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Why are flat sections printing rough?
This is not a duplicate of Ender 3 first print some area is smooth but some is rough? -- that question has vertical, curved surfaces that are rough. My vertical, curved surfaces are fine; it is horizontal flat surfaces that are rough.
Second, I apologize for the dust on the prints in the video. I've been trying approaches on this for a week and dust has collected since that time.
I have an Ender 3 Neo and am using 1.75 mm Comgrow PLA filament. I'm using Cura as my slicer.
My problem is that all of my prints are fine, except some (the larger) horizontally flat sections print sandpapery to the touch. The walls are fine and smooth. Curved sections (such as a rabbit) are fine and smooth -- it is only horizontal surfaces that have this problem, and then only the larger ones.
By rough, I mean there are visually distinctive diagonal lines (which are on all my prints, smooth or not, so I assume are normal), but dragging my finger over them is like dragging it over fine-grained sandpaper.
My tests consisted mostly of Incarna Tokens.stl -- this is the picture above. It's a mostly rectangular container to hold pieces for a board game, with a flat bottom that prints rough and walls.
What I've Tried:

Original prints were with the default settings for the "Creality Ender-3 / Ender 3-v2" at Cura's super quality (0.12 mm) and had the problem.

Releveling the bed. I did this several times, using this Creality Service tutorial video: lower nozzle to 0 mm, adjust Z-offset until I could feel it rub against the nozzle but could still push and pull the paper in any direction. I then turned off the motor and manually moved the extruder to each corner, where I repeated it while turning the corner dials to raise/lower that corner. Things actually got worse.

I then tried the method again, but instead of turning off the motor, I used the motor to move the extruder to each corner. I got different results for the corners, which I don't understand. But adjusting using this method got prints going fine again... except for the horizontal sections which were still rough.

I tried adjusting the Z-offset and reprinting just on the center (not adjusting the corners) up by 0.05 mm and 0.1 mm, which only succeeded in making the prints stringier, and down by -0.05 mm and -0.1 mm, which just made them worse. I took this as evidence that my leveling with the paper was correct (enough).

I tried printing at each of the corners. No change, all prints came out the same.

I removed the filament and cleaned the nozzle with the needle provided with the printer. The pin came out with some tiny black specks but nothing that said "clog." Prints afterward were no different.

I adjust settings in Cura. Based on various things I read, I lowered print speed from 50 mm/s to 40 mm/s, I changed the flow to 97 % and then 95 %, I changed line width from 0.4 mm to 0.3 mm, I changed bed temperature from 50 °F to 60 °F (nozzle temperature stayed at 200 °F), I lowered fan speed from 100 % to 50 %, and I did combinations of these things. None of these had a noticeable impact other than the print speed and line width making it take longer.

I turned on ironing in Cura. This worked, but only sort of: 2/3 of the horizontal surface did not have diagonal lines and was completely smooth, a strip around the edges (the ironing offset) had diagonal lines but was still smooth, but 1/3 of the print still had diagonal lines and remains rough.  If the ironing completely worked it would solve my problem (I don't care about diagonal lines at the edges), but it only seems to be a 2/3 solution or so.

I adjusted ironing settings (following some page that I can't find anymore). I turned on monotonic ironing order, increased the line spacing from 0.1 mm to 0.2 mm, increased ironing flow from 10 % to 15 %, and increased ironing speed from 16.66 mm/s to 30 mm/s, then 50 mm/s, then 70 mm/s. None of these solved the problem that about a third of the print remained rough.

I measured the prints for X/Y dimensional accuracy. I don't have calipers or a precise tool, just a ruler and my eyeball, but they seemed fine. I also printed xyzCalibration_cube.stl -- a 20 mm cube -- to test the Z accuracy, which to my eyeball, is also fine. Vexingly, even back to entirely default settings / 0.12 mm print speed, the calibration cube is smooth on all sides, including the horizontal top, which still has the diagonal lines but feels smooth to the touch like I want.

I printed some other prints. The default rabbit print the Ender comes with (no horizontal flat surface, just curved surfaces) prints fine. Small horizontal surfaces (the cube, all of these Gloomhaven standee prints) print fine -- diagonal lines but smooth to the touch. Larger horizontal surfaces (like Dahan_Tray_thin.stl) continue to print rough.   I checked the large surfaces to see if they start smooth in a corner and then get rough, but no, the roughness is consistent across the entire surface.

I theorize, but do not have any experience to back it up, that this happens because the larger flat area means more elapsed time between layers, but even if that's true I don't know how I would counteract it. Looking at the closeup pictures, it seems like the line ridges are raised, but then why doesn't it happen on smaller prints?
So I turn to you. How do I stop my large horizontal prints from being sandpapery?

You have used links that force a download (which some users may not like). Please [edit] the links to the page that the file is on so individual users can download it themselves if needed. It would help a lot if you were to include photos of your printed models so we can see what is happening.

@agarza Thanks for reading this. I have adjusted the links to the files pages instead of the direct downloads and added pictures. Hope this helps.

Many Ender3 printers have a curved surface. Leveling is not going to fix all problems here. That is why you might have difference in thickness. Only a mesh bed leveling sensor is going to help here.
It looks like while ironing, the head extrudes a little too much material in the process. That way the extra material oozes out through the sides. You say that you tried increasing from 10% to 20%, so I would try it with 3 or 0%.


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Bresser Saurus (aka Flashforge Finder) thermocouple broken
The thermocouple on my 3D printer broke (one of the cables broke from the brass part that attaches to the heatblock). I managed to get it working and I was looking for other thermocouples while I had my machine working.
The thing is that it broke againg after two or three uses, and now it's a mess - it cannot be repaired anymore by mortal means. So the only solution is to buy a new one. And here it comes the problem: both the Flashforge Finder and the Bresser Saurus are out of production (only the Flashforge Finder 3 is out, and it has different pieces than the other Finders).
I managed to buy one thermocouple from Aliexpress but it turned out that it was not compatible (marking 50ºC at room temperature). I have tried other thermocouples, but I am not able to find it (and my knowledge on this is more or less nothing).
As I understand, the Bresser Saurus is just a repaint of the Flashforge Finder 2. But this is where things get strange, as I am unable to make anything from FF2 work on my Saurus. I've contacted the technical service of both Bresser and Flashforge and the answer is that they cannot provide me with even the type of thermocouple that it is used on my machine.
I hope that someone knows this, because if not, I am worried I may need to buy another printer if I want to continue printing.

If you can, please also add a photo of the original (broken) "thermocouple", as it might help identification, be it a thermocouple, NTC thermistor or RTC probe.

There are (at least) eight types: B, E, J, N, K, R, T, & S type. Each type has different operating temperatures and characteristics.
K type thermocouples appear to be the most common (for our purposes), as they have the required temperature range useful for a 3D printer. You will need to know which type the printer originally came with. The original was probably just a generic thermocouple, so you should be able to get a replacement, but the type must match.
Also note that the original "thermocouple" may not have been an actual thermocouple... Often NTC thermistors or RTD probes can be used instead (to reduce costs). So you will need to check this too.
This thread has some (hopefully) useful information (assuming that the Bresser Saurus actually is just a rebadged Flashforge Finder 2): FF Finder thermocouple replacement.
This post #2 states that K-type thermocouples are used

A thermo couple device is polarity sensitive, try connecting the wires the opposite way round.
The FF Dreamer & Finder use a K-Type thermo couple. the wires are made of specific dissimilar materials that generate a voltage when heated. The Mother-Board detects this volttage change & works out the temperature.
All thermo-couples are polarity sensitive, & iff connected the wrong way round they will give some very odd readings indeed.
Note also that there are many types of thermocouple that each react to different temperature ranges.

and this post #3 states that NTC thermistors are used in older models of the Flash Forge Finder:

It turns out, even though my Finder was bought recently (Flashforge store on Amazon), it is an old model and actually has a NTC thermistor instead of a thermocouple! Flashforge USA knows nothing about this, and I didn't have much luck with the Chinese contact either. The only two replacement parts to be ordered from them are both thermocouples-- in either M3 or M4 thread.

