Extruder gearbox pinion

[glx51mm]

I have been using my M2 quite a lot so as a result one more pinion (second one) in the extruder gearbox has almost reached its end of life. This however is quite annoying. The planets are perfectly fine and only the pinion gear gets severely worn (as already reported). The fact that there is no way to buy the pinion gear only, adds a considerable cost to the M2 maintenance. I do not want to build a collection of lightly used stepper motors just because of a pinion gear. Either Kysan must improve the gear of they should sell us some pinions. I know the pinion is not going to come out easy and the new one must be installed by press fitting it but still I would like to have that option. Any other solution that I might not be aware of ??

[jimc]

i had one go on me real quick when i got my m2. so quick in fact that it must have been a complete flaw in the gear. once i got my replacement i took the gearbox apart and loaded it with alot of high quality grease. i have checked recently and there is basically no wear after months and months.

[glx51mm]

Same I did with my second motor, put lots of the best grease I could find. The second motor came with a different color pinion gear (black). Since the planet gears still show no wear I am assuming that there must be something wrong with the pinions. The first one was model 1040222 while the second one has no sticker on it. Is there any numbering on your stepper ?

[rpollack]

We are working on this with the supplier. The spur gear is epoxied on and will fall off at 450C. I'll see if we can just get some of the gears.

Rick

[glx51mm]

Thank you very much Rick! I really hope they will be able to offer some spares. I know it might not be the most easy thing to do replacing this gear but I (and probably many other customers as well) would appreciate a lot having that option instead of buying a new set. I am not sure but I think the gear teeth shape might be the problem. They were very "pointy" when new while the planet gears had a different, more robust, shape. This is just an opinion though. I would definitely like if the manufacturer could tell us why this is happening. Please keep us updated about this matter.

[jimc]

if they were pointy when you looked at them then they were already worn a bit. when brand new they do have a normal gear shape to them.

[crimp3d]

I just had my pinion gear come loose today after the extruder started making clicking and popping noises. Unfortunately I don't have a tap and grub screw small enough to install on the pinion. But knowing that the pinion may not be the best quality and I may look into some other options in order to get up and running again.

Pierre

[crimp3d]

An update...

I ended up milling a 1/16-inch bore through the pinion and the stepper motor shaft and pushing in a dowel pin. 1/16-inch is the maximum-sized endmill I would use, as there's not much metal on the shaft after boring a hole that big through the center. I did order a new geared stepper and drive gear just in case.

Pierre

[glx51mm]

Any updates on this issue? There must be some better way other than replacing the whole motor/gearbox set. I have ordered several pinions that seemed to match the one that keeps failing but no luck.

[jimc]

They arent all the same. Its hit or miss. My first kne wore really quick. My second must have 2000+ hrs on it