I noticed there is no thread on this subject so I thought I'd start one.

I bought one of the ink refill kits from Walmart and inspite of dire warnings and threats that it would be difficult it was fairly easy to do, it ran a little bit, it was a little messy but works now very well. My Lexmark #1 cartridges cost 25 dollars, the refill kit costs 15 dollars and I can fill each color chamber with as much ink as it needs, so the ink will last alot , lot longer than an ink cartridge.

I've noticed also, you can buy the inks in bulk online by the gallon, for about one ten-thousandth the cost of what the ink in the cartridges are costing you. This has got to be one of the biggest rip offs ever.


as a sidenote I also saw a video on youtube where a british guy demonstrates you CAN recharge ordinary batteries. He was trying to prove Those warnings about them exploding and stuff are all bullshit to keep you throwing them away and buying new batteries. You need a battery charger though, and I just don't feel like buying one, so I don't know if it's true or not.

Printer companies make the bulk of their money on ink cartridges, and is why they practically give away their printers. The HP's have a gimmick where if you don't use up the cartridge within a certain time frame, it will come up with a prompt to replace it and won't let you print until you replace it. The only way around it is to unplug the unit and temporarily remove the memory battery.

Printer companies make the bulk of their money on ink cartridges, and is why they practically give away their printers. The HP's have a gimmick where if you don't use up the cartridge within a certain time frame, it will come up with a prompt to replace it and won't let you print until you replace it. The only way around it is to unplug the unit and temporarily remove the memory battery.

yeah i was readin about all those scary stories about smart chips killing your cartridge, my Lexmark cartridge was supposed to have one, but it has never kicked in.

For $45 you can purchase a large (100ml each) multi tank ink system that will last the average user months on end. I've got one and have only just begin using the second set of refills. I only used 1/3 to 1/2 of each color depending on the level of the color needing to be topped off.

Google: Series Continuous Ink System

http://www.inkjetsoutlet.com/images/bulk-tld10-069-2.jpg

For $45 you can purchase a large (100ml each) multi tank ink system that will last the average user months on end. I've got one and have only just begin using the second set of refills. I only used 1/3 to 1/2 of each color depending on the level of the color needing to be topped off.

Not sure what you're talking about, or what kind of printer or cartridge you have.


The HP's have a gimmick where if you don't use up the cartridge within a certain time frame, it will come up with a prompt to replace it and won't let you print until you replace it

I was just gonna add, I was readin about those smart chips and Hewlett Packard was saying that they kill the cartridge if you let the ink run completely out because if you run the cartridge with no ink in it it will damage the printhead on printers that don't have the printhead on the cartridge itself.

I guess the printhead will wear out after so many refills, if it's on the cartridge. It hasn't on mine yet though.

Not sure what you're talking about,

I revised my previous post which should be of benefit.

I recently had to replace my 6 year old Epson which is a shame because remanufactured replacement cartridges were only $3-$5/pc. The factory cartridges for my new printer are around $20/pc.
I don't like to read lengthy articles or threads on a pc screen so I usually print them out and read them later. So, I go through a lot of black ink.

Is the ink from the refill-kit and refab co.'s really as inferior as the printer manufacturer's claim?

I recently had to replace my 6 year old Epson which is a shame because remanufactured replacement cartridges were only $3-$5/pc. The factory cartridges for my new printer are around $20/pc.
I don't like to read lengthy articles or threads on a pc screen so I usually print them out and read them later. So, I go through a lot of black ink.

Is the ink from the refill-kit and refab co.'s really as inferior as the printer manufacturer's claim?

Do not buy manufacturer cartridges. I said this previously and will repeat myself now. You can purchase a continuous ink system for about $45 which will last the average computer user with a printer several months if not more than a year depending on the amount of printing done.

Here is a link to an ebay search for the continuous ink systems for Epson printers. (http://shop.ebay.com/items/_W0QQ_nkwZcontinuousQ20inkQ20systemQ20epsonQ20printerQQ_armrsZ1QQ_fromZR40QQ_mdoZ)

I'm not endorsing the website in the image below but merely linking to the image to show you the setup itself. You can see how it would take a while to go through all of that ink. The amount in each color's tank is equal to about 10 standard ink cartridges from the manufacturer.

http://i6.ebayimg.com/08/i/001/12/4e/2c8a_1.JPG

I recently had to replace my 6 year old Epson which is a shame because remanufactured replacement cartridges were only $3-$5/pc...We had a 2nd hand Epson which lasted forever, it seems. Anything after that was nothing but trouble. Especially the HPs. Had I known that printers were to become cheap as the ink cartridges were to get expensive, I would have bought up numerous Epsons with replacement cartridges. Trouble is, you have to run an old computer parallel to your modern one, because of the cable which connects to the printer.
HP is an arrogant company, also. If software for an old printer isn't programmed into your OS, HP won't make it available for downloading. I had to discard a perfectly good Japanese built (perhaps one of the last Nip printers made before they moved operations to the mainland south east Asian continent) 1989 HP Laserjet, which was as heavy as an engine block, for this very reason. There was enough toner left in there for some humpteen thousand prints

We had a 2nd hand Epson which lasted forever, it seems.

Mine was displaying an "error" message soon after I bought it but would still work, so I kept using it.
It finally had a bad paper jam, spilled quite a bit of ink and quit printing. The nearest service center charges $80/hr to fix a printer that I could pick up used on ebay for $10-$30.
I decided to take a chance on a new Lexmark. It prints beautifully and they offer free ink cartridges over time if you buy them from Lexmark.
I'd like to look into something like OTPTT suggested but wondering if aftermarket ink doesn't ruin printers eventually.

Why should any ink ruin a printer, eventually? Inks vary in viscosity, to keep the ink type peculiar to a particular printer brand.
It's best to not allow a longer time lapse between printer usage. The printer heads tend to dry up, opening a can of worms

HP's have a gimmick where if you don't use up the cartridge within a certain time frame, it will come up with a prompt to replace it and won't let you print until you replace it. The only way around it is to unplug the unit and temporarily remove the memory battery.

I'm not getting one of those then. I got an epson because of the availability of compatible cartridges. I'm not paying £15-£20 for what amounts to 20cl of colored water.