<![CDATA[SoliForum - 3D Printing Community — Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/topic/1257/extruder-motor-twitching-not-printing/ Fri, 15 Mar 2013 19:26:47 +0000 PunBB <![CDATA[Re: Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/16654/#p16654 Sorry to hear about that.  Hope you hear back soon.  I sent you an email earlier today - this morn. Not sure if you received it.  I assume you did.

]]> Fri, 15 Mar 2013 19:26:47 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/16654/#p16654 <![CDATA[Re: Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/16647/#p16647 alas, no.

after the main board came back, the problem persisted, and I had to send the whole printer back to them for analysis...

haven't heard back from them yet.

]]> Fri, 15 Mar 2013 18:33:34 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/16647/#p16647 <![CDATA[Re: Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/16374/#p16374 All extruder problems solved? I hope so.  I am assuming all problems are solved since you haven't posted any "new" problems .  I have acquired a lot of new 3D printer info over the past few days....

]]> Wed, 13 Mar 2013 20:30:50 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/16374/#p16374 <![CDATA[Re: Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/15035/#p15035 for those of you following this...

the problem persists,
got the "new" board back, and the same problem,


but this time, when I swap the stepper motors, the swapped axis (the one with the extruder's chip)    does rotate,  just in a very jerky rhythm  (not a smooth spin like the other axis, but as though power is being pulsed to the engine instead of fed steadilly)

]]> Mon, 04 Mar 2013 20:23:46 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/15035/#p15035 <![CDATA[Re: Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/12425/#p12425 well, since I've only had the printer less than a week...

the Solidoodle people have been very nice and helped with diagnosing...
they've concluded it's not just the stepper chip, so I'm sending the main board back to them for a replacement...

]]> Sun, 10 Feb 2013 20:00:47 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/12425/#p12425 <![CDATA[Re: Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/12141/#p12141 Sorry, still having a little bit of a hard time following everything you've tried perfectly.

It sounds like no matter where your stepper driver originally intended for the E (extruder motor) is located, it wont drive whatever motor is attached to it.  If this is true and the extruder motor works fine when attached to a different driver, any motor works fine when attached to a stepper driver that isn't the one originally intended for the extruder, and it doesn't matter where anything is located, then it sounds like you have a bad stepper driver.  They are easy to replace as I'm sure your'e aware since you've been swapping them around.  Like I said, not quite following exactly what you've done, but the whole point was to eliminate the main board as a cause, the voltage level as a cause, the motor as a cause, and then find out it if it was the stepper driver.  Since a failed stepper driver is not unheard of and it seems like you were able to plug other steppers in the same place on the board and they worked, I think you've found the problem.  Just like a car, you'd hate to start throwing money and effort into solving a problem if it isn't the cause.  I know Elmoret is pretty good at diagnosing the board related issues since he has worked with the schematics quite a bit, but my suggestion would be a new driver.  Maybe he will chime in before you order a new one.

]]> Thu, 07 Feb 2013 14:19:01 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/12141/#p12141 <![CDATA[Re: Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/12139/#p12139 clarification:

Things that have been done:

1.  changed the Extruder and Z axis cables
2.  changed the extruder and Y axis stepper control chip

seems to stay siezed up both ways.

]]> Thu, 07 Feb 2013 13:30:39 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/12139/#p12139 <![CDATA[Re: Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/12081/#p12081 Swapped the motors or motor drivers?  Have you checked the voltages on the board?  On the SD site there is a good description on checking those.

]]> Wed, 06 Feb 2013 22:34:37 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/12081/#p12081 <![CDATA[Re: Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/12080/#p12080 update: 

at the request of the IT guys,  swapped the stepper motors (extruder and Y since the z chip didn't want to play)

caused both the extruder and the Y to sieze up...

swapped back, and the extruder didn't respond until I poked the motor (sill jammed) but Y's working fine again...

]]> Wed, 06 Feb 2013 22:15:28 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/12080/#p12080 <![CDATA[Re: Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/11965/#p11965 correction:

VIDEO
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5-mk_e28dA


Plugged in normally...

]]> Wed, 06 Feb 2013 00:17:49 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/11965/#p11965 <![CDATA[Re: Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/11963/#p11963 swapped.  tested... both the "not Z (extruder)" and Z responses did something...

got up to temp, told it to extrude,  the bed didn't make complaining noise...

told Z to move, the servo spun...

powered down,
swapped,

tried again,
problem returned

]]> Wed, 06 Feb 2013 00:09:01 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/11963/#p11963 <![CDATA[Re: Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/11961/#p11961 easy to test it on another port, just unplug the extruder's plug from the main board and also the 'Z' plug below it then plug the extruder plug onto the 'Z' place on the main board. Make syre you unplug power to the printer first! both line power and usb power.

]]> Wed, 06 Feb 2013 00:01:15 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/11961/#p11961 <![CDATA[Re: Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/11959/#p11959 video.


not even a degree. it's like the motor's jammed or something.  when there's no power to it i can rotate it with the pliers and don't feel resistance...

i have no idea how to test it on other ports... but I'll see if i can trace a wire...

ok,  swapped the Z and the unlabled plug...  ran a Z-shift, and the gear spun fine...  so I'm assuming the motor's OK.

]]> Tue, 05 Feb 2013 23:56:09 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/11959/#p11959 <![CDATA[Re: Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/11947/#p11947 Does twitching mean moving very quickly back and forth just a degree or two?  Any weird sounds without filament?  Check the set screw to make sure it is tight?  Check to make sure it is plugged in all the way on the board?  Will it run fine if you plug it into a different motor driver.  Will other motors behave the same way if plugged into that driver?  Any videos?

]]> Tue, 05 Feb 2013 22:41:20 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/11947/#p11947 <![CDATA[Extruder Motor Twitching, not Printing]]> https://www.soliforum.com/post/11932/#p11932 so, mid print, my extruder stopped extruding...

there's plastic in the head,

when i backed it off the print, it was still drooling (so no jam there)
but then when I tried to back out the filiment (a good 3m still to go not in the printer), the motor made noise like it was stripping the filiment....

it just twitches back and forth....

I relieved the pressure wheel and pulled the filament out to clear any possible jam there...
nothing...

checked around the motor's gear...

nothing...

what could be causing this motor seizure?

]]> Tue, 05 Feb 2013 21:18:43 +0000 https://www.soliforum.com/post/11932/#p11932