CPE2+ and 2500 Series Drum

[peter lagus]

I apologize for the length of this posting. I recently purchased a used Jobo CPE2+ Processor with the Jobo lift and also a few drums and other goodies. The unit appeared to be very well cared for. I tried running it using only water and a 1500 series drum. The unit performed well and the motor ran for a number of hours with no issues. This weekend I tried the same "dry" (wet) run with water using a 2500 series drum. To use a 2500 series drum the roller block on the lift bars is "opened up" to the extended position. I immediately noticed an interference between the roller adjacent to the water tray and the tray wall. The roller was jammed against the side and would not rotate freely. In addition, the roller adjacent to the Red Bottle Shelf was in intimate contact with the side of the shelf. Hence neither roller would rotate freely. I tried to run the motor to see what would happen, the motor ran but soon the thermal overload cut power to the motor due to overheating probably caused by the extra effort required to rotate the 2500 series drum. To check that the motor was still functioning correctly I removed the red shelf and jimmied the lift bars slightly away from the water tray edge so that both rollers now had some clearance. In this configuration the motor ran fine for two plus hours with the 2500 series drum. I have seen you tube videos that show a 2500 series tank rotating with no apparent friction against the water tray side or the red shelf side on CPE2+. Any ideas as to why there is an interference and what I might do to fix the problem? Obviously I can't use the processor for 4x5 film as it now stands. Thanks for any suggestions.

Pete

[Brian C. Miller]

The way to run the CPE2+ and the 2500 drum is take the extenders out completely, and just clip the rollers themselves to the roller block. Then it will fit snugly in the bottom, and there's no contact with the plastic. I can send pictures later on this evening.

[alanbutler57]

Good info. I also recently got a CPE2 but haven't gotten the 2500 yet. Posting a pic would be great Brian and thank you both.

[peter lagus]

Brian:

Picture(s) would be fantastic. I still wonder how the folks in the you tube videos do it.

[koh303]

119388

Here you go.

[Brian C. Miller]

OK, here's my CPE2+ with the small drum:

119403

119404

I had to get help with this, myself. The Jobo CPE2+ can run the larger drum, but it's a bit of a strain on the machine.

[alanbutler57]

Thanks! That is a keeper for sure!


119388

Here you go.

[peter lagus]

koh (Omer)119409 I'm not sure we are communicating. The CPE2+ manual clearly states that a 2500 series drum can be used with a lift to develop 4x5 film. I have attached four photos to illustrate my problem. They clearly show that when the lift arm is in the correct "down" position the roller on both sides impinges on the walls of the water tray. Basically the rollers can't move freely. Is it possible that the tray itself has been warped due to shipment, etc.? As I said above, if I remove the red shelf this frees up the roller on the left side, but it doesn't help the roller on the other side. Can you provide the dimension across the top of the water tray at the roller block location? One possible solution to this problem may be to expand the tray a bit although I'm not certain exactly how to do that.

[peter lagus]

F119410119411119411119412or some reason (my error) only one photo uploaded. Here are the other three (I hope)

[Brian C. Miller]

Peter, the roller assembly pulls out. It just clips in there. Reach in and pull out those little roller arms. Then gently pop out the rollers from the arms. Press the rollers back into the roller block. Then it will look like mine.

[peter lagus]

Brian. Many many thanks. That made all the difference. Alignment now appears correct.

Pete

[koh303]

Brian. Many many thanks. That made all the difference. Alignment now appears correct.

Pete
I am glad to hear you figured out, i think the image i posted communicates for itself, but if you are still having issues, you are welcome to PM me ;).

To remove the extension arms off the black rollers, you sometimes need a small flat screw driver to pry them off. The arms are flexible, and take some flexing to get off the rollers. Once off, the rollers snap in to place instead of where the extension arms were.

The position you had the rollers on in your photos is for 3000 drums, which are not compatible with the CPE2 hence the contact with the sides of the machine.

That said - even with the rollers on correctly for the 2500 system tanks (roller directly on the roller block), the orange lid lock ring, may still come in contact with the red bottle rack. This is normal and fine. As you found, the lift metal tubes section has a bit of play, and should be adjusted to match the flex on the machine, so when the lift is in the down position, the roller block rests flat on the bottom of the trough.

Good luck.