Bowden problems

Hi,

I have a few problems regarding a Bowden tube. The printer is an Ultimaker Original.

Firstly, the tube does not stay put. Instead, it is pushed out of its retainer when filament is pushed through. I'm suspecting that the metal element inside the retainer has worn down. Also the Bowden tube is a little scraped at the last two inches or so, so the element does not gain enough traction. I have already cut about half an inch of the tube, which worked for 10 minutes, then the same problem occurred. I am going to try printing a Bowden tube clamp as seen on thingiverse (thing:11864 by owen) and hopefully that works. Or do you have any other suggestions, maybe replacing the tube instead?

The second problem is that I tried to swap filaments while the nozzle was still hot. This seemingly caused the plastic to solidify inside the tube, and formed some kind of edge-like irregularity which makes it now completely impossible to pull/push it through:

Attachment 1006

Has anyone encountered this issue before? What do I do? I don't want to wait for a few years until the PLA biodegrades. Maybe it dissolves in something or I could heat up a wire or some other tool, try to melt the PLA out?

Thanks,
Ralph

You'll need a new bowden tube. You won't be able to get the melted filament out without messing up the interior of the tube and increasing friction. Looks like they're onlyu 15 euros from the ultimaker shop.

I'd print a clamp even after replacing the bowden tube. It's only going to eventually pop off again unless you take some remedial action.

You could use push connectors to fasten the bowden tube or maybe like I did with 2 M4 bolts screwed on the tube, to give you some options I know of.

Thanks, I think I'll just get a new bowden tube and not bother trying to get the filament out.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ralphzoontjens

Thanks, I think I'll just get a new bowden tube and not bother trying to get the filament out.

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If your poor like me... You could soak it in acetone for a couple of days and dissolve the filament away...

I used a tiny drill bit on a dremel to drill bits off of the filament without trying to damage the tube. After about 10 minutes it came out. So I may not need to replace the bowden tube for a while.

Acetone, does that dissolve PLA as well? I know it works for ABS. And would the acetone not dissolve the tube itself as well?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ralphzoontjens

Acetone, does that dissolve PLA as well? I know it works for ABS. And would the acetone not dissolve the tube itself as well?

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Acetone will dissolve PLA. My guess is the tube is a high quality plastic that won't dissolve. But of course, if that isn't the case.... It would get destroyed doing this.