A couple things: 1) It's much easier to work on this if you remove the motor (with two blue wires) in this area is not in the way. With a small flathead screwdriver, GENTLY pull back on the single, FLAT (not the two angled ones) BLACK plastic tab touching the WHITE center of the motor spindle. While doing this pull up on the motor and it will come right out. 2) The fix proposed here is going to disable the printer from doing a manual feed. This is because the purpose of that "white tab" is to tell the printer that the auto feed paper tray is closed. The paper tray has a tabe that pushes this white tab in and that in turn pushes the gear up so the front roller (the one that pulls paper from the auto feeder) can pull sheets. When you pull the tray out the spring is SUPPOSED to push the WHITE tab back effectively cutting off the function of the auto feeder. So, if you remove this spring and push the tab in so the gears are always engaged the printer is ONLY ever going to be fed from the auto feeder. You are forcing your printer into auto feed mode. If you lost your spring then this might be the only option. If it's still there you should set it up so that it pushes the tab back toward the front of the printer when the paper tray is pulled out. 3) Make sure to lay the printer with the side you are working on facing UP because if you disengage the white tab from the gears it can fall right out (yes seriously) and it is not fun to try and get it back in (guess how I know). Hope this is helpful to someone.
More importantly is to understand how that white tab is kept from shifting while pushing in the tray. Everyone's problem is that the tiny arm on the tray side of the white tab has warped or broken off and keeps sliding off the rail when inserting the tray. The spring is to the left so naturally it gets pushed in that direction. Hooking the white tab onto that smiley face shaped slot so it doesn't shift away from the tray is the key. No need to remove the motor. Am I a mechanical engineer? No. Just a college dropout using amphetamines to treat his ADHD who had five minutes to spare. Okay ten. It took me ten minutes to find the root of the problem. But without you and the creator of this video it would've taken me at least a few hours. Thank you.
A thank you to you. I was able to get the white tab back into place and the printer is working fine now. Once the tab seemed to be in the correct position I inserted the paper tray while the printer was on its side and the side panel still off and was able to ascertain that the gear was pushed up and engaged. When I removed the tray, the gear dropped back down. Thank you for your clear explanation.
Worked like a charm. I tried another fix from another video and was ready to buy another printer when I watched this. I small piece of rubber later and I have printer back! Thanks!
Another printer saved from the landfill (mine)! Not all heroes wear capes… can’t express enough how I appreciate that people like you take the time to make such detailed videos, or detailed comments so that people like me who know nothing about these things are able to repair them by themselves easily and for free….
Saved me from buying a new printer!!! Big thanks bro! Took me about 30 minutes because I was cautious with my 2270, but a piece of foam did the trick exactly like you said it would. Very impressive!
This worked for my HL-2270DW as well! I just shoved a folded up piece paper behind that white plastic latch, which moved those top gears forward to engage with the one from the paper tray. Now printing works great from the tray. THANK YOU!! You saved me $150+ on a new printer. Very grateful
Excellent! This saved my old and trustworthy printer. I used a piece of sturdy foam and thus it worked like a charm again. I haven't even used the single page feeder in years, so no problem loosing it. Thank you very much for this video! GREAT!!! :)
A medium bulldog clip without the handles, worked perfectly for the wedge. The out of paper error happened after I replaced the feeder rollers, but thanks to this video, it's all up and working again! Cheers man!
Fantastic video . . . I stuck a small piece of cardboard (from a toner cartridge box) in there and it’s working perfectly!!! Thanks so much for posting this video . . . Brother should compensate you for all the money they should be paying their worthless tech support dept.!!!
I give you millions thanks for you and gods gave me a chance to find this video. It was last second that I give up and think to buy another printer. But once more time I try to figure out how I can fix it then I watched your video. Thank you very much again. Gods bless you.
