Print head won’t come off metal plate, plate is also disconnected


While printing, the cable became disconnected. So I turned off the machine and I go to takeoff the print head so I can plug the cable back in. But what I found is that not only will the print head not come off the metal plate, the metal plate is really loose. So the printer head is just completely stuck onto the machine and not seated properly. Any ideas of how I can get it off? And once I get it off, how do I fix the metal plate? It’s such a small area to try and get under to even see what’s wrong.

Finally got the printer head off! It felt really stuck on there and I have been trying for over half an hour. But now the metal plate still isn’t seated properly and I can’t figure out how to get it back on right.

Can you lay your camera on the honeycomb tray and take some photos from the underside and share here?

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Tilt the carriage plate so that the leading edge is lower than the trailing edge, similar to the angle in your picture, then hook the rear wheels on the rear gantry rail. The rear of the gantry has a profile similar to the front, so look at the front to get an idea of what you’re dealing with on the backside… Once you hook the rear wheels onto the gantry rail, pull forward on the carriage plate until you can hook the front wheels onto the front gantry rail. The rear wheels are mounted on spring-loaded moveable plated that help grab the rails, and allow you to collapse the springs in order to position the carriage plate onto the gantry.

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I’ve been trying this but once I get the back I can’t get the front.

Pictures. Follow the instructions under the Glowforge support tab for cleaning the air assist fan. It details putting the carriage plate back on.

You might be hooking the rear wheels a little too high, try comparing to this for reference.

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I can feel a noticeable difference when it’s on and when it’s not. When I get the back and then try to do the front, the back comes out of place again. If the back is too high, it won’t slide right nor does it pop out by itself. I need like a third hand.

Step 3 on that part is where I’m having issues. Mine looks like what they have pictured but I can’t seem to pull forward enough without the back dropping.

It is only three magnets holding the head in place.

Put a mirror on the bed so that you can see where you are placing the back wheels. Once they are on the rail you need to exert some pressure to get the front wheels in place.

I was doing it correctly, I just want physically capable of it. My dad came over and did as I did and worked fine. Problem is solved thanks everyone.

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I feel you on that one! There has been times I have had my machine in a jam that I could not physically get it out of myself. Things like walking on the carriage plate belt is where its especially true for me.

i found a chopstick works best to get the tractor back in the gear, its small enough to slide out after the belt reconnects

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