Remanufacturing the Brother HL-L 3290 Series Toner Cartridge TN-227

By Mike Josiah and the Technical Staff at Uninet

The Brother HL-L3290 printer engine is based on a color 25ppm, 2400 x 600 DPI laser engine. These machines have a first page out in less than 8.5 seconds, and come standard with 64Mb of memory. The HL-L3290 series also has duplexing built in. New printers in this series come with CMYK starter toner cartridges which are rated for 1000 pages.

There are two different toner cartridges available for these machines. The TN-223 cartridges are rated for 1,300 pages (1400 BK), and the TN-227 cartridges are rated for 2300 pages (3,000 pages BK). The drum unit (C,M,Y,BK) which will be covered in separate instructions is rated for 18,000 pages. There are different part numbers for these cartridges depending on your region. In North America they are as follows:

STD HY Drum
Cartridges: TN223C,M,Y,BK TN227C,M,Y,BK DR233CL

Figure A shows the toner cartridge with the developer roller and chip covers.

Figure A

Current machines released so far for this series are:

HL-L3210CW
HL-L3230CDW
HL-L3270CDW
HL-L3290CDW
DCP-L3550CDW
DCP-L3551CDW
MFC-L3710DW
MFC-L3750CDW
MFC-L3770CDW

There is a reset gear and a chip on these cartridges. Until a new chip is available, you can re-use the old chip.



Required Tools

Toner approved vacuum.

Phillips Head Screwdriver

Small Common jewelers Screwdriver


Required Supplies

Toner for use in the Brother HL-L3290 series of cartridges.

Developer roller cover (Can re-use OEM if available)

Lint free cotton cloths

Toner magnet cloths

White Lithium Grease

New Chip when available, (Can reuse OEM chip until then)


1) Vacuum the exterior of the cartridge.

2) On the GEAR/CHIP SIDE, (Left side with reset gear on opposite side), remove the two screws. See Figure 1

Figure 1

3) Press in on the two tabs, remove the chip holder (Two separate pieces). See Figure 2

Figure 2

4) Remove the remaining screw and end cap. See Figures 3 & 4

Figure 3

Figure 4

5) Remove the 4 gears. See Figure 5

Figure 5

6) Using a large flat head screwdriver, pry off the developer roller gear lock. Remove the gear. See Figures 6 & 7

Figure 6

Figure 7

7) Remove the white inner end cap. See Figure 8

Figure 8

8) On the reset gear side of the developer roller remove the 2 screws and remove the end cap. Note that the reset gear stays with the end cap! See Figures 9 & 10

Figure 9

Figure 10

9) Remove the black inner end cap. See Figure 11

Figure 11

10) Remove the E ring from the developer roller shaft. See Figure 12

Figure 12

11) Remove the developer roller. See Figure 13

Figure 13

12) Remove the two screws and Doctor Blade. Be careful not to damage the foam DB seal while cleaning. See Figures 14 & 15

Figure 14

Figure 15

13) Clean out any remaining toner from the hopper. Pay special attention to the feed roller to make sure it’s clean, See Figure 16

Figure 16

14) Vacuum the doctor blade clean. The doctor blade can be easily cleaned by blowing the excess toner off, and wiping down with a lint free cloth. Be very careful not to leave any lint behind! See Figure 17

Figure 17

15) Inspect the developer roller felts. If they are compressed, (shiny) rough them up with a small screwdriver. See Figure 18

Figure 18

16) Clean the developer roller with a lint free cloth. Do not use any harsh chemicals to clean this roller. Any type of alcohol cleaner will strip the conductive coating off the roller.

17) Fill the cartridge with toner for use in the Brother HL-L3290 series of toner cartridges. Make sure you use the correct color for your cartridge. See Figure 19

Figure 19

18) Install the Doctor Blade and two screws. See Figure 20

Figure 20

19) Re-install the developer roller with the long shaft to the gear side. See Figure 21

Figure 21

20) Install the E-Ring on the developer roller shaft. See Figure 22

Figure 22

21) Clean the gears, making sure that they have no toner on them. This is a good time to also check the gear shafts to make sure there is enough grease. If the shafts appear dry, or the grease is contaminated with toner, clean the shaft and inside of the gear. Replace the grease with white lithium grease.

22) Install the white inner developer roller end cap and screw on the gear side. See Figure 23

Figure 23

23) Install the five gears as shown. See Figure 24

Figure 24

24) Install the small gear lock on the developer roller shaft. See Figure 25

Figure 25

25) Install the larger gear side end cap, and screw. See Figure 26

Figure 26

26) On the opposite side, install the black inner end cap. See Figure 27

Figure 27

27) Set the reset gear as shown. Install the end cap and two screws. The small tab on the reset gear must be seen in the top hole. See Figures 28 & 29

Figure 28

Figure 29

28) Install the reset gear end cap and two screws. See Figure 30

Figure 30

29) If available, replace the chip on the cartridge. (The chip can be re-used) See Figure 31

Figure 31

30) Install the chip Holder and two screws. See Figures 32 & 33

Figure 32

Figure 33

31) Wipe the cartridge down to remove any remaining toner dust. (Be careful not to touch the developer roller!)

32) Install the developer roller cover and chip cover. See Figure 34

Figure 34