Incredible! Was able to use this to get an old HL-2240 that wouldn't pick up paper in like a couple years to pick up paper again. I needed a screwdriver, needle nose pliers, and tweezers. This got me in and I saw the plastic piece that was just floating no longer in place. Put it back in place with tweezers and that held up the gear that wasn't connecting. (See also the 22 second video about fixing the HL-2240 for another view). Putting the plastic wing back into place on its peg such that it lifted the gear and let them connect it worked perfectly.
Can confirm this works! Did exactly as the video. I thought I was hopeless as a 27 female with no computer or parts knowledge lol. But I’m so proud of myself! Thanks for the video, lifesaver!
Well done! I was thinking I'd have to order a new printer from BestBuy because I couldn't figure out why the paper wasn't getting pulled up. Problem solved now thanks to you! Great job and thanks for sharing!!
Thank you so much for this video ,I was about to buy a new one. I put a piece used bounce fabric softener in between and now the printer works again! All the best to you !!!
I just tried this. Knowing how to remove the panel was helpful. I discovered after a couple of failed attempts that the little white piece being wedged in video had been unseated and only needed to be pushed into the printer to reseat in proper position and PRESTO! Printo! Good Luck!
This worked easy. Yeah it disables the manual feed but I never use it anyway. It's a $4 laser printer that should do what I need until it dies. Great explanation. Flat head will do this quick. I just shoved a small piece of paper folded a few times so it was thick enough. Worked instantly.
Many thanks for this video--I had some important documents to print and this worked a treat. Mine was a HL-2270dw series and the procedure was identical; I didn't even need the screwdriver or scissors! My object of choice was a folded-up cue card, so there's a few household items that can achieve this fix.
That 23-second video was worthless because it didn't show how to access the printer's innards. Thanks to your more detailed video, my printer is again feeding paper. Thank you SO much! Of course I gave it a "like." I'm #18. 😃
I was able to narrow down the problem to that area and understand how to cogs behaved thanks to your video. Mine turned out to be broken, I fixed it with a paper clip that I wrapped around in there to hold the cog in place. Saved my printer in about an hour of troubleshooting instead of buying a new one for 300$ or getting it fixed. Thanks @Ricky Adames
Hey - wow, this fixed my printer. Specifically in my case, the upper gear seemed to be recessed into the printer and therefore not near the outside where it can engage with the lower gear. (The upper gear transfers drive from the motor to the pickup rollers). I found it was helpful to remove the small metal panel (embossed with "5" just above this area, that give me much better visibility into this area). In addition to the wedge technique described in the video, I found I had to pull the upper gear towards me to help with the engagement, also with then wedging to hold in place. The weird thing is, once I had everything lined up, and did a test print, my wedge popped out, but the printer continued to work. With the #5 panel removed, I could see there is some sort of spring behind the upper gear, that seems like it is supposed to keep this engaged - perhaps there's some sort of lockout that disengaged.
Thank you! This worked for me :) I used a standard 2x2 Lego brick to wedge behind the grey flap so it kept the two gears engaged. Presumably the gears must be able to disengage for a reason so perhaps another function won't work now? However, basic printing capability is restored!
Hey Ricky - You're a GENIUS! The original HL-2240 printer (New) is hard to find. Sometimes, (if actually new), they can sell anywhere between $200 & Up on Ebay! I don't even know if its available 'New' anymore? Thank you my friend ....
Thank you for you video. Great explanation. I was able to get the paper feed to work put now the ink isn't working. Its hard to believe this is coincidental. IS it possible that something that has to do the the printing mechanism shifted in the process?
Nice video - did not have this problem but had paper from tray just starting to feed then stopping or not picking up at all- cleaned all rubber rollers including tray rollers and underside foot/kick rubber roller but still did not work - found that the rubber/foam pad just next to the roller in the front of the paper tray was not giving enough friction to the foot roller that kicks/picks up the paper and pushes it into the 2nd set of rollers - added a small piece of electrical tape (cut neatly with scissors) on top of this pad to get it thicker and it started picking up perfectly.
I wish I had watched this one before the 20 second one, lol! I folded a business card up and the combination of the sturdiness of the material and small size, it was a perfect fit!
