Epson 3200 dust issue

[dave92270]

Hi all,

 

could anyone advice how to remove a few dust particles which are

located on the bottom of the glass (inside)? When I do 3200dpi

negatives scan, the size of one dustspeck in one particular spot is

very annoying ,and is on every frame off course.

 

Epson tech support told me to send it to the specialized repair

center- I'm affraid that shipping would most likely break the scanner

(I have fairly bad experience with local packages shipping/delivery by

all Fedex, UPS and USPS, the packages I'm getting are frequently

beaten up, and the content even broken if it's somehow fragile (such

as the delicate scanner). I could off course let them break it and

then ask for compensation, but it's too much of hassle, I'd rather

clean up those few dust specks and continue using the otherwise fine unit.

 

 

Thanks for advice

Dave

[kelly_flanigan1]

My Epson 2450 has one wayward piece of dust; under the glass; since purchase; about 1 1/2 years ago. It is abit to the side; and shows up on scans with bigger negatives. <BR><BR>In color copiers; ie copy machines; the glass is made to be easy to remove; and cleaning is a regular maintance event. We got our first CLC in the mid 1980's; cleaning and/or replacing the glass is a standard thing with these Canon units. With todays flatbeds; the lower end models can be cleaned; but the way to remove the glass is not always published. In high end flatbeds; the glass removal and replacement is documented; and replacement glass available.<BR><BR>We cleaned the glass on our lower ppi 12XX series Epsons; after some futzing; and many screws were removed. If you send your Epson Off; many have shipping locks on the side; to protect the scanners guts from being ruined.<BR><BR>With our color copiers; and flatbeds somewhat; the inside part of the glass gets coated with a film of outgassed plastic/mold release; this cuts down the contrast of the scanner. With hard usage; the top of the glass will get scratched also. Many times the scratching is due to too much cleaning; like the guys who polish their lenses; and scratch the front element; trying to clean it.

[dave92270]

Thx for response..

 

yes I have also one huge speck - visible when scanning MF negatives, it's been there since I bought the scanner, but I originally thought it's on film or on top of the glass..

 

I wonder if anyone attempted to open up their 3200 and get under the glass; I'd like to only get this single dust piece out, since at 3200dpi resolution I think there will be always some dust visible - just don't want this big one to stick out, requireing manual cloning of every frame I scan - small dust usually won't bother if resized for web etc.

 

Thx

 

Dave

[custom film holders for fl]

There is a acrobat document with pictures in the files section of the Epson 3200/2450 Users Group at Yahoo Groups that is a must read if you plan to open up and clean your scanner! My guess is that if you are careful in how you clean the glass, you will probably do a better quality job than Epson tech.

 

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/epson3200/

[dave92270]

Thanks Doug,

 

downloaded the .pdf file and started to read it - looks quite possible to do the job at home, just hope that 2450 and 3200 chassis and connectors are somehow identical.

 

Thanks a lot, this is exactly what I've been looking for.

 

Regards

Dave

[leonard_evens]

The 2450 and 3200 do appear to be the same. You might also do a google groups search of comp.periphs.scanners, where instructions to open the scanner have appeared. They are probably the same instructions as at the yahoo group site, but you may find more details.

 

On the other hand, have you considered simply placing your medium format negatives somewhere else to avoid the bad spot? You may have to improvise your own film holder to do it, but that is not too hard to do. That is what I would do rather than opening up the scanner with the attendant risks.

 

If you do open the scanner, I think you are advised to close it after cleaning in a relatively humid environment such as a bathroom to avoid dust adhering to the glass while you close.

[dave92270]

Thx Lenord fo additinal info - I'll check some more links befor attempting the cleanup.

 

The option to position the window on the different spot could be a solution - I think I'll do a "blank" scan to see where else is dust located and go from there; this is what the guy in the .pdf instructions suggested.

 

I regret that I didn't inspect the scanner closely after buying it - but I didn't have experience with film scanners before (beyond my old 1200dpi CanoScanD660U which was really poor), and definitely not with 3200dpi resolution which will pick up film grain easily, not to mention dust ...

 

Regards

Dave

[smiler]

I know it's a while since you posted but:-

 

If you are in UK you can go to local express centres and have your Epson Scanners and Printers assessed, repaired or replaced. Have a look here:- http://www.epson.co.uk/support/express/

[dave92270]

Thanks for response, Brian.

 

Unfortunately, I'm in California, and don't have any of these centers nearby where I live - the scanner has to be shipped to repair shop - the closest one to my location is some 100 miles away...

 

I decided just to let the dust alone - even if it would get removed, possibly more dust would get inside sooner or later again. I dust-spot images in software when necessary.

 

Thanks for suggestion though..

Dave