That post also includes some links to replacements.
Note also the thread and (to a lesser extent) the connector are important: Either M3 or M4 threads are used, so you will need to verify that as well, before making a purchase.

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Absolute Z values not 0 at print surface after auto homing with CR-Touch
I recently installed the CR-Touch onto my CR10-V3 printer. I updated my firmware to Marlin 2.1.2M and set my probe offsets and selected level bed which checked 81 points on the print bed and it said bed leveling was complete.
I tried printing something that I had already created G-code for from Prusa Slicer, and on the initial wipe and perimeter print the nozzle was way too high (maybe 10-15 mm off the print bed surface)
I searched for how to enable using the auto bed leveling mesh using Prusa slicer, and I found a couple of places mentioning adding M420 S1 to the G-code to enable using the auto bed leveling mesh, but even after adding that, my print did the same thing and during the wipe and perimeter print it was way too high.
Below is the start G-code that I'm using in Prusa Slicer
G90 ; use absolute coordinates
M83 ; extruder relative mode
M104 S150 ; set temporary nozzle temp to prevent oozing during homing
M140 S{first_layer_bed_temperature[0]} ; set final bed temp
G4 S30 ; allow partial nozzle warmup
G28 ; home all axis
M420 S1 ; Enable use auto bed leveling saved mesh
G1 Z50 F240
G1 X2.0 Y10 F3000
M104 S{first_layer_temperature[0]} ; set final nozzle temp
M190 S{first_layer_bed_temperature[0]} ; wait for bed temp to stabilize
M109 S{first_layer_temperature[0]} ; wait for nozzle temp to stabilize
G1 Z0.28 F240
G92 E0
G1 X2.0 Y140 E10 F1500 ; prime the nozzle
G1 X2.3 Y140 F5000
G92 E0
G1 X2.3 Y10 E10 F1200 ; prime the nozzle
G92 E0

If I'm understanding the last part of that G-code, it should be 0.28 mm above the print bed when it does its nozzle wipe, but it's 10 mm or more off the bed when it does that.
I did some additional testing this morning, and the problem seems to be the z-values after auto homing. I have a z-probe offset entered of -2.122 mm that I got using the z-probe offset wizard in the Marlin firmware, and that offset visually seems reasonable for where the probe triggers vs the nozzle height.
After auto homing all axis, if I manually change the z-axis to be 0.28 mm, then the nozzle is still about 7 mm above the print bed which is where my prints are starting off.
If I manually deploy the touch sensor and lower the print head, the touch sensor engages with the print surface at around a z position of -5 mm, and then with the z-probe offset of -2.112 mm it's about 7 mm too high.
Where is this extra height coming from? I've checked and rechecked the z-probe offset, and like I said, the values seem reasonable, but I'm not sure where this extra height is coming from.

As you updated to a new version, it sounds that you have not defined or incorrectly defined the Z-offset, have you read question Automatic Bed Leveling (ABL) with a sensor (BLTouch, inductive, capacitive), how does it work? or more specific Specifying Z offset in Marlin firmware?

@0scar I've read and watched different tutorials on setting the z-probe offset, and the value I have seems reasonable in the settings. Is there a different z-offset other than the z-probe offset?

You must have, but to be sure: "Have you read all variables from the firmware after you updated?" (M502 and then M500)

@0scar I haven't set up any kind of terminal connection with the board to check specific settings like M502 and M500, and tonight I can look into setting that up, but as of right now I've only been able to check settings in the controller UI, and the settings appear correct there at least for the z-probe offset, if there is another z-offset I haven't found that in the UI yet.

@0scar realizing M502 is factory reset and M500 is save settings now after looking them up. When I first installed the firmware I ran Initialize EEPROM which I think is basically running M502, and I have saved settings because my probe offsets are persistent after power cycling. I can try starting from the beginning and initialize EEPROM and then save and then set my probe offsets and save again and see if that fixes anything.

"Factory reset" is incorrectly labeled, basically it is "firmware reset". It gets the values from your latest firmware.  "Initialize EEPROM" is the same as doing "Restore Defaults (M502)" which must be followed by a store settings (M500). So I think you did good, I'm just trying to establish what is happening by elimination.

I have no idea what happened the first time I initialized everything, but I started over from the beginning and ran the Initialize EEPROM command from the UI, and then saved the settings, and then went to the probe offsets and reset my probe offsets to exactly what they were before, but now after auto homing the absolute Z values look accurate and if I manually move the Z axis to 0 it is right at that 0.1 mm height of a sheet of paper.
The first time I initialized the EEPROM I ran auto home immediately after and I was getting an error on the main page ERR: too far and maybe in the process of trying to fix that I messed something else up, but it appears that everything is working how it should now.

Gad to hear you fixed the problem by simply trying the whole process again.

Although I cannot be sure, I suspect that your bed-leveling is working fine.
An auto-bed-leveling-sensor only takes care of relative bed leveling. That means that you have to manually add a Z-offset in the printer menu. Do this by running the auto-leveling, then auto homing and then adjusting the Z-value by moving the Z-axis in the menu until the head barely touches the bed. Note the value and fill this in for the Z-offset value in the configuration menu of the printer.

Is there a different Z-offset than the Z-probe offset? I've set the Z-probe offset to -2.112 which seems reasonable, but it's still floating off the surface of the print bed way too much after auto homing. I haven't found any other z-offset settings other than the z-probe offset.

I think you are plying with the right value. Does changing this value make the nozzle come down at all? It sounds like your Z-offset should be around -7.

About -2 should be correct if a touch sensor is used, -7 is not possible (that would be a very long pin retraction!)

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How should I remove the resin from the resin tank?
We need to move our Formlabs Form 3 printer to a new room, and I would like to remove the resin from the resin tank. Is there a standard way to do this, and can I reuse the resin once I remove it?

when moving the printer to a new room I would just remove the tank and then carefully move the tank to the new room after you moved the printer.
If you really need to empty the tank: The tank usually has a small indent in one of the corners. Just dump the contents of the tank through a resin strainer (a paper coffee-filter-like cone) back into the container it came in. Do this in a well ventilated area with no direct sunlight entering the room and don't let it spill on your skin. (no big deal if you touch it, just don't let it happen too often)
Don't forget to clean the tank thoroughly with paper rags and alcohol afterwards. Everything that stays will be stuck after some time

Please wear gloves

When there is a slight chance of me touching the resin, I do wear gloves. When just dumping the contents of a vat into another vat, I ususally don't. I trust my digits near a soldering iron, circular saw, kitchen oven, as well as some resin.

It really depends on the resin. In some resins like ESD components can sediment down to the floor of the VAT. In that case the best option is really to empty
the tank and shake the bottle / container. Its one of the benefits of the Solidator 3D-Printer that the Solidator Resins do not sediment and you can keep the material in the tank for several keeps without issues.

Are you affiliated with the website that you linked to?


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Starting 3D printing at home
I've been doing some 3D printing at work as a means of different tool holding devices and jigs and from this time I have gained some, although very basic, knowledge on how the printers work and how to troubleshoot the issues I've experienced with problems I have encountered.
From this I have gained a new interest in 3D printing as a result and would like to buy a printer for use at home that is relatively cheap (£300 Max-ish) and I'm wondering if anyone can give me some pointers as to which I should look into buying as a good first step to 3D printing at home.
I've been printing with a Prusa i3 MK3S+ at work and their PETG filament mainly, and I'm definitely leaning towards something similar and compatible with the PrusaSlicer because I'm fairly comfortable with both, but the i3 MK3S+ is a bit expensive for me to invest in for at home as of right now.
If anyone can help me out it would be greatly appreciated along with any set up tips for the printer you suggest
Many thanks.

Hi and welcome. Unfortunately shopping recommendations are off-topic (across the whole Stack Exchange network), as they can rapidly become out-of-date - so as it currently stands, your question will probably be closed. If you could [edit] your question (somehow) to make it less of a recommendation question, then that might help. Please see the on-topic pages in the [help/on-topic] and take the [tour].

Reading between the lines, you require a started printer functionally equivalent to a Prusa i3 MK3, but on a limited budget as it was designed using the same original source material
The Ender 3 is probably your best bet, though this kind of question is not really what this website is designed to be used for.


