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Tampa wedding photographer Bryan Glynn has been serving the Tampa area since 2007 providing wedding and commercial photography! As a published and award winning Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater and surrounding community wedding photographer, BG Pictures Photography Owner Bryan Glynn welcomes you to view the wedding photography gallery, commercial photography portfolio and many personal photography collections found on the site. Prices, contact information, client proofing galleries and more can be accessed by the header menu at any time. For the latest shoot highlights be sure to check out the blog by clicking Latest Events!
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HP Z3100 Drive Belt Replacement How-To Video
This video details step by step, how to replace the drive belt in a HP Z3100 24″ printer. The same procedures can be followed for the Z2100, Z3200 and 44″ models with minimal differences. It includes removing the window, top cover, front panel, front cover, rear cover, left side, right side, carriage assembly, cutter, sensors and belt assembly plus cleaning and reassembly tips.
Supplies needed:
Service Manual – Click here to download
New belt
Non-evaporating synthetic machine oil
Cotton pads
Double-sided tape
Paper towel
Alcohol
Flat blade screwdriver
T8, T10, T15, T20 drivers
Canned air
2′ of paper
Expect to spend 2-3 hours on the job, taking your time. One tip I forgot to show – while you have the carriage assembly out and are cleaning it, be sure to wipe clean the color sensor shutter mirror. It’s on the tiny trap door on the color sensor itself. It is often hazy and obscured over time which can fail the unit. Do not clean the sensor lens or emmiter underneath, it should not need it at all.
I did this video using a ‘kit’ but do not suggest doing so, just get the supplies on your own, it’s nothing special. See this article for details on that.
If this article and video has helped you out, please consider helping me out 
PayPal donations gladly accepted to bryan@bgpictures.com
Wow! Even though I am all thumbs, I think I could follow the service manual and your wonderful video to replace the belt and clean the reservoirs on my Z3100 24″ with built in spectro. I anticipate using envelopes or plastic bags for each group of screws and each part, and labeling them by the number of the step involved. I do not print professionally, but only for my own prints that I exhibit and occasionally sell. Even though my Z3100 is about 3 years old it has got very light use compared to a professionally used printer, and I should get several more years out of it.
Thank you very much for the work you put into a beautifully detailed “how-to.”
You’re welcome!
Great video Bryan, very much appreciated. I have a problem after reassembly. I can’t get past the carriage calibration. It gets to the part where it is supposed to “move carriage middle” and fails, saying possible paper jam.
Everything seemed to go back together OK. I did make the mistake of turning the machine on, instead of going right to the service calibration routine. It errored out and I restarted properly. Maybe that got things out of whack and I’ll have to redo the job.
But one thing I’m confused about is the 10T screw that you use to loosen the carriage so it can slide to the left. Did you have to tighten that screw when the carriage went back on? It doesn’t seem to do anything, when tightening, it just turns and turns.
Thanks again,
Tim
DO NOT turn that screw again – no where did the instructions say to! It moves the service station position under the carriage assembly. I don’t know if you whacked it now or if it really is a paper jam. Starting it normally before calibration didn’t do anything. If it’s detecting a jam first check all your sensors to make sure they are clean and there isn’t just something obstructing the path. Blow everything out well. Beyond that I’m not sure.
Hi Bryan
Great video, well done. It gave me the confidence to do the job. I have almost got the printer back together. Q: where do I leave the carriage, do I push it over to the far right hand end? I read what you said to Tim, I haven’t touched the T10 screw, but was thinking about it, you turn it to release it so i assumed you’d turn it the other way to secure it.
do you have any advice?
Thanks – Joe
You do nothing with either. When it powers on it takes care of itself.
Bryan, I was unable to get to the T10 screw but proceeded with the belt replacement anyway. Now when the carriage passé in front of either ink station it clanks. It will go back and forth. Did my not loosing the T 10 in the back contribute to this problem? Also how tight should the belt tensioner be? Thanks for the video. Jack
You should have stopped and got the right tool. The screw moves the service station out of the way and unlocks the carriage. I you forced it, yes you can break it and it’s clanking because it’s hitting the service station trying to dock. You can try getting the right tool and moving it out of the way, but I’m not sure what you need to do now. You screw the tensioner all the way, just like it was. The spring sets the tension automatically.
PEOPLE PLEASE FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS AND DO NOT DEVIATE. I have been in touch with no less than 10 people now that have caused further damage by simply going off reservation doing this repair.
Hi Bryan,
How do I access the video?
You just click play on it above.
hi do u have HP Z2100 service machine video
As noted, it’s extremely similar for all the versions. This is all I have.
Bryan, thank you so much for this informative video. My carriage belt started to crack and left residue on my prints. Your video saved me big time!
Couple questions on the carriage install. While I was putting in the carriage, the ‘carriage rear bushing’ (diagram on page 194, part #5) fell out and broke in two. Would you know the purpose of this little piece and could it cause the initialization from failing? Would I have to take out the carriage once again to put this little piece in or could it done a different way.
Thanks for the great help you’re providing for the HP Z printer community.
Rich
Well, I guess I wasn’t looking at the manual close enough until now because I see the page that has the re-installing of the carriage rear bushing. And unfortunately, it seems like I have to take everything apart again… sigh. Oh well, thanks to your video, it won’t be too bad. Again, thanks for your help.
Rich
I have been looking all over for the synthetic oil you mention for the carriage assy pole but i can’t find it.
Is is absolutely necessary to use synthetic oil only?
Yes. It’s not hard to find check any big fabric store, it’ common for sewing machines.
Hi Bryan
I’d firstly like to say what a fantastic video you did!
I had an electrical engineer to replace the belt on my HP Z2100 and I’ve tried to do the calibrations that you stated on the video but I’ve come across 2 errors.
1st: Carriage Assembly, it gets as far as:
Point 22 The Front Panel then prompts you to enable the Color Sensor (ESP) – do i want to enable it. But my problem is it is already enabled! So I said no to this and then it came up with an error 58.11 Fail. I tried doing it again and it still came up as enabled so I said to dis-enabled it and I came up with the same error.
I thought I’d do the other calibrations (in order even though the 1st one failed) and it was ok on Scan Axis but when I came to the Line Sensor Calibrations I got this:
2nd: Line Sensor Calibration, it gets as far as:
Point 5. The Printer will start to calibrate the Line Sensor position to the Black
Printhead. The printer will print a line of black dots and then scan them: All it does is print the dots then cut the paper and then it came up with an Error 2 – Fail.
The Sensor test and the cutter test came up ok.
Do you have any idea what I need to do, I ugently need to get this back up and running. Your help will be much appreciated?
The only things I can think of are something got broken during the process, or installed incorrectly. Or you aren’t testing fully assembled with the lid down.
As far as I’m aware everything went back on ok and I did test with it fully assembled with the lid down. I’ve got the printer to work even though I had the both errors. I’ve done all the paper calibrations and the ICC profiles and it takes the paper in no problem and its working fine. I did find some info on line yesterday that someone else had the same 58.11 error and they said their printer is working fine with this error too. So I’ll just have to keep my eye on it. Do you think it’ll be ok to use?
I have no idea, I have never had those errors. All I know is every single person that has written me with errors after the install broke something or tested improperly.