FELIXprinters Pro Series User manual

Troubleshooting guide
7 April 2020
Revision 7
FELIX Pro L/XL

Troubleshooting guide
December 10, 2019,
1
FELIX Pro series
www.FELIXprinters.com
Felix Pro L/XL
1Table of contents
2Z probe malfunctioning .............................................................................................................................................. 2
3Inner workings of the probe mechanism .................................................................................................................. 2
4Step by step troubleshooting: .................................................................................................................................... 4
4.1 Check if the machine is able to home again after heating both nozzles. ....................................................... 4
4.2 Use the latest and correct slicing settings. ....................................................................................................... 4
4.3 Detect which hot-end gives problems .............................................................................................................. 4
4.4 Dirt between contact points. ............................................................................................................................. 5
4.5 Check if hot-end disc is properly fastened. ...................................................................................................... 6
4.6 Make sure the hot-end cabling is properly guided. ......................................................................................... 6
4.7 Hot-end does not automatically move towards it’s contact points. ............................................................... 7
4.7.1 Excessive friction of hot-end with extruder body ........................................................................................ 7
4.7.2 After an upgrade the hot-end dimensions are not correct. ........................................................................ 7
4.7.3 Production error, with too tight tolerances in either extruder or hot-end ................................................ 7
4.7.4 Scratches or dents on magnets or on extruder disc.................................................................................... 7
4.7.5 Hot-end still not comes back. ........................................................................................................................ 7
4.8 Wire breakage/ loose contact............................................................................................................................ 8
5Bed calibration ........................................................................................................................................................ 10
6Cold pull method ...................................................................................................................................................... 15

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2Z probe malfunctioning
The FELIX Pro L/XL features automatic calibration. This calibration heavily relies on a properly functioning probe
switch, which is integrated in both hot-end.
Under normal circumstances this mechanism works properly. However, there are some cases where the probing
mechanism can be falsely triggered. In this how-to, we’ll explain the mechanism in a bit more detail and also show
you what to do when an error occurs.
3Inner workings of the probe mechanism
In short: The probe mechanism basically consists of a disc on top of the hot-end which is the switch. When the hot-
end touches the bed, this disc is moved and an electrical contact gets broken. This is registered as a “z sensor
triggered or calibration failed” event.
If you see any of these messages when the printer is homing or calibrating, it means that one or both of the switches
have broken the electrical contact you can easily detect this if the machine is not able to home again and will only
move the bed down a bit.
Overview of the hot-end:
Top contact disc
Ball bearing
Heater cartridge +
thermistor

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Overview of inner workings of probe mechanism:
The disc on top of the hot-end touches two magnets which have two functions.
-Correct positioning of the hot-end. The hot-end gets firmly pulled to a in a defined position
-Reliable electrical connection to enable probe function.
When touching the bed the hot-end including the disc moves upwards to the extruder housing. The disc moves
away from the bottom contact magnet and the printer-controller detects at that moment that the currently active
hot-end touches the bed.
The hot-end can physically move approx. 0.5mm up and down. But during normal operation that should be just 1
micrometer until it is detected by the printer controller.

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4Step by step troubleshooting:
The next chapters show step by step how to resolve the issue. Beginning with the most likely and simple solution
first.
4.1 Check if the machine is able to home again after heating both nozzles.
In some cases cooled down filament in the (not)-used extruder pulls the hot-ends slightly upwards, causing a
(sometimes constant) false trigger. To check if this is the case, heat both extruders to at least 180°C. Check if you
can home again once both extruders have reached their target temperature. On the touch screen you can type
in m119 into the console to check if a probe is stated high, this means it’s not making a good enough contact.
The latest firmware releases automatically heat the extruders to 185°C when performing probing actions,
Are the hot-ends fully pushed downwards against the contact points? During transport or after pulling out the
filament by hand sometimes the hot-ends can be detached from one of the magnetic contact points. You can
usually reset the probe by pushing some filament through by hand.
4.2 Use the latest and correct slicing settings.
Using sliced files not optimized for the FELIX Pro series can result in bad prints. To ensure proper probe action, in
the startup g-code we have implemented some commands which force the hot-ends on their contacts prior to the
start of a print job.
4.3 Detect which hot-end gives problems
If the message does not go away, please check next step.
Pull down both hot-ends (while
cold) and check if the machine
is able to home again

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4.4 Dirt between contact points.
Another cause for errors can be dust, corrosion or chips of plastic or metal that are stuck between vital electrical
contact areas of the print head. Also it is possible that debris can build up over time, especially when the printer is
placed in a dusty environment.
To correct this, the following can be attempted:
1. Remove the hot ends (see the manual for the procedure).
2. Clean the metal disc. Especially the faces that make contact with the magnets. Recommended to use
detergent like blue spirit, acetone, alcohol. After cleaning the disc should be free from dust, debris, metal
filing….
RECOMMENDED: Put non-electrically conducting teflon spray on the disc. This improves the probe working
and also improves the electrical contact for the long term.
3. In the print head itself there are also areas of attention:
Clean the indicated surfaces with a Q-tip with a small amount of detergent.
Clean these points,
from the black tarnish.
v
v

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4. Place back the hot-ends and see if the z-sensor triggered message is gone.
4.5 Check if hot-end disc is properly fastened.
Make sure the disc is firmly fastened to the hot-end body. Use a torx screwdriver to properly fix it.
Note: Also the bearing on the bottom should be properly fastened. This does not prevent z-sensor triggered
message, but ensures proper operation of the printer.
4.6 Make sure the hot-end cabling is properly guided.
Bad cable guiding could cause the following.
-Inaccurate leveling.
-Early triggering of the probe
What could happen is that during a home-x action the hot-end cable can touch the side of the frame causing a
sideways movement of the hot-end. This causes slight inaccuracy during homing.

