Various print quality issues
So, after being completely astounded at the quality of everything I've printed (PLA, PETG & TPU) from my first ever 3d printer, and one I put together myself no less - it just worked - I'm suddenly seeing a lot of issues with my prints. I've gone from pretty much perfect prints every time to pretty much failures every time.
Unfortunately (because I'm an idiot) I've changed a few things at once so its difficult to nail the issues to one change. Over the weekend I:
- Updated to the IS RC firmware (I've been running the Alpha firmware for weeks with no problems)
- Changed to a V6 nozzle adapter
- Changed to E3D Nozzle X (got 0.4, 0.6 & 0.8)
- Added a silicon sock
I'm also still a 3d printing noob so not even sure I understand/know what the issues are so can't begin to fix them... I'll do my best to describe the issues and what I think may be causing them for others to share their greater wisdom:
- First layer is hit and miss. Sometimes its perfect, sometimes the filament isn't getting squished enough, sometimes it doesn't adhere to the bed. I pretty much always use a 5mm brim. With the 0.8 nozzle the filament doesn't squish down, and the individual strands do not touch each other so there is a gap between them. This can happen with the whole first layer too, so layer 1 of the bottom shell has gaps
- I'm getting issues with layer adhesion as I go up through the z axis, with parts breaking apart with very little force - this happens with 0.4 and 0.8 prints so far
- The biggest issue seems to be "glooping" of melted filament on the nozzle itself. So, if the layer doesn't squish properly it gets dragged by the next layer. This causes really rough layers, and a lot of filament building up around the hotend. It seems to be worse if the nozzle has to do a lot of "hops" from place to place - if it is continuously extruding it seems to get better.
I don't know where to start with all this. Do I need to meddle with temp, speed, retraction, flow, something else?! I was spoiled with a printer that just worked so don't know some of the basics.
Photos below are of a 0.8 print - 0.4 is similar but gloops and artefacts are obviously a bit smaller in size but no less frequent.
(Sorry for long post!)
Best Answer by MysticGringo:
Popping and bursting noise sounds like wet filament. That would lead to a lot of the issues you're seeing.
Also, as you're fairly new at this, I would hold off on making so many changes until you get things dialed. Go back to 0.4 nozzle, and print with that for a while, changing one thing here or there until you're comfortable.
Couldn't edit the original post so wanted to add:
- I'm using Prusament PETG for these tests
- I'm using PrusaSlicer, and the standard configuration profiles supplied by Prusa
- When printing, I can hear a popping or bursting noise from the hot-end as the filament passes through
RE:
Couldn't edit the original post so wanted to add:
- I'm using Prusament PETG for these tests
- I'm using PrusaSlicer, and the standard configuration profiles supplied by Prusa
- When printing, I can hear a popping or bursting noise from the hot-end as the filament passes through
RE: Various print quality issues
That looks really shit ......
I would first install the original nozzle to test.I would suspect that something went wrong when installing the adapter.
So first of all a step back.
If everything fits again, try the adapter again.But I would first try without IS.
RE: Various print quality issues
That looks really shit ......
It really is!! Thanks - I'll go back to complete standard and go from there... Scientific method FTW.
Whilst I was typing my original post, I kicked off a simple vase mode print of a jar. Its a great example of the issues I'm seeing and inconsistency.
First layer went down perfectly. 2nd layer I could see the nozzle dragging. Continuous vase is a thing of perfection! You can see how bad the 2nd layer was inside the bottom of the jar:
RE: Various print quality issues
Popping and bursting noise sounds like wet filament. That would lead to a lot of the issues you're seeing.
Also, as you're fairly new at this, I would hold off on making so many changes until you get things dialed. Go back to 0.4 nozzle, and print with that for a while, changing one thing here or there until you're comfortable.
Couldn't edit the original post so wanted to add:
- I'm using Prusament PETG for these tests
- I'm using PrusaSlicer, and the standard configuration profiles supplied by Prusa
- When printing, I can hear a popping or bursting noise from the hot-end as the filament passes through
First dry your filament so we can see what is going on without that interfering. Look up threads here about filament drying.
Restore the machine to factory settings.
And reprint the part shown in your original post using the same, dried filament - it's ok to stop the print and save filament once you see obvious flaws but we need a comparison.
Come back if issues remain.
Cheerio,
RE: Various print quality issues
Thanks for the quick advice and help.
Looks like it was wet filament. I completely reset the machine to standard and started testing, changing only one thing at a time and running test prints. In doing so, I switched to a brand new, still sealed roll of filament and all problems have disappeared.
After iterating through a few changes, I'm now back running the IS RC firmware, have squash suspension balls fitted, and the 0.6 Nozzle X from E3D and I've just re-printed the black part in new filament and it is again a thing of perfection (there's a very small amount of very fine stringing but I've not dialled in temp. for this new filament yet.)
My naivety at how quickly filament can absorb moisture came into play - it's Prusament PETG that has been sat on the printer in the open for about a week. I didn't realise it would happen so quickly. Lesson learned! (The positive in all of this is how little I've had to worry/learn about the details of 3D printing because the MK4 just works. All of these potential issues and endless meddling is what's stopped me investing in a random cheap machine for years.)
RE: Various print quality issues
Ok, maybe it wasn't just wet filament. I'm seeing a number of odd issues with printer now, covered in other threads I've added to. When it prints, the quality is spot on - the issue appears elsewhere now.
Yes, there were signs that you might have been printing too fast. If the strength and surface finish are acceptable for your use-case then fine, or if you are post processing/painting the part then carry on. Otherwise slow down by 10% or so...
In extreme humid conditions PETG can absorb water so fast that the end of a long print can be noticeably worse than the start.
Cheerio,