RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
@crab - no argument re octopi, after you have a smooth running bone stock printer.
I got tired of the SD card shuffle and made the ‘upgrade’ to octopi after a few months learning how to print reliably and accurately with a stock printer. But there are many threads here where folks have added a raspberry pi and Octoprint to their setup and run into unexpected errors. Better to have a known ‘zero config’ point to work from, imo.
@robin - well said. The one non-Prusa routine I suggest to new users is the well known Jeff Jordan - ‘Life Adjust Z - my way’ first layer calibration prints. Once a user has a ‘rough’ Z value by using the built in first layer routine, switching to Jeff’s simple 75mm square, one layer prints really helps to see what your first layer looks like and dial in the fine adjustments. To this day I have the files on my SD card and run the calibration routine whenever I have a suspect first layer.
Forum Moderator @joantabb has an excellent post on sheet cleaning and proper Z values that should be permanently pinned to the ‘First Prints Troubleshooting’ section of the forums. Maybe she’ll see this thread and post it here.
Again, these are just my opinions and observations after roughly 18 months of using and learning my first 3D printer, ymmv. I freely admit that I still have far more to learn than what I (think I) know.
Cheers
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
one last thing: don‘t use the pre-sliced g-code from the SD card, generate your own with slicer and default settings, don’t start with a benchy…
Any particular reason for this?? I though starting with a benchy was a good way to test everything is running ok?.....
RE:
Any particular reason for this??
Sure, the g-codes on the SD that came with my printer where not up to date, the results were less than optimal. The same models sliced with the current version of prusa slicer with default settings resulted in much better prints.
Generally, you do not know what settings and which profiles were used generating g-code, just generate your own, then you know. If you print someone else’s gcode and the result is crap, first thing to do is slice it yourself and try again to narrow down the cause. You can skip this when starting with your own g-code.
Benchy is a torture test, it’s normally the last thing you print when calibrating… on the other hand, if you have a stock Prusa printer, original filament and default settings used with slicer and the correct profiles everything should be good to go for a benchy.
But, if your first layer calibration is off, your benchy will most probably fail, something with a simpler and bigger first layer, like the prusa logo or the Batman sign will come out nicely and you will have your first successful print…
If at first you don't succeed, skydiving is not for you.
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
The benchy is a torture test. It’s designed to test how well your printer is dialed in. Not a good first print as it can be very challenging to get right.
And, the pre-sliced gcode on the SD card should print accurately on your machine, but if temps are off for your environment or the filament you received with your printer is slightly different to what the gcode was created for, or any one of a thousand other things are different, you will have less than stellar results.
You can try printing simple things like the Prusa logo for starters from the SD card, but be prepared for disappointment. The files on the SD card are available on the Prusa website so you can download the models and slice them yourself. You’ll learn a lot more about how everything works together that way.
Cheers
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
Cross posted with @robin - listen to him, he knows what he’s talking about.
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
My thanks to Mick for making this post - I'm sure that his questions have been raised before but finding his post when I was just getting past discovering all that was wrong with my own setup was good timing for me and enabled me to pass some comments, constructive I hope, with the confidence that I was at last in a good 3Dprinting productive place.
@Crab - your point about nozzle wear is not one that I knew. I doubt that my printer has done 25 hours yet, though two recent 8 hour prints of duplicate items might have pushed that estimate a bit further - so great to go to bed and then get up in the morning to find two boxes waiting for you, and nice and cool to come off the base plate. Anyway I will raise another post to ask about. At the moment I have a baseplate preparation regime that regardless of footprint size seems to cope with everything from a thin cross section item, 280mm long and going almost across the baseplate diagonal, to an item 8mm square with a 5mm hole and am somewhat wary of using adhesives.
RE:
@ambodach- A quick note about the nozzle: FWIW, When I replaced my stock 0.4mm nozzle I bought a E3D 0.4mm nickel plated copper nozzle. It was slightly more expensive than the brass but not crazy expensive. I find it’s a little more slippery than brass so filament doesn’t stick quite as much, which is a good thing. The thermal properties are virtually the same as the brass so no changes to any of my print profiles. I’m happy with the choice.
Heres a link to a post I referenced earlier. The answer posted by forum mod @joantabb is right under the OP’s question. Awesome info for any new user, a must read.
Cheers
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
One thing that I did forget to mention to Mick is that one add-on to the printer, and all the other things associated with it, that I made was to hunt for a sealable box to keep my reels of filament in.
