HP Photosmart C7280 Black Ink won't print

[ItsJustAndy]

Tried this on 3 different models 2 older ones I was given, 1 thats newer but not mine, it works, why is my black cartridge now about 1/2 empty?. On 1 printer I can set it to "Best" on the front and that works for that one on plain paper, there is something wrong with lower resolution printing with black ink, I suspect a problem with MS, it's always something to do with Windoze, coz it's rubbish!.

[grahamt]

I heard a very interesting story from the guy at our local Cartridge World.  He told me that he had heard opinions that when HP designed the whole range of printers that use the now discredited 363 ink cartridges, they "copied" Epson's then ink delivery system.  What they didn't realise was that Epson had already been having so much trouble with this design that they had abandoned it.

It's revealing that HP have also abandoned this ink delivery system and now use one that looks remarkably like Canon's. 

Any comments HP?  Probably not. To admit such an inherent design fault would be to open HP up to a whole bunch of compensation claims.  Now, we wouldn't want that would we?

[Stoobee]

I've just had the same problem with one of my customer's Photosmart C7280 printers. Following different bits of advice on here, I used a paper clip on the feed tube, I think the bottom one feeds ink, the top one allows air in to keep the pressure. I tried a cleaning cycle and once I saw ink kind of coming through, I used about 2ml of an inkjet cleaning solution in the bottom tube. Slowly pushed this through and it works a treat.

Hope this may help some of you, probably won't work on all, but this has been sitting in my customer's garage for about 4 months without cartridges in. To say I was gobsmacked is a little understating it.

To the guy who talked about HP using Epson's ink system, HP have historically used Canon engines and fancied them up with a bit more software or a LCD screen when the Canon hasn't got one. IMHO, it all boils down to money......how to extract as much as possible from Joe Public. Brother use a crap delivery system like the HP 7280, ink and printhead separated by rubber tubes. Epson normally favour expensive single tanks that show empty when 20% of their v expensive ink is still in the cartridge. Canon go with either black and 3 colour block cartridges, or single tanks. The beauty of their single tanks is they use the vast majority of the ink and when the printhead does wear out, as they do, you can replace them. Beauty. I like them so much, my kids have one each and I've got one in my office. Sweet. Stick to Canon, their th best ones for quality and value!

[mcaroligne]

I've just spent the better part of my day trying to figure this out with my photosmart C4580.

long story short:  I noted the instructions for storage of cartridges when not in use (print at least once/month; if you take a cartridge out, store it in a ziplock: color with nozzles down, black with nozzles up.)

So I just took out my black cartridge and sat it upside down/nozzles up for a while, maybe an hour, until I noticed black streaks.

I put it back into the printer, printed black text & it FINALLY printed black, albeit streaked.

cleaned the print cartridges and now it's PERFECT!!!

give it a shot!

[mcaroligne]

I've just spent the better part of my day trying to figure this out with my photosmart C4580.

long story short:  I noted the instructions for storage of cartridges when not in use (print at least once/month; if you take a cartridge out, store it in a ziplock: color with nozzles down, black with nozzles up.)

So I just took out my black cartridge and sat it upside down/nozzles up for a while, maybe an hour, until I noticed black streaks.

I put it back into the printer, printed black text & it FINALLY printed black, albeit streaked.

cleaned the print cartridges and now it's PERFECT!!!

give it a shot!

[lorniva]

Try the paper clip suggestion...it worked for me.

Cheers lorniva

[Barndtschange]

I have a HP Photosmart Plus series B209.   I too have not been able to print black after using 3rd party Cartridge World ink. cartridges.   Colors print perfectly but nothing from black.  I tried all the suggestions I have read from others having the same problem. I have long suspected that HP coded the machine to prevent the use of other than their own carttrides (big money in ink cartridges.....they cost 8 to 10 cents each to refill)  Several times when talking with HP techs, they vehemently denied that  practice. Until I reached a tech by the name of Ray on 7/20/2010.  Ray said he was a tech and was located in Manilla.   When I casually asked him if he could provide me with the "code" to reset the disable code for the black ink, he in fact confirmed that HP puts a code into the printhead to disable black from printing if the user uses other than HP cartidges. The disable function does not occur immediately but he was unsure when it happens following repeated use of a non-HP black cartridge.  He excused himself from the line and said he woudl check to see how to reset the disable code.  When he returned to the call about 5 minutes later, he told me the code is a hard code in the prnt head and cannot be reversed.  The only solution is to purchase another "print head service kit" for $19.95 plus shipping.  And the new head would have the same disable code in it so I should be careful using it as the same problem would crop up.  He also said the failure is permanent even if a official HP black cartridge was used in an effort to correct the problem.

