I’ve been trying to fix a problem for a couple weeks now through Creality’s tech support, and they have been unable to help get the problem solved. Their last suggestion to me was to try and have me change out the hotend a third time, and try higher temperatures again.
What has been happening is that it will print the first layer fine, for the first object, but usually when it moves to print the second object, it stops putting out filament. Sometimes it will get the entire first layer for all objects, but when it starts the second layer, it stops extruding. I then get the error saying that it is printing without extruding. This happens every time.
Here’s a list of things I’ve done already:
Tried different filament PLAx5, ABSx1
Ran filament through external drier
Checked and changed out front cover x 3
Changed out complete extruder, including front cover x 1
Changed out hotend x 2
Changed out nozzles x 5
Replaced 5 way
Checked all PTFE tubing
Bypassed CFS by using side spool holder
Bypassed all old PTFE tubing by using custom top spool mount and 4 inch piece of PTFE tube.
Checked 10 and 20 degrees higher and lower settings on heat.
Multiple PID tune, and full calibration every time something has changed.
At this point, I’m at a loss. I’m going to change out the strain gauge and see if that’s the issue, but I think that’s a long shot.
I’ve had this problem especially with PETG and have also tried most of the things on your list.
Usually the reason its no printing is a slightly squashed up filament lump that causes a jam at the knurled extruder driver. I cut this blockage out and then tried again multiple times with mixed success. Sometimes just trying another roll of filament seemed to solve the problem.
The most success I have had at solving this problem is by increasing the Z Offset from negative (-0,05) to positive (+0.10) but even then it still does this on the very odd occasion.
I’ve been mostly using PLA. I’ve tried ABS once and had the same issue. Also, I’m not just having the problem on occasion, it’s constant. When it started, I was able to get the occasional print to work, but I’ve not had a successful print for over I would say thirty or more prints.
I will see if messing with the z offset does anything though.
A “squashed filament jam” in the extruder (right before the nozzle) could be one (or more) of these:
Nozzle too close to the bed (filament is physically restricted)
Slightly-clogged nozzle (restricted flow) or attempting to print too fast for that filament (exceeding volumetric flow limits, emulating a restriction)
Extruder motor overheating, which heats the pinch rollers, which makes incoming filament soft, which causes it to squash and jam (note the extruder is always at 100% power, until the “motors off” button is pressed - takes many hours to cool)
Dried out heatsink grease on the nozzle’s upper copper area (inadequate heatsinking - feed end of nozzle getting too hot) Also bad if the heatsink grease bridges the gap between the (larger) hot and (smaller) cold sections.
Just had a talk with a work mate, and he says that small objects seem to print fine, while larger ones do not - he’s assuming the Z-hop is frequent enough in small prints to unload some of that mysterious pressure and avoid issues. It is all so convoluted.
The nozzle thing shouldn’t be it, since I’ve gone through 5 nozzles in this process, of various sizes. They get clogged to the point that I have to take them out, heat them up, insert new filament, and then let it cool down to do a cold pull, sometimes multiple times. This seems to be happening because if I don’t catch it trying to print without extruding, it keeps trying to shove filament in the nozzle, and it bunches up before the hotend, and can’t be pushed through. I have made sure there is thermal grease on the nozzle, thinking it could be heat creep.
That extruder motor overheating might be a thing. I’m not exactly sure how to testl if that’s the problem without changing it out?
I will look at that as a possible problem though. Thanks.
I figured this out. I had pinched the wire to the cutter sensor between the extruder and the extruder motor. Apparently that was enough to throw off the geometry of the filament path.