The 'English' forum will quite possible include our US and Canadian cousins, but having search high and low in the sheds in the UK for an inexpensive option - the demands being reasonable capacity and the ability to be sealed - I had to accept the higher cost of a Dewalt toolbox but at 400 x300x300mm it holds 7 reels, and has a sturdy handle for lugging it around, plus a lid with a recess for a sealing strip. I got four 250gm bags of silica gell off Ebay and they are still keeping the humidity in the box around 20% after 6 months.
I suspect now that I now have the confidence to print more freely, I may well be looking for a second such box to cover choices in colour and materials.
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
Thanks Randy M9,
It would have mtaken me a while to find that post again...
regards Joan
I try to make safe suggestions,You should understand the context and ensure you are happy that they are safe before attempting to apply my suggestions, what you do, is YOUR responsibility. Location Halifax UK
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
Thank you, Joan! There are lots of variations to this post that you’ve made but this one really gets into great detail. Bookmarked for future reference.
Cheers
Randy
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
A great many thanks to all who have contributed advice. I feel happier now to build my printer when it arrives with the only alteration to the instruction manual and comments being to clean and relubricate the bearings.
When I have a successful build I have no doubt I will be asking more questions, but I will do a search first on any queries before I start with the questions.
Thanks again, I am really looking forward to receiving my kit now.
Mick
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
During the build, is it advisable to add some lube to the rods as well?? I assume the more free the movement over all rods the better.
If so, I understand Super Lube 51004 Synthetic Oil with PTFE is recommended, but I can't find any local to me - would marine grease be ok to use (have some from my RC stuff!) - since it's a grease it wouldn't drip etc?....
RE:
The kit comes with a little bit of lube for the rods, if used as recommended it lasts more than a year...
I believe this is what's in the kit:
https://www.prusa3d.com/product/prusa-lubricant-applicator-set-5g/
If at first you don't succeed, skydiving is not for you.
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
The kit does come with a small tube of grease and a screw-on nozzle to inject it into the bearings.
Many folks have reported using Super Lube-21030 Synthetic Multi-Purpose Grease as an alternative to the Prusa supplied grease. You can find it at Amazon in the US:
There is no need to add any grease to the rods. You’ll actually find you have to wipe some excess grease off the rods at the far point of the bearings travel after a few day’s printing.
Cheers
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
Printer kit due 4th January 😊
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
Happy New Year to you!
Printer kit due 4th January 😊
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
Luckily received mine yesterday so can build it over the Xmas period!
Y, X, and Z axis are all done. I'm on the Extruder assembly next....
So far its been a nice build. No issues at all!
Printer kit due 4th January 😊
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
Luckily received mine yesterday so can build it over the Xmas period!
Y, X, and Z axis are all done. I'm on the Extruder assembly next....
So far its been a nice build. No issues at all!
That’s awesome! Take your time with the extruder. It’s not really as difficult as the manual says, there are just lots of steps and ‘you don’t know what you don’t know’ going in.
When you get to the magnets and the lever, be sure you have the orientation correct and that the lever moves freely. When you get to the zip ties for the upper bearings, don’t over-tighten them, make them snug but don’t crank down on them.
Most of all, have fun! I really enjoyed building the kit.
Cheers
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
Luckily received mine yesterday so can build it over the Xmas period!
Y, X, and Z axis are all done. I'm on the Extruder assembly next....
So far its been a nice build. No issues at all!
That’s awesome! Take your time with the extruder. It’s not really as difficult as the manual says, there are just lots of steps and ‘you don’t know what you don’t know’ going in.
When you get to the magnets and the lever, be sure you have the orientation correct and that the lever moves freely. When you get to the zip ties for the upper bearings, don’t over-tighten them, make them snug but don’t crank down on them.
Most of all, have fun! I really enjoyed building the kit.
Cheers
Thanks. Yup build has been great so far. Been ready comments etc and can't see how people struggle to be honest! Getting a couple of the nuts into printed parts can be a challenge, but nothing drastic. Had a skim over the extruder section and will start tomorrow, but it does seem simple enough - the online manual is great!
Thanks for your tips though - will keep an eye out for that bit!
RE: Printer due - advice and tips please UK
Perhaps a bit late, but I'll pile on to avoiding mods, particularly the nylock mod. I did that, wasted a lot of time fiddling with it and got nothing of value for the effort. The PINDA provides all of the level adjustment you need, as long as you use the 7x7 mesh leveling.
I replaced the bearings with drylin ones, mostly because I followed the Prusa guidance and didn't flush and re-grease the bearings when assembling. Once I found this site, I realized my error and decided that if I was going to take it apart anyway, why not. Never have to lube, and it's quieter. But again, the guidance here is better - build it stock so you can get support, tune it and get familiar, then you can tweak.