DesignJet 4500 Carriage won't go left?

[laartistguy]

I have a DesignJet 4500 with a 86:01 error - as my carriage won't go left.

Currently the plotter goes through the boot up/ count down and initializes. A moment later the carriage attempts to go left and fires the 86:01 error.

I did the diganotics test and  the carriage now will NOT move left. The carriage moves to the right just fine. Is there ink on a sensor... or?

There is nothing in the way. There is no paper in the machine at all. No scraps or little pieces of paper. The belt looks great.

Plotter is in like new condition. Suggestions?

[PPDTECH]

Hi

The unit picks up a carriage jam, if you have confirmed that you have nothing obstructing the carriage and you made sure you have enough oil on the shaft and the belt is still 100% then it is possible that the scan axis motor is faulty.

[davidzuts]

Never seen a motor sieze up in one direction. Most times when this happens the belt has come off the pully or the belt will not move. With the power off, open the cleaner door on the right and pull it out. Open the top cover and try to move the carriage by hand. If it will not move or just move in one direction, use a flashlight to shine inside and pay close attention to the pully on the right side or the motor shaft on the left side.

[PPDTECH]

if im not mistaken it sounds like the error comes up while the unit is still booting, thinking it's jamming to the left as it's part of the start up for the carriage to calibrate itself from left to right, I can be wrong, but that's what i understand from the fault given

[davidzuts]

That is why I told him to move the carriage with the power off. With the power on the carriage should not move when pushed by hand in either direction. The fact that he can move it to the right makes me think something is wrong with the belt. It could also be an encoder issue but we will not know until the user tries what I told him and reports back.

[laartistguy]

Thank you both for the great suggestions.

This week I will clean the encoder strip with a damp cloth. I don't believe it is a belt issue as the belt is like new and HP OEM.

The problem is a boot up. I put in two replacement black ink cleaners as well. I'll clean and revert to the original ink cleaners and update.