Problem & answerK-09
Caps Blocking or Dropping Out at the Chute Guard
Also covers: Plastic cap guard not set for the cap height
Likely causes
- Clear plastic guard at the elevator outlet / cap chute set too tight for the cap height: caps block
- Guard set too loose: caps tip and drop out of the chute
- Guard black knobs loosened by vibration
- Cap size changed without resetting the guard
- Wire knock-off rod set too low (blocks good caps) or too high (lets wrong-way caps through)
How to fix it
- 1Stop the cap feed and clear blocked or fallen caps (fallen caps from the floor are rejected).
- 2Loosen the black knobs on the plastic guard.
- 3Place a cap in the chute and set the guard just above the cap height: the cap slides freely but cannot tip over or jump out.
- 4Tighten the knobs evenly along the guard.
- 5Check the bent wire knock-off rod: it should knock wrong-way caps back into the hopper but let correctly oriented caps pass underneath. Adjust its height for the cap.
- 6Run caps through the chute and watch the transfer from the elevator into the chute.
Technical note
Too tight is the main reason caps block here; too loose and caps drop out every time. Set the guard to the actual cap height at every cap change, never tighter.It is fixed when
Caps flow through the chute continuously; none block or fall out.
Stop it coming back
- Set the guard with the selector plates (K-08) at every cap change and record the setting.
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