My Brother MFC5860cn is printing very spottily. Can I clean it myself or do I need a repairperson.

Do not try it on yor own unless you are a technician. Too many parts must be removed and counters have to be cleared and programmed. You might try calling brother, they will cover printhead replacement on certain models. Call 1-877-brother.

It is possible the ink carriage and print head are very dirty and needs servicing.

kindly go thru this mannaul it will help you
http://www.manualowl.com/m/Brother%20International/HL-2140/Manual/4869

If you facing Brother Printer In Error State Windows 10 check this Answer.

Brother Printer In Error State Windows 10 is a failure normally displayed when the printer is jammed, low in paper or ink, the cover is open, or the printer is not connected properly, etc.

It is informed that customers usually face the Brother printer in the error state. There can be various circumstances liable for this problem. The obvious factors include outdated printer drivers, incorrect printer settings, certain technical difficulties within the print spooler service.

There are some method that fixes Brother Printer In Error State Windows 10 Easily check here:-

Method 1: Reset the Printer Settings.

Method 2: Ensure that the Brother Printer is Online.

Method 3: Set the Print Spooler Service as Automatic.

Method 4: Install Windows Pending Updates.

Method 5: Update the Printer Driver.

Full Blog- Brother Printer In Error State Windows 10

Inkjet printers need to be used frequently to prevent inkdrying out in the print head nozzles.
If the print head cleaning maintenance routine does not clear the blockages, thenprint head needs replacing, but it may be expensive.
It may be more cost effective to buy a later model and better printer thanreplace the print head. A Warranty does not cover blocked print heads.

Possible fault or weakness of the printing heads, possible poor ink cartridges or poor settings.
Open printer properties and set the contrast and brightness levels to desired conditions and make a est. Readjust and try once again .If there is no result try to reinstall the drivers and test. If not the head and ink can be suspects.

Replace the printhead !

you can download the manual from this link
just select what you want to download.
http://welcome.solutions.brother.com/bsc/public/us/us/en/doc/manual_top.html?reg=us&c=us&lang=en&prod=mfc5860cn_all
all you need for your cable is a usb cable.

Hi there
Please try this.
With some Brother printers you can try this.

Access the internal maintenance mode by pressing the Menu/Set button, then press * 2 8 6 4 within 2 seconds. This should put you in the maintenance mode menu. Enter 80, and then scroll down with the arrow down (round) key. You'll find an entry listed as purge count. If number is over 6000, enter 2 7 8 3.

This will reset the purge count value. Then the printer will restart, hopefully without the annoying cannot clean message.


Some times this happens because of using cheap compatible ink cartridges if this is the case change the ink cartridges.

Please come back and just gave a vote, it will gave me some satisfaction to know am helping some one so I will keep on helping.
All The Best: Pineworks

Go here:  http://welcome.solutions.brother.com/BSC/Public/Templates/DownloadTop.aspx?NRMODE=Published&NRNODEGUID={2C7B4D65-D5B3-47BF-958E-322BE5EFDCA8}&NRORIGINALURL=/bsc/public/us/us/en/dlf/download_top.html%3freg%3dus%26c%3dus%26lang%3den%26prod%3dmfc5860cn_all&NRCACHEHINT=NoModifyGuest∏=mfc5860cn_all®=us&c=us〈=en  Then select driver in the first box, select vista in the second box, and you can download the correct driver.  

Btw, I’m available to help over the phone in case u need at https://www.6ya.com/expert/larry_1fe25e09c54eece2