Slight layer-shifting?
Hey,
my prints come out a bit uneven on the sites. It looks like a slight layer-shifting. The Belts are properly tensioned, i think 😉 (Both at about 280 - i also tried to leave them at about 260).
It doesn't look like underextrusion. Or do i expect a little too much from this machine an it is quiet normal?
Re: Slight layer-shifting?
Belt tension, bearing wear, and filament variation are hard to discern. They can mimic one another in surface quality.
The belt tension reading on the LCD is not an accurate indicator of belt tension (imho). It better reflects bearing friction. A belt deflection test is a better way to know if your belts are loose, and is what belt manufacturers recommend. At 2 lbs deflection force, the belt should deflect about 1/4 to 3/8 inch.
And cheap filament will show a lot of random variation in perimeter quality.
Re: Slight layer-shifting?
At 2 lbs deflection force, the belt should deflect about 1/4 to 3/8 inch.
At what length? I.e. should the X/Y carriage be moved all the way to one side before testing or should it be in the middle, or…? And shall I test the top (shorter) or bottom (longer) part of the belt?
Re: Slight layer-shifting?
Against the stops, extruder to the left, bed towards the back. Provides the most room to work. The lower of the belt pairs is the one you want to measure. And the ideal is to measure mid span.
15/64ths at 2.03 lbs is the official number from my math ... lol. But anywhere close is good - balancing a scale, a ruler and where you started is a lot to do.
Re: Slight layer-shifting?
That's awesome, thank you.
Might I ask where you got such specific information? The best I could find was the build instructions saying it should take “some force” to deflect the belts and some guy on YouTube plucking the belts on his i3 (presumably so that the resulting note could be used as a reference).