Thanks Ricky! very helpful! but instead of shoving a piece of foam, I released that silver thing (which acts as a spring). so the spring wont push that little bastard lever back and if you put the gear in its place it does not move back anymore. ;)
Great video and very helpful: can you please explain what would case the paper to crease as it goes through the print process? Prints okay but the paper gets a crease in it - each page, same place. I would think it has something to do with the paper feed but a lot can go wrong if I just go in and try to fix the creasing. Your comments will be much appreciated.. Thanks
Thanks, this had been annoying me for a while. I took the bottom spring out, set the plastic piece in place, and filled the area with packing paper. Seems to work.
In the video I show the left gear and the right gear which needs to engage the left gear. After i shot this video i pryed the left gear foward with my screwdriver and the left gear popped forward and sort of locked into place and started turning automatically so if you pry the left gear forward pull the screw driver out of the way quickly if the gear starts spinning quickly like mine did. I think the brother printer sensed it was in position after i pulled the left gear towards me with the screwdriver and started turning the gears.
A couple things: 1) It's much easier to work on this if you remove the motor (with two blue wires) in this area is not in the way. With a small flathead screwdriver, GENTLY pull back on the single, FLAT (not the two angled ones) BLACK plastic tab touching the WHITE center of the motor spindle. While doing this pull up on the motor and it will come right out. 2) The fix proposed here is going to disable the printer from doing a manual feed. This is because the purpose of that "white tab" is to tell the printer that the auto feed paper tray is closed. The paper tray has a tabe that pushes this white tab in and that in turn pushes the gear up so the front roller (the one that pulls paper from the auto feeder) can pull sheets. When you pull the tray out the spring is SUPPOSED to push the WHITE tab back effectively cutting off the function of the auto feeder. So, if you remove this spring and push the tab in so the gears are always engaged the printer is ONLY ever going to be fed from the auto feeder. You are forcing your printer into auto feed mode. If you lost your spring then this might be the only option. If it's still there you should set it up so that it pushes the tab back toward the front of the printer when the paper tray is pulled out. 3) Make sure to lay the printer with the side you are working on facing UP because if you disengage the white tab from the gears it can fall right out (yes seriously) and it is not fun to try and get it back in (guess how I know). Hope this is helpful to someone.
Thank you for your tricks, it helps to pull out the motor.
Thank you!
Super-helpful, thanks. I was going to toss my HL-2270dw but 10 minutes, this video and your comment saved the day!
More importantly is to understand how that white tab is kept from shifting while pushing in the tray. Everyone's problem is that the tiny arm on the tray side of the white tab has warped or broken off and keeps sliding off the rail when inserting the tray. The spring is to the left so naturally it gets pushed in that direction. Hooking the white tab onto that smiley face shaped slot so it doesn't shift away from the tray is the key. No need to remove the motor. Am I a mechanical engineer? No. Just a college dropout using amphetamines to treat his ADHD who had five minutes to spare. Okay ten. It took me ten minutes to find the root of the problem. But without you and the creator of this video it would've taken me at least a few hours. Thank you.
A thank you to you. I was able to get the white tab back into place and the printer is working fine now. Once the tab seemed to be in the correct position I inserted the paper tray while the printer was on its side and the side panel still off and was able to ascertain that the gear was pushed up and engaged. When I removed the tray, the gear dropped back down. Thank you for your clear explanation.
Worked like a charm. I tried another fix from another video and was ready to buy another printer when I watched this. I small piece of rubber later and I have printer back! Thanks!
That's what I'm talking about! Glad you bought some more life time for your printer :) Makes me happy to hear these stories
Dude calling you a legend is an understatement. Thank you so much!
I'm flattered but I'm more glad it really helped you!
Another printer saved from the landfill (mine)! Not all heroes wear capes… can’t express enough how I appreciate that people like you take the time to make such detailed videos, or detailed comments so that people like me who know nothing about these things are able to repair them by themselves easily and for free….
