Having issues with first benchy (and 2nd, 3rd, 4th...)
I received an MK4, fully built. Removed from packaging (the shipper had delivered it on its back, not sure if it was upright through the rest of the shipping experience though. I righted the box, extracted the printer, and ran through the setup process by the book. It all went smoothly. Loaded up the Galaxy PLA that was included with the printer, and ran the benchy test print:
Comparing this to my other first benchies from an Ender 3 S1 and Bambu P1S, there are some obvious issues—most notably, around any transition from fill to surface, there was a noticeable layer shift, like 1-1.5mm! I posted this to Twitter, and got some helpful responses, a few people said to use the Prusa Belt Tuner web app.
I did that, and switched filaments to Prusament's Prusa Orange, and here's the result, with the same file:
I had loosened the Y-axis belt a little, as the app was saying it was too tight (like 120 Hz or so), so I loosened it underneath until it was in the green range and the app said 'just right' (and yes, I was plucking just the top of the belt, not touching both belts, etc.). I had printed that at the same time as my Bambu P1S was printing alongside it, so I wondered if maybe the table's shaking could've caused the issues to get worse.
So this morning, after taking a few more Twitter suggestions into account, I ran another print without the Bambu running, just to get a baseline and make sure table vibration from another printer wasn't an issue (a lot of people told me it shouldn't be... but I like being sure). Here's that print:
I also physically pushed around on the hot end (when it was not hot), the print head/extruder, and the y-axis bed, and all are solid, with no wobble (okay scientifically speaking maybe like 0.01mm since nothing is perfect), but they are very solid, no wobbling or anything.
I also sliced my own benchy and am running two test prints now, one with input shaping, the other without, just to get baselines there.
Are there any other things I should check on, or should I re-check the belt tightness again? A lot of people seemed to think that could be the problem. I wish there were a more scientific way to check belt tensioning than plucking the belts with the app...
RE: Having issues with first benchy (and 2nd, 3rd, 4th...)
After another post this morning on Twitter, a few people mentioned I could try:
- Adjust the axis position in the menus
- Try to move the axis back and forth
On the Y-axis, it was rigid, and would not move back and forth.
On the Z-axis, I can move the print head assembly back and forth a couple mm (it takes a little force to do it, but not too much, and the motor seems to catch it within 2mm or so of travel back and forth).
RE: Having issues with first benchy (and 2nd, 3rd, 4th...)
And after watching this build guide, I noticed there's a set screw on the x-axis pulley, which needs to be tightened. Looking at my machine, as I moved the X-axis around while the motor was engaged, I did see the pulley had a little slack as the set screw must've come out slightly during shipping (it's a long way from Prague to St. Louis!).
I have tightened the set screw, and now there is no wobble in the x-axis. I am re-printing benchy and will report back how it turns out!
RE: Having issues with first benchy (and 2nd, 3rd, 4th...)
That seems to have done the trick; a perfect benchy!
Thanks especially to those in this thread who helped me look up the set screw on the x-axis pulley.
RE: Having issues with first benchy (and 2nd, 3rd, 4th...)
And after watching this build guide, I noticed there's a set screw on the x-axis pulley, which needs to be tightened. Looking at my machine, as I moved the X-axis around while the motor was engaged, I did see the pulley had a little slack as the set screw must've come out slightly during shipping (it's a long way from Prague to St. Louis!).
I have tightened the set screw, and now there is no wobble in the x-axis. I am re-printing benchy and will report back how it turns out!
Glad my build guide helped 😉
Happy printing!
--> MK4 - MK4S - MINI+ - Accelerometer Guide - BambuLab A1 Combo <--
Glad to hear you fixed it. This might help:
https://www.prusaprinters.org/prints/46639-tension-meter-for-the-gt2-belts-of-i3-mk3s-or-prus
- It's also ok for Mk4.
It MUST be printed in Prusament PETG or the spring tension will be wrong.
Cheerio,