C310 paper feed issue.. rollers won't turn under load

[Johnny42]

My C310 photosmart won't feed paper. The feed roller mechanism comes down, but the rollers don't turn if they are in contact with anything. What I hear is a grinding sound. I proved this by holding the rollers just off the paper. Then they turned freely. I am assuming that I have a stripped gear. How do I disassemble the printer enough to get at the drive mechanism? Can I get replacement parts?  

[Sara_7]

Hi,

Please follow the instructions mentioned in the video.

Although I am an HP employee, I am speaking for myself and not for HP.
Click the KUDOS star on the left to say 'Thanks'.
Please mark a reply "ACCEPTED AS SOLUTION" if it solved your problem, so others can find it.

[Johnny42]

I'm sorry to say it, but this did not resolve the problem with paper pickup. By reaching in to the feed rollers with the unit powered up, and holding the feed rollers up off of the paper, and telling it to print a report, the feed rollers rotate. But if Ilower the roller mechanism to the point where the rollers just touch the paper, the rollers stop turning and I hear a grinding sound. It is like the drive gears are stripped orout of alignment. That is why I am asking for help in learning how to tear the unit apart so I can get to the gears or whatever it is that makes the rolloers turn.

[plewpat]

I am having this same issue.  Ever get it fixed?

[Johnny42]

No. I never found a fix for the problem. I replaced the C310 with a 7525. I set the C310 aside. Some rainy day I will figure out how to get it apart and figure out what broke. HP Support told  me they do not stock parts for the feed mechanism.

[LefCoasDave]

Looking at the C310 feed problems on the site, don't you just love discovering engineering failures? After a couple of weeks trying all the "clean the rollers" advice on the excellent HP video, I gave up and fixed my problem with an Epson.

[TK1340]

The paper feed problem is due to a plastic gear that is stripped. Toward the front, there is a stainless steel rod that has some gears. That gear assembly engages a larger plastic gear that is coaxial  with the steel gear. It seems that the inner diameter of the gear is stripped. Hence, under a load, the steel rod spins and does not engage the plastic gear.

This is a bad engineering design and over time, all C310's will fail. This is a small part and I don;t know if HP will sell it.

[nohelpfromhp]

If you ever do figure out the issue and a solution, would you please post it here?  I'm off to buy a new printer and am rather upset that I wasted so much time cleaning the rollers on this one, which did no good whatsoever.  Curiously, I'm also getting error messages that two of my cartridges are counterfeit.  This is not possible as I have never bought cartridges for this printer anywhere but direct from HP.  What a frustrating experience this has been!

[TK1340]

Get a mirror like the kind they use for dental work, and some epoxy. Turn the printer over as it is easier to work that way. Put some epoxy on one or both sides of the gear around the stainless steel rod. Let it dry overnight and it should work. If you cannot easily work with a mirror, you may want to cut away some of the plastic and then perform the epoxy repair. I did the repair and it works well. Saved me from needing to by a new printer and I can use my stash of 564 inks.

Good luck

[DougP73]

Hey TK.  I'm trying to figure out which gear you put epoxy on.  I turned my printer over and the only gear I see on a stainless steel rod is the one in the back that is visible once you remove the duplexer.  Is that the one you're talking about?  That gear seems to mesh fine with the one adjacent to it.  It doesn't, however, turn the gear on the pick-up roller assembly.

Any pictures of the area you're talking about?