[CQ] MX-5110 with colors randomly "dropping out"

[RascalMJ]

I have a "newer" installed MX-5110 that has 176k (BW) and 31k (color).

A week ago, I was called out for some color issues. Seems the CYAN just decided it didn't want to do it's job. I have seen that kind of thing before and took the DV unit and the process unit apart and inspected them for any abnormalities. They seemed fine. I went ahead and took out the toner, shook it and tapped the toner chute to see if maybe it had gotten clogged. The machine (CYAN) came back to life. I did a full calibration and all was well.

Fast forward to yesterday. I was called onsite for a B/W issue. Once onsite I saw that there was a massive void through the entire page. 2 inches of the top printed well, and 2 inches of the bottom as well, but the entire middle section was GONE. This was right in the middle of a 500 piece run. So, from last call I decided to jump right to tapping the chute to see what happened. Sure enough, it came back to life immediately, and I ran 270 without issue.

Just for fun I decided to check the CYAN again, and it did seem to be slightly off again. So, my next thought is to take the machine apart and try my best to clean out the toner chute the best I can to get anything else in there that might be blocking toner.

Anyone have any other thoughts of things to try or what might be causing this?

THANKS

[Akitu]

Re: MX-5110 with colors randomly "dropping out"

Is your customer storing toner properly and shaking them up prior to loading them? Sounds to be like they're being stored on end and/or not being shaken sufficiently leading to some chunks clogging your pipes.

I had a similar issue on a 311 lately, turns out the CRUM reader in the back was knocked out of place somehow and the machine was not reading the toner properly. My yellow was affected in my case, and it became a problem spanning multiple colours at that point with a similar void pattern to what you're describing.

[RascalMJ]

Re: MX-5110 with colors randomly "dropping out"

The customer is storing the toner in the right orientation as far as I can tell. At least right now.

So, you had to re-set the crum reader properly. Was it coming up as no toner or something?

That is what is weird here. NO ERRORS, NO CODES. NOTHING

[Akitu]

Re: MX-5110 with colors randomly "dropping out"

That's the dumb thing; it read the toner as having a new level (100-75% as opposed to 25-0%) and did not error out or anything. It simply refused to apply the colour beyond that point, so it left my mixed shades completely off balance. I would have expected an F2 code at the very least, but such was not the case. After re-seating the CRUM reader and ensuring it mated up with the toner cartridge properly, all went well (though I did have to spend a long time recalibrating).

[draph]

Re: MX-5110 with colors randomly "dropping out"

Hey, guys! This a dual component machine. The toner is not the issue. Think about it.

[RascalMJ]

Re: MX-5110 with colors randomly "dropping out"

Hey, guys! This a dual component machine. The toner is not the issue. Think about it.

I wish I was good enough to know what this means!

[draph]

Re: MX-5110 with colors randomly "dropping out"

A lack of toner getting to the dv unit would cause the cyan to run light but only up to the point of where the machine would stop functioning and call for a new cyan cartridge. It would never just stop applying cyan unless the dv unit stopped rotating or the drive unit failed.

You need to be looking at things such as the charge roller in your ETB or a shutter malfunction. Search it here. Many techs have had issues with this type of problem on this same line of copiers.

[mojorolla]

Re: MX-5110 with colors randomly "dropping out"

I had a 4111 main drive motor fail with similar symptoms. The main drive has a motor for K and a motor for CMY for the DV units. When I removed the CMY motor, the metal drive shaft was worn smooth, clogging the tubes but not generating a code. The pic shows the K motor and the CMY motor side by side. I think you can determine which is the bad one.
Still amazed at how abrasive DV material can be.
4111 dv motor.jpg

[draph]

Re: MX-5110 with colors randomly "dropping out"

B.S. The toner sensor in the developer unit is totally independent of the drive motors. Low toner = call for new cartridge. You may have gotten lucky, but the drive motor had nothing to do with it.

[Akitu]

Re: MX-5110 with colors randomly "dropping out"

B.S. The toner sensor in the developer unit is totally independent of the drive motors. Low toner = call for new cartridge. You may have gotten lucky, but the drive motor had nothing to do with it.

The more I read your answers, the less insightful and helpful I realize they are.

[CorbinDallas]

Have you considered the LSU shutters may be warped and not opening fully?