LaserWriter IINT - Brand New HP 95A Toner Smearing

[Concorde1993]

I picked up a boxed, mint condition LaserWriter IINT over the holidays on the cheap. Based on the page count shown on the test page and the overall appearance of the unit, it was hardly used (only 4000 or so pages printed if the page count is accurate).

The only flaw with it, apart from it being a slow printer (although far superior to my long-gone Personal LaserWriter 300) - the toner smears. The original Apple EP-S cartridge was all shot to hell (toner dust everywhere) and was immediately disposed of. I was able to source two NIB OEM HP 95A toner cartridges locally for $10 each. The first print (as shown in the pics) was perfect - no smearing at all - and the toner bonded very well to the paper with no jagged edges. Unfortunately, the second test page showed some smearing, and all other subsequent pages showed further reduction in print quality.

The printer overall is generally clean with little toner powder debris from the previous Apple cartridge. I installed a new cleaning pad that came with the new toner cartridge. Could it be that the HP toner cartridge is just too old to work properly? Both are from 1997. I haven't tried using the other NIB 95A cartridge.

 

[NJRoadfan]

Take the cartridge out and look at the drum after printing. It should be completely clean of toner. What usually happens to old cartridges is the toner isn't completely wiped off the drum due to the drum going bad (problems retaining static charge) or the scrapping brush inside the cartridge failing.

 

[Concorde1993]

The drum on the cartridge is a bit dirty - I guess the drum is defective or too old to work effectively?

 

[beachycove]

It’s almost certainly not the drum. Typically, the problem lies with the silicon “wiper blade” which presses against and thus cleans that drum. The silicon loses tension over the years. This loss of tension is a major point of failure in toner cartridges (ghosting, lines, general dirtiness). There is also a “doctor blade” further in the bowels of the cartridge, but I don’t think it has much relevance to your problem. Mind you, I am no tech.

The first step is to remove the hinged bit of the cartridge to expose the wiper blade. The wiper can then be removed, and the blade can be retensioned by heating, flexing, and cooling (under water, I have read somewhere, but maybe by just going outdoors in January!). It would be good to devise some sort of jig so as to apply even pressures on the blade while retensioning. Worth a shot?

That, of course, is the ghetto alternative to proper refurbishment.

I have attached a file I have handy describing disassembly and complete refurbishment of a LW8500 toner, which is a different animal of course (and the document doesn’t mention heating the blade, etc.), but the internal workings apply to most all those toners. There may just be four or five screws to remove in your case to get out the wiper blade. As the installed toner, etc, are otherwise likely intact, I’d concentrate on the blade as a first response. Beyond that, there are companies that supply toner parts, and somewhere or other I have email details of one in Toronto. Ask if necessary….

I should add that the drum should not be exposed to bright light, and certainly not to sunshine.

 

[Concorde1993]

Updating this as I tried a "newer" NOS HP 95a cartridge from circa 2004 and it also suffers from smearing. I haven't been able to source a last-generation 95a cartridge from 2007-ish for free or cheap, but I would image that all of the 95a cartridges from any era are all suffering the same fate.

Beyond that, there are companies that supply toner parts, and somewhere or other I have email details of one in Toronto.

I wonder if a "professionally" rebuilt 95a would make any difference.

 

[joeventura]

if you find a solution let me know, I have two laserwriter IIs and 4 toner cartridges and they have different degrees of smear.
None is perfect.