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Do PEI beds have a maximum safe usage temperature?
I have a generic smooth PEI bed and a Bambu PEI textured bed. I've never used this bed material before and so have no experience with it.
Does PEI have a maximum safe usage temperature or at least one that I could reasonably reach during 3D printing on an X1 Carbon?
I don't want to accidentally toast it printing with a high-temperature setting, as there don't seem to be any trips or safeguards against it in the software.

For PLA you normally print with a build plate around  60 °C
For ABS you normally print with a build plate around 110 °C

The X1 Carbon is given for a max hot bed temp of 120 °C as per the manufacturer specs.
In fact, the PEI material itself can sustain temp up to 170 °C continuously. (Source: Duratron® U1000 PEI data sheet)

PIEI as a bed surface material, not a filament

yup with PEI bed you can go up to 120°C on the X1

The maximum bed temperature for PEI is determined more by the way the PEI is adhered to or deposited onto the metal plate.
For PEI sheets attached with the 3M adhesive, I found that at higher (ABS at 105 °C, ASA at 100 °C) temperatures, the PEI eventually starts to detach and form bubbles, which determine the highest temperature.
The PEI powder coating has the potential to deal with higher temperatures better because the fusing and baking process used for powder coating is normally a better bond.
Keep in mind with higher bed temperatures, you have to keep the enclosure temperature high as well to avoid a steep temperature gradient from the bed to ambient internal temperatures. Temperature gradients result in differential contraction ratios which result in warping. This is why much higher bed temperatures are probably not needed unless you are printing very high-temperature filaments e.g., PEEK.


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Optimal bed and hot end temperature for bed adhesion with PLA on a Bambu P1P
Using Bambu matte black filament, a Bambu textured PEI bed, and a Bambu P1P printer without an enclosure, what is the optimum bed and hot end temperature for maximum adhesion on a tall thin print with a low level of contact (corner piece for one of the official enclosure).
Please limit any answers to temperature, other issues such as speed, the use of contact shapes, or bed adhesion products are out of scope for this specific question.

According to the material specifications, the mate has a Heat Deflection Temperature of 58 °C which can be assumed as the glass transition temperature. So you can bring your bed temperature as close to this as you dare for better adhesion. (you might even be able to go a bit over it if your part is not sagging)
But this will have only a limited effect. Not wanting to look at efficient solutions like a brim and 3Dlac to gain adhesion area might not allow you to solve the problem.
A nice trick if you are scared not to be able to remove the brim cleanly is to do a skirt with a 0.2 or 0.3 mm gap this will allow it to hold sufficiently to help adhesion but still be easy to remove.

I've been told to limit the scope of my questions, so I'm tackling brims and skirts seperatly.


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How do flow rate and part cooling affect bed adhesion in PLA?
In general terms, what effect does increasing or decreasing the flow rate and part cooling during bottom layer printing affect bed adhesion when dealing with generic PLA?

For the first layer for PLA, you want slow speed and no cooling. The relative flow rate is better kept at 100%
On the physics side:

The material will solidify rapidly in contact with the build-plate which is much below the melting point. the build plate is usually at 60 °C (5 ° below the glass transition temp, or less if you dare), and the PLA melting point is around 170 °C

So blowing on it will increase the issue this is why normally first layers are done with no part cooling

The next important parameter is your nozzle height, if it is too high you will not push enough material you could compensate for that by increasing relative flow rate but it is not good practice it is better and very easy to properly calibrate your nozzle height

Your speed will depend on the adhesion tendency of the bed material with the PLA and the potential helpers (lac, glue stick)

on a low-quality surface (uneven old plate) you might go at 20 mm/s
on glass with a glue stick I had sometimes difficulty going over 40 mm/s,
with PEI and 3Dlac over a meshed bed it is possible to go over 100 mm/s

The relative flow rate can be used if your machine under-extrudes (you see through your first layer)  or over extrude (there are blobs or protrusions), but it is good practice to keep the relative flowrate at 100% and to properly calibrate the extruder E-steps as shown here:

I'm using a p1p, so the calibration is almost totally hands off.


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No extrusion from G-code for cold extrusion application in soldering robot
My 3D printer is a Monoprice Maker Select v2 and the G-code is being written with VS Code locally and sent with OctoPrint (I have tried directly from the SD as well to no avail).
I have macgyvered the extruder so that it extrudes solder instead of plastic filament for a project. The solder still extrudes using the physical dial on the 3D printer through settings but does not work with through G-code.
I thought this could be from the firmware's cold extrusion prevention, so I played around with the M302 command. I tried using the P parameter and setting the S parameter very low as per this question suggestions.
It still doesn't work and I'm getting a little frustrated as I do not want to have to change the conf and reflash the firmware just for this project.
My code is below. I hope I missed something basic, but whatever it is, any help would be greatly appreciated.
M17 ; enable steppers

M302 S20 ; disable extruder cold safety
M82 ; relative extrusion
G92 E0 ; zero extruded length
G1 F200 E5 ; extrude 5mm

G90 ; absolute positioning
G28 X Y ; home x and y

G0 F10000 ; set feedrate for all following G0 and G1 commands

M300 S0 P100 ; play tone

G0 X100 Y100 ; move to start position
G0 X105 ; move to pos
G0 X100
G0 Y105
G0 Y100
G0 X110
G0 X100
G0 Y110
G0 Y110
G0 X115
G0 X100
G0 Y115
G0 Y100

