M277dw blue handle missing!

[iantrader]

I have an HP MFP M277dw, It's 1.5 Years old so out of technical warranty BUT I have just come to change the cartridges and find that the blue handle is missing!!

 I had no reason to open the drawer before and it took a while to realise what was wrong. It must not have been installed at the manufacturing stage.

Anyway, I can push the white bar at the bottom of the tray along with a screwdriver and the tray pulls out an inch  but something is still catching on the right side. The left looks loose.

Can someone tell me how to release this?

Ian

[Dovid]

Hi IanTrader,

This is quite an interesting problem, since the cartridge tray is pretty standard.  Would it be possible for you to open the cartridge door and take a photo of what you see as the missing blue handle?  We can then help you figure out how to get access into the system to replace the cartridges.  Thanks, Dovid

[iantrader]

I'm not sure if the photos have been uploaded and saved correctly.  If not, I'll try another message.

The first shows the cartridge tray as you open the printer door - with no blue handle. The 2nd shows it pulled out about an inch which is as far as it will go because it catches on the right.

The 3rd shows the white peg and spring which were in the bottom of the tray. Pushing the peg against the spring to the left, must move the peg out of a hole on the right so the tray comes out an inch. The spring popped out of the tray and the peg came out. Didn't seem any point in putting them back at the moment.

Appreciate any help you can offer.

[Dovid]

Hi IanTrader,

You are definately missing the blue handle.  I am pretty sure it could not have gotten out of manufacturing without it, since each engine is checked thoroughly.  But to your problem.  The little white peg is the only thing actually holding the tray, but there is also an alienation mechanism that presses the cartridges (that on in the tray) against the belt that can be seen right below the tray - in your pictures behind the metal bar on the bottom.  

The next test is opening and closing the actual front door.  Please watch as you open the door fully.  The right side of the tray, where the white peg extends, should move up about 1/4 inch as you open the door.  Also, if the engine is turned on, the front panel should indicate "front door open".  If the coupling to the alienation mechanism is not working and the tray does not move up as the door is opened, the tray will NOT move out to allow you to change cartridges.  It is connected to the white bar that is on the right side of the door and is sort of a hinge into the engine.  please make sure the door is completely open, the peg is removed (as you have it now) and see if the drawer cannot be easily pulled out.  If not, we move to the next step.  I have some pictures, since I went to another 277 and played with it for a while, but mostly they show the mechanism of the blue handle and that there is only one peg.  Please let me know what you see as you open the door.

Dovid

.  

[iantrader]

Hi David - thank  you so much for your help with this.

I couldn't believe anything was missing as the printer came

fully packed but, as I said, I never had ocassion to open the door before. It took a while to discover the bar was missing.

The tray does lift up when I open the door and will pull out about one inch. I tried to show this in one of the photos I sent.

But it still catches somewhere on the right. It seems to be catching  at the top of the tray but I can't be 100% sure as it's dark in there 🙂 

Ian

[Dovid]

Hi Ian,

I talked to several of the team members that worked on this machine when it was first released.  This might be bad news.  If you had opened the door and tried to remove a cartridge during the warranty period, repairs of the blue handle and a discovery that the tray would not pull out would have been covered.  Since the tray lifts when the door opens, the second alienation mechanism that I was suspecting is probably working.  However, I am told that the drive shaft that engages the green drum in each cartridge might be stuck with the cam that releases it during the door opening still extended.  This would be a repair that would involve post warranty work at an authorized shop.  I can't tell you what the cost would be, but I believe it is a pretty intense tear down of the engine to get to the area.  If you bought the machine new (a year and a half ago) from a good store, you might talk to their management and suggest that you got a bum deal and see if they might make some accomodations on that or a replacement machine.  Not much more that I can do to help you.  The cam would be on the right side low on the tray and would appear to be a rod connecting from inside the machine to the edge of the tray, so with a flashlight and (I am not allowed to recommend) some flat blade prying, you might be able to release whatever is still holding the tray if you were done with the machine as it is.  Good luck.  

[iantrader]

Well, after all that, I got the receipt out to get the phone number and saw  I paid for an extra year's warranty! 🙂

Rang them and  I'm taking it back.

Apart from not having a blue handle, I think the issue must be, as you describe, a stuck cam or rod inside the mechanism, so even if the handle had been present, I think it would still have stuck.

Appreciate all your help but hopefully I'll get this fixed soon.

Ian

[Dovid · Accepted solution]

Congratulations.  

That extra year warranty was nice to find, I am sure.  I wasn't suggesting you had anything to do with the missing blue handle.  Sorry if you took it that way.  I was VERY surprised that we let something like that out of the factory, since we have lots of checks, but I note we have the checks because sometimes things happen and we hope to catch them before they leave the barn, so to speak.  Thanks for the discussion and for working with us to solve the problem.  Have fun with the new printer, Dovid