RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

[barbonneau]

Hello All,
I'm having an issue with my Ricoh MP C305 the print quality is very low please see attachment. Can anyone point me on what settings or part to change to make it better?
Thanks

[slimslob]

Re: RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

1. Make sure that the PCU are not past PM count.
2. Properly clean the ID (Image Density) sensor.
3. Run Auto Color Calibration.

[barbonneau]

Re: RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

Thanks I will give it a try!

[sandmanmac]

Re: RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

What Tim suggests, and it also looks like you have some 'toner rocks' (clumps) blocking flow in your mainly in the M, but also K & C dev units

[barbonneau]

Re: RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

I did exactly what slimsob suggested its better but not perfect here the result.

Whats the best way to fix the (e 'toner rocks' (clumps) blocking flow in your mainly in the M, but also K & C dev units)

Thanks!

[slimslob]

Re: RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

I did exactly what slimsob suggested its better but not perfect here the result.

Whats the best way to fix the (e 'toner rocks' (clumps) blocking flow in your mainly in the M, but also K & C dev units)

Thanks!

I am still seeing linear voids in the K and M. Could be either toner clogs of the doctor blades or dirty laser shield glass. Are you using Genuine Ricoh toner and developer? After market supplied do not go through the rigorous testing procedures that Genuine supplies.

[sandmanmac]

Re: RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

I am still seeing linear voids in the K and M. Could be either toner clogs of the doctor blades or dirty laser shield glass. Are you using Genuine Ricoh toner and developer? After market supplied do not go through the rigorous testing procedures that Genuine supplies.

He actually didn't do everything, Tim.
How about those PM counts? I'm guessing they're well beyond yield (if it's in fact genuine toner that's in use, which was a good call)
I don't have the time to get into the steps to separate the Drum from the dev, and dig out the particles, etc. and it would only be a recipe for disaster anyway imo.

[barbonneau]

Re: RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

Thanks for the reply here the PM count, Also I'm only using Genuine ricoh Toner.
The printer is in the basement its humid maybe it has something to do with the toner clogs?

PM Counter:
PCU C 19729
PCU M 19732
PCU Y 19735
PCU K 41127
Development Unit C 19729
Development Unit M 19732
Development Unit Y 19735
Development Unit K 42227

[sandmanmac]

Re: RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

The printer is in the basement its humid maybe it has something to do with the toner clogs?

Yup, and the consumables are all going to be originals based on those meters, so now we're talking about up to 11 year old Developer which is also going to play a factor in CQ

[barbonneau]

Re: RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

Thanks for your time I think I will keep it like that and replace the printer once the quality drop some more.

[slimslob]

Re: RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

Thanks for the reply here the PM count, Also I'm only using Genuine ricoh Toner.
The printer is in the basement its humid maybe it has something to do with the toner clogs?

PM Counter:
PCU C 19729
PCU M 19732
PCU Y 19735
PCU K 41127
Development Unit C 19729
Development Unit M 19732
Development Unit Y 19735
Development Unit K 42227

I have a feeling that C305 has been used to do a large number of jobs with a small number of pages per job. You might want to check SP 7803 which displays the rotation % for each item. Bare in mind that those items start rotating as soon as the motors start after pressing the start button on a print job arrives and continue to rotate until the last sheet of paper has exited. Replace any that have reached over 100%.

Since it is located in a humid basement, you might need to install the main unit anti-condensation heater. See the part catalog Option section for part number and Service Manual for installation instructions.

[barbonneau]

Re: RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

The highest number for rotation % is 84, I will defently look into buying an anti-condensation heater.
Thanks for the advice!

[tonerhead]

Re: RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

Yup, and the consumables are all going to be originals based on those meters, so now we're talking about up to 11 year old Developer which is also going to play a factor in CQ

Yup, you are spot on. That is what I thought also seeing the originals. I suspect it is using gen 1 of those pcdu's. Plus it's probably never had the toner supply updates (PITA update).

[Gift]

Re: RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

The highest number for rotation % is 84, I will defently look into buying an anti-condensation heater.
Thanks for the advice!

If the units are from initial setup (up to 10 years old) I might not start with adding a heater.

You can perform a test print with a fresh realm of good paper - if the quality is suddenly back on track you'll have moisture issues,
otherwise this is just an "aging" issue. White lines can be removed with a little luck if you turn the mag roller 1 round back+forth ~50 times.
This might (or might not) "crush" clogged toner - I'd say the success rate is ~1/3

[copier tech]

Re: RICOH Aficio MP C305 Print quality

Thanks for the reply here the PM count, Also I'm only using Genuine ricoh Toner.
The printer is in the basement its humid maybe it has something to do with the toner clogs?

PM Counter:
PCU C 19729
PCU M 19732
PCU Y 19735
PCU K 41127
Development Unit C 19729
Development Unit M 19732
Development Unit Y 19735
Development Unit K 42227

I would start by updating ALL the firmware (There have been dozens of VQ fixes over the years)

Then if the device has been sitting idle for a length of time I would run around 100 duplex colour prints through the device then load a new/fresh packet of paper you may find this is that is required to recover the quality.