G1 F200 E5 ; try extruding again

G28 X Y

M300 S0 P200 ; play end tone

M302 S170 ; reenable extruder cold safety
M84 ; disable all steppers
```


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What is causing these pockmarks?
My printer (Ender 3 S1 Pro) started including pockmarks in prints all of a sudden. I have other S1 Pros that are running the same exact G-code, and they print without issue. This is what I've tried (none of it worked):

Increasing the temperature from 207 °C to 212 °C (it's PLA filament)
Doing a cold pull with some nylon filament and it came out perfectly clean
Using both brand-new and dehydrated filament

What could possibly be causing this when it used to work, and my other printers have no problem with it?

Is it possible you have powerloss recovery enabled only on this one? Are you testing with the same SD card or different SD cards?

I'm pretty sure power loss recovery is enabled on all of them by default, and I haven't turned it off. Haven't tried a different SD card, but I'll give that a shot. My understanding is that power loss recovery causes the opposite problem where there are blobs on the print.

Well powerloss recovery causes a stall per layer. The duration of the stall depends on how quickly the firmware in the SD card reacts to write operations. If the stall is on the outside perimeter, it will make blobs, but if it's in the infill region, it could produce oozing there, and subsequent underextrusion when moving to the next thing to be printed.

I see. Those are outer perimeter lines so it shouldn't be connected to any infill lines. Also I tried a different SD card, same results. They are fast SanDisk SD cards too. Perhaps I'll reset the firmware and see what happens.


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Steppers grinding when homing Marlin
When homing the 3D printer or running G29, the X & Y axes are grinding and not moving fully to the correct position. When I run the following G-code the print moves to the correct position with no issue G0 X300.0 Y700.0 F7000 I was trying to debug the issue as I thought it had something to do with the homing and probing feed rate but after running G0 F7000 I think that is not the issue.
This is a custom printer I have built myself, any help would be appreciated.
Video:
1st move is G0 X190.0 Y331.0 F9000
2nd move is homing to the centre of the bed

Firmware: Marlin 2.1

Printer Type: Cartesian

Please create a video demonstrating the issue and link it in the question, it is hard to gasp what is exactly meant by grinding and what is actually occurring. It sounds like it isn't a problem with the steppers, but could well be related to your design.

@0scar I've added a video

Are you hinting to the noise at the end of the video?

@0scar Yes,
1st Moving was G0 X190.0 Y331.0 F9000
2nd Move was homing in the centre of bed

Are the steppers getting enough current? Did you adjust the Vref or set a correct amperage for the stepper driver? It looks as if you ask too much from them for the current current settings.

@0scar I downgraded to Marlin Version 2.0 and that fixed the issue, so it looks like its something in the firmware the stepper drivers are getting enough current

Please write a proper answer how you fixed this and describe both versions in the answer. You can accept the answer after 48 hours. Thnaks for sharing!

@0scar It's not really fixing the issue as the problem is with Marlin 2.1 as the issue is present and i really want to get it fixed in that version

Have you "diffed" both the configuration files?


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Can "unnecessary" supports be used effectively to improve bed adhesion on objects with a low surface contact area?
I have a number of models to print that are supposed to be orientated in a specific way for printing so the layer lines go in the same direction (purely aesthetic), and to ensure that shrinkage occurs evenly so that they fit together nicely (and so that you can fit more on the bed in one go).
For most of the models the suggested orientation is great, but some of the models have a very low contact area with the bed, which has caused me some problems with print failure.
The models are supposed to print support free, or with minimal supports.
Would adding supports in places that they are absolutely not necessary in order to provide me with more surface area help to improve bed adhesion on a Filament printer?
I know from experience that this is effective with rafts\skates on a resin print that pulls away from the print bed, but filament is different and I have minimal experience with it.
The top image is one such model in the official suggested orientation. It is designed to be completely support free, but has poor bed adhesion.
The bottom image has additional "unnecessary" supports added to give it a significantly increased surface area on the bed.

Is this an effective way to improve bed adhesion?
I understand that there are many other techniques that can be used to improve adhesion, such as using an adhesion promoting chemical (AKA Gluestick), or using rafts\brims, but could we please avoid discussing those here, as I want to focus in on one specific thing right now.
The printer is a Bambu P1P, but I also have an Ender 5. Plain matte PLA.

Would it work? Who knows, no one would waste their time doing it when they could just use a raft (which you don't want to discuss)

I don't want to discuss rafts "here", there are already multiple threads on bed adhesion, if I ask a general question it will likely simply be deleted as a duplicate. This is a specific question about using supports.

I don't think a raft would work very well for the object shown.

Anything that increase the contact surface withe the bed and is attached with the part will help with adhesion, so using unnecessary support can work, however as you will have to build it for many layers it is neither efficient in terms of wasted material, nor in terms of time.
The solutions you do not want to discuss, notably the brim should solve this type of problem in a more efficient manner.

Brims is another question.

Yes, and despite being a waste of material, this is arguably a good strategy. A very tall and thin part like this not only has poor bed contact for adhesion, but may flex under change in direction of motion of the bed (under acceleration), or under drag from the toolhead as it extrudes new material. This is particularly a problem with less-rigid (even moreso with fully flexible, like TPU) material types. Flexing of the existing part of the print while new material is being deposited on top of it can produce dimensional inaccuracy of the final part, as the relative positioning of features is less than perfect.
Adding brims or modeled-in bed surface contact features or whatnot will do nothing to solve this problem, but "gratuitous" supports will.


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Ender 3 S1 Pro Probe Failed when auto-levelling even after manual level
When I first bought the Ender 3 S1 Pro, everything worked fine, but at some point, the auto-leveling stopped working. I used to manually level it every dozen or so prints (sheet of paper method) just to make sure things were close, then auto-level before each print. Now, I can manually level it, but once it is manually leveled. If I tell it to auto-level, it will fail with a "203 probe failed", usually on the first probe point. I've actually almost given up on the auto-leveling and I have removed the G29 from the initial G-code.
I will admit, I have once or twice manually leveled it and tried to then auto-level, just to see if it would work, and gotten to complete an auto-level, but if I then put G29 in the next G-code I want to print, it will fail with the same "probe failed".
Any clue what may have happened here? Before I buy another CR Touch sensor and replace it just to have another one fail. Is there something I can "reset"?

Have you checked the cable?


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What does an Ender 5 look like in its original foam packaging?
When shipped from the factory to retail the Ender 5 comes packaged in a series of layers using shaped foam.
In order to repackage an Ender 5 in its original box (for example, for transport or storage) it must be dismantled and placed back in this foam packaging in a specific order and arrangement.
What does this order and arrangement look like, with pictures if possible.
This is "how do I deconstruct" question, the opposite to "how do I build".

I haven't looked but there should be some "unboxing" videos on YT, unless they have gone out of fashion these days. They might show how it was packed.

Watch this in reverse:

The "unboxing" ends at 2:45
Screenshots in reverse order:

Best answer ever.


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Android app to view and measure dimensions of STL?
I have received an STL file from a designer.
This file can be 3D printed after slicing.
However, I am far from home and from the printer so currently it is impossible to print this model.
I wish though measure some dimensions for correctness.
Another fact: I don't have access to Windows computer, only an Android based tablet.
So a very similar question to this:
Which Android tool is able to present (i.e. view), AND measure dimensions in an STL?
Preferably without strong network connection requirement (i.e. not browser-based)

Hello Daniel, IMHO this is a recommendation question and as such these questions might be closed by the community as such questions are not allowed on SE web sites, please see our on-topic overview.

Where should I post this then? Please advise :) Thank you


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Why are printed holes skewed diagonally?
My printer started off as an Anet A6. I've switched it to an aluminum extrusion frame, installed a BLTouch, switched everything to 24 V, gave it an ARM controller, etc. Printing runs over Octoprint. Material is ASA at 255 °C with the bed at 95 °C.
After my most recent modification (switching to IGUS plastic bearings and the aforementioned aluminum frame) I'm experiencing a printing error. The vertical holes are skewed diagonally (picture provided). This seems to be almost not visible at 40 mm/s, substantial at 60 mm/s, and crazy at 80 mm/s (I don't print at this speed but just for testing).

Since it is diagonal, I can't think of a source of the problem. The larger geometries don't seem to be affected. Mostly 3 mm screw holes turn out bad.
Any suggestions on where to look for the source of the problem?

Tension of the belts is fine? (Not too loose). Also note that the IGUS bearings have a reasonable amount of play, more than the metal bearings. Please add a photo of the upgraded ANET A6 frame.

