For my Laser (HP 4M) and my Copier (Canon PC940) I am a HUGE fan of refilling the dry powder toner in the cartridges... and I save a ton of cash doing it, AND the copy is simply better!!

Now I have a question. In these cartridges the "unusable" toner is "stored" in a cavity... once the cavity is too full (from too much refilling) there *IS* a way to empty them... my Dad had found it on the net, but I have Googled for hours and can't find it...

Anyone know what I'm talking about and/or how to to do it?

Thanks!

Pete

I expect that at some point they will degrade to the point that you wouldn't want to use them any longer. How many times have they been refilled by the time this cavity is full?

Most of the time toner and ink cartridges reproduce poorer quality over their life span (everything isn't made as well a a Benz). Once that happens, the economy of refilling the cartridges makes less and less sense.

Our company sells these for high quality photographic reproduction. It's not (always) just a ploy to make you buy more stuff from the manufacturer.

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You can usually get away with refilling toner in a drum unit of that size 3 or 4 times before the drum, cleaning blade or mag rollers go bad. The toner side will have the larger cavity usually with a glued on lid or cap on the top or side someware. The HP will have a waste toner cavity on the opposite end of the drum unit. If there is no lid on that side, drill a small hole in a safe spot and dump or blow (MESSY) it out. Cover the hole(s) with tape afterwords. I think the canon also has a built in waste toner. If not the bottle is under the back panel. Just be careful you don't scratch the drum or expose it to direct lighting for too long or else you will have to buy a new unit either way. Look into remanufactured units too. Lots of good prices on those popular machines. Sometimes the headaches are not worth the savings.
Good Luck!
Adam

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Current Stable:
01 ML55 AMG
92 500E (a few mods)
87 300E (lots of mods)
00 Chevy 3500HD Diesel Box Truck
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PREVIOUSLY OWNED:83 300SD, 87 420SEL, 88 420SEL, 90 420SEL, 86 560SEL, 86 190E 2.3-16V AMG, 94 E320

Here's a link to a DIY article on the subject.
http://www.refill-toner.co.uk/HpRefillRefill-tonercouk.html

__________________
Current Stable:
01 ML55 AMG
92 500E (a few mods)
87 300E (lots of mods)
00 Chevy 3500HD Diesel Box Truck
68 18' Donzi Marine
06 GT i-Drive7 1.0 Mountain Bike (with GPS!)

PREVIOUSLY OWNED:83 300SD, 87 420SEL, 88 420SEL, 90 420SEL, 86 560SEL, 86 190E 2.3-16V AMG, 94 E320

Thank you all sooo much! I *think* I know where the waste toner is kept on the HP 4M now! I'll go hover over the garbage out back and dump it in the AM.

Thanks again!

Pete

I fill the HP on the left side... when I look to the side on the right I can see a plug that is there... I have to guess that it should be ok if I melt a hole (like I did to fill it) above that "plug" that I can get the waste toner out... sound right? Or is there an easy way to pop that plug out? I like the melt idea better... I can just tape over it after...

Thanks again!

Pete

P.S. The PC940 isn't ready to be dumped yet... it is ready to be filled (refilled) though!

When I think back to the $1000's I've wasted on toner over the years. Oh well... Thanks again.

Try to pop the plug with a knife or pliers first. I don't like melting because toner is acrylic powder and will turn into superglue on your moving parts if your not careful. Most photostatic machines process from right to left but some don't I believe most HP's do R to L. So the left side plug should be the waste toner. Check the powder consistency and see if it looks grey and or dirty with paper dust. if it is, that's definitely the waste toner. You can cut an "X" into the plug like the hole you put your straw in a lid at a fast food restaurant. from there you can fill with a funnel and seal with a good tape.

__________________
Current Stable:
01 ML55 AMG
92 500E (a few mods)
87 300E (lots of mods)
00 Chevy 3500HD Diesel Box Truck
68 18' Donzi Marine
06 GT i-Drive7 1.0 Mountain Bike (with GPS!)

PREVIOUSLY OWNED:83 300SD, 87 420SEL, 88 420SEL, 90 420SEL, 86 560SEL, 86 190E 2.3-16V AMG, 94 E320

Thanks for the tips!

My 940 is up next too now!

Thanks again,

Pete