Severed Heater Cartridge wire  

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

Replace the heater cartridge is the easiest way.  Given where its sheared I think its the only way.

If it was further away you could crimp the 2 wires together and insulate with a suitable high temp insulator but right next to it there you dont have anything to work with.  

My advice would be to buy an extra spare cartridge and also a spare thermistor too while you are at it.

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

I would strongly recommend you replace and not attempt a repair.  

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

Alright thank you guys very much

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

Glad to help.    I keep one heater and two thermistors on hand as all times.

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

I recently bought a Z-catch nozzle removal tool ( https://z-catch.com/product/nozzle-removal-tool-with-socket-set/). Totally loving it. It grabs the heater block on front and back, not on the sides, so no interference with the thermistor and heater cables. No need to remove the fan shroud. Works equally well with the Prusa Mini. I change nozzles a lot, and this makes it a lot easier and safer.

It's also available from Amazon, PrintedSolid, etc.

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

Posted by: @fuchsr

I recently bought a Z-catch nozzle removal tool ( https://z-catch.com/product/nozzle-removal-tool-with-socket-set/). Totally loving it. It grabs the heater block on front and back, not on the sides, so no interference with the thermistor and heater cables. No need to remove the fan shroud. Works equally well with the Prusa Mini. I change nozzles a lot, and this makes it a lot easier and safer.

It's also available from Amazon, PrintedSolid, etc.

 

 

I am doing a review on my site and absolutely agree - great tool.  

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

Posted by: @fuchsr

I recently bought a Z-catch nozzle removal tool ( https://z-catch.com/product/nozzle-removal-tool-with-socket-set/). Totally loving it. It grabs the heater block on front and back, not on the sides, so no interference with the thermistor and heater cables. No need to remove the fan shroud. Works equally well with the Prusa Mini. I change nozzles a lot, and this makes it a lot easier and safer.

It's also available from Amazon, PrintedSolid, etc.

 

 

That looks very handy, I change nozzles often also, I'm going to look into that.

Thanks for the tip.

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

@swiss_cheese

You can't go wrong with this one.  

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

Interesting. Judging from this video (63) Z-catch Nozzle Removal Tool - YouTube  (see e.g. at 14 seconds in) I would say the tool does not even come close of firmly holding the heater block.... Given that the block needs to be turned prior and after nozzle change, I don´t see that this can be done with this tool, which is not really cheap. Nothing that can´t be done with a decent standard wrench.....?

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

Except for the fact that turning the heater block is not actually required and is NOT part of the disassembly instructions from E3d the makers of the hotend.  I suspect that Prusa's instruction to rotate it actually cause issues sometimes.  One there is the potential flex and strain on the wires, not a good thing as they are not that robust. 
Its also possible to rotate the heatbreak  connecting the heater block and cooling fins.  Over multiple nozzle changes that could cause the heatbreak to move up or down in the threads which would alter the mating position between the nozzle and heatbreak.  It moves up and you get less gap between the nozzle and heatblock.  It moves down and you get more.  Enough movement up and you eventually have no gap and dont get a seal between nozzle and heatbreak.

Hang around the forums long enough and look at enough pictures of peoples hotends when they are having trouble and you see all sorts of mis-aligned heatbreaks.  Some screwed in very far others not.  I'd be very surprised if they left the prusa factory like that so you have to wonder how they got so bad.

I'm not advocating for the tool by any means as I normally just use an adjustable wrench myself, more pointing out that the rotating part is not desirable or required anyway.

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

@neophyl

Thanks; always new stuff to learn.... I for one have never had an issue with turning the block - as I went with Prusa´s instructions when I took up printing some years ago - and continue to do so to this day. However I have been always been aware of the tiny cables and been careful not to rip them off. The turning of the block makes technical sense to me; I can´t find the video again where there is a nice demonstration of the perfect connection of the top of the nozzle thread with the assembly above. 

I´ll give it a try, though, to exchange the nozzle without turning the block (I´ll look up E3D´s instructions first to make sure I do it their way); however without turning the block I don´t even see any use to spend thirty-some bucks on a tool which does apparently not grip the block as good as my cheapest flat-faced wrench. I have no problem removing and replacing the hot nozzle with a regular socket in my hand, which allows me to have a good view of the surfaces to ensure no dirt is stuck in between - another issue one may encounter with the tool.

Cheers

Chris

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

@justme3d

Of course, you're right, an adjustable wrench does the job just fine. In that sense, this is obviously a luxury item. But on the other hand, $38 or so in the grand scheme of 3D things is not a huge amount of money, and if it saves me from accidentally breaking and having to replace thermistor or heater cables (and most importantly, repacking that frigging textile sleeve...) it is worth the money, at least in my book. I change nozzles across my printers almost daily, so the chance of mishaps is not zero. This greatly reduces it. But again, it's not a necessity (which puts it squarely in the same category as most other upgrades we do to our printers...).

As far as grip is concerned. I didn't actually watch the video but in my hands, I haven't seen any issues. Like a wrench you have to make sure it's fitted properly but then it won't slip. And as @neophyl pointed out, rotating the heater block is not part of the E3D nozzle change instructions, I have never done it, and have not experienced any issues. But in any case, I don't see why you couldn't rotate the heater block with the tool on.

Looking forward to reading @cwbullet's review.

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

I agree on the tool.  Before changing nozzle I customarily do a cold pull to remove as much plastic from the hotend as I can.  Then I normally just remove the part fan which is 2 screws on my setup but very easy to do then take a wrench and hold the heatblock on the right opposite the wires.  Then undo with the socket on the nozzle while heated (to make sure any old filament isnt acting like glue).  The nozzle just unscrews right out without trouble.  

Fitting a new one is then easy and once in I just kick the temp up to 285 and do the final tighten.  As I'm a little paranoid I then drop to printing temp and feed in filament by hand to make sure it is properly sealed and none leaks.  Its my main use for end of rolls 🙂  I can easily feed several metres through just to check.  Once I'm happy I did it right then fan shroud goes back on and its time to double check the live z after the nozzle change.

Usually I'm switching between a e3d 0.4mm nozzle x (my normal) and an e3d 0.6mm brass nozzle and as the e3d nozzles are so consistently machined I haven't had to adjust my live z at all between nozzle changes recently.  I find with even decent other brand nozzles I would have to adjust slightly which is why I now only use real e3d nozzles.  I still do the live z check though.  I may have mentioned I'm a little obsessive when it comes to my printers and it doesn't take that much time once you are used to doing it lol. 

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

@fuchsr

$38 is worth cost of not shorting or breaking heat cartridge wires.  

RE: Severed Heater Cartridge wire

... and dexterity is priceless 🙂