Tapetech Bazooka Repair

towertaper

hey guys nice forums got a bazooka repair question if anyone can help me

The bazooka is only 6 months old and everything seems to run great except its leaving a dry spot starting about 3 inches into the tape and extending for about 2 inches before it starts the mud again. It is exceptionally noticable on angles. I have run multiple bazooka's before now without issue so I don't think its my technique. After replacing the cable and adjusting a few things nothing I do seems to have any effect. my next guess at this point is the chain may be stretched or the axle bearing but I really don't want to dive in there on a guess. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

savant

If the cable's there, I wouldn't think of replacing it. Are you certain you're always using the right size tape?

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towertaper

ya I've been using the same tape for about 4 years i'm certain its an adjustment issue somewhere its just the sympton is so specific and constant that there has to be something I'm missing.

savant

Most (if not all ) auto tapers have a little bean on a spring-loaded bar that rides against the teeth of the traction wheel. this keeps the cable from recoiling back down. (unwinding) if you have 3" of mud, it may be from your rolling it (as you should) while advancing, after a cut. then as you are walking to the next joint, the sneaky little guy is leting the piston roll back when you aren't watching.

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Don't rush a miracle-man. If you rush a miracle-man, you get rotten miracles.
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savant

I use USG tape. It's the only thing available from the big boxes and the local gypsum supplier. I have had occasions where We've received the shorter rolls that are 2" wide, instead of the longer, 2-1/16"wide rolls. An apprentice will use it for some hand taping, and then the confusion sets in. Once the sticker is off, who knows how long it was? Holding a tape measure to every roll handed to you gets old pretty quick.

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Don't rush a miracle-man. If you rush a miracle-man, you get rotten miracles.
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Brockster

Ya, mine does the same fricken thing especially when the mud is thicker. I have to run the my mud thinner and advance the mud just a little more than any other bazooka or it will have the same dry spot a few inches from the start of the tape.
I called Drywall Master and told them of the problem I was having and the had me send it in for them to try and of course they sent it back saying nothing was wrong with it.

What type of plunger does your tube have? The old school type with wheels or the flat plunger kind?

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towertaper

the flat plunger kind yours?

edit: the thing is it worked great when i first got it so something has gotten out of whack I'm almost starting to think its a clutch issue

Capt-Sheetrock

Hello guys,,, Bazookas can be a real headache sometimes, sho nuff

Ive been using a drywall master , but recently bought a columbia, love it BTW. Anyway, the columbia has an adjustable clicker brake (the little pin and bean mentioned easlier). Just as the other guy mentioned, when it is too lose, it will let the plunger recede a little causing that dry spot exactly like your finding. If your technique is fine then the only thing that can cause your problem is the plunger not staying pressed tight to the the mud.And that is caused by the plunger sliding or slipping. If your tube is a new one, it problly has an agjustable clicker brake, tighten it up and see if it solves the problem. if it doesn't have an adjustable brake, you can bend the pin, forcing the bean tighter to the wheel.

good luck and lets know how it works.

Brockster

Captain, that's too easy so it can't be that!

If it is I owe you a beer or 10.

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towertaper

ditto

Tim0282

I've had the same thing with my Tape Tech. I just adjust or replace that little rod with the bean. Takes care of it every time. Too easy... this time.

Capt-Sheetrock

Try this, after you run a flat, hold your taper straight up,(with the head pointing to the ceiling) slam it downward at the floor(remember to stop before it hits,,LOL), kinda like your trying to shake the plunger out the bottom. Then run another flat, that will tell you if your plunger is sliding .

Sounds to me like that is whats happening to you.

brandonhunter

More than likely it is the "clicker ball" brake like the others were saying, but it may also be tyhat the toothed wheel that runs on the wall and brake is worn too. I have also had this problem when certain guys prime their tapers by turning the little aluminum rectangle on the side instead of priming by running the wheels on the wall for a few inches(this is a horizontal, versus vertical prime) I have worked as a drywall taping tool repair man for more than three years and have seen this hundreds of times.

Brockster

Makes sense as I am one of those guys to manually prime instead of marking up my walls with bazooka tracks.

Stick around Brandon because we can use advice from a techy around here...
Where do you work?

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hutch04

when you cut the paper do you pull down and let go real fast??

dryrocker27

We have had the same problem with our tape-tech when we first got it 2 years ago.

I found that if the tape was advanced to far after a cut, the leading edge was dry, I advance the tape just enough to show itself and then run the wheels on the opposing wall seam approximatly 2 inches back and into the corner.

this allows the outgoing mud to grab the tape and feed it onto the wheel just as the head hits the corner. No more dry spots.

I have not had dry spots after this adjustment unles there is air pumped into the tube.

I agree that you should not turn hand prime the head. Instead run the head down the seam where it will be covered anyway

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Robert

savant

hutch, the only reason to pull jarringly fast when cutting is if your blade is getting dull. if your tape is jamming when cutting, and is wrinkled, it is because the razor is pushing the tape. If you are letting the control sleeve snap back, how are you holding it? If you are guiding the control sleeve forward quickly, you run the risk of cracking your magnet, breaking the gooser rod, or tearing the tape with the gooser needle. If you use pyramid blades, this is the risk. if you use single-bevel blades, you also run the risk of a nasty jam on a dull blade. Likely, the reason you think that quick release is necessary is because you're using pyramid blades, and the front bevel is dull, but the back bevel is still, naturally sharper. Try a new blade, or at least flipping it over for now.

__________________
Don't rush a miracle-man. If you rush a miracle-man, you get rotten miracles.
http://www.refined-home.com

savant

dryrocker, do you not roll the wheels on the wall while advancing after a snip?

__________________
Don't rush a miracle-man. If you rush a miracle-man, you get rotten miracles.
http://www.refined-home.com

taper71

Is the cable too long? Maybe the wheels are turning without bringing up the plunger until the tension winds up in that few inches. Another thing I do is prime it well after filling. Alot of times I will get the mud flowing only to have a dry spot a couple of more turns until the slack in the cable is really tight.

dryrocker27

Savant, we roll the head after a cut, i was responding to bockster's comment about manually priming the head and not wanting to mark up his walls with bazooka tracks.

Taper71 - good point, but his taper is 6 months old. It must have come that way from the factory or slipped alittle from the spindle????

A friend of mine uses his taper with his mud alot stiffer than i like it and he has to replace his cable at least twice a year. You guessed it, the stiff mud stretched the cable.

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Robert