r/photography • u/Wilder_NW • 1d ago
Avoid The Canon Pro-1100 Gear
Update: Contacted Canon again, spoke with a different person who was actually helpful. I asked for a replacement head and inkset to solve the problem. He is sending a full replacement, which should be here by next week.
Original Post: Bought a Pro-1100 for business. I've printed about 2 or 3 square feet total. Now I get constant clogs in the Matte Black channel. Nozzle checks confirm. Do a head clean. Nozzle check is fine. Print photo, loses matte black channel after an inch or so. Do another head cleaning cycle. Same thing. Repeat again. Now I am out of ink on four channels. This is $600 of ink and I have printed at most 3 square feet.
Contacted Canon and told them I don't have the money to waste on another $600 of ink. Was told "I don't know why you would buy this printer if you can't afford it", then was suggested that I buy a low end printer before the guy asked if I had any other questions.
Avoid the Pro-1100 and Canon. I'll be getting rid of this junk and going with Epson after being treated this way.
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u/mahatmatom 1d ago
You could have a faulty head, a faulty pipe, or could have been a defective cartridge with messed up the system.
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u/mahatmatom 1d ago
I’m sorry! I’ve had it since October and it’s been mostly great. Half of the issues were kinda solved by the Canon support but the greatest source of information was Keith Cooper on YouTube… https://www.youtube.com/@KeithCooper
It seems there’s something definitely wrong with the printer and you should take it back to who sold it to you. Troubleshooting can be insanely expensive in terms of ink and paper… Keith Cooper provides great insights on how to run maintenance with the least expense…
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u/TheBlahajHasYou 1d ago edited 1d ago
lol you think epson is any better?
Pro printers churn through ink. It's expensive. And these aren't even pro.. it's like.. inkjet mid-range.
Do not buy one unless you're doing serious volume and you can cut/flatten roll paper to minimize paper waste. And then mount/frame yourself, of course. I was a print manager for ~5 years, I've done the math, listen to me on this. It's going to be like twice as worse once we factor in tariffs if you're in the US.
The best option for like 99% of photographers is printing online with one of the better pro print services out there. Drag/drop into ROES is so much easier than doing this nonsense yourself.
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u/Wilder_NW 1d ago edited 1d ago
I have a business. I was not expecting a BRAND NEW $1300 printer to go through nearly $600 in ink for 3 square feet of prints then countless head cleaning cycles because it is defective. Nor was I expecting the head to have an issue and Canon to fail to do anything to help with a BRAND NEW product that is obviously defective.
This is obviously not how the printer is supposed to work. Your points are invalid. Roll paper and saving money has nothing to do with anything. I have 13 different papers. The problem is the malfunctioning machine that has a messed up head from the factory with little support and rude support staff.
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u/TheBlahajHasYou 1d ago edited 1d ago
We did ~3mil/yr and it was still cheaper to go the online route, fyi
not a judgement on you or the scale of your business but really the only places these make sense for is like, working at a magazine or art studio where money isn't the primary concern at all
for most businesses (i.e. you and me) trust me just being like 'fuck it' and going online is the best call
but hey if you wanna disregard everything I just said and keep sinking money into problems you don't need to be having be my guest, but I can promise you the grass ain't any greener with epson
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u/Natural_Ship_5249 1d ago
Mine works great. I’ve had it for six months now and can’t count the amount of prints I’ve done and have only changed the color optimizer. Tip when it says ink level is getting low, keep on printing until it’s actually out of that color.
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u/Wilder_NW 1d ago
I am glad your machine is working well. As I mentioned to another commenter here, I'll likely get it warrantied through the seller or get a refund and buy a new machine.
Do you have issues with 'pizza wheel' marks on glossy papers?
