So after 6 months of non stop printing, I start getting the can’t load filament check extruder, and nozzle errors. Having experienced the failures before I dutifully disassembled and cleaned and purged the extruder and nozzle. [0.4] This time a new phenomena; I can’t get the cleaning wire through the nozzle. Nor can I see any light thru it. The other peculiar thing was that the cleaning wire was coated heavily with melted filament. Perhaps the Harden Nozzle wears out on PLA. I can push filament through it and It will print for a while, but then it very quickly clogs again. I am in the midst of replacing the nozzle when I notice that I don’t have any replacement thermistors or heaters in my original packaging so I am shut down til new ones arrive From the Store. Anyone have advice to share?
I am not sure what you are doing, based on this picture:
It’s the pointy end of the poker that’s supposed to go in to the nozzle from the output (pointy) side of the nozzle. How did you get melted plastic all over the end you’re supposed to be holding on to when you poke the pointy end through the nozzle opening?
I’m not sure you’re doing it right.
Regardless of which end was used, the original problem has was been made moot by changing out the nozzle for a new one. However the failure to load and swap filament persist. The AMS delivers the filaments to the print head but the extruder does not pick up the filament and push it into the nozzle. I dismantled the extruder and double checked for extraneous filament issues but the pathway is clear.
The AMS delivers it the extruder motor sounds [very quietly] the filament surges and then balks and the AMS rewinds and tries again and again finally stopping with the same error. And there is an odor that smells like something burning. Extruder Motor perhaps? How can I check?
Mine did that behavior and I had to disconnect and reconnect the tubing because the filament was getting caught on the tubing connections.
Mine is not hanging in the tubing it actually enters the extruder top about a .5 inch or 10mm. Sometimes it actually reaches the print head, purges, and prints for about a minute and then runs out of filament. And there is that smell of something burning and it is not the PLA.
Take care the angle of the filament when it enters the buffer from the AMS. Support can send you a little clip to print that helps or use something else to do the same.
Problem solved: First, thanks for the markeastwood1 for the reference to the clip. I printed one and it didn’t fit on the top of the print head. I oversized it by 5% and finally got it on, but it still would not keep the tube straight [upright.] Then I introduced the tube behind the bend and it works great. Second the most efficient tube length is the shortest and that seems to be slightly longer [.5 -1.0 inch] than the control cable from the AMS to the AMS Hub on the back of the Printer. And the added splits and connectors make trouble shooting filament problems a lot easier.
With these modifications I have produced 2 - 6.5 hour 4 color prints without a single hangup or retraction problem. The extra length and stressed angle of entry seemed to be the problem.