It also means alot to me that you leave time to comment. thank you so much for writing and I'm so glad you saved your printer! Good job!!!
Saved me from buying a new printer!!! Big thanks bro! Took me about 30 minutes because I was cautious with my 2270, but a piece of foam did the trick exactly like you said it would. Very impressive!
Glad you liked the video!
This worked for my HL-2270DW as well! I just shoved a folded up piece paper behind that white plastic latch, which moved those top gears forward to engage with the one from the paper tray. Now printing works great from the tray. THANK YOU!! You saved me $150+ on a new printer. Very grateful
thanks so much Ricky! I was able to fix my printer with your video and I'm sooooooo grateful to you for posting how to do it! Appreciate you!!!
Excellent! This saved my old and trustworthy printer. I used a piece of sturdy foam and thus it worked like a charm again. I haven't even used the single page feeder in years, so no problem loosing it. Thank you very much for this video! GREAT!!! :)
Im super glad it helped you!
A medium bulldog clip without the handles, worked perfectly for the wedge.
The out of paper error happened after I replaced the feeder rollers, but thanks to this video, it's all up and working again! Cheers man!
omg, great!
Fixed a Brother HL-2250DN with this video. Thank you.
Helped me fix my printer in the middle of a blizzard! Life saver.
Thank you very much. I had the same problem and your tip works. Saved me a new printer....thanks!!!!! It seems a typical problem for this printer.
Fantastic video . . . I stuck a small piece of cardboard (from a toner cartridge box) in there and it’s working perfectly!!! Thanks so much for posting this video . . . Brother should compensate you for all the money they should be paying their worthless tech support dept.!!!
Lol, your comment is so funny. I'm glad you got your printer working! I agree I will not buy another brother printer.
one of the most direct an valuable videos on RUclips.
Man I love to hear that!
I give you millions thanks for you and gods gave me a chance to find this video. It was last second that I give up and think to buy another printer. But once more time I try to figure out how I can fix it then I watched your video. Thank you very much again. Gods bless you.
I'm really glad this helped you, Takuma! I am thankful you found time to watch my video!
Thanks you so much, I was skeptical but it's turned to be the same problem as you. I followed your video and my printer work again :)
Incredible! Was able to use this to get an old HL-2240 that wouldn't pick up paper in like a couple years to pick up paper again. I needed a screwdriver, needle nose pliers, and tweezers. This got me in and I saw the plastic piece that was just floating no longer in place. Put it back in place with tweezers and that held up the gear that wasn't connecting. (See also the 22 second video about fixing the HL-2240 for another view). Putting the plastic wing back into place on its peg such that it lifted the gear and let them connect it worked perfectly.
Thank you for this video. I was skeptical but didn't want to buy a new printer. Followed your steps and works perfectly.
Can confirm this works! Did exactly as the video. I thought I was hopeless as a 27 female with no computer or parts knowledge lol. But I’m so proud of myself! Thanks for the video, lifesaver!
Well done! I was thinking I'd have to order a new printer from BestBuy because I couldn't figure out why the paper wasn't getting pulled up. Problem solved now thanks to you! Great job and thanks for sharing!!
Hell yeah! Thanks for watching and commenting
Thank you! I've just fixed my first printer and I could not be more pleased.
Great video very help full printer is now printing fine thank you so much for your right advise
Thank you so much for this video ,I was about to buy a new one.
I put a piece used bounce fabric softener in between and now the printer works again!
All the best to you !!!
Thank you so much for explaining how to get the thing apart! It worked wonderfully and we avoided an Office Space moment. 🙂
Thank you so much. This solved the issue for the printer. Really appreciate it!
I fixed my problem in a few minutes with these instructions. I used folded up paper and my printer is working properly again.
Thanks for showing in detail how to remove the side panel. On my 2240, there is one more tab to loosen, on the upper front side.
I just tried this. Knowing how to remove the panel was helpful. I discovered after a couple of failed attempts that the little white piece being wedged in video had been unseated and only needed to be pushed into the printer to reseat in proper position and PRESTO! Printo! Good Luck!
