Unresolved I have no idea how to go about removing the nozzle, can anyone give me a step by step?

I'm trying to remove the nozzle because I think it's clogged, but the Robo is my first 3D printer and I have no idea how to do this. I watched a few videos and so far what I've done is unscrewed the fan from its mount and slid the black plastic thing (sorry, don't know what it's called) that was sitting just above/on the nozzle so that it's now off/kinda behind the nozzle. I honestly don't know where to go from here, I did try to unscrew the nozzle but it honestly seems impossible, and I learnt just now that you're supposed to heat up the nozzle before you try to unscrew it but I don't know if I can even do that with the black plastic removed (MC isn't telling me it's heating it up at all). Have I irreparably screwed up somewhere? I also just tried putting the allen key into that little hole you see on the front of the heatsink (terminology?) once you remove the black plastic that's covering it, and then turning the allen key anticlockwise as far as I could. Any help would be really appreciated.

 

There are two screws holding the hot end in place.



The attachment works by the screws thread into the heatsink's J-head slot itself. This physically deforms the metal but provides a secure connection. Try not to take it out too many times or else it can cause it to become loose.

There's also a couple wire connectors you can unclip:

 

Cheers Mike, you're a saviour as always. I'll give it a go in the morning (it's 3:40am here, should probably get to bed) and let you know how it goes.

 

I just had to do that, with Mike's guidance. Thanks again Mike!

It's not as bad as it looks. On my machine those screws are hex capscrews, but the same location. Once they are out, the part will gently slide out. The screws are long and fine thread, so "are we there yet?" comes to mind a few times as you're going.
Drive the Z axis up a few inches so you'll have room to remove the extruder. I removed the top cover and ran mine to the top for easy access. If you take off the top, it's the four obvious screws, plus cut the cable tie holding up the head cable.

Tip: Put something on the bed to protect it in case you drop something. A towel works nicely.

 

If you are doing the swap, swing by ace hardware and swap them out for Socket Head Cap Screws, the Philips will darn near strip on you going back in.

 

Bit of an update in case anyone's still watching this thread: I've removed the heatsink/nozzle combo from the printer and then unscrewed the hot end (terminology?) from the heat sink and the nozzle from the hot end, but somewhere in all this a random wire came loose (pic 1) from somewhere and I'm not sure where (it's one of the three wires I had to unplug, the one in the fan that blows on the plastic and the one in the hotend are still there so it must be the other one I reckon, just not sure where that one comes from). Then, assuming I get everything cleaned (and the wire reattached wherever it needs to go), when I put everything back, how do I know which wires plug into which plugs? I forgot to take a photo beforehand. Also, as you can see in the 2nd pic, the hotend is really dirty and I was wondering if this was normal. Lastly, there look to be teeth marks from gears on the heat sink (pic 3), I was also wondering if this is normal. Thanks in advance, you guys are great.

Edit: Also, when I screw the nozzle back in should I screw it in as far as I can and then do it further when it's plugged back in and heated up?

 

Cheers Mark. Do you by any chance know how I'd go about reattaching the thermistor? Also, since you seem to be a bit of a wiring whizz, do you know how I can know which wires (from the three I unplugged as Mike said) need to be plugged into which connectors? Could I maybe just try turning the print fan on manually in mattercontrol and use that to see which of the three connectors the print fan gets plugged into? The thing is, I'm not sure then where the hotend heater core and the hotend thermistor go or how to tell if I've plugged them into the right connectors.

Matt, I've been considering just straight up getting a E3D V6 because I've heard a lot that it's a recommended upgrade. I was just wondering, wouldn't a larger nozzle reduce print quality somewhat, or isn't it really noticeable. Also, when I'm screwing the nozzle in does it need to end up aligned in any specific way, and can I leave the flexible black plastic piece (still not sure what it's called haha) off while the hotend while I screw the nozzle in?

Lastly, as I said in my first post, I stuck the small allen key too into the little hole on the front of the heat sink and turned it anticlockwise for a bit in a naive attempt to take the nozzle off. Have I done anything wrong here or do I need to do something to undo this? Doing the same thing clockwise doesn't feel like it's doing anything.

Thanks a ton both of you and everyone else for your help, I really appreciate it. You've both been fantastic and hopefully I can start being on the other end of troubleshooting threads soon!

 

If anyone's still here, I've got another update: I've figured out pretty much everything that's going on, nozzle's back on etc. but I have just one last question: I tried to extrude and the part that's in the picture I've attached has fallen out (if you can't see it for some reason, it's the hotend I believe). Does anyone know how I'd go about securely reattaching this to the heatsink? I put the tube into the hole in the heatsink as far as I could (this was before it fell out), but it just didn't seem secure and I don't think you can push any further because of the knob on the tube. It also doesn't appear to screw in, as I can't see a thread on the tube. Cheers once again, you guys are all great!

 

Seems like there is a setscrew that's missing or loose. I 've never taken that apart, but something has to hold that inside the heatsink.
Are there threads on the tube that would screw into the heatsink?

 

There is a tiny hex set screw on one of the faces of the heat sink. Use the tiny hex wrench (mine was wrapped up inside tape) to tighten that screw when it's in position.

If your heat sink isn't positioned so that the set screw hole is facing forward, remove the screws holding the heat sink and rotate it. It might be easier to pull the whole hot end out to get it all back together right. Make sure the flat edge with the set screw is facing forward.

 

Well, I'm a doofus, I appear to have lost that tiny little screw. Any idea as to where I can get a replacement? I've tried a few watchmakers, one optometrist and a jeweller, and I'll be trying another optometrist tomorrow. I've also heard hobby shops might be good. Otherwise I'm kinda tempted to go the E3D v6 route, I do have a bit of spare money and I figured it'd probably need some upgrades, also it's way easier to find nozzles and things for it than for the hex. It's not too tough to install, is it?

 

I don't know the size of the screw, but McMaster and Amazon Supply would be good bets to carry the part and deliver in a timely fashion.