HP 7130xi, two problems

[lgsmith15@comca]

Print feeder jams every time I try to use it. Any suggestions? Are there replacement part available?

Replaced the color ink cartrage after not using it for some time, only the black and cyan colors worked. Do I need new printheads for the yellow and magenta?

I've been reading very bad things about this product. Thanks for your help.

LG Smith

[jescott3]

1) If by "print feeder" you mean the ADF or automatic document feeder that sits on the top of the 7130xi, then your problem likely is caused by dirty or glazed rollers. Lift the ADF cover on the far left. Then lift the part with the gray drive roller. You'll see two gray drive rollers and a gray friction pad below them. Wipe them clean with a lint-free cloth soaked in rubbing alcohol. This should restore their ability to grab and move sheets of paper through your ADF. If it doesn't, try the same thing with a more powerful rubber restorer cleaner, such as Goof-Off (be careful with it around plastics).

If you're not talking about the ADF, but about the mechanism that grabs a sheet of paper from the paper tray, then you've probably got drive rollers in a similar dirty or glazed condition. They need to be cleaned so they can get traction on a sheet of paper. You'll need to remove the duplexer at the rear and raise the scanner/ADF assembly to gain access. I haven't needed to do this to my machine ... yet ... but have had to clean the ADF rollers.

2) Google for tips on "cleaning HP 7130 printheads", etc. There are plenty of ideas about how to do this. Otherwise, buy new printheads and be done with it ... until next time. :-)

Jim Scott

[sburtchin]

Have you tried one of those inkjet cleaning kits. They ususally come with a sheet that you can run through the paper path to clean it. It does'nt take much ink to cause a paper jam. The ink in your printer is water soluble. These sheets are usually soaked in alcohol (a bad solvent for the HP inks). Let the alcohol evaporate, then spray the sheet with Windex before running through.

Once you get all the ink cleeaned up, a followup with one of the sheets soaked in rubbing alcohol is probably a good idea, especially for the rubber parts. If the cleaning sheet is insufficient, then a thorough cleaning following jescott3's excellent instructions are in order.

Don't give up on your printheads! No matter how badly clogged they are, you can save them easily. (unless they are burned out, but it must take a lot of dry printing to do that, despite what HP would like you to believe --- if it is even possible) Read these threads:

Hewlett Packard Officejet 7130 Runaround (http://www.pcguide.com/vb/showthread.php?t=44611)

What's the best way to free a blocked ink cartridge head? (http://www.pcguide.com/vb/showthread.php?t=49543)

And yes, this printer has a LOT of problems! Don't give up. Most of them are not real. You just have to fuss with it to keep it going. Most "problems" center around the contacts for the printheads. They must be kept incredibly clean! When HP says don't touch them, they mean it! Clean ink with water or Windex, then finish clean the contacts with 99% isopropyl, not water or rubbing alcohol. Slide the head up and down a couple of times when inserting to burnish the contacts. NEVER work on heads with the power connected!!!!!