The horror... the horror....

Excellent catch Mark. The answer is, it's the cooling fan mounted directly to the heat sink on the print head -- called the 'active cooling fan' I suppose because it's on at all times. The same issue MUST have existed with the E3D print head's active cooling, but the nozzle wouldn't jam up over it. I think this is because the E3D's sheer SIZE made it more forgiving of the fan cutting in and out at intervals of less than a second or two. The heat sink on the print head is easily half again as large as the R1's all metal head. And that was the reason I never caught it before.

That's my theory, anyway.

 

WE

Well as I said Mark, I've already fixed it. The print is at 43% and is perhaps the cleanest looking print I've had come off the printer.

Something that may surprise you is that I don't ascribe this issue to Robo3D's quality control. When I was in my twenties and early thirties, I made a living building MDFs and IDFs in the phone closets of large office buildings. A few times in my career I found entire rolls of jumper wire were bad. This was due to the metal having many microscopic cracks in it, which in turn was a result of the roll having been spooled on to the spool when the copper was too cold -- a calibration issue at the plant. This is a rare occurrence, but it happens nonetheless in the wire and cable industry. This might well have been what happened here, as I saw no kinking or smashed sections of the wire. I think they just got a bad roll. Still, I'll take your advice and alert them in case anyone else runs across the same problem.

This issue has been the exception that proves the rule -- When you hear hoofbeats, look for horses before you look for zebras. lol

 

Just thought I would chime in here as another new(ish) Robo3D user.
It definitely took a lot more work than I thought it would to get to where I am at now, but thanks to some very helpful people (Mike, Mark, Jeff and a few others) I am getting fast to the point where I am getting consistently good prints; but I tell ya, if I didn't have a load of patience and I hadn't done enough research to know I would be doing some work, I would have flipped. I really do feel for those poor souls who buy into the "set it and forget it" shtick, but as has been said so many times before: a little research goes a long way.
@Island Bill, glad you figured out your issue and happy to hear it may not be a QC problem that got you in the muck, but I have to say it: Quality Control and support at this company are terrible lol. Unless you shoot an email to the exact right address and give a mention on the forums and facebook page as well, you aren't likely to be heard. So in that respect it is a little bit like going to the doctor: You have to show that you are pro-active in your efforts to get things fixed up, otherwise they will be happy to lead you along your way with a pat and a smile, and they are happy to send you away with scissors still in your stomach; if you are lucky to get that much.
I had bearings coming out of their housing, mismatched springs, shoddy wiring, a bed that won't heat up past 85° and numerous other issues that I never really expected (well, I expected some of them lol); but after tinkering about like the other fellows said (which has and continues to be an excellent learning experience; if not something that takes up a lot of time lol) I am to the point where I am really quite happy with the purchase.
For the most part now, I can set something up, check the first layer (I nearly always have to adjust one rod up or down manually to get things just right) and then let it print away.

 

And the funny thing is, I'm not a doctor!

HA!

 

I'm an engineer spelling is my weakest suite lol

 

But I'll bet you stayed at a Holiday Inn last night.

CleanO2 Carbon Capture Tech

 

Update: The fkn thing clogged at 85% for no reason that I can fathom. The material just jammed up in the print head, and the printer went merrily along in thin air. No feed problems. No fan problems. Nothing obvious. It just fkn jammed. I'm about ready to take a shotgun to the god()*&()Umned thing.

 

CleanO2 Carbon Capture Tech

 

LOL

 

I agree with Mark. I use this one.
http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:422671

I use olive oil. Works like a charm.

CleanO2 Carbon Capture Tech

 

Thanks guys, I appreciate the tip. I did find another bad spot in the wire this morning, and I'll be replacing the entire run today. I will also look into the oiler concept. NOTE: I am printing almost exclusively with carbon fiber reinforced PLA from Proto Pasta. Any input as to how the oiler might affect that material differently?
Again, thanks.

 

Ok then, thanks. Since I'm already using the shell of a cheap ball point pen as a sort of guide for the material, I'll stuff some cotton in that. Would mineral oil be a decent choice? I'm already using that to lubricate gears I printed with Talman Bridge....

 

The smaller the oiler, the more frequently you'll need to add oil.

CleanO2 Carbon Capture Tech

 

Don't user mineral oil. You need something high temp. Avacado oil works great, as does canola. I've heard people use 3in1 oil to decent success.