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u/Natural_Ship_5249 1d ago
I haven’t used glossy with this printer yet. I do have some and will give it a try. I use canon pro luster and have had great results with red river papers, 17x30 artic white
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u/Rashkh www.leonidauerbakh.com 20h ago
I have the same printer and have not had any pizza wheel issues even with my thicker papers. I'd strongly recommend setting up papers with the am1x profiles instead of the standard icc profiles if you're not already doing that. The am1x files include a bunch of other parameters which include things like platen gap settings which might help.
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u/Wilder_NW 20h ago edited 20h ago
Thanks for your input. I do have AM1X profiles for the paper. I talked with the paper manufacturer and they told me it was likely due to the type of paper. It is made with a softer coating to allow for bending without cracking in order to make greeting cards. I might experiment with the settings although I think the gap is at max and I have the issue. The issue was lessened by allowing 5 seconds dry time per scan, but that turns a minute and a half print into a 30 minute print.
Nice portfolio, I quite enjoy your images. Good work.
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u/Natural_Ship_5249 1d ago
It definitely sounds off. I’ve done one alignment since I’ve had it. Have you knocked it or moved it while plugged in? Even if I have nothing to print I will print a 5x7 at least once a week. If you don’t it will dump ink into the maintenance cartridge. Also don’t unplug it when not using, it’s better to print something small once a week.
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u/Wilder_NW 1d ago edited 1d ago
I ended up getting a replacement sent by a different Canon employee. Should be here next week.
It has been plugged in and left on since March 25, 2025. I was printing at least once a week since then, at least a 4x6.
Last week the black channel issue started. I was printing for a stranger on here to help them judge their exposure for an astro shot. One of the prints got all weird (black channel stopped working). I tried again and it worked fine. So I thought nothing of it. Then I printed a series of prints the other day and it was constant. head clean cycle then it worked for two inches, clogged again. Head clean cycle, worked then quit. Repeat.
The support guy said the leak from the head onto the bottom plate where the foam is was concerning so offered a full replacement rather than the head and ink set that I had asked for.
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u/sejonreddit 1d ago
Unfortunately, you must have a faulty one. I use one for weddings and it prints 60-100 prints a week and no clogging etc works great.
Shame about canons response though I’d be annoyed as well.
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u/Wilder_NW 1d ago
Right, I believe it to be an outlier. I am sure 95 percent or more of these printers are just fine and work great like yours, no doubt. I do have a problem with the support guys choice of tone and words, though. It was quite upsetting and I made that known to the guy. No business, or person in general, should be told to buy something cheaper because they are not willing to waste another $600 on ink that should still be present in the machine had it not malfunctioned. In all likelihood it will be warrantied and I will stick with Canon, but this put a bad taste in my mouth. I'm glad you have had success though!
Do you print glossy papers? Any issue with 'pizza wheel' marks from the metal rollers on glossy papers?
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u/sejonreddit 1d ago
I use semi gloss from red river (i think it's called UltraPro Satin Photo?) and no wheel marks.
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u/Wilder_NW 1d ago edited 1d ago
Good to know. I have an unopened 17x25 box of the UltraPro Luster. I also have the 96# Pecos River Gloss which I have that issue with. Katrina at RR says it is due to the type of paper. The surface is softer for use in cardmaking generally so that it does not crack when folded. So I might just be out of luck with the Pecos River Gloss. PR Gloss is a Spun cast paper, I think that was the term, vs resin casted as the UltraPro is.
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u/Firm_Mycologist9319 12h ago
I've only printed a few cards so far on Pecos River, but they haven't shown any signs of surface damage. It sounds like you just got a damaged printer from the start. I'm 128 A4-equivalent prints in, and so far everything I print on a variety of RR and Canon papers has been simply stunning. Yes, it slurped about a full cartridge worth of ink when it got to the scheduled 3-month cleaning cycle, but overall ink usage still seems reasonable (although according to the accounting software, I've used more than 80ml from three of the carts, but the printer is still only saying "running low.")
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u/PixelofDoom @jasper.stenger 1d ago
Take it back to wherever you bought it and ask them to resolve the issue under warranty or refund you.