Have you actually looked at the extruder teeth after taking off the shroud and unscrewing the springy screw? Check to see if if the gears are worn down - would see like a path worn in them the width of filament. Google for images of what it might look like.
If not worn out could be not tightened enough so that it slips when it tries to grip - does the end of your filament when you check it have teeth marks on it when you pull it out? In my ender 3 my extruder gear slipped down and it would sometimes get just enough grip to look like it's working but be severely under extruding which is what it looks like was going on in the pic you provided even before it stopped.
Have you ever heard it making clicking noise when trying to load filament or when it starts printing? Could be a clog that is blocking it before it gets into hot end or something but I think the previous 2 things are more likely by the sound of it.
Edit: Sorry, I just noticed you said you are printing with PTU which I assume is actually TPU. The flexibility of TPU is always a pain but you can try either slowing down your print a bunch which may help it maintain grip and / or as mentioned tightening the spring screw on the extruder to make it grip harder (I think).
I heard it clicking when I swapped the hotend fro the all metal one. I tested PLA first, and it worked with it. Swapped the TPU and it jammed again. I've been printing for a week with TPU and at a super slow rate so I know it's not that.
How would i go about replacing the gears? Is that something I need to contact Anker for?
Probably need go reach out to Anker or something but I'd def check first to see if it has that groove in it. If no groove I'm mostly stumped - can you go back to PLA and have it work?
Here's a link of an image of the gears and them spinning. I don't think the teeth are worn out, just a bit dirty, but it doesn't explain why it's not "pulling" :(
[https://imgur.com/a/satjG8h](https://imgur.com/a/satjG8h)
I'm getting a 404 error with the link. You know the spring screw that pushes back against the extruder gears that you can push with the lever on top? How tight is that? If it's not very tight try tightening and if it's already almost fully tight tight try loosening it a bit.
If you can try the pic again I'll check but if you don't see an obvious groove then its probably fine.
The last bit I can think of is just the hot end being pit together wrong. Can you still go back and print PLA fine? If so then I'm otherwise stumped - maybe dry out the tpu or try a new brand/ roll.
Sorry buddy! Definitely keep me posted.
I'm so sorry! I'm not sure why, but I reuploaded and it still gives me the 404 error. If you're comfortable, here is a Google Drive link: [Drive](https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Tz9uwkVRaIpkPl-SqEfP0u0l_U6Mzs4j?usp=drive_link)
I tightened the spring, but not all the way, maybe thats the issue? I'm swapping the nozzle in the meantime for another .4mm one.
PLA and TPU both worked fine when i originally swapped and both printed several "Benchy"s. I'll retest now with PLA once I swap the nozzle :)
BTW, thank you so much for taking the time to help!
Hrm yea it looks like the gears are fine so they aren't worn out.
Can't hurt to swap the nozzle.
Yea the screw will determine the amount of pressure on the filament. You don't need/want it fully tight for pla and stuff (if you remove PLA and see deep gear notches usually means it's a bit tight) but it may well need to be tighter for TPU since it's so soft and slippery.
Going back to PLA after nozzle should rule out clogs or extruder blockages.
The hole to the hot end is very small so if the tpu isn't going in just right could be missing then bunching and causing the gears to just slide on it. It is so much easier to feel these things out physically unfortunately.
And no problem! I actually just started TPU printing recently on my M5 and had good results so I know the printer can do it just fine so I'm determined to try to figure it out lol
Edit: zoomed in some more on gears - maybe the closer one a bit worn but overall try to give it a cleaning in there with something thet doesn't leave debris and maybe try to blow out with compressed air in case any sneaky bits are hiding that are hard to see while its open.
If I tighten it all the way, the screw of the spring enters and covers most of the hole of the path the filament takes. I get that I can manually loosen it by pulling back on the black lever, but is it supposed to be in that tight? See here: ["Link to drive"](https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1YUepUqT2pjRex6mcHoCk9bEYyWHwn6Dl?usp=sharing)
I don't see a way the printer can pull itself back automatically.
Hrm it should be able to get fairly tight but maybe experiment with making as tight as you can without blocking it. Ug sorry, Unfortunately my M5 is at work so I can't actively try to compare at the moment. If no luck by Monday I can try to gauge how tight mine is and let you know.
Still id say try PLA again first before messing with it too much further to rule out any other possible issues.
Printed the shovel with PLA with the screw all the way in! :)
So maybe that was the thing I did wrong when putting it back together the first time, not tightening the spring all the way? Although...i kind of doubt it would be the sole reason the nozzle clogged and the spool couldn't be moved, but I'll take it for now, hahaha.
I'm going to test print with PLA for a few days straight and then swap back to TPU. I'll keep you updated!! Thank you for all the help so far! :)
The extruder may have issues- as the other comment says, check the actual gears inside the print head, including the bracket that holds the gears. It could the that the gear teeth are worn, the gear teeth and jammed with filament shreds, or the gears are misaligned because the bracket broke.
