General 3D printing questions and answers, tips and tricks

Got a problem with 3D printing? Need general advice?

Post in here and we’ll do our best to help you out.

1 Like

I did have a issue , but soon realised that it was my mistake …

I printed a drawer which was going to take about 6 hours , so setup the sd card and boom! hit the start button… and I buggered off!!

3 hrs in I went have a look and the drawer had lifted on one side …

Now there was a couple of mistakes I found that I did incorrect.
Firstly I did not level the bed before I started .
Secondly, I put the bed on 60c and originally it was on 50c … (I reckon to much heat)
Thirdly, I upped the nozzle temperature to 215c. (got slightly stringy)

My original setting were on the nozzle 200c and bed 50c … Now these settings worked , why I changed them, I don’t know…

Moral of this story is check, your bed and work with temperatures that are stable , it is so easy to get side tracked… and its not good after 3 hrs of printing placing your print in the bin…

PLA rule of thumb, nozzle between 200 and 220 check the roll of filament the temps will be on side of the roll.

Bed temp I pretty much always print at 60 to 65.

Always watch the 1st layer go down as a minimum (I tend to watch the first few layers until the infill layer starts) and make sure its correct if a print is going to fail 9 times out of 10 its because your 1st layer isn’t good. The way to think about the first layer, its the foundation of the whole print.

If you’re finding corners are lifting this is called warping there are a few causes. Most common would be an unlevel bed.

In your slicer you can add a brim or raft to help combat warping. Brim is probably the best to use for warping. Just make sure you set a 0.4mm brim gap this will help in the removal of the brim once the print has finished :ok_hand:t2:

1 Like

Thanks Deanio ,

Valuable information you’ve provided …

I have now set the bed at 55 and Nozzle at 210 … I have levelled the bed … Now watching the first level which fingers crossed looks ok …

I am printing a bottom draw for my ender 3 … I have already printed top drawer and that is come out good…

But the bottom drawer is much wider , so I will frequently keep my eyeballs on that one …

Thanks for your advice …

Any more questions or issues just ask :+1:t2:

1 Like

As I said in another thread… Pritt stick… Stopped all this warping. Yes you need a level bed (you use the 5 x 20x20 squares or just the paper method?) but add pritt stick and nothing lifts :slight_smile:

1 Like

Makes a mess of your bed though… I much prefer to level the bed, then wipe down with IPA if I’m still getting warping after that then I just add a small 5/10mm brim with a 0.4mm brim gap. (Very rare I get to that stage though)

1 Like

Really it that bad? I used to clean with IsoP, now spray windolene on (cheaper too!), leave 2 mins and wipe off…

I’ve never really used brims yet (other than when needed supports), might give that a go (hey we all here to learn tips and tricks), I know you said about the .4mm gaps earlier, but it surely leaves “something” on the print? I dunno I’ll defo give it a bash :wink:

2 Likes

Heh just finished a print and this was “pritt stick”, before cleaning… Thats me mess

1 Like

Nail file if it bothers you that much lol

Honestly using bed adhesive is old school its from a time when heated beds didn’t exsist. But you know how it is with trades people a decorator won’t stop using his paint bush because they invented the roller as thats what he’s been using for years… they don’t move on.

And with 3D printing a long with any form of skill its what works for you. I’m not saying using pritt stick is wrong because if it works for you then it works.

:+1:t2:

1 Like

Oh yeah definately will try it at some point. Never sure what bed temp to use really, probably need to raise me bed a little more for TPU (seems it needs higher level).

A roller you say? I’m doing it wrong with brushes? :rofl: :rofl:

I know someone who will only use filament he can print at 190 or lower, weird… Dunno the reason, other than cooler the better? Still I got some decent filament for half price :slight_smile: :slight_smile:

Bed temp for PLA and TPU I use 60 on my ender 3.

TPU needs less squish for the first layer :+1:t2:

1 Like

And just to add to the mix, I’m currently printing TPU at 228°C nozzle and 25°C (0° setting) bed with no issues. That’s more or less the manufacturer’s recommendations:
image

I might try bringing the nozzle temp down a bit for the next print. :person_shrugging:

It seems there really are no hard and fast rules, just guidelines and experience. :smiley:

Yes this is 100% correct.

There are so many factors in 3D printing what works for you might not work for somebody else. Each printer even the same make and model will be different. Each filament will be different.

Its down to experience and trial and error get to know your machine and what works best for your particular machine and filament.

yeah loads of trial and error, and if you get new filament… Start again. I actually got round to making and printing some temp towers… Though they boring to make and no fun!

1 Like

I use the wife hair spray! As a glue onto the glass plateWorks every time

Where do I start :grinning:

Thingiverse :+1:t2: :rofl:

A post was merged into an existing topic: The Great Big Everlasting Football Thread, Play nicely children!

Ender 3 v2 neo?