I'm having a similar issue. I started with an Anet A8, installed a BL Touch, installed IGUS bearings, and then moved everything over to a metal frame. Even before changing to a metal frame, I was getting circles skewed at a 45 degree angle. I was hoping the metal frame would fix the issue, but it hasn't.

I thought it was just misaligned y axis rods, so I tried skewing them in the opposite direction. Now my circles look circular, but squares are now printing skewed. Something seems off, and I'm not sure what. If you figure out the cause, it might fix mine too.

Could this be caused by powerful cooling essentially blowing the filament to one side? The amount of shift would depend on the viscosity of the filament (i.e. hotter would move more, as you found) and how much contact it has with the layer below...


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Weird ripple issue on first layer
Not quite sure whats going on here, seems to happen at most temperatures and changing Z offset height doesn't change anything until it starts to cause stringing.

Hello Ollie7890. Your question is lacking detail and as such is hard to answer without knowing a couple of things about your printer setup. Please [edit] and fill in the [placeholders] in the template I added and then remove the leading <!-- and trailing --> afterwards. This will turn it visible and help us help you find the actual problem.


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The thickness of my model is not always accurate. How do I solve this?
After replacing the nozzle on my Creatbot F430 printer, I auto-leveled the bed and initiated a test print - a simple square with a 2 mm thickness. However, I observed that the thickness of the printed model is inconsistent, varying between 1.5 mm and 1.7 mm. I'm wondering the Z-Offset is affecting this, or I shouldn't really worry about 0.3 mm / 0.5 mm difference.
Nozzle Size is 0.4 mm

Yes the Z offset needs to be redone each time a nozzle is removed even if you re install the same size.
Another thing to verify is to ensure the slicer is actually set with a 0.4mm nozzle


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Underextrusion on top of curves
Every time I print a dome-like shape, some of the last layers will be under extruded. Strangely, the very last few layers extrude fine. So, I just end up with ugly unextruded halos on all of my prints with curves. My extrusion otherwise is fair otherwise.

Slicer: Cura
Printer: Ultimaker 2 Go w/ e3D v6 1.75 mm hotend
Filament: Prusament 1.75 mm PLA
Temp: 215 ˚C
Speed: 110 mm/s (trying to get fast - ultimate goal)
Retraction speed: 25 mm/s
Retraction distance: 2.5 mm


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How do I remove clogged filament around a nozzle
Problem: The first layer on the bed was printed fine, but it seems the filament got stuck or something and wouldn't stick to the bed, but instead to the nozzle. Note, it also got behind the blue rubber part. This is the work of about half an hour of printing.
Info:

Anycubic Kobra
stock nozzle
stock bed
PLA filament
nozzle temp: 200 °C
bed temp: 60 °C

Question: How would I go on about removing the filament around the nozzle?
Attempt: I tried to cut it away, but it has already dried out, making it quite hard. I did some research, but I could only find ways to unclog the nozzle itself (given that the nozzle can be reached, which is not the case). My fear is, if I continue to try to break it off, I'll break the whole part. I could heat up the nozzle hoping for the filament to melt again, but that'll probably make it worse.

Note that following the selected answer is likely to remove the material as desired. It is not a certainty that your blob is caused by collecting filament from the bed. Ensure that you have a properly seated nozzle. Have you recently changed the nozzle? If so, it's important that the nozzle seats against the heat break and not against the heat block.

Yes, I'll look into what caused the problem. I also think that it has to do with the nozzle itself and that the whole thing didn't come from it collecting filament off the bed, rather it clogged up because some collected at the tip.

You need heat to remove that. If you're hesitant to heat up the hotend, you can use a soldering iron or a butter knife heated over a lighter to start attacking the blob from the outside to get it down to a more managable size. A heat gun or even a hair dryer is also an option; the latter won't melt it, but may soften it enough to be pliable.
Once you get the bulk of the blob off and are able to remove the silicone sock, a brass wire brush is the tool to use to clean off the remainder. To do this, the hotend needs to be hot, and you need to avoid brushing around where the wires go in so you don't accidentally break the wire insulation and cause a short. If there's plastic stuck there at the base of the wires, a toothpick can be used to remove it while the hotend is hot.


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Extruder motor not turning while printing, but works while testing on Ender 3
I have an Ender 3 with the silent board, BLTouch, and Marlin 2.0.6 installed. Recently I've the problem of the extruder not moving while printing, but works fine during testing. I tried changing the motherboard (that's when I installed the silent board) and changing the motor, but nothing worked. I usually use the CURA 5.3.0 slicer, but I also tried the Creality slicer and it still did not work. During print the extruder does not move, but it rocks back and forth during the initial purge before the print.
How can I fix this issue?

I found the problem, it was a bad cable. I just changed the cable.


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Why won't my Ender 5 Pro move back to its home and won't print after firmware update?
I just updated the firmware of my Ender 5 Pro to Ender-5 ProMarlin2.0.6HW4.2.2GDBLTouchFilament. Since then my printer won't return to its correct home.
When it starts printing, it moves to the middle but drops the build plate about 4 cm then extrudes a little bit of filament, then the build plate and extruder start to cool down, and the progress bar continues going up despite everything else being at a halt.

Do you have a filament sensor to detect broken filament?

No, I don't, no auto levelling either but I've noticed it's an option to pick on the printer so I'm wondering if I picked the wrong firmware..

Then this is the incorrect firmware! Hence it doesn't work. I'll try to answer your question later.


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Longer LK4X Printer 3D touch sensor not contacting build plate on position 1
I was trying to manual-level my printbed when the 3D Touch sensor quit contacting the build plate,causing the nozzle to crash into the print bed,how do i fix this(like it should be at y0 but its at negative y (x=0,y=0 is frontleft on my printer)
No changes have been made to the printer or model

What is your question? There are only statements with very few details.

Oh! I want to know how to fix this issue. It is preventing me from leveling the plate,

Please [edit] your question to include any and all information that could help in finding a solution. What firmware are you using? Did you update the firmware? Make any changes to the printer. Without further information, the question could be closed for lack of details.


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Bed temp issue on Guider IIs
I have a Flashforge Guider IIs and have been having lots of problems with warping ASA and ABS. The filament's recommended bed temp is 80-100 °C on the ASAk I have wasted kilograms of filament testing every setting in the slice, raft, no raft, brim every layer height imaginable.
I ran the bed at 110 °C and that didn't help. With the fans off, the print would always lift on the front right-hand side so I got my thermal imaging camera and checked the bed. Set at 110 °C the bed had a 3-4 degree variation across its surface and only reached 98 °C. I then preheated it to the maximum setting and the hottest point on the bed was only 108 °C. I resliced the model to 120 °C bed temp and have had no warping since.
My question is: can the bed temp be recalibrated such that the bed gets to the temp indicated on the screen?


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Bad adhesion only when printing many small parts "all at once" - can't use Brim
There is a similar question First layer prints just fine, then at second or third layer the printer just unsticks the small parts and makes a mess. But the solution is "Use brim". And it sure works where brim can be used, but it can't be used in some situations.
I can print single parts of any size just fine, from small to big. I can print a lot of small parts using the "one at a time" option (complete one part before starting another) just fine, and it will be usually faster than the "all at once" (layer 0 of all parts, then layer 1 of all parts...).
Adding a bunch of brim helps, but it's not always viable. Recently I made a bunch of button caps, with manual material replacement mid-way, for  labels on them. I managed by adding so much brim they all merged into one big surface at layer 0.
But if I wanted to print an articulated "chainmail" material, or similar print-in-place articulated prints, brim will be next to impossible to remove without breaking the fragile joints merging the pieces. How to solve this problem?
Material: PLA, Printer: Longer LK5 Pro (a close Ender 3s derivative, just big). Ceramic-coated glass bed.  60C bed temp, 200C nozzle temp, Octoprint. Tried both clean bed (water+detergent then isopropyl), and coating it with glue stick, problem persists.

What's your temperature profile? Does it change after first layer?  And what about cooling profile?

Having your printer properly calibrated, trammed and leveled and your bed perfectly cleaned is perhaps the most important, as well as using the proper z-offset, rods lubricated, relatively stable room temperature, for example not printing in front of an open window where wind at a different outdoor temperature can blow directly on your printer.
Some other potential solutions and considerations:

Bed Temperature: Slightly increase the bed temperature for the first few layers (up to 60°C for PLA) to enhance adhesion, then reduce it to the standard temperature for the subsequent layers. This can make a significant difference in the initial adhesion of small parts.
Adhesion Enhancers: Use adhesives such as glue stick or hairspray on the bed.
Print Speed and Cooling Adjustments: Reduce the printing speed for the first few layers to allow better adhesion. Simultaneously, minimize or turn off cooling fans for these initial layers. This ensures that the material has adequate time to bond to the bed before cooling and solidifying.