I ordered the new print head, CN643A.     Nice company this HP!!

[grahamt]

Interesting to hear this but in fact the print head assembly about which you are talking is completely different from the one that is causing all the problems reported above.  The CN643A module uses ink cartridges of the latest Epson/Canon design whereas the printers that cause the problems discussed here use the HP363 ink cartridge.  As far as I know the print head module on these printers is not replaceable, at least, not by a customer.

[pedropromo60]

Found a solution tonight that worked for my HP Photosmart C7280 that would not print black ink.

After doing everything recommended by other posts (clean the heads, replace the ink cartridges, etc) to counter the printer's prompt "Print cartridge alignment failed.  See the product documentation for details", I found a post on "fixyourownprinter.com" that was the winner.  They offered two solutions.  The first didn't work (maybe it will for you) but the second (a printer reboot) did the trick for me (with my notations in CAPS below):

From "fixyourownprinter.com"

Try these 2 procedures:

1/ (THIS DID NOT WORK FOR ME)
- Unplug the printer without turning it off.
- Press On for 1O seconds.
- Release the button and replug the printer.

2/
(Careful, this will erase the printer's memory, like printing queues etc.) (I DID NOT LOSE THE PRINTER QUEUES OR LOSE MEMORY)
- Unplug the printer.
- Press simultaneously "#" and "6" and keep these buttons pressed.
- Replug the printer without releasing these buttons.
- The display will say " Stop " or something like this, then "semi full reset" . Release the buttons now. (FOR ME, THE PRINTER JUST SHUT OFF COMPLETELY.  THEN I PRESSED "ON" AND IT CAME BACK TO LIFE)
- Start the printer now. It will ask you to set the language and the country. If it doesn't, repeat all steps.

(WENT THROUGH ALL THE START UP PROCEDURES INCLUDING ALIGNMENT AND THE ALIGNMENT WORKED, PRINTING BLACK AGAIN)

**One little glitch to note.  The display screen doesn't display text the way it used to.  It kind of flickers.  I'm able to navigate, but maybe the reboot fried the screen a bit... -- Still - I'm printing black again!!  Hope this works for everyone else.  Good luck.

[grahamt]

I tried this suggestion but it made not a scrap of difference.  My C7280 still won't print anything using the black ink cartridge.  The only solution proposed that does work is to force the printer to think it's printing on photo paper and then it prints black by using only the colour ink cartridges.  I'm now using cheap high-capacity colour ink compatibles from Cartridge World.  Better still, I've now bought a replacement printer, a Canon Pixma MX860, that works perfectly, as my main printer.  I've hung on to the C7280, even though I actually got a refund from PC World (there's a first!), as just an ad-hoc printer when all else fails.  It's a lot slower printing in photo mode but at least it works, sort of.

[ThatGarenGuy]

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@Barndtschange wrote:

<snip>

I have long suspected that HP coded the machine to prevent the use of other than their own carttrides (big money in ink cartridges.....they cost 8 to 10 cents each to refill)  Several times when talking with HP techs, they vehemently denied that  practice. Until I reached a tech by the name of Ray on 7/20/2010.  Ray said he was a tech and was located in Manilla.   When I casually asked him if he could provide me with the "code" to reset the disable code for the black ink, he in fact confirmed that HP puts a code into the printhead to disable black from printing if the user uses other than HP cartidges. The disable function does not occur immediately but he was unsure when it happens following repeated use of a non-HP black cartridge.  <snip>

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HP does not design its products to disrupt third party cartridges. HP cannot vouch for the reliability or performance of third party cartridges.  HP is aware that refilled cartridge reliability may not match Original HP ink cartridges nor the  page-yield of our Original ink cartridges. A QualityLogic 2009 study compared Original HP inkjet print cartridges (92A, 93A, 98A, 95A, 21A and 22A) with refilled ink cartridges sold in North America. For details, see www.qualitylogic.com/2009HPinktest.pdf