It seems I have a chronic problem with clogged nozzles producing under-extrusion. I can’t seem to ever clear them properly so I just buy new ones. It happens on a semi-regular basis, maybe every 12 months or so, and I tend to get several ruined prints before I break down and take my printer out of service to fix it.
I am starting to suspect I am getting dust or spider webs or something on the filament and it is accumulating in the nozzle over time.
Does anyone else have experience with this? I have heard of people putting little “cleaners” that try to catch most of the dirt from the filament as it goes into the extruder, which I am going to be trying.
I think i get clogs from burnt plastic. I usually print with black PLA and have no issues. It seems to me that lighter colors don’t need as much heat, but i forget to turn the temp back and eventually end up with clogs.
I just switched to an all metal hot end. Hoping this helps my issues. At 1 nozzle per year, i’d be tickled pink. Lol
I hate it. Especially because it kind of looks like other problems. Maybe Ryan has some great advice. At the rate he prints, he must get them all the time.
I’ve used the cleaners they work really good… get the flexible ones that look like piano wire not the rigid drill bit ones… and get it slightly undersized for the nozzle you are cleaning… clean it hot. Also get in the habit of doing a ‘cold pull’ with some nylon filament once in awhile to clean things out inside.
Edit… just realized you meant the filament cleaners that people put oil on to remove dust… in my experience they cause problems (oily filament) and don’t really solve any.
That said the biggest difference for me was going to a direct drive extruder and also switching to actual e3d nozzles… they are smoother inside and harder to clog. It’s pretty rare to get a clog these days.
Here’s what those cleaners look like they are great:
This long needles are called acupuncture needless. They work out ok. I have them but rarely use them.
When I start getting a nozzle clog I first do the cold pull method. It works extremely well. If that doesn’t work I turn up the heat and ram it through with a thin piece of metal. Use use the metal flag pole from those little flags they use to mark sprinklers in a lawn. If the nozzle is too badly clogged then I remove the nozzle and hold it with needle nose pliers And burn it with fire!!! Then use the metal rod I mentioned before. To push the jam out. I have only thrown away one nozzle in the last few years.
Thanks for the tips, I have genuine E3D nozzles. I tried a cold pull a couple times with PLA but not with nylon. I will have to try nylon next time. I also tried heating the nozzle itself super hot on the stove and pushing filament through and pulling back out. I tried to clear the nozzle with a needle and I could visually see the nozzle was clear, but back on the printer it clogged back up right away. I guess there is a chunk (or now maybe several) that fall back down and clog the hole.
I found cheap replacements, 30 for $10 like Blaine said, so for now I’m back in business. From what y’all described I was probably close and just needed a few good cold pulls with Nylon to pull out the chunks after they were loosened up.
Next time I will try a proper wire needle and cold pull. I still might try a little wiper (but no oil, yuck) to maybe reduce the dust a bit. Seems like it shouldn’t hurt.
With those cleaners I just raise the Z up and heat up the hot end and jam a .35 cleaner up into the nozzle, rotate it around a bit and then extrude a bunch of filament… repeat until I get a nice flow… I hate the whole nozzle changing exercise. For the cold pull someone made a nice gcode script that does the whole thing automatically and beeps when it’s the perfect time to yank. I’ll have to see if I can find it. Good luck!