These methods are focused on enhancing the initial layer's adhesion to the bed, which is critical when printing multiple small parts. You probably need to experiment with these adjustments to find the optimal balance for your specific printer, filament and environment.


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3D printer not printing
I’m new to the printing scene and got an Ender 3 Neo Max. I printed a couple of models with no problem, then the filament just stopped dispersing. I figured I had a clog, so I tried to shove something up the nozzle and it wouldn’t go in. I disassembled the piece and took the nozzle off, put a new nozzle on, and the filament still wouldn’t disperse. Any tips?

Sorry your question was closed. We need more detail. You put a new nozzle, so I assume that was not blocked. Thus it is probably blocked somewhere else. Do you know where it is blocked? Maybe further descriptions and some photos would help. Please [edit] and update your question, and then it could be reopened. Otherwise the answers will just be broad guesses. I would have added an answer myself, suggesting these tiny "drill bits", but they are only useful for blocked nozzles, which doesn't seem to be the issue as you've replaced it.

One of the approaches I have tried in the past is to heat up the nozzle to a hight temperature ( a little less than 260) for several minutes, and to then see whether you can move filament through the extruder by using the menu to go to Motion, Move Axis, Extruder, 10mm.
If that does not work, I suggest that you turn off the machine, let it cool down, and then take apart the hot end - there are online videos to do so.  It's a bit scary the first time but if I can do it, and I have, so can you.  After taking it apart and separating the hot end from the heating block, see if you can feed filament through the hot end.  Then determine if you can feed filament through the heating block.  If you get stuck, I have found it easier just to buy a new hot end or heating block.  (If you buy a new hot end, I suggest getting a bi-metal heatbreak as it does a better job of separating the heat from the tubing that feeds the filament into the hot end. - Chep has a good video on this on YouTube for the Ender 3 Neo.)
If you haven't found any blockage in the nozzle, heating block, or hot-end, it's possible that the tubing through which the filament flows has been damaged (probably by heat).  If that is the case you want to replace it with capricorn tubing which can stand a higher temperature.  It is also a good idea to replace the heatbreak as discussed above.
If none of these fixes your problem, it maybe that the extruder needs to be replaced, or that the control board is broken and not driving the extruder.

Your printer should have come with a bunch of tools, one of which is a thin wire with a rudimentary handle, and the pointy end stabbed in some foam/polystychrene for protection.  Is that what you tried inserting?
It is a very small hole in the end of the nozzle, and you need it hot else the whole thing is blocked with hard filament.


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Printer turns off after heating up the hotend
I have a Creality CR-10 Max. When I start heating up the hotend, it always suddenly turns off.
I did check the resistance of the heater it was about 4 Ω. The heater itself have 40 W and 24 V. So the resistance should be about 14-15 Ω.
Any idea what happened to my printer?


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What materials can I use to fill gaps in PLA?
Relatively new to 3D printing but have learnt a lot, I just need some help on the finishing process. I currently have some print-in-place PLA figures I need to sand down and some have holes I need to fill in (we made a bit of a mistake on layer thickness). I have a fair amount of hands-on experience with sanding and filling from my tenure making sculptures from foam/cardboard and the like but I'm unsure on the materials for plastic.
That being said, is regular poly-filler or wall filler okay? This is what I've used before while making sculptures, so I have the most experience with it. Or should I be looking for something more specialist or specific like using a two-part resin for filling and sanding that down? (I do have access to a well ventilated space I can do this in.) Should I simply go over everything with a soldering iron?
These figures will be primed and painted afterwards, so I would prefer if the filling material was relatively easy to paint over. Colour doesn't matter as long as it gets the job done though. :-)

The same PLA through a 3d printing pen

@towe I don't have a 3D pen, should I use the soldering iron instead?

Soldering iron works for adding material and welding it into the print, but is a pain to use. If you can get a 3D pen that's so much easier.

CA Glue
for very small holes or print defects, I like to use a droplet of CA glue, which fills those small defects.
In combination with baking soda, it can fill even larger gaps and voids. Glass or plastic pearls and sand also can work as material for filling, as can sanding dust.
Filler-Primer Spray
While not useful for moles larger than about half a millimeter, filler primer sprays can cover over and hide dimples, scratches from sanding as well as layer lines.
Filler paste
Be it Plasto, Tamiya putty or wall filler, small to medium defects and dimples can be filled with these compounds. Plasto in particular has a rather aggressive solvent in it, that strips through paint, so keep that in mind. Among similar products, Tamiya has a range of filler pastes I have good experience with, very similar to Plasto, and is available in different styles for different plastics.
In even larger packaging, 3M 05096 is a very decent acrylic filler and comes in industrial-sized 411 g/14.5 oz compared to the about 30 grams of hobby fillers.
PLA soldering
If you have a clean soldering iron or 3D pen, you can use spare filament pieces to melt and fill gaps or even join parts.
2 Component Resin
A favorite of mine for smoothing over organic surfaces is coating them in two-component resin and letting that dry. The result is usually super smooth, but this is not useful to fill in larger holes that need to be built up first.
"Greenstuff" et al
A better alternative for filling up medium to large holes in a print is using a material akin to Greenstuff, Milliput, or any other glue putty, such as Pattex Repair Express, Uhu Epoxy Repair All or many others. These two component resins start as two strips of gumlike consistency and after mixing turn into a hard polymer over the next 5 minutes to 12 hours, depending on the formulation. This stuff can make a structural replacement for even the largest holes, and be smoothed mechanically.

If you're going to be filling with CA glue, it works even better to pre-fill the gap with baking soda, then drip low-viscosity CA glue on it. The glue instantaneously hardens and produces a more substantial "fill".

In my model airplane building period we used glass bubbles to mix with the CA or Epoxy.

I've had good success with UV-cure glue as a filler. It's reasonably hard when cured yet sands easily. It takes paint well.  It has the advantages of unlimited working time and a very quick cure time.


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How to fix Y axis is off by 30 mm?
I have Ender 3 with Klipper.
In my config:
[stepper_y]
step_pin: PB10
dir_pin: !PB2
enable_pin: !PB11
microsteps: 16
rotation_distance: 40
endstop_pin: ^PC1
position_min: -30
position_endstop: -30
position_max: 200
homing_speed: 50

With this, when I issue G1 X0 Y0 the printhead is actually at 0,0 above left bottom corner.
But then it may not move farther than 200 mm on Y axis.
How do I retrieve those 20 mm?
How do I set an Y offset?
Not that I print that much, but it doesn't work with the print bed calibration model. So it tries to travel to Y209 and fails.

To me your question is not clear. What do you mean by the 20 mm? There is 30 in the question title. You specified a max of 200, it's clear it won't go further than that.


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How would I fix an under extrusion problem?
Hey all I have an Ender 3 V1 and I have a problem with it under extruding. Its not putting out enough PLA to stick and it just becomes a mess. (Bed has a magnetic PEI plate that only has a few uses) Occasionally it will put out a little more on one side or another and it would stick, or the first few layers would stick but just be super thin, and then the next layers wouldnt stick at all. I initially just thought it was that the bed was too far away from the nozzle, that wasnt it. I Releveled the bed but that wasnt it. Speeds, temp and everything seem fine when it was printing good, I messed with them a little but it had little effect. I did a cold pull and still no change. Replaced nozzle completely and it started printing great again. I printed probably 8 or 10 things flawlessly. Using the printer at least daily. I stopped printing for about a week or so and when i went back to printing it proceeded to do the same thing. Is there an easy fix for this? Anuy suggestions would be great! Appreciate it in Advance.

Hello Nick, you need to publish one or two images about your under extrusion, there are several parameters or mechanic adjustments to fix the problem.


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Ender 3 nozzle pushing print after first 2 layer
I have an Ender 3 and during my recent prints, the nozzle pushes the print off, misaligning the thing. I had run practically an entire spool of PLA without this issue. I have an auto-leveler (CR Touch) installed and am using Cura to slice. The attached picture shows one print that went well, then the very next print (from the exact same G-code) showing the initial print of the drawbridge getting pushed off (I snipped the excess), and the bottom shows the very next print where the entire bottom of the print is off by almost an inch.
What can I do to fix this issue? TYIA!

If these are your bottom layers, I looks bad adhesion due to an incorrect Z-offset.

I don't think I changed the Z-offset in-between the jobs, but I'll try adjusting it again.

You should look into belt tension and underextrusion.


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I adjusted the E-steps from 93 to 117.8, now it retracts all filament
I'm brand new to 3D printing and I have had to make so many adjustments just to get a decent print on the Ender 3. Its hardware is 4.2.2 and the firmware is 2.0.8.2. When I ordered it, it did not come with a user guide so I have spent the last week just getting it properly adjusted.