Thank you so much for making this video. I was able to fix my printer. At least for the time being, we’ll see how long it lasts.
Many thanks, Ricky! You just saved me some cabbage.
dude you deserve an environment gold metal for not wasting countless printers. Just fixed mine with some cardboard.✌
"Before you bet the hell out of this thing with a baseball bat..." You just earned a new sub! 🤣
Thank you for this video!! I was in a bit of a pickle because i was by myself when my printer quit....very good instructions!🎉🎉🎉
This worked easy. Yeah it disables the manual feed but I never use it anyway. It's a $4 laser printer that should do what I need until it dies. Great explanation. Flat head will do this quick. I just shoved a small piece of paper folded a few times so it was thick enough. Worked instantly.
Many thanks for this video--I had some important documents to print and this worked a treat. Mine was a HL-2270dw series and the procedure was identical; I didn't even need the screwdriver or scissors! My object of choice was a folded-up cue card, so there's a few household items that can achieve this fix.
Hell yeah! glad similar models can have a similar fix!
Thank you so much for taking the time and uploading this video! Helped me a lot!
worked for me, took me 2 minutes to figure it out
totally worked! Thank you for this video!!!!
thanks a lot. I fixed the same problem of mine using your way. Appreciated very much!
That 23-second video was worthless because it didn't show how to access the printer's innards. Thanks to your more detailed video, my printer is again feeding paper. Thank you SO much! Of course I gave it a "like." I'm #18. 😃
of Course! good job fixing it :)
I was able to narrow down the problem to that area and understand how to cogs behaved thanks to your video. Mine turned out to be broken, I fixed it with a paper clip that I wrapped around in there to hold the cog in place. Saved my printer in about an hour of troubleshooting instead of buying a new one for 300$ or getting it fixed. Thanks @Ricky Adames
Hell yeah! I'm glad you saved the money! $300 saved is $300 earned!
Great video. On mine, the white plastic tab had come off its shaft. Back in business again!
Noice!
WoW!!! Thank you sooo much!!! My printer works! So happy!!
thank you so much! you just saved me the cost of a new printer!!
haha, i love that!
Thank you so very much, successfully repaired mine too. These machines have been so mysterious when you get a glance inside...
true dat!
It worked! And I can't fix anything without breaking it first! Thank you!!
Thank you!! Worked for me. I was so frustrated.
Hell yeah, Rhonda! You show that printer who's boss!!
Worked like a charm, great insight and fix, thank you!
You are so welcome!
Thank you. You fixed it!!!
you saved me. Did exactly what you said and printers works again...
And then a miracle happened, you're the best
No, you are :)
Dude you rock. I wedged a cut price of an eraser in there and it works great. Thanks!
Life Saver!! Mine ended up just needing a little manually toggling of the tab. Somehow that fixed it.
This fix worked on HL-2220 as well. Thank you very much. 🤓
Hey - wow, this fixed my printer. Specifically in my case, the upper gear seemed to be recessed into the printer and therefore not near the outside where it can engage with the lower gear. (The upper gear transfers drive from the motor to the pickup rollers). I found it was helpful to remove the small metal panel (embossed with "5" just above this area, that give me much better visibility into this area). In addition to the wedge technique described in the video, I found I had to pull the upper gear towards me to help with the engagement, also with then wedging to hold in place.
The weird thing is, once I had everything lined up, and did a test print, my wedge popped out, but the printer continued to work.
With the #5 panel removed, I could see there is some sort of spring behind the upper gear, that seems like it is supposed to keep this engaged - perhaps there's some sort of lockout that disengaged.
interesting!
Thank you for saving me from buying a new one! I did just what you said. Used paper to stuff it up!
This worked great. Thanks!
It worked for me, thanks :)
Fantastic. Glad it helped!!
It worked! Thanks for the video!!
Thanks for watching! Glad it helped you :)
THANK YOU SO MUCH! This saved me hundreds of dollars! Appreciate it!
i appreciate you watching!
