How to clear a Nozzle Jam

[lawong]

Hi guys,

I was printing out this figurine at a bigger size and the nozzle got jammed and created a spongy mess instead!
This is caused by a nozzle jam, had it once or twice, just routine maintenance.

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So let me show you what I did to clear this jam.

First you need the following tools to remove the nozzle:

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You need the spanner from the Rapide kit but you need either a self-locking wrench or a adjustable spanner (try to get a slim nose version)

Heat up the nozzle to about 160C or so


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Slip the adjustable wrench or spanner over the heating block on the clear side (not touching the heater or thermistor)

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Use the supplied spanner over the nozzle and turn it while holding the heater block (above) steady
Take out the nozzle (careful, it’s hot!)


Turn off the heater (otherwise it might burn up) and you will now need the following items:


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A self-gripping vice wrench or something that will hold the nozzle while it gets heated
A small length of clear PLA / ABS filament
A gas flame burner - either a mini-blow torch or just a cigarette gas lighter will do



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Or
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Heat up the nozzle at the tip only, wait for a while


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Slowly push a length of clear or translucent filament into the nozzle
(Clear or Translucent is optional, you can use any color,
it will just help you to see the junk that's jamming the nozzle)

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Push it until either you see some oozing coming out the other end or when it overflows..

Now wait while it cools, test pulling it a little and if it starts to gets harder, just yank it!

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This is called a "Cold Pull"



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OK, got that sucker out! See the dirt at the tip which was blocking it?
If you used clear or translucent filament, you will see it.


Now do the "Cold Pull" one more time to make sure we got everything out!

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Yup, it's clean this time!

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Check the nozzle to see if you can see light! (yup it’s clear now)

Put it back using the same wrench to hold the heater block straight and the spanner to tighten the nozzle just a bit past finger tight.

Heat up, feed the filament and see it flow!

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Good to go! Feed it a couple more until the extrude line is straight and clear.

Give it a measure if you have a caliper:


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That's from a 0.3mm nozzle and it's actually slightly larger, input that into the slicer to correct the filament info and you're done !

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Sometimes I will put the dirty nozzles into an old jam jar filled with Acetone (for ABS) or Paint Thinner (for PLA) and keep it for a couple of days. This will also help to remove any filament materials on/in the nozzle.

Hope this will help those who are getting wispy or output that are way thinner than the nozzle (it should be same or slightly larger).

Have fun printing!

[Holgamods]

Anytime I see my extrusion getting stringy, maybe once a week, I just remove my nozzle, put it tip up in a vise without closing the jaws of the vise on the threads, then grab a torch and heat the nozzle until the glob of ABS or PLA drops out of it, and keep heating unit I burn off any filament residue around the rest of the nozzle, It will be glowing at this point. When it cools down it is completely clean, then I run one of my .2, .3, .4mm pins thru the tip to clean out anything left behind.

[Joao]

I just pull out the filament manually at around 120~130C and get the same cleaning results, without the trouble of removing the nozzle and the risk of breaking the heating wires.

This is a nice video from Justin: https://plus.google.com/108392132660...ts/JnjTBpPuXpi

[synthius]

I've run Wood, Copper,PETT, Flexible, PLA, and T-Glass Filament through the same nozzle and have used a combination of the cold pull,extruder floss, and cleaning filament to remedy any clogs. They all do the job but I have to say the cleaning filament has been the most efficient/easiest way to get rid of partial clogs.

http://www.amazon.com/Printer-CLEANI...aning+filament

[lawong]

Anybody else had used the eSun cleaning filament like @synthius?

Does it work well? How high a temperature would you need it to work?

Any photos of results?

[synthius]

Anybody else had used the eSun cleaning filament like @synthius?

Does it work well? How high a temperature would you need it to work?

Any photos of results?

I just used it between filament roll changes. It has a wide temperature range from 150 - 260C. You run it through the extruder at the same temperature of the filament being cleaned out. I run my Silver filament at 220 so I kept the temperature at 220C and manually fed the cleaning filament through. Printing a model with my white filament at the moment. I can show you the filament if you'd like at..

https://sensr.net/cameras/printercam

[lawong]

Cool! Thanks!!!

[synthius]

Cool! Thanks!!!

Hope you saw me use the cleaning filament Lawong! And don't forget to tighten theL Bracket Tension Screw far enough once you re-insert normal filament! Or else filament comes out uneven.

[hive]

Hello fellow friends, I dont know what is hapening with my printer, suddenly it star to print like the friend lawong says, a spongy mess, I have the fear of try to get out the nozzle and break it (again). plase help me Im been triying everything for 2 weeks
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[BobenhamHotspur]

What type of filament are you using and what settings are you using? Also a clearer picture would help