3.5" wide dark or gray area down the center the whole length of the page. I have changed the toner cartridge twice to rectify this but still get the same gray or dark area or stripe, 3.5" wide down the center the whole length of the page. I was wondering if there is a cleaning process like some roller I had to clean before replacing the old toner cartridge. Thanks in advance
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by moe (10/17/07 10:43 AM) reply
I replaced it with a remanufactured then a brand new toner cartridge and the effect eventually came back. Please tell me what to do for both scenarios, both if the dark areas remains or comes back after awhile. Thanks
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by moe (10/17/07 11:04 AM) reply
If it goes away after replacing the cartridge, then it is a cartridge problem. The new cartridge could have been one that was expired. Problem is the wiper blade in the cartridge. It will go bad with age. I have replacement wiper blades in stock. Takes about 5 minutes to replace, 6 screws involved in disassembling the toner cartridge and removing the blade. Click on my name for pricing/ordering info.
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by sweets1953 (10/17/07 12:08 PM) reply
What if it's not the wiper blade. Could it be that I need to clean some surface inside the machine before I replace the cartridge or possibly there's something further wrong with the LJ4?
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by moe (10/17/07 12:26 PM) reply
The cartridge is a self contained unit. The wiper blade cleans the drum of residual toner. No matter how much toner is on the drum or where it comes from, the wiper blade should clean it. You can take out the cartridge, open the shutter and look at the drum. You will see the toner buildup. Now rotate the drum by turning the gear with your right thumb in the direction away from your body. If it doesn't clean up, bad wiper blade.
Re: Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by sweets1953 (10/17/07 1:56 PM) reply
I don't understand, Moe. If the dark area keeps coming back despite changing to a new toner carteridge wouldn't that mean there's something wrong with the printer not the carteridges? How can changing the wiper arm fix this? Thanks.
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by wlulham (10/18/07 6:43 AM) reply
Moe's trying to say that you likely had two bad cartridges. The first one could have been bad due to it being remanufactured. The second one could have been expired (and hence you should check to make sure it wasn't an expired cartridge).
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by sweets1953 (10/18/07 4:43 PM) reply
Has nothing to do with believing you, but I tried 3 toner cartridges now & still had the same problem. Why did you ask if the problem occurs immediately or after some time comes back?
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by sue o (10/19/07 7:34 AM) reply
Moe did answer that question 7 posts up. The cleaning blade removes residual toner. If you put a new cartride in, there is no residual toner untill you begin to print. That is why he asked if it leaves the streak immediately or after a few prints. Since we are at the posters mercy when they describe a problem we have to go with what your description is and make a diagnosis based on that. A bad toner is the first thing that comes to mind with your description (smear from top to bottom of the page). Your other option of course is to take it to your local service center where they can get their eyes on your printer and diagnose your problem (for a fee of course).
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by sweets1953 (10/19/07 9:46 AM) reply
Sue o, Is there a procedure one should perform to the printer before replacing a cartridge,like cleaning something internally perhaps? Also how do I do a test print again on the LJ4? and Should i try reinstalling the drivers? Three separate questions please.
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by sue o (10/19/07 9:28 PM) reply
You can always do the 1/2 test which is well documented on this site (basically stopping the paper before it reaches the fuser and examining it for defects). Also, check the upper roller in the fuser. There really isn't anything that simply cleaning will accomplish (although my car certainly runs better when clean!). You can print a test sheet through the menu and reinstalling the drivers will not help with the problem that you are describing.
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by sweets1953 (10/20/07 6:13 AM) reply
Push ONLINE button. Light next to it will go out. Keep pushing MENU button until you see TEST MENU. Push ITEM button until you see the test you want to do and then hit ENTER.
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by sweets1953 (10/28/07 4:46 PM) reply
You told me it was the wiper blade not the printer that was at fault so I went and bought yet another brand new toner cartridge from another store and within a dozen or so prints I got the same dark area as described previously. That makes 3 I bought that were supposedly all bad, according to you. Then I tried all my old toner cartridges on a friend's LaserWriter 16 which uses the same toner cartridges as the LJ 4. All of the formerly bad toner cartridges, at least according to you, work perfectly fine in her Apple LaserWriter 16 and continue to do so. You were wrong! What have you got to say for yourself.
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by moe (11/27/07 12:20 PM) reply
I take the symptoms you describe and come up with a cause. If a toner cartridge starts out good and then a dozen prints later gets a smudge in the center, then it is a bad wiper blade. If you bought the cartridges new at a store, then they are expired cartridges since there aren't any new OEMs that aren't expired being sold. Expired cartridges will have bad wiper blades since they fail just sitting in the cartridge. Since the toner cartridges are self contained and aren't affected by anything external in the printer, then if they develop a smudge after a dozen pages, the only thing that can be at fault is a bad wiper blade. The only cartridge I would trust is the ones sold on this site. They are new OEM cartridges (expired), but all of them have new wiper blades installed. I still stand by my diagnosis.
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by sweets1953 (11/28/07 10:36 AM) reply
I have fixed an old PLW NTR using some of your stuff. Now I cannot find ant good toner. I do not understand if the wiper bade you refer to is the metallic thing os simply the foam seal?
Ben
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by nivek (1/19/10 6:34 AM) reply
The wiper blade is a piece of clear rubber that runs the length of the drum and wipes any excess toner off the drum after the image has been placed on the paper. Usually the rubber is glued onto a metal plate that screws onto the frame of the toner cartridge.
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by bengi3 (edited 1/21/10 2:30 PM) reply
Doctor blade and wiper blade are different things. The wiper blade wipes the toner off of the drum. That is what usually deteriorates and causes the visible problems on the print. As for links being sent for review, there are some strange people inhabiting the internet who will post links to porn sites and viagra sites and the like. That's why they are subject to review. This is a printer forum and I'm sure that none of us want to be subjected to that as we get enough of it in our emails.
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by bengi3 (1/21/10 11:24 PM) reply
sorry, I wanted to say if the names get swapped. I found a local reseller that sells DBs and WBs, but the item with the rubber is called doctor and the other "L" shaped, is the wiper. This is why I posted two photographs. Can you manage to look at them?
Ben
Re: LJ4 prints well but with a... by sweets (1/22/10 3:18 AM) reply
by the way I managed to replace the wiper blade (you need to detach the cover of the wastebin (OPC unit) to access the two screws). I still get some bands, is there any trick to fine-tune the WP position, should the screws be deep tightened, or gently ?
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