 5100 Bht at Tutcom in Pattaya. should get it down a bit once I decide.

[Lost in LOS]

I have the brother MFC with tanks brought at tukcom. all working great

[TomBrown]

After another visit to tukcom, it looks like the only cost/quality difference is in the actual ink. Although each ink refill shop have their own designed ink tanks, they all seem to be pretty much the same components.

Here are some quoted prices for my Canon MP638 inkjet;

Inkman - ฿ 2,500

I.T.ink - ฿ 1,500

Power Print - ฿ 1,000

Unnamed shop - ฿ 800 (corner shop next to lifts, just had the engineer doing the work)

To be honest, I'm thinking of either going for the ฿800 or ฿1,000 option. Hope I don't regret it.

If I were not to go with the external ink tanks, there are replacement ink cartridges from brands like C-Max and Freejet, which do not cost as much as the Canon cartridges, however I was told that they do not supply for my printer as its new design.

Any other opinions before I do this?

[TomBrown]

Just in case someone else has the same model of printer and is thinking of doing the same;

After taking the printer all the way to tukcom, it turns out that my Canon MP638 cannot accommodate the tubes to feed the ink from external ink tanks, even though previously they said it could.

So I've just opted for getting the existing ink cartridges refilled for about ฿100 - ฿150 each.