Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?  

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

No matter what filament you are using, if you don't like the "pebbled" surface from the powder coated textured sheet, then by all means, use a smooth sheet instead. The slicer has no way of knowing what sheet you are using.I ordered a replacement PEI sheet, intended to repair damaged smooth sheets and affixed it to one side of my textured sheet. That way I have my choice of smooth or textured surfaces without having to change the live Z height everytime I change it since the thickness of the sheet doesn't change when I turn it over.

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

Sometimes the "pebbled" surface looks good but I would prefer to have consistency. That is, if one surface has "pebbled" looks, better to have the same look on the entire printed objects. Can this be done?

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

@peter-c20

You might look at the "fuzzy skin" option available with the Cura slicer. I think Prusa may be experimenting with such a setting, but currently only top and bottom surfaces have specifiable textures. And although you can specify a texture for the bottom layer, what you get is much more dependent on the nature of the build sheet than it is of the specified texture.

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

@reddawg

Thank you. I will have a look at Cura slicer. Where can I specify specifiable textures on the top and bottom surfaces under PrusaSlicer? 

Speaking of top surface, why there are visible diagonal lines and perimeters on the top surface of all printed models? Shouldn't there be a kind of top cover to cover those diagonal lines and the perimeters?

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

@peter-c20

On the "Infill" tab, available in all modes.

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

@reddawg

Do you mean Infill->Top fill pattern and Infill->Bottom fill pattern control how the top and bottom surfaces of the printed objects look like? Both of them are set to Rectilinear. On top surface of printed objects, I always see diagonal lines and perimeters. As for the bottom surface, the Powered Coated Sheet dictates the "pebbled" surface even I have brims.

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

@peter-c20

Experiment with the various selections. I find that the "Hilbert Curve" option produces a pleasing texture, similar to, but distinct from the pebbled appearance of the textured build plate.

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

@peter-c20

Yes the top surface will always show at least faint diagonal lines when the rectilinear option is chosen. It may be less noticeable if you choose the "ironing" option available on the Infill tab of the 2.3.0-alpha1 version of the slicer, but there are a lot of parameters within that option that will probably have to be tweaked for the filament you are using for best results. You can also rotate your object 45 degrees in the Z-axis so that the lines will appear aligned with either the X or Y axis, depending on which axis is active for the top-most layer. 

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

@reddawg

For this Top fill pattern (e.g. Hilbert Curve) and ironing options on Pursa Slicer and Cura, do they only work when the surface is flat? What happen to curved surfaces, say when printing an airplane?

Is 2.3.0-alpha1 working fine?

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

@peter-c20

Any layer that is a "top" layer, i.e., will not have anything on top of it will show the selected pattern, however in the case of a curved surface where the layers will display "terracing", the pattern will be discontinuous at successive layer "jumps" and may not be noticeable depending on how far the perimeter "recedes" from the one beneath it. Some experimentation is recommended.

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

I am trying out Hilbert Curve. I see lots of vibrations as the extruder keeps moving in very small bits to print the object. Will it be bad for the printer? I mean increase the chance of loosing the parts and require more printer maintenance? 

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

@peter-c20

Probably a little harder on the X-Y axis motors and/or bearings, but that's the way the effect is achieved.

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

I have installed 2.3.0-alpha3. Thanks for the link.

For the Ironing Type, what is the difference between All top surfaces, Topmost surface only and All solid surfaces? From the preview after slice, they all look the same with orange color. 

Is it possible to apply ironing on the base surface as well? From the preview, none of the three options can do it.

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

@peter-c20

Ironing is achieved by passing the heated nozzle close by the surfaces you specify but without extruding any filament. You will have to experiment changing the various ironing options to see what effect they have on the finished surface(s). Maybe someone has done that and will post pictures, I haven't.

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

I've tried ironing, it works so-so.  At least on Cura it does deposit a token amount of filament during the ironing strokes.

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

Yes, I have tried it (Prusa ironing) a couple of times and was underwhelmed with the results.

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

Have you tried tuning the ironing settings, maybe increase the flow rate slightly. I have to say I'm generally pleased with the effect, although the monotonic fill has had the biggest impact on my prints.

RE: Can I have smooth surface when printing PETG on Powered Coated Sheet?

@gordon-w

I noted earlier that the ironing function has many adjustable parameters, many of which may be filament or object geometry-specific for optimum results. It (ironing) may well be a useful function, but much individual experimentation is recommended to "dial-it-in" for your circumstances. IOW, YMMV.