What happens when you set to 210C? At 220C, what was the output rate in inches per minute?

If you'd like, we can exchange the motor/PID/thermocouple. Shoot an email to filastruder@gmail.com if you decide you want to do that.

When I set it to 210 the motor barely rotates any more. At just under 220, the motor spins at about 1RPM inconsistently, which translates to about 7.5in/min extruded, however the filament is  barely 1mm and is lumpy due to the varied extrusion speeds. It is possible that the PID is correct, and the motor is dying and unable to extrude at correct temperatures. Keep in mind that I extruded several meters of good filament before the motor simply started to give out.

I would be very happy to replace this motor. I'll send an email.

I'd like to mention an observation that my dad made while he was watching the extruder run. Apparently the motor fluctuates in speed even when the barrel is empty. I had let the filament run out to see what sorts of speeds it would spin at without too much friction, but even then the motor sped up and slowed down, albeit never stopping, but there is definitely something wrong. That shouldn't happen, right?

That's normal, it means there's a blob of plastic left in the barrel that acts as intermittent drag on the motor, but isn't big enough to be pushed out.

What happens when you set to 210C? At 220C, what was the output rate in inches per minute?

If you'd like, we can exchange the motor/PID/thermocouple. Shoot an email to filastruder@gmail.com if you decide you want to do that.

Yeah, there's definitely issues with either your PID controller or your thermocouple. Just as a double check - you have the polarity correct on the thermocouple, right?

Yes, very yes. I tried flipping it around and checked the schematic just to be sure. It is most certainly in the proper orientation. Many errors when it isn't.

Well, when I set it to those values, the PID reportedly gets there, but at that point the motor decides it doesn't want to run and slows down to a halt.

I'd like to mention an observation that my dad made while he was watching the extruder run. Apparently the motor fluctuates in speed even when the barrel is empty. I had let the filament run out to see what sorts of speeds it would spin at without too much friction, but even then the motor sped up and slowed down, albeit never stopping, but there is definitely something wrong. That shouldn't happen, right?

What happens when you set it to 200C? 205? It sounds like you're reading around 20C high.

You can set the PID controller to 250C. The heater isnt powerful enough to go much over 210C as long as the fan's on.

Well, I set the PID to 220C and it reportedly got there... Which apparently shouldn't happen, so I don't know what to do. However, as the temperature rose the motor started to spin up, and soon it was running full speed.

What I'm having a problem with is finding a point where the motor spins and the filament is satisfactory. At "220"C the filament is a measly 1.3mm in diameter. Just minor changes in temperature, such as those normally occurring as the nozzle cools/is heated in a cycle, change the speed at which the motor rotates.

Also, I've measured the voltage across the motor and its a steady 12.2V, so the power supply is not a problem.

You can set the PID controller to 250C. The heater isnt powerful enough to go much over 210C as long as the fan's on.

Let me know how you get on with a fan on the motor. If need be, we can do an exchange.

Edit: scratch that, it gets way too hot to touch. After leaving it to cool for a while, it works fine again. I'm not running it in a warm environment, its about 72F in my house. Bad motor?

Try 200C and a fan pointing at the motor. Could be a bum motor, though it'd be the first so far.

The output of the gearmotor should spin around 1.5RPM.

Get it up to 190C, wait 15 minutes, and try powering the motor up. Do you have a way of checking the temperature independently? A thermocouple or thermistor based probe?

You should have checked that the auger spun freely inside the barrel before finishing assembly. If you did this, then neither the auger or barrel are bent.

Spinning backwards when powered down is normal, the whole frame is storing torque.

What ABS are you extruding?

It did. I made sure of it. Im extruing the sacrificial plastic that came with my filastruder. Is it usual for the whole thing to twist or the motor to spin quite slowly? You can see the twisting in my video.

Spinning backwards when powered down is normal, the whole frame is storing torque.

What ABS are you extruding?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6BaqBy1CjQ

EDIT: Right now it's low quality because I just uploaded it. Better qualities will become available with time.