Mutoh Valuejet Carriage Bearings Need Replacing

[TrustMoore_TN]

Running a Mutoh 2628 TD 102" (bigger version of the 1628) doing Direct to Fabric Dye Sublimation printing. I started noticing metal shavings on top of the carriage rail. First thought... Bearings are going out. Called my trusty Mutoh dealer and found out that the entire carriage assembly has to be replaced because the bearings are integrated into assembly. And now it may be that the rail itself has been damaged. I know there's nothing I can do except bite the bullet and replace the parts. Has anyone else running a Valuejet series printer experienced this? Is it common? The most frustrating part of this is that the printer doesn't do a tremendous amount of printing although I run a test file daily to keep the heads in shape. Any feedback is appreciated.

 

[Solventinkjet]

I have replaced the carriage in order to replace the bearings before. You can replace the bottom 2 bearings separately but the other 6 are integrated in the carriage. In my experience I have never run into the rail being damaged except for when they are shipped improperly and they get warped but it's extremely rare.

 

[Umca]

I am replaced bearings on 1624 and 1638 printers. Bearings are not integrated into the carriage. Two top bearings mounted on shaft what inserted in hole of carriage and fixed by ring. Four front bearings are mounted on shaft and installed it groove and fixed by glue. Two bottom - fixed like top on arm. All of them are possible to replace.

 

[henryp]

See attached pdf

 

[chrisphilipps]

Have seen it a lot actually. The rails are supposed to be greased at least every two months. Normally you can flip the rails over once so you might not have to replace them.

 

[TrustMoore_TN]

Thanks for the feedback...
Got this back from the dealer...

$775.00 Print Carriage (part# DG-42516)
960.00 for Labor (6 hrs @ 160.00 per hour), this could be reduced if it doesn't take the full 6 hours.
(waiving the trip charge, normally 125.00).

Total of $1735.00

You mentioned about replacing the whole rail, per Mutoh there is no replacing the whole rail. We can replace the steel Rail that the bearings travel on, but not the whole rail itself. Cost of each steel rail is 20.00 for the part, and maybe an hour to install (160.00) each rail.


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It's actually not as bad as I had expected, but should I shop this around to see if I can get a better price, or are they going off something stating how many hours a repair like this usually takes like auto mechanics?

 

[RG]

Have seen it a lot actually. The rails are supposed to be greased at least every two months. Normally you can flip the rails over once so you might not have to replace them.

Does anyone else use white lithium grease on the rails? And why do the rails need grease? The bearings are totally enclosed, permanently lubricated, and sealed. I guess that, if a bearing fails and locks up, grease on the rail will allow it to slide and not ruin the rail.

 

[Solventinkjet]

It looks like they are charging you the correct price on the carriage according to my price list. I have never replaced a carriage on that particular model but if it is anything like the other ValueJets, it shouldn't take more than 2 - 3 hours. I looked at an old service call I did where I replaced the carriage, belt and maintenance station and we charged for 2.5 hours.

 

[TrustMoore_TN]

It looks like they are charging you the correct price on the carriage according to my price list. I have never replaced a carriage on that particular model but if it is anything like the other ValueJets, it shouldn't take more than 2 - 3 hours. I looked at an old service call I did where I replaced the carriage, belt and maintenance station and we charged for 2.5 hours.

Thank you for that. I really appreciate the feedback!:U Rock:

 

[Umca]

You need to calibrate printeads after carriage replace. In case with double-head printer it can charge a lot of time depend of technician experience.

 

[heyskull]

Does anyone else use white lithium grease on the rails? And why do the rails need grease? The bearings are totally enclosed, permanently lubricated, and sealed. I guess that, if a bearing fails and locks up, grease on the rail will allow it to slide and not ruin the rail.

Yes I always found this strange as the bearings are sealed.
I have only ever greased my rails once on my VJ1604 in the 8 1/2 years I have owned the machine!
All greasing did was make a mess and promoted more stuff to cling to the rail surface.
All I do is keep the rails clean with some alcohol.
If the bearings fail it certainly is not because of lack of grease on the rail.

SC