My method was to start the "Change Cartridge" process which heats the print head. piano wire with a diameter of 015" (.38mm), I was able to clear the clog and get on with the business of printing. I'm only relating my experience to say that I was able to get up and running again without having to send my Cube back to the factory.Īs I mentioned earlier, I'm pretty fearless when it comes to tackling mechanical problems. And, I am not telling you what I did so that you can do the same. The Print Head of the Cube is around 240C degrees and that is MORE than hot enough to cause serious burns. (Piano wire is commonly used in Remote Control airplanes.)īefore going any farther, I need to warn you that 3D Systems is NOT going to like what I did. Knowing there was a hobby shop near the hotel, I ran out and purchased the thinnest piano wire they carried. So, I came up with a last ditch effort to solve my problem. Once again, I'd clogged the head.īut, this time I wasn't 15 minutes from the factory and I wanted to make that magenta object for my granddaughters. Putting the new filament into the Cube, I heard that dreaded clicking sound. ONLY PULL ON THE FILAMENT AFTER THE GEARS STOP TURNING. LET THE CUBE REVERSE THE FILAMENT WITHOUT HELP. I apparently pulled too hard causing some of the filament to remain in the bottom tube. I made the mistake of trying to "help" the Cube back the old filament out of the PrintJet. This, of course, required removing the old cartridge to make way for the new. I'd taken the Cube along for the ride and decided to make something for my granddaughters in magenta. Just before I left for the trip, part of my filament order came in and among the colors was magenta. This past weekend, I was in Wilmington, DE for a few days visiting my granddaughters. But, I found out this weekend that it is not. If that were the ONLY way a user could clog the Printjet all would be well. Sometimes manufacturers have to go out of their way to save us from ourselves! The outcome of my experience was that 3D Systems redesigned the cartridge by attaching a small clip to the tail end of the filament so that if a user fails to heed the warning that there is not enough filament to complete a print job, the clip will keep the end of the filament from going past the gears, allowing the user to back the filament left inside the Printjet out. Had any part of the filament been sticking up from the Printjet, it could have been easily cleared. The problem was that by ignoring the warnings on the LCD, I had allowed the filament to run out and go past the gears as it ran unattended. I returned it to the factory and they replaced the Printjet. There was just the slightest piece of filament in the gap between the lower tube and the gear. The filament end had gone past the gear and was stuck in the bottom tube. The compactness of the design is wonderful but, it does mean that it is difficult to reach material that has gone past the gear. It allows them to put a motor, fan and extruder into a nice, compact Printjet package. A bottom tube which is heated to extrude the filament.Īs you can plainly see, this is a brilliant design allowing for a nice small Printjet with direct contact with the filament.A gear and spring-loaded idler that pull the filament.A top tube into which the filament is loaded. ![]() ![]() This drawing is my simple rendition of the extrusion system used in the Cube.Īs you can see, there are three basic parts: So, I took off the Printjet cover to see if I could clear the clog. ![]() I'm pretty fearless when it comes to tackling mechanical problems. And, that was true for the clicking I was hearing from the Cube PrintJet. More often than not it means the print head is clogged. ![]() Virtually, all owners of 3D printers have heard it at some time or other. In a 3D extrusion printer, if the extruder cannot move the filament forward, it makes a clicking sound. But, when I tried to load the new filament into the PrintJet I heard an all too familiar sound. I didn't think much of it and it took some time to obtain more filament. Therefore, the print never completed and the filament ran completely out. I should have taken the time to go get my glasses. And, since I wasn't wearing my reading glasses, the brightness made it difficult to decipher. I saw something but, because I intended to photograph the piece for a stop-motion movie, I'd flooded it with lights. And, the reason it happened is that I failed to read the warning that came up on the LCD about not having enough material to complete the object as I was starting it. Remember when I ran out of filament? It happened when I was running it unattended. But, that does NOT mean that I have not been able to bring it to its knees.Īnd, by doing so, have made it less likely that you will end up doing so. All of the glowing reviews I have posted about the Cube 3D printer are true, The quality of the prints has been remarkable.
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