Mini+ Clicking but good prints  

RE: Don't know if it's normal

I don't know if it's normal but mine did this since almost day one (I've been printing for about 8 months now). What you're hearing is the extruder gears clicking each time there is a retraction (there is a small amount of slack in the extruder). Just pinch the filament as it slowly enters the extruder (or open the extruder inspection door to look at the gears) and you'll see.

A few months ago I performed a more thorough cleanup of my printer and disassembled the extruder like this. While putting it back together, I made sure to push the gears together a bit and try to fit it all better while reassembling it, pretty much like in this video. It reduced the noise slightly but it never fully went away. Prusa support also recommended I lubricate the extruder gears a bit (be careful not to put grease on the notches that grab the filament!) That helped but only for a short while; the lubricant was quite quickly pushed out to the sides and it started making that noise again.

At one point I just stopped worrying about it as the noise is minimal and I'm pretty sure it won't cause premature wear, after understanding the cause.

However if someone has a magical solution to get rid of the sound completely I'd love to know about it of course! 🙂

Edit: If the printer stops printing it's not the same issue though. I assume you're talking about a clog, in which case filament clogs in the hotend, stops coming out, and the extruder starts clicking not because of retraction, but because the filament-grabbing gears "skip" and grind the filament in the extruder. That's another issue entirely, and the clicking noise is much louder when it happens. When I encountered clogs / extruder clicking like this, boosting temps a bit solved the issue.

Some more info

BTW I'm pretty sure you're having both issues as I'm pretty sure what I hear in your video is what I explained above. So most of the time you only hear the "normal" extruder clicking on retraction, but sometimes there is a clog and the clicks you hear are the gears skipping and grinding the filament, trying to push it in a clogged hotend.

RE: Extruder is clicking

That sounds like the extruder is clicking (grinding on the filament). I would not call the clicking normal. When my extruder was clicking I found the issue was the PTFE tube in the hot end needed to be replaced. Overtime I just started having more issues with the extruder and eventually I just replaced it with the Bondtech version, which is wonderful.

Two separate issues

I'm pretty sure what we can hear in the OP's video is issue #1 (extruder gear slack causing small clicking noise on retraction), like this:

... rather than the other (much louder) clicking/grinding issue that occurs when the nozzle is partially or fully clogged. I somehow can't find a video of that one, but it's clearly a more pronounced sound. Rather than clicking on retraction, it clicks at regular intervals while continuously trying (and eventually failing) to push filament in. It's hard to mistake one for the other once you've heard both.

One way to know for sure would be to look at the extruder gear while it's making the sound. I bet it'll do one click each time the gear goes in reverse.

Almost the same

I have aaaaalmost the same "click" as OP, but more like a "clack". Still prints nicely.

Sounds to me as when the Z-axis lifts to move, it clacks down again when it starts printing again.

Lifting and retraction happens at the same time, so might be related?

Bondtech drivers

Can you suggest a bondtech solution for my mini.  Its sounds, from your post that , like you have solved the clicking sounds and clogging issues that you were encountering.  THANKS FOR ANY INPUT!

Normal Behaviour? Clicking?

I'm the same as the original poster. I have to follow a weird process to get my mini+ ready to print without clicking. 

I have to do the following or I have Clicking/Clogs...

From Cold start with Filament (PLA) installed. 

• Turn the printer on and preheat to PLA, then wait
• Set Temp of Nozzle to 250/260 C, wait for ooze
• Purge, Purge, purge till I get a flow
• Print like a happy maker for however long I want until my printer cools and I go to sleep
• restart the process again from COLD start

If I don't do this Preheat and Purge from a cold start, I'm guaranteed Clicking and no filament flow or worse. 

I've checked the head, heatblock, switched PTFE, set temps to be +5 or +10 degrees in my slicing and more but this doesn't do anything.. except for the above process.Maybe I'm just jaded by my MK3 and ON, START/PRINT functionality.. 

Is this just me? Can anyone offer advice for a new MINI+ user? 

Thanks!