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4.7 Hot-end does not automatically move towards it’s contact points.
In some cases the hot-end cannot move downwards. The causes including fix are:
4.7.1 Excessive friction of hot-end with extruder body
The body of neck of the hot-end touches the extruder assembly. You can see this if there are some markings on
the hot-end neck. Most likely the hot-end dimensions are out of spec.
4.7.2 After an upgrade the hot-end dimensions are not correct.
To compensate for production tolerances, shims are used between the disc and cooling ribs and between bearing
and cooling ribs.
4.7.3 Production error, with too tight tolerances in either extruder or hot-end
The hot-end must comply to these measurements. In order for proper operation.
4.7.4 Scratches or dents on magnets or on extruder disc.
In some cases there could be a dent/bulge on the hot-end disc and on the magnets causing excessive friction.
To fix this issue, please inspect the surfaces for damage and replace the elements.
4.7.5 Hot-end still not comes back.
If above steps don’t work, a little bit of grease on the magnet can provide a solution. It significantly lowers friction.
Put a very small amount of grease on the magnet indicated below to significantly lower friction. Do this with a q-
tip. Grease type: Thick grease (Ball bearing grease)

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4.8 Wire breakage/ loose contact
Check in indicated probe contact cables are properly seated in their sockets.
If cables are properly placed in their sockets, wiggle the cables to see if the message “z-sensor triggered” appears
or disappears.
Inspect the flat cables if there are no folds and if they are properly seated in their connectors.
Worst case (and not a very likely to happen) is that the cables are broken or mounted contacts are loose.

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Also check these probe wires if you see any breakage here then the probing wire needs to be replaced Please
contact our support department for further instructions.

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5Bed calibration
Getting the fatal: G32 leveling failed! - Printer stopped and heaters disabled due to this error. Fix error and restart
with M999 error? Follow this guide to fix it.
First print these (they come included with the machine) reference blocks they will be used to re-calibrate the bed.
Remove the side panels and place them in a safe location.

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Remove these panels as well they are held by 4 bolts.
Loosen these 2 screws and move it towards you to take the tension of the belt, then check if all pullies are fixed
correctly to the ballscrews and motor.

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Now place the calibration tools for the reference height (place these on all 3 points).
Now push the bed down on the reference blocks.

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Push it forward to tension the belt again and retighten it.
Make sure the belt is properly seated on each pully before continuing.

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Now turn the machine back on and go to the move menu.
Press the home all button, this will move the bed down a bit but because the reference blocks are still under it, it
will press it down making a clicking noise this is normal and intended. Now the bed is calibrated again, check the
bottom belt again and retighten if necessary. After this the printer should be good to go again if it still gives the
error contact us. If it works again reinstall the coverings and start printing again.

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6Cold pull method
Problem: One of the extruders is making a clicking noise or not pushing out the filament?
Cause: It’s most likely clogged or partially clogged. Follow this guide to use the cold pull method to fix the
extruder or just to clean it., This is also recommended when switching materials.
Setting the temperature
First we need to set the temperature of the extruder to the of the material that’s currently in it, for this example
we are going to use PLA temps or 195°C (383°F) in this case, for PETG and ABS you might want to go a little higher
like 220°C (428°F).
Navigate to the change filament menu.
Set the temperature to the material that’s in the head, so 195°C (383°F) for PLA in this case, also select the
extruder that has the jam.

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Press the start button.
Filament coming out but with some sputtering or you can hear the motor click? Then it’s a good idea to do the
method described below.

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No filament coming out or just a little bit? Try forcing it through by hand and see if anything comes out of it, if that
doesn’t help try this method anyhow if you still can’t get some material through you might have to change the
nozzle.
Set the extruder temp to 90°C (194°F) and the fan to 100%, you can do this in the printer status menu.
After that navigate to the move menu and turn off the motors so you can freely move the head around and
to make sure the extruder isn’t engaged anymore.

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Move the head to the middle of the bed manually so you can reach it better, also take of the top cover.
After that grab the filament with one hand and press in the spring with the other, now pull out the filament
with one swift motion.
Now the filament is out inspect the tip and see if there is any dirt or black particles on it.

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Repeat this process until the filament comes out cleanly, after this the machine should be able to extrude
properly again, this method is also useful when switching materials.
If you are unable to continue or have any questions, you can check at the support section of our website or you can
contact us directly:
Website: www.felixprinters.com/support
Email: [e-mail]
Telephone: [phone]
Address: Zeemanlaan 15, 3401MV IJsselstein, The Netherlands
Kind regards,
FELIXprinters