@Bill perhaps a silly question, but how does one use the 3DClippy filament cutter? I've got my 3D Chameleon MK2, which I've now successfully flashed to the MK3 firmware. I ran some quick tests and the loading/unloading seems to work great. I think the next step will be for me to print this filament cutter but I haven't been able to find any guides on how to attach it or what it actually does (besides the obvious cutting filament.. is it automated somehow?).

Hey @Bill , I happen to have a Pi Pico Microcontroller. I'm assuming the chip that comes with the 3d Chameleon is an AVR microcontroller? If so, do you foresee any issues flashing the firmware with my Pi Pico (as opposed to an Arduino)? I would follow a guide such as this: https://learn.adafruit.com/program-an-avr-or-arduino-using-raspberry-pi-gpio-pins

Thanks Bill! That filament cutter sounds very helpful as I was definitely struggling a bit with the shaping part of my gcode. Also great news that I can run the new firmware on my MK2, I'm going to give that a try as just flashing the firmware should be a fun little project.

Thanks Bill, I overlooked the transitions between relative in absolute in the g-code. It makes much more sense to me now. I've also resolved the loading and unloading as well, though I still need to test it with an active hot-end. I removed the hot-end from the equation for testing while I refined my g-code, and was able to tune it so I could load and then unload one of the extruders 3 times in a row which is great progress. Next I'll continue working on the shaping and then it will only be a matter of making slight adjustments for the other 3 extruders

I'm at this step right now as well. I'm pretty consistently able to load filament with any of the 4 gears, but the unloading is still problematic. Specifically, it tends to get stuck when the tip gets to the extruder (can't grip) and I'm guessing I need to shape the filament better. I don't fully understand the generated g-code for unloading. ie: G0 E-50 F2000 ; quickly retract the filament to shape it G0 E-80 F600; slowly allow it to cool   G0 E1 F2000 ; blob elimination   G0 E-50 F2000 ; quickly retract the filament to shape it G0 E-80 F600; slowly allow it to cool   G0 E1 F2000 ; blob elimination G0 E-10 F2000 ; quickly retract the filament to shape it G0 E1 F2000 ; quickly ram the filament to shape it G0 E-10 F2000 ; quickly retract the filament to shape it G0 E1 F2000 ; quickly ram the filament to shape it   G0 E-50 F2000 ; quickly retract the filament to shape it G0 E-80 F100; slowly allow it to cool My understanding of the above code is that it retracts the filament by 50mm quickly, then another 80mm slowly... then it pushes forward 1mm? to eliminate blobs? I don't yet understand why you would want to retract 50+80 and then only move it forward 1mm after it has cooled. It then does seem to repeat the same process but I guess the "G0 E1 F2000" throws me off since the filament would be only moving back such a small amount? I can fix the distances to be specific to my extruder/hot end distances (it's bowden tube, not direct drive) but what is the generator trying to accomplish so I can modify it?

Thanks @gpgordon , I thought about that as well but realized that my firmware (klipper) doesn't have the M92 command. Interesting on the 3dchameleon pinch, sounds like that could indeed be a problem. I'm actually having a heck of a time consistently getting filament through the split-adapter. It's usually not a problem to get through one of the four entrances, but often I have to push the filament with a lot of force manually to get it through the exit hole from that adapter :-(

That solved my issue, thanks @Bill. After taking everything apart, I got a much better understanding of what's going on under the hood. I also had to align the selector, but now everything seems to load correctly

@Bill I'm just following along with this thread as I'm experiencing the same issue as described by @brother_beams. Much the same as him, my unit came pre-assembled and in my case 1 of the 4 filament loaders works fine, the other 3 all have issues while loading the filament. Just to re-iterate the issue, what will happen is that the filament will stop loading at different points (depending on which extruder I'm using) but in 3 of 4 cases it never makes it to the primary extruder gear, and in 1 of the 4 it will make it all the way. In the other cases, I can "help it along", though it also looks like it chews up the filament a bit (it becomes rough). I'm speculating that I'll need to take apart and align something with the pre-assembled motors. Do you mind elaborating on this comment: "Also, make sure the bottom drive gear doesn't rotate from the top... like if the screw that secures it is loose."? I took out one of the motors and I can very slightly wiggle the bottom drive gear independently from the top if I move it directly; moving the top gear moves them both together.

Thanks for the reply @Bill My box does contain a 12v AC adapter as well as what looks like it would be the power supply (enclosed in a 3d printed case) so I'm hoping I actually did order the starter kit which would be great