Extruder Stepper Issue

[thingismith]

After running a calibration test a few times, I found that my test prints afterward were getting little to no filament extruded, and my extrusion seemed less than normal. After a few more diagnostic tests, I found my stepper motor not working at all. Thinking it was faulty, I switched it out with a spare motor, but the new one didn't work at all either.

I am using Mattercontrol's Control Panel, and the rest of the controls do work (except retraction oc). How can I troubleshoot the problem from here? How do I diagnose the output from the Rambo? (My electronics knowledge is somewhat limited)

[Dale Eason]

First try it with no filament in it. If it turns then it is probable that the is a blockage in the hot end. Also remember that it will not turn the extruder until there is a minimum temperature reached by the hot end.

If it does not turn try swaping its cable with one of the other stepper motors to see if it can be driven by the x y or z motor. If so then the is a problem with the rambo or its connector for the extruder. If it still does not turn then there is a problem at the motor or its cable.

Dale

[thingismith]

Thank you Dale, very helpful. After a lot of trial and error, it looks like the Rambos the problem...plugging the stepper into the z controller got it to work. I couldn't get it to work on the second extruder controller, but that could be because I don't have it set up properly...I couldnt see it on eeprom at all. Strange though, I dont see any burns or melts on the board, and I didnt do anything that would hurt the connector.

I remember reading how physically forcing a stepper to turn too fast would cause it to break the motor. Would doing this have an adverse affect on the rambo as well? I may have pulled the filament out too fast without releasing the tensioner while I was changing nozzles.

I guess I'll have to get another one, maybe upgrade, or try and figure out how to get it to run on the second extruder. Recommendations?

Edit* Can someone point me to instructions on setting up the E1 (second extruder)?

[Dionysus480]

I'm always very careful about how fast I turn the motors manually since it is my understanding that the induced voltage could damage the stepper motor driver. That goes for how fast I move the tower carriages as well as ensure I do not "zip" the filament out. I've never actually taken my multimeter to the problem to how much was actually induced. I'd think there would be a way to do something with a flyback diode or fuse to protect the circuitry, but I'm just careful and have never worked that out.

[thingismith]

It could have happened because I switched in a smaller stepper motor for my extruder, I can see how it could be more sensitive.

I should say that I had added the # of extruders in Mattercontrols settings...but is there anything else I should do to set up the second extruder controller?

I am planning on upgrading to the duet using mhackneys instructions, but I'm anxious to start printing asap!