Taz 5 idler snapped

General LulzBot TAZ
1

Hi All

The idler snapped on my Taz 5 (again). I know there’s the service bulletin (here: https://www.lulzbot.com/sites/default/files/extruder_idler_service_bulletin.pdf) but I’d already printed a spare so I’ll use that for now, and print the upgrade once I’m back up and running.

What I don’t know and can’t find, is the sequence of bolt/washer/nut. I know the nut fits in the hex socket on the inside face of the idler, as per the top-left picture in the service bulletin, but what happens on the other arm? Does the bolt just loosely sit in the hole which is way bigger than it? Seems the bolt should fit into another nut or something on that side too but I can’t see any mention of the build sequence online and the photos are generally really dark. Any advice much appreciated!

Also, does anyone recommend a modified idler over the stock one for the Taz 5?

Thanks
Danny

2

Yes, the far end of the bolt ends up in the large hole. There is room for improvement on that particular latch, but it works decently so most people ignore it. I have a variant that uses a heat set insert in place of the nut. There is also the new version available for testing here:
http://devel.lulzbot.com/mini/Gladiola/production_parts/printed_parts/
(beefy extruder idler and idler latch) which will be a direct replacement for your stock unit.

3

Thanks piercet - I’ll give the testing version a go.

4

I also made a heavier duty one after snapping three of them. I haven’t had to change it since.You can get it free here:

http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1766022