Slot 1 on my AMS unit suddenly stopped feeding filament. I recently replaced the inner tubing and it printed fine last night. Now, when I insert the filament in slot one, I hear whining like a motor going but does not draw in the filament. Slot #2 works fine and I’m currently printing from that slot. My questions are:
Is it normal for the AMS feeder unit to wear out and need replacing?
If it is, should I replace the whole AMS feeder unit or just the AMS feeding funnel unit in the unit?
Should I also replace the AMS Active Extrusion Wheel Assembly while I am at it?
How much life can I expect out of each unit.
Responses from other Bambu AMS users will help me get an idea on which spare parts and how many I should have on hand.
Michael
this is ams or ams 2 pro? because abrasive filament really damaged my ams, but some components are supposed to be improved on the newer one to prevent this
Somewhat. If you’ve been using a lot of abrasive filaments you should. While at it replace the internal (check the external) PTFE tubes for wear.
I’d say this depends on how mechanically inclined you are. The feeder funnel requires you to pay close attention to the “swing arm” gears, they have to be in the right position when you put the feeder assembly back together right to work. If you want the easy route just replace the feeder unit.
Nah. What you should do though is check it carefully for signs of wear. If you take the cover off the gear be sure to keep an eye out for springs & magnets (going from memory). In 3 years I finally replaced mine only when doing a “refurbish” of my AMS 1.
All depends on the filament. Abrasives will not only wear down but leave the bits of worn plastic within the feeder. Regular PLA doesn’t seem to do that as much. I would (and do) most often feed abrasives through the external. I understand it’s a choice, but I get tired of fishing broken brittle filament from the PTFE tubes. Since I’ve had HT units I tend to go that route, but the filament can still break.
If your unit is still under warranty contact BL Support. At least then you can get the part for free. If I were you, I’d just replace the feeder funnel. If you pay attention, it’s easy.
Wanted to add something. Check the rollers, especially on the feeder side. These rollers can wear and stop spinning the spool. I’m editing because I had this happen.
If it’s happening on one slot there are some things you can do to narrow down the issue. One is that it’s not the hub because it’s happening only on one slot. The hub has only one motor and if it works for the other slots, it’s working for that one.
You can move the rollers from a known working to number one. If that fixes the problem then there you go. $5 (plus shipping) fix.
You can remove one feeder from a known working slot, move it to number 1 and see what happens. If you still have a problem then it’s most likely the feeder.
This will help you narrow the issue down. I should have mentioned this in the first post, sorry. I blame the headache and lack of caffine.
Thanks for the advice. I have used slot 1 sometime for abrasive filament, but lately all my projects were using PLA, PETG, and silk PLA. The latest one just prior to it stop working was a long print with silk PLA. My AMS is only 1.5 years old but I use it pretty much all the time.
I’m pretty mechanically inclined and am not afraid of taking apart, repairing and reassembling most equipment. I will order the replacement parts and a few extra.
To Use.The.Search.Luke, that is a good suggestion. Now that the print I needed to get done is complete, I will investigate further as you suggested before ordering new parts.
BTW, I love your handle! I use it all the time with my Mother-in-law.
I literally just changed it to this. Even better that it’s recognized for what it is.
I offer these suggestions up because I had an issue with my AMS 1 and it drove me nuts. I didn’t follow my advice. I first changed PTFE tubes, the filament path, even the filament sensor. None of which made any sense looking back.
I tore it down, looked at the motor, internal PTFE, even replaced the feeder tube. All of this eventually led to doing a refurb on the unit. In the end, and no idea how I missed it, the feed roller was horribly worn. My head was up my butt when tearing down I guess. Replaced that and haven’t had issue yet.
Have fun, just pay attention to the yellow gears inside the clear part of the feeder assembly. Looking at it from the funnel end. The right side gear needs to be forward horizontally. There’s a tab on the clear cover that will make sense when you see it. The left needs to be vertical. If you get those the first time you’re golden. Took me 2 tries.
When I replace the feeder funnel unit, I will see what exactly broke in the mechanism. I truly hope this will not become a regular occurrence for my AMS.
I recently used SUNLU PLA Glow In The Dark filament and i noticed some really bad abrasion where the filament gets pulled in in the ams. I use the older AMS. this causes some really bad problems because the filament gets blocked in the drive because it can jump out of the driving pully. i didn’t notice any convoluted filament on the spool and i can turn the spool easily. does anyone experience the same problem? i didn’t find any spare parts online, only the whole the whole drive, which is quite expensive to replace.
Glow, of any brand is akin to running sandpaper through the AMS/PTFE tubes. It’s notoriously abrasive.
Here is the feeder part. I would recommend some PTFE tubing as well.
That will assist in keeping the feeder funnel tops from wearing, but remember Glow and Carbon Fiber (CF) and Glass Fiber (GF) will wear the PTFE tubes faster.
EDIT: PTFE is a consumable part. Check it first if you start having feeding or retracting issues. It’s cheap, have some onhand.
Once the internal diameter of the PTFE tubes wear they could obstruct or cause issues with feeding and retracting filament. I suggest keeping some length on hand or purchase one of the precut packs from the Bambu Store.
I have issue with wrong detection of filament. Today I have dissasmbled Feeding Funnel and found out, that pin used for filament detection hes also groove on top. I wonder if pin is available as spare part somewhere.
I’ve had the same issue and now that they are like that, the AMS is having a hard time reading the filament or even acknowledging the filament is loaded. Will using filament saver with a tube help prevent this?
Thanks for the info and link! I’ve ordered some tubing to help. I’ve had my printer just about two months and have to replace three feeders. I got Bambu to replace one under warranty but it was such a hassle that I just bought the other two.
