Ricoh MP C2004ex calling for black toner

[Samanator]

We got this Ricoh MP C2004ex in on trade. The customer gave it up because it keeps calling for black toner. We got a sale out of this problem.

My boss wants to use it in his office (why??) and bought a new toner for it. He put it in the machine and it's still calling for black toner.

Now the machine has been wheeled into the shop with a fix this machine order attached to it.

We do not support Ricoh, so beside kicking it, I do not know where to start.

Any help with this would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks and Merry Christmas.

[davidmtupper]

There's a chip reader at the back of the toner hopper, those sometimes fail and give this error. The other likely problem is the toner hopper itself failing and needing to be replaced.

[copyaction]

How many pages on the counter b&w and color?
Was the toner that came in it genuine Ricoh?
What does a test print look like, is it undertoned or does it have good solid fill?

[TonerMunkeh]

Cheat the front door. If the bottle twitches ever so slightly when a toner load cycle starts, the pump may have gone bang. Failing that it's the gears on the dev unit.

[copier tech]

We got this Ricoh MP C2004ex in on trade. The customer gave it up because it keeps calling for black toner. We got a sale out of this problem.

My boss wants to use it in his office (why??) and bought a new toner for it. He put it in the machine and it's still calling for black toner.

Now the machine has been wheeled into the shop with a fix this machine order attached to it.

We do not support Ricoh, so beside kicking it, I do not know where to start.

Any help with this would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks and Merry Christmas.

If the message is 'toner not set' then check for bent pins at the back where the toner chip makes contact.

If the message is 'toner empty' & as you say the toner is new then most likely the black toner hopper has failed. This can be caused when the dev unit gears fail & the unit seizes up.
Pretty cheap & simple to replace. Toner Hopper Part number: D0BQ3240

[Samanator]

Cheat the front door. If the bottle twitches ever so slightly when a toner load cycle starts, the pump may have gone bang.

So I cheated the front door and turned the machine on. The bottle spun around once as the machine went into warmup.

No change. Machine is still asking to Replace Black Toner Cartridge.

I didn't mention this before because I don't know all noises these machines make. There is a steady clicking being made while this machine cycles.

[davidmtupper]

That sounds like it is recognizing the toner but is unable to add to the dev, toner hopper is the likely culprit. There's a plastic auger that breaks in these.

[slimslob]

If the auger in the hopper is broken it will make a clicking sound.

[UNICORNico]

So I cheated the front door and turned the machine on. The bottle spun around once as the machine went into warmup.

No change. Machine is still asking to Replace Black Toner Cartridge.

I didn't mention this before because I don't know all noises these machines make. There is a steady clicking being made while this machine cycles.

Most likely Toner's Hopper.

[Zaxxon]

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