Agfa 5302: repeating horizontal stripe on printed films
What happened
A repeating horizontal stripe appeared on printed films; the print counter was reported in the case at over 40,000 prints.
What was checked
- Printed a diagnostic test pattern from the service documentation to assess the thermal head and compare the banding before and after work.
- Inspected the drive motor of the print unit and found its grooves packed with dust shed by the belt.
Cause
The engineers found that dust from the drive belt had clogged the grooves on the drive motor, making the print motion uneven, which showed as a repeating horizontal stripe on the films.
What was done
The motor was cleaned of belt dust; the stripe disappeared and normal printing was restored — reported as solved.
Safety
Disconnect the printer from the mains before opening the print unit and let the thermal head cool down, as it stays hot enough to burn shortly after printing.
Lesson: On a heavily used printer, a repeating stripe usually points to the drive path first, so clean belt dust from the motor and its grooves before suspecting the thermal head.
Covered in the course: Medical Imagers and Film Printers — Level 2: Fault-Finding →
Written from an anonymised case shared by service engineers. It is not a manufacturer instruction and grants no authorisation. Independent note; names are trademarks of their owners.