The last thing I just did was set the E-steps because I've been having a consistent extruder skipping issue and when I did the measurements for the E-steps, I got $\frac{90}{71}\times93 = 117.8$, and now right when it starts to print it expels all filament! I'm getting progressively exhausted from spending so many days just trying to get this right. I'll start a print and in the middle of the night the filament just stops printing and it turns out that after manually moving the extruder using the display, it was at least 50+ mm behind! I don't want to give up on this new hobby. So please, can someone please guide me in getting this right? I've 3D printed a few small objects when the thing shouldn't have even been functional, but doing a long print, it doesn't even clog! The filament just retracts so far. So far, here's what I have done.

Fixed the X-axis wobble by adjusting the off-set nut
Fixed the printer head wobble by adjusting the eccentric nut
Unwound and rewound an amount of PLA roll
Ensured the PTFE tube that goes into the printer head is flushed with nozzle and retainer clips are installed.
Put stock PLA roll holder right up to the Z-axis screw so it wouldn't get caught or have too much tension.
Leveled the bed with feeler gauges on all 4 furthest corners, I started with 0.2 mm and moved it so it's just barely touching the 0.1 mm gauge.

The list is small since in between each fix is a few hours of a failed print and researching each aspect of the printer.
To address the main point, I have been having an issue where the extruder skips, I wake up to the filament moved back beyond the nozzle, adjusted E-steps and now the filament un-extrudes about 100 mm.

I just reset creality slicer and now the issue is gone. I have no clue what happened but now the printer is functioning well. As a noob, if there's anything that Needs or should be addressed, Please tell me

Its still skipping randomly during the print. It just keeps retracting till no material comes out.

Worth noting (bit me in the back today) that all speeds in g-code (including extrusion rate) are in mm/min while in the slicer they are mm/s - an easy way to miscalculate by order of 60x

There is no way that a change from 93 to 117.8 is correct. Filament hobs do not vary in diameter, tooth depth, filament squeeze, etc. by anywhere near that much. A measurement result that suggests you need more than a 5% change from the factory setting almost certainly means something is physically broken in your extruder. Maybe a crack in the arm, a spring with no tension, etc. You need to set the value back and track down what the real problem is before you try to tune esteps.

I just got this not even a week ago. How can I find out if its defective? I think that spring has plenty of tension since it takes some grip strength to pull it back. idk what to do bro, Im new so I need you to actually tell me what to even look for

@AnthonyPowell: Did you do your measurement for esteps with the extruder moving the filament free (disconnected from hotend) or with it pushing material thru the hotend? If the former, then something is almost surely mechanically wrong at the extruder side, but if the latter, it could very well be that you have a clog/jam making the extruder slip even when it's in okay condition. Re-reading, I notice it sounds like you removed the PTFE tube from the hotend and re-inserted it. This process is very easy to get wrong and can cause this kind of problem if you get it wrong.

"A measurement result that suggests you need more than a 5% change from the factory setting almost certainly means something is physically broken in your extruder."
I'd say an error in the measurement or calculation is even more likely.


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Printing hollow shell with concave recess ("fill plug") -- Cura automatically fills in "fill plug"
I am trying to print a hollow shell from a mesh I generated in Blender.
The model itself has zero-thickness and I am using Cura "walls" option to create the print. However. The model is designed to be filled with sand for weight and then have a plastic plug secured in the bottom to retain the sand once filled. I simply use a drill to create the "penetration" into the hollow model once the print is complete since Cura finds printing a shell with non-manifold geometry to be illegal.
The concave recess is on the bottom of the model, to allow for the thickness of the rubber plug and still sit flush on the table. Unfortunately it seems this concave cavity I designed is removed in Cura automatically. I have been unsuccessful in figuring out how to get this recessed area to print.
Shown below are slightly different models. I tried importing the mesh into Fusion to "add wall thickness" to the cylindrical recess but it was still removed automatically by Cura as an un-printable overhang/hole?


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Extruder motor not running
I have run into an issue in which my extruder motor isn't running on my Voxelab Aquila. This issue just came up yesterday when I started a print and noticed that while the X and Y axes were moving just fine and it was going through the motions, absolutely no filament was coming out. I could manually push filament through to the hot end so I ruled out a clog, and after canceling the print, I pulled the filament back a bit and told it to auto-load, which it failed to do - the filament did not move at all.
Initially, I thought maybe the motor had died on me, but after swapping the X and Extruder plugs, I found the motor itself is running just fine. After that, I figured maybe it was just the cable itself, but I've swapped the extruder cable for the X cable and it's moving the X-axis motor as if nothing is wrong.
I have not been noticing unusual errors in my prints, so I believe this is a sudden problem - in fact, I just completed a successful series of prints last week that took around 20 hours total. The only thing that I think may have been an indicator of trouble is a smell somewhat similar to a hair dryer that got extremely strong yesterday before I decided to test the motor. I know I have read complaints in the past about the mainboard in the Aquila, could this be a problem there?


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Ender 3 Pro: Parts cooling fan making strange noises
I am using an Ender 3 Pro that I bought near the end of March 2023, and I have not modified any of its parts. About an hour ago, I tried preheating the hotend (using the 'Preheat PLA End' setting) and heard a buzzing sound coming from the parts cooling fan.
I tried cleaning the fan and made sure it was connected properly, which made the noise a bit quieter but didn't make it go away.

What is causing this noise?
Can it be fixed without replacing the fan?
If so, how?

I will keep trying to understand and fix the problem, and will add updates if I find more info.

What is causing this noise?
Can it be fixed without replacing the fan?
If so, how?

The sound was caused by a buildup of filament near the motherboard and in the motherboard fan. After getting rid of the strands, the part cooling fan has stopped making the buzzing noise.


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How to improve quality of edge over support
I am having trouble with my print here, specifically with the part laying on the green support:

It seems the edge running on the supports does not stick to it and it wants to curl upwards :

I have reduced layer height to 0.1 mm and support Z distance to 0.05 mm. I am using the tight support setting in prusa slicer. The perimeter is printed at 35 mm/s and the temperatures are 200 °C and 73 °C for the bed to print PLA+.
Here is what I would like to get close to side by side with the current result. The good one is printed upside down and takes me 23h to print instead of 12h, so I would like to find a good fix for this ;)

This looks like inadequate cooling. If this is PLA, it's probably a matter of PLA this close to a hot bed being unable to cool enough not to still be soft - the heat from the bed will continually heat the part, and it doesn't take much heat to keep it soft. If you're using a bed temperature of 60°C (common recoommendation for PLA) this is hopelessly too hot for any small parts with overhangs to print close to the bed. Try reducing it or printing with a completely cold bed using a non-heat-based method for adhesion. Some good ones are a textured surface like painter's tape/"blue tape", especially roughed up with light sanding, or an adhesive aid like glue stick or hair spray.

will give it a try. Thank you!


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How to fix a Creality Sonic Pad error that appears after the first few lines of printing?
I recently updated my Creality Sonic Pad to v1.0.6.49.145 (June 28, 2023 release) and since I applied that update, I've been consistently receiving the error when attempting to print any G-code file:
Error Message:
Unable to parse move 'G1 X251.931 Y187.6.324 E35.93675'

(The coordinates in the error message above change based on the model I'm attempting to print, I've just added these for reference.)
The printer just freezes in place after completing line two and does not advance, then briefly throws this error on the screen. (I had to sit and watch it because the error only appears on screen for about 5 seconds.)
It doesn't matter what model or slicer (Cura or Creality Slicer) I use to create the file, I still get the message.  I also receive the message on any files that I successfully printed before the update and have tried to re-print as a test.
For reference, I'm running:

Printer: Creality Ender V3 Max Neo
Slicers: Ultimaker Cura 5.4.0 and Creality Slicer 4.8.2
macOS Monterey 12.3
Models transferred via USB drive and Moonraker.

Any ideas on how to get past this error?

I don't have enough rep on this exchange to create a tag yet, but a Sonic Pad tag would be really nice to add, if someone has the rep -- so I've just added the Klipper tag for now.

The changes I made are within the guidelines of the site.

@stevegomez - Post locked - Please note that neither "rollback wars" nor destructive behaviour will be tolerated. Once you post content, it becomes public, due to the terms and conditions that you agreed to - see this answer. WRT to the edits made to your post, please see also Useful things to check for when cleaning up posts. Thanks.

I have had this problem ever since I have had the sonic pad, I found that I just go straight back to print & start print again , it just restarts where it stopped.

Not a fix, but a workaround for anyone else experiencing this issue.  I was able to get past it by changing my upload format from "G-code" to "UFP with Thumbnail" in my Cura Moonraker settings. After this change I have been able to print with no problems and I have not gone back and attempted to transfer straight gcode files. (Because I like the thumbnail previews showing on the Sonic Pad. )
You can get to this screen in Cura by clicking the top menu:
Settings > Printer > Manage Printers...
