In the bad ol’ days of remanufactured toner cartridges, the so called “drill-and-fill” cartridges gave remanufactured toners a bad rap. Instead of replacing any of the parts, as many do today, the drill-and-fill guys would simply drill into the casing, squirt in the toner and send it off to market without regard for parts that may have become unusable and worn, such as toner drums.

One of the most important components in use on a remanufactured toner cartridge is a new drum unit. The electrostatically charged drum unit transfers the toner particles to the paper where they are fused by heated rollers during printing.

Due to the toner drums’ vital role in the complex orchestration of printing, most top remanufacturers always replace the toner drums in cartridges because doing so is essential in maintaining the same quality of an OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) toner cartridge.

Because a toner drum is one of the first parts to fail in a remanufactured toner cartridge  due to wear, you will want to make sure that the brands that you are buying replace the drums.

When the drums go kaput, they can dump toner throughout your printer or copier. A failing drum unit will also dramatically reduce the quality of your print or copy job, and eventually the unit can become unusable. Companies that remanufacture toner cartridges without replacing the drums, are not looking out for the consumer’s best interest. You can bet those companies do not guarantee their products either, as replacement and cleanup for failed remanufactured toner cartridges can be costly.

The top remanufacturers will typically replace all of the worn parts, including the drum units. They open the used OEM cartridge and inspect all of the inner components looking for wear and possible failure if used further. They clean all of the parts and only reuse what they can to maintain the quality of an OEM toner cartridge.

Because the drum unit uses seals that could leak when old or worn, the drum units should always be replaced.

This points out a big difference between a remanufactured and compatible toner cartridges. The compatible cartridge is essentially a copy of the OEM with all new parts. The manufacturer must make minute changes, such as with the casing shape, in order to keep from infringing on the OEM cartridge patent rights. This may cause the cartridge to fit differently, although many work just fine even so. Also compatible cartridges use very low cost parts to keep the pricing down.

The advantage in reusing the OEM casing such as the remanufactured toner cartridges do, is that you can be assured that it will fit into your printer or copier just like a new one from the manufacturer out of the box.

Before selecting a brand, read the reviews to see what others who have tried the cartridges think. Websites for magazines like PC World publish reviews, as does CNET. Online stores such as SuperMediaStore.com encourage customers to post unbiased reviews. Reviews are posted on the individual product pages.

Or if you already have a supplier you trust, check brand specific reviews at its site. One top brand that has been proven to be reliable and cost effective is LINKYO, and  when you purchase remanufactured toner cartridges from LINKYO, you can rest assured the toner drums have been replaced with new ones.

+Scott Roy Smith

+LINKYO Corp

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