HP Photosmart C7280 Black Ink won't print

[ekaconi59]

When my HP c7280 black cartridge didn't print I tried many advises from this forum but solution seem to be right one was:

1.  press # and 6 together at the same time when printer
restarting (or turned on). That will reset printer on default mode and turn it off.

2. Turn printer on and you will be asked to set language and region again.

3. Put some page with many black fields in scanner.

4. Print copy using black only button.

5. If you get any pale black line on the paper repeat print on black copy button about a 10 times.

6. Go to setting -> tools -> clear print heads and clean the heads as many time as you need to get clear prints.

That works with me. I hope will helps any one with the same problem.

Cheers.

[Neries]

HevnLgh the Photosmart C7280 does not have the ink cartridges in your link. The print heads are NOT on the cartridges, they are inside the machine. It takes 5 separate colours and one black. Yes we have tried cleaning the contacts on the cartridges, but it does not work. It looks like the black pump no longer works for some reason. If the solution you suggest had worked I would not have bought another printer.

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@HevnLgh wrote:

hksunshine,

Have you tried cleaning the contacts on the cartridges on the Photosmart C7280? I would like you to take a look at Solutions 3 & 4 in this troubleshooting document to try and resolve No black ink on your printouts.

Please let me know the outcome, I look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks,
 

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[donkey_shot]

that`s interesting and makes a lot of sense. my black ink function on a c5380 is currently

"blocked". nothing is working, not even inserting a brand new HP cartridge helped.

btw I have always used HP cartridges exclusively, however...

in my case, what I think may have happened is this: I reinserted a previously used (HP!) black

cartridge which I had removed before because I erroneously thought it was empty. this was only

a short while, and I was only able to print a few pages after that!

then, from one moment to the next, black ink flow stopped. my question is this: do you think

it might be possible that the reinserted cartridge was misread as something other than HP?

that would explain it to me...and out the HP product will go, if confirmed! what do you think?

[donkey_shot]

I`m using a c5380 with 364 cartridges: exact same problem.

[Bob_Headrick]

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@donkey_shot wrote:

I`m using a c5380 with 364 cartridges: exact same problem.

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The post here may help resolve black not printing in the Photosmart c5380.

[JanMac]

Yes, I agree.  No more HP printers for me and that's all I would purchase up to now.  

I have an old one that print slowly and it still works with the same old cartridges in it.  

sigh.

[mczoom]

I faced the same issue with my HP Photosmart c7280 just in the last week after I managed to print a few hundreds pages without any problem.  Frustrated - yes but having gone through this forum I count myself lucky for having the printer worked for me for over 7 years.  Maybe time for its retirement.

I diligently read through this forum hoping to find an answer to my problem so I tried all that was suggested.  Each attempt did not seem to resolve the issue straightaway.  Not willing to give up after spending on a NEW black cartridge with my old one still half full, I went back to the basic "clean printhead' step and DID A FEW TIMES IN A ROW.  I remember having read somewhere an advice not to overdo the printhead cleaning as the process might damage the nozzle and it wastes much of the precious color inks.   What the heck I thought that if I were to buy a new printer, I would waste all those inks anyway. 

To my surprise, after the 4th time, I noticed thicker lines of black letters and numbers were printed and it certainly showed an improvement over the first one.  So I kept going and started to number the printout after each clean.  THOSE BLACK LETTERS AND NUMBERS BECOME CLEARER AND CLEARER EACH TIME AS I PERFORM MORE PRINTHEAD CLEANING.  My print alignments failed initially (before I did all those printhead cleans) but after my 15th, I did another alignment and IT WAS A SUCCESS!  Now, having done my 20th clean, the black prints look almost fine.  There's still some faint white lines across the last 2 paragraphs which made the small fonts look a little smudged.  However that's a huge difference compared to what it was.  I believe if I continue for another 5 - 10 printhead cleans, that might make my printer near perfect again!

Although I suspect not many others are still using this printer after all these years but I thought I should leave my feedback here on this thread having gained from others' suggestions and had a successful outcome. 

Cheers

[gk1430]

I have a HP Photosmart C7180 that hasn't printed black for 5 years. Decided to repair if I could. Did all the resets I could find on the forum but didn't correct the problem. Removed the print head and cleaned as shown on You Tube. Disassembly required. That didn't work either. As a last ditch effort I did the Baby Burp as discribed in the forum and I couldn't believe it but it worked!! Just turned it on it's top and rapped on the bottom with my bare hand, turned it back over. I did the aignment page and it passed! Can't believe it.

Four years ago I took it to Best Buy for service and they told me to throw it away. Probably no better than HP diagnosis I have seen on the forum.

[AdDob]

Hi,

I've had my HP Photosmart C6180 (using the same 363 ink system) since 2007 and used it ponderately at home. About two months ago it started to display the "Paper jam" message on the screen - there was no paper trapped inside but after a month of investigation I found the culprit: the black toothed plastic wheel from the left of the metal bar holding the four paper pick-up rubber rollers (seen from the back of the printer with the back door - "duplexer"? - removed). This gear was broken so the rubber rollers would no longer rotate and pull the paper. I bought another used printer (different model but with the same 363 ink system mechanism) from which I took the complete metal bar with the rubber rollers and an intact gear and replaced my broken one. This was a very difficult operation as I needed to dismantle both printers almost entirely.

After reassembling it, the printer started working immediately, with no more "Paper jam" message on the screen. I couldn't be happier! That's until I noticed that the printed test papers were missing black completely. All the colors were perfect but the black was gone. After trying every method discussed on this thread without success I did something that got the black ink back on paper.

Here's what I did:

1. Dissasembled the printer and removed the printhead completely. The steps for this operation are very clearly described on a YouTube video called "HP Photosmart C5180 - Disassembly & Head Cleaning". I did not completely remove the nozzle head from the printhead as described in the video, I just removed the four T6 Torx screws around the nozzle, leaving it hanging on the brown flex stripe only.

2. After removing the small black rubber pad that sits between the printhead body and the nozzle, I double-folded a cotton rag and put it over the square with the 12 holes (there are 12 ink holes right underheath the nozzle: 6 oval and 6 round). Then put the hose of the vacuum cleaner on top of the rag (just above the square with the 12 holes) and start the vacuum cleaner on the lowest power. I kept the printhead body covered with the rag in one hand while the other hand kept the hose on top of the rag, removing it partially and putting it back alternately. While vacuuming, I also turned the printhead upside down and back, noticing that more ink (including black, of course) came out on the rag. During this procedure the rag will get stained with ink right underneath the sucction area of the hose after a few seconds of vacuuming. To avoid sucking ink into the vacuum cleaner, I repositioned the rag and repeated this step a few times until I was sure that all colors came out.

3. I then removed the rag and put the nozzle under the warm water tap by keeping the brown flex stripe slightly bent to hold the nozzle head perpendicular to the water fall.
4. Reassembled everything back and then I had a perfectly working printer.
Good luck!

[gk1430]

Mine hadn't printed black for 5 years. Turned it upside down wnd took the back of my fist and poundes all round on the bottom for around sa minute (don't dent or damage). Turned it over and it has worked ever since. I think they get air locked in the ink feed tubes. I wouldn't have believed it if i hadn't seen it with my own eyes.