Great fix! This totally did the trick!
Thank you, Ricky !
You're super welcome!
Incredible it actually fixed the problem. Thank you!
You're super welcome!
Saved my day! Thank you so much!!!
Awesome! I'm really glad it helped you!
thanks for helping, good solution!
Hell yeah! Glad to hear!
worked like a charm. thanks bud!!!
fixed in 5 minutes, thanks, subscribed
Thank you this kept me from buying a new printer!
Thanks genius!
That's what I'm talking about! :)
Thank you! This worked for me :) I used a standard 2x2 Lego brick to wedge behind the grey flap so it kept the two gears engaged. Presumably the gears must be able to disengage for a reason so perhaps another function won't work now? However, basic printing capability is restored!
It works! Thank you so much! :)
Absolute lifesaver. Thank you!
You are so welcome!
Yay, thanks for the vid which fixed my printer!!! ☺
Hey Ricky - You're a GENIUS! The original HL-2240 printer (New) is hard to find. Sometimes, (if actually new), they can sell anywhere between $200 & Up on Ebay! I don't even know if its available 'New' anymore? Thank you my friend ....
Thank you so much for your kind words. I'm really really glad this saved your printer!!
Totally worked! Thank you!
Excellent video. Many thanks.
My HL2321D duplex was working fine. Suddenly duplex stopped working. One sided is printing fine. Could you please suggest.
Thank you for you video. Great explanation. I was able to get the paper feed to work put now the ink isn't working. Its hard to believe this is coincidental. IS it possible that something that has to do the the printing mechanism shifted in the process?
I’m not sure but I think there are other RUclips videos that might be able to help
Nice video - did not have this problem but had paper from tray just starting to feed then stopping or not picking up at all- cleaned all rubber rollers including tray rollers and underside foot/kick rubber roller but still did not work - found that the rubber/foam pad just next to the roller in the front of the paper tray was not giving enough friction to the foot roller that kicks/picks up the paper and pushes it into the 2nd set of rollers - added a small piece of electrical tape (cut neatly with scissors) on top of this pad to get it thicker and it started picking up perfectly.
Great tip. It worked beautifully for me! Thank you so much.
You are so welcome!
Fixed mine thank you!!
I have a question. Is the connecting foam or paper permanent? or only 1 time until the printer takes paper?
I wish I had watched this one before the 20 second one, lol! I folded a business card up and the combination of the sturdiness of the material and small size, it was a perfect fit!
Nice!
Works. Fixed. Thanks.
Aa hah 😂 it worked for me as well. Thanks, man! RUclips is great!
Genius. It worked!!
Thanks !i fixed my printer !
So helpful, thank you!
Great fix. Thank you. My printer is now working. X
so glad this helped!
Worked! THANKS!
golden tip to put something in between
Thanks Ricky! very helpful! but instead of shoving a piece of foam, I released that silver thing (which acts as a spring). so the spring wont push that little bastard lever back and if you put the gear in its place it does not move back anymore. ;)
That worked thanks so much!
Thank you very much yes that help me I really appreciate
Thanks for that. It works also on a Brother HL2250 DN.
Glad to hear that!
Great video and very helpful: can you please explain what would case the paper to crease as it goes through the print process? Prints okay but the paper gets a crease in it - each page, same place. I would think it has something to do with the paper feed but a lot can go wrong if I just go in and try to fix the creasing. Your comments will be much appreciated.. Thanks
Thanks, this had been annoying me for a while. I took the bottom spring out, set the plastic piece in place, and filled the area with packing paper. Seems to work.
In the video I show the left gear and the right gear which needs to engage the left gear. After i shot this video i pryed the left gear foward with my screwdriver and the left gear popped forward and sort of locked into place and started turning automatically so if you pry the left gear forward pull the screw driver out of the way quickly if the gear starts spinning quickly like mine did. I think the brother printer sensed it was in position after i pulled the left gear towards me with the screwdriver and started turning the gears.
thank you so much!!!
this worked...thanks