Replies

1. 
   RoyinMD | Mar 25, 2004 12:02am | #1

   I sure hope Consumer Reports is listening to you.

   Frozen lasagna family dinner: Serving size 1 cup, servings per container 5, finished off by 2 kids in minutes, I made a sandwich, wife got home late "Where's dinner?". I've been telling her to read labels.

   Enjoy, Roy

2. 
   JeffKurtz | Mar 25, 2004 05:16am | #2

   Really!  One of the battery packs for my drill died and they want $50 for a new one.  I paid a little over $100 for the whole kit.  Think I'll try to get by with one battery until the second pack dies, then replace the whole thing.

   Jeff

1. 
   Manchild | Mar 25, 2004 05:23am | #3

   If you pay more for the drill the battery won't seem like so much :-)

3. 
   Steinmetz | Mar 25, 2004 05:42am | #4

   Planewood,I've been converting old cordless drills to operate on 12volt dc via the car's cigarette lighter,using just a coilcord and and suitable fused plug. 

   Also for those requiring more than 12 volts, I use DC power supplys to convert them to corded. It's not rocket science, but they come in handy when working on a car or buffing up spokes  and wheel covers.

    Mixing paint etc etc.

   Some of the smaller drills  are rated at 3.5 - 7 to 9vDc. And they will go like the dickens and not heat up on 12-24-30 VDC   Stein

4. 
   Steinmetz | Mar 25, 2004 05:53am | #5

   Mike, have you (Or, anyone else) tried to refill HP cartriges?

   I just picked up those 6 small bottles of re fill ink from a kit but no instructions  (Cost 50 cents)

   I assume you must ua]se a hypo dermic needle to in sert the ink ,but how much? Where's the fill hole ?

   I would hate to take a loss, as every 50 cents count's nowa days.  Ed. (Stein.)

1. 
   PlaneWood | Mar 25, 2004 06:10am | #6

   Well, yeah, it requires a syringe and a small needle, then you gotta find the right hole :)  !!!!!!!  Putting yellow ink in the black hole don't work to good!

   Stick the needle all the way in and slowly put in about 2 CC's of ink.  The hole should be on the top somewhere.  All cartridges I've ever filled had a sponge inside and what your doing is saturating the sponge.  All instructions I've read say not to plug the hole when finished.  If ink gurgles out of the top hole then use the syringe to suck a little out.

   Wear latex gloves and work over a newspaper.  It really can get messy.

   To unstop a dried out cartridge use household ammonia mixed in hot water.  Work it around the area where the ink jets are using a cotton q-tip.  Or, maybe put a little of the mixture in a shallow saucer and let the jet area soak for 10 or 15 minutes.

   It's best to refill them BEFORE they run out of ink. 

   Also, all kits I've ever bought have had instructions.

   PlaneWood by Mike_in_Katy (maker of fine sawdust!)PlaneWood

1. 
   Calendyr | Mar 25, 2004 06:31am | #7

   Also the ink has to be the right one for your printer. Ink formulations vary from one brand to the other. So if you are not using the right ink, the colors will be off. As for ink quantities, it depends of the cartrige. Usually the new cartrige will like the amont of ink in it. Varies from 2-3 ml to 12 ml for the big ones. If you are not sure, less is more ;) Do not overfill them and if you do remove some ink as it was suggested to you.

2. 
   Steinmetz | Mar 26, 2004 05:02am | #9

   Thanx Mike and Forest  Babe and Calendyr for your imput

   re: ink jet cartridges.

   I'm disgusted with the cost of ink cartridges and will try using your advice.   Stein  (Ed from Connecticut)

5. 
   forestgirl | Mar 25, 2004 06:44pm | #8

   Eight or nine years ago, I used to buy the refill kits for the HP color and BW cartridges.  It was such a hassle, and if anything went wrong, ink all over the inside of the printer.  Yuck.  Then Costco warehouse store started carrying the multipacks of the most-used cartridges.  It's a big bite, buying a 3-pack, but their the high-capacity cartridges and one 3-pack lasts me a year (B&W).  Or they also carry 2BW/1color I think.

   Someday, I'm gonna make the shift to another printer mfg who provides separate ink cartridges for the components of the color.  HP does, but only in the more expensive home printers.

   forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
   Another proud member of the  "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>) 

1. 
   woodman54 | Mar 27, 2004 01:08am | #10

   I always buy Epson printers not only for their performance and reliability but the availability of cheap ink on Ebay.  There is many people selling Epson printer ink so there is a lot of competition and low prices. I pay 2.75 for black ink and 3.00 for the color ink. These are not always Epson brand inks but work exactly the same. I get about 30- 8 by 10 photos from one setup. I have never went to the store and paid 30-40 dollars for ink, my Epson 785 printer only cost 50 dollars, why pay almost that much for one ink refill.