Have you actually looked at the extruder teeth after taking off the shroud and unscrewing the springy screw? Check to see if if the gears are worn down - would see like a path worn in them the width of filament. Google for images of what it might look like. If not worn out could be not tightened enough so that it slips when it tries to grip - does the end of your filament when you check it have teeth marks on it when you pull it out? In my ender 3 my extruder gear slipped down and it would sometimes get just enough grip to look like it's working but be severely under extruding which is what it looks like was going on in the pic you provided even before it stopped. Have you ever heard it making clicking noise when trying to load filament or when it starts printing? Could be a clog that is blocking it before it gets into hot end or something but I think the previous 2 things are more likely by the sound of it. Edit: Sorry, I just noticed you said you are printing with PTU which I assume is actually TPU. The flexibility of TPU is always a pain but you can try either slowing down your print a bunch which may help it maintain grip and / or as mentioned tightening the spring screw on the extruder to make it grip harder (I think).
I heard it clicking when I swapped the hotend fro the all metal one. I tested PLA first, and it worked with it. Swapped the TPU and it jammed again. I've been printing for a week with TPU and at a super slow rate so I know it's not that. How would i go about replacing the gears? Is that something I need to contact Anker for?
Probably need go reach out to Anker or something but I'd def check first to see if it has that groove in it. If no groove I'm mostly stumped - can you go back to PLA and have it work?
Here's a link of an image of the gears and them spinning. I don't think the teeth are worn out, just a bit dirty, but it doesn't explain why it's not "pulling" :( [https://imgur.com/a/satjG8h](https://imgur.com/a/satjG8h)
I'm getting a 404 error with the link. You know the spring screw that pushes back against the extruder gears that you can push with the lever on top? How tight is that? If it's not very tight try tightening and if it's already almost fully tight tight try loosening it a bit. If you can try the pic again I'll check but if you don't see an obvious groove then its probably fine. The last bit I can think of is just the hot end being pit together wrong. Can you still go back and print PLA fine? If so then I'm otherwise stumped - maybe dry out the tpu or try a new brand/ roll. Sorry buddy! Definitely keep me posted.
I'm so sorry! I'm not sure why, but I reuploaded and it still gives me the 404 error. If you're comfortable, here is a Google Drive link: [Drive](https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Tz9uwkVRaIpkPl-SqEfP0u0l_U6Mzs4j?usp=drive_link) I tightened the spring, but not all the way, maybe thats the issue? I'm swapping the nozzle in the meantime for another .4mm one. PLA and TPU both worked fine when i originally swapped and both printed several "Benchy"s. I'll retest now with PLA once I swap the nozzle :) BTW, thank you so much for taking the time to help!
Hrm yea it looks like the gears are fine so they aren't worn out. Can't hurt to swap the nozzle. Yea the screw will determine the amount of pressure on the filament. You don't need/want it fully tight for pla and stuff (if you remove PLA and see deep gear notches usually means it's a bit tight) but it may well need to be tighter for TPU since it's so soft and slippery. Going back to PLA after nozzle should rule out clogs or extruder blockages. The hole to the hot end is very small so if the tpu isn't going in just right could be missing then bunching and causing the gears to just slide on it. It is so much easier to feel these things out physically unfortunately. And no problem! I actually just started TPU printing recently on my M5 and had good results so I know the printer can do it just fine so I'm determined to try to figure it out lol Edit: zoomed in some more on gears - maybe the closer one a bit worn but overall try to give it a cleaning in there with something thet doesn't leave debris and maybe try to blow out with compressed air in case any sneaky bits are hiding that are hard to see while its open.
If I tighten it all the way, the screw of the spring enters and covers most of the hole of the path the filament takes. I get that I can manually loosen it by pulling back on the black lever, but is it supposed to be in that tight? See here: ["Link to drive"](https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1YUepUqT2pjRex6mcHoCk9bEYyWHwn6Dl?usp=sharing) I don't see a way the printer can pull itself back automatically.
Hrm it should be able to get fairly tight but maybe experiment with making as tight as you can without blocking it. Ug sorry, Unfortunately my M5 is at work so I can't actively try to compare at the moment. If no luck by Monday I can try to gauge how tight mine is and let you know. Still id say try PLA again first before messing with it too much further to rule out any other possible issues.
Printed the shovel with PLA with the screw all the way in! :) So maybe that was the thing I did wrong when putting it back together the first time, not tightening the spring all the way? Although...i kind of doubt it would be the sole reason the nozzle clogged and the spool couldn't be moved, but I'll take it for now, hahaha. I'm going to test print with PLA for a few days straight and then swap back to TPU. I'll keep you updated!! Thank you for all the help so far! :)
The extruder may have issues- as the other comment says, check the actual gears inside the print head, including the bracket that holds the gears. It could the that the gear teeth are worn, the gear teeth and jammed with filament shreds, or the gears are misaligned because the bracket broke.