1 Topic by Weekend Avenger (edited by Weekend Avenger 2014-07-15 01:53:28)

  • Weekend Avenger
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  • Registered: 2014-06-17
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Topic: Hotend and connector issues

Hi all,

Just wanted to toss out some info that I learned the hard way when my printer hot end decided to fail during a long print. First thing I'll toss out there is the actual cartridge heater is secured by an allen key screw that you can't see from the front of the machine. I'm sure most experienced builders would know that, but never having built a 3d printer I had no clue.

Second thing is that in my case it wasn't the cartridge heater that failed, but the connector that hooks it up to the wiring loom. Others have mentioned replacing that with a Deans plug, but I don't have a quick source for that so I simply soldered the wires together.

Last thing I'll mention is the absolute nightmare it is attempting to get the hot end off the printer when it has ABS stuck in it. Using way too much force and cutting ABS filament that I could only see by using my phones camera is how I got mine off. Even  once I got the thing off, I had to disassemble it and put the hot end on my electric stove's burner coil to actually remove that last bit of filament stuck in it.

So the recap is this...

If your printer happens to fail due to no heat on the hot end, first thing is to unplug the two white wires with the red sleeves and check if you have 12V DC of power there when you try the "unload filament" option from the printer menu. If you don't have power, you will have to check back on the mainboard and note it is also two white wires on a plugin there as well (at the bottom) and once again with the unload filament option you should get 12V DC. If you do happen to have power at both, either replace the connector or just get rid of it and you should be back in business. If it still doesn't work, replace the cartridge heater and unload the filament BEFORE attempting to remove the hot end for whatever reason.

The good new is that the cartridge heaters are dirt cheap on Ebay. I also need to get some 4mm PTFE tube from there since a previous mishap managed to "shorten" mine by about 2 inches, at least with all the work I had to do to get my printer fixed, I noticed how easily that could be replaced as well.

2 Reply by blindvia

  • blindvia
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  • Registered: 2014-12-28
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Re: Hotend and connector issues

Hey, just want to thank you for making your posting here.  I just bought a da vinci 1.0, and its been printing great for a week.  But all of a sudden my extruder was not heating.  After reading your post, I found that it was caused by the connector plug with the poor connections.  I had already tried to call tech support, but apparently they are closed from dec 24 to jan 4,  I thought I was going to have to wait a week to get this fixed, but I'm back in business now.  Thanks!

3 Reply by kszwab

  • kszwab
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  • Registered: 2014-07-31
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Re: Hotend and connector issues

I have three Davinci printers (2x 1.0s and one Duo). I cut and soldered all 4 heater connections since I got tired of the intermittent problems with the crappy connectors failing in mid jobs. If I have to replace a hot end, I will just desolder the stupid connections, especially if you are running higher temperatures on the heads for better filament flow (recommended 230C with the Microcenter $15 spools)