On the "Preferences" dialog click:
Printers > Preset Printers > Your printer's name > Connect Moonraker > Upload


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The nozzle becomes clogged in the smoothing mode
My nozzle gets clogged when it starts to do smoothing. Settings below:

The filament conducts heat (not much, but it does), so the heat from the hotend travels backwards towards the cold part. Usually the filament during print moves forward faster than the heat travels backwards, so there is always fresh, cool filament on the back.
In your case, since you move filament 12% of the normal speed (which is not fast already in an Ender 3), the forward motion of the filament is too slow and the heat travelling back softens the filament (50 °C are enough) and it clogs.
The solution is to use Polymaker PLA, which is not cheap, but it has been treated to completely avoid this issue, since it doesn't soften at 50 °C but at 100 °C so that even when printing slow it will hold up.


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What material can withstand riveting or the compression of self-tapping screws?
I'm making a flip sign of sorts. The backing of a sign of this type is normally affixed to sheet metal, or the supporting structure behind the sheet metal. My fear was the plastic would crack during the riveting process (it's been forever, maybe this is not a concern) or if self tappers were used and someone just kept their finger on the drill.
Holes for fasteners would be present. The fasteners aren't to grab onto the backing, just the sheet metal or metal supports. The head of the fastener would compress against the sign backing holding it in place.
Was going to use a Shore 95A TPU until I realized that was softer than I thought. I don't have the experience to know which material is best. :( I have a dual extruder... would it be best to have the hole area in one material and the rest of the backing in another? Possible to fuse in some sort of metal ring?
Was hoping for a greyish material... lighter side if possible for the sign backing. This is because normally this particular sign setup is all metal with a nice all metal finish for the backing. It is the closest match.
The printer that will print the backing can print "anything"... that said it should be somewhat economical. :) If ASA is acceptable this would be great for smoothing purposes and UV resistance. The backing would be 1mm thick... fastener areas could be beefed up if needed; 100% infill if that was done.
Once attached the backing more than likely would not be removed unless something happened to it.
Thanks.

Did you happen to find your answer? I am hoping to rivet a 3d printed tube over a steel tube, but am not sure which 3D filament, if any, would best handle the pressure of the rivet without cracking.


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Why does my bed stop heating at high temperature when the extruder starts heating?
To give some more context to my question: it does work as expected (that is the extruder start heating after the bed has reached the set temperature) when I set the bed temperature to be 70 °C or lower. The problem happens when the bed temperature is set to be 90 °C or more. Last time, I set it up to be 98 °C. It did stop heating at 95 °C, then heat the extruder normally. Once the extruder has reached the proper temperature, if I manually restart heating the bed, it works.
Last time, I saw an M190 S0, maybe after G28, not 100% sure about this, though.
I don't know if it is linked to lately updating Marlin with the latest bug fixes version. I have been searching in configuration.h to see if I could find something related, without success.  (Marlin on Ender 5 board V4.2.7)


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First layer issue with new filament
My settings were fine but after switching to a new brand of PLA I seem to be getting issues with the first layer.

My previous filament had a print temp between 200 °C and 230 °C. My current settings have the first layer printing at 216 °C and then reducing to 202 °C for all the other layers. On the new filament, I see it has a printing temperature of 205 °C to 220 °C.
I am using the heatbed steel sheet by prusa3d.com that originally comes with the printer I have (prusa-i3 mk3). This heatbed attaches magnetically and has a smooth surface. I do also have a second heatbed, unopened, that originally came with the printer as well. This second one has a textured surface and is unused.
Considering the difference in the ranges of the filaments and my current settings, I suspect that the change I need to make would be to reduce the first layer's temperature and increase the temperature for all other layers. Does that seem correct? What else might I try?

It might be useful to know what kind of buildplate/bed you have. Please [edit] your question to include this information.

AFAIK, having a too-low temperature on the first layer is what causes adhesion problems; and it looks as though that is what you are experiencing.

I updated with your suggestions @agarza. I will try a higher temperature for the first layer.

Wait...  what's your bed temp? I don't see that in your question.

I'm sorry, it's 60 °C for the bed. I also wipe with isopropyl alcohol before each print

Have you tried just bumping it up to ~70 °C for the first layer? I generally keep my hotend at 200 °C and start my bed at 70 °C (Dropping to 60 °C after the first few layers)

So I changed a few things. I increased the first layer higher very slightly, increased the bed temp on first layer as you recommended, and also increased the print temp 3 degrees. These changes so far have had a positive effect on the first layer in the print I just started

@JordanKlaers How'd the settings changes end up working out?

This first print had lumps but it got past and had an otherwise reasonable quality at the end. Second print with no changes had almost zero lumps and a 9/10 finish


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How do you increase the flow rate for the bottom layers only in Bambu Studio?
I'm moving from a Creality printer to a Bambu printer using Bambu studio.
I often do prints with large flat top surfaces upside down on the bed, and increase the flow rate for the bottom layers only so that the filament from each pass flows more smoothly into the next. Which achieve an effect similar to ironing.
For example, increasing the flow rate to 110% on the first 3 layers printed
I'm not able to find the option to do this in Bambu studio.
Is this option missing, called something else, or simply somewhere that I haven't found yet?


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Extruder clogs after a while on Creality CR-10s Pro v2
The printer has been working perfectly for hundreds of prints. No issues whatsoever. Last week the extruder started clogging. It happens after printing just fine the first half hour or so (3 mm height). The friction through the Bowden seems fine. I'm starting to wonder if the temperature in the nozzle drops and makes feeding impossible.
My settings:

Prusa slicer with standard configuration for Creality CR-10S Pro V2
0.2 mm layer height on 0.4 mm nozzle
E-PLA 1.75 mm filament
Nozzle temp 210 °C, bed temp 60 °C

What I've tried:

Cleaned the extruder various times
Replaced the bowden tube and it's connectors (it no longer pops out, just clogs)
Replaced nozzle
Tried printing this printer test: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2656594?collect

There is a common issue with Ender printers.  The Bowden tube slips out very very slightly.  And since it's a bowden lined heat break, molten plastic jams between the edge of the tube and the heat break.
There is a great Chep episode on this:

or you can switch to an all metal hot-end.  Long term I recommend this.  It's cheap to get a very good one, and will lead to better upgrades down the line.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002907726643.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003982888788.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002854326060.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005854409008.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005094324313.html

Thanks, Justin! I will definitely try this out (and probably buy an all metal hot-end as well). Will let you know how it turns out.

Small update. I took apart the all metal hotend on my printer. Turned out the metal tube inside had lots of hard baked filament in it. I cleaned it out and put it back to together. Issue remained. I did the "simple hotend mod" linked above. Still clogging after half an hour's printing, and I can see that the filament inside the hotend has expanded in diameter and is causing the clogging. Have now ordered a bi-metal heatbreak. Crossing my fingers that it will fix the issue.


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Are there any 3D printer boards or expansions that support more than 3 thermistors?
A long time ago, I went through the experience of adding extra thermistors to my 3D printer board. Ultimately, I did get it to work, but it resulted in extra wiring and was not as clean as I would like.
I was wondering if there are any ready-made 3D printer boards that support adding extra thermistors. I need 5 thermistors for a large 3D printer with a long heated bed. I need the thermistors to measure the temperature of an extruder, the chamber (in 1-2 spots), and 2-3 spots along the bed.
Since I am looking for a new 3D printer board anyway, are there any boards that support adding extra thermistors using a premade PCB or that come with specific JST connectors for up to 5 thermistors?

Yes. Generally, it will be the boards with lots of steppers (or rather stepstick sockets) which also support lots of heaters/thermistors. For example the BTT Octopus Pro has 4 hotend heater ports, heated bed terminals with dedicated bed power supply, and 5 thermistor ports TB/T0/T1/T2/T3. I suspect other 8-stepper boards are similar, though I haven't checked.
If you'll be using Klipper, though, there's no need for lots of ports on the same board. You can use cheap RAMPS boards or old Creality boards or whatever and connect as many as you like to the Klipper host for it to control in sync.


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Motors don't move when printing but do when homing
I have an MKS Robin Pro I was starting a print on and the motors were not moving. The progress bar was running and the extruder temperature was changing (IDEX printer) so I thought it was printing but the motors were not moving, so nothing actually happened. When I home the printer, however, the motors do turn and go to the home position in fact.
Does anyone know how to fix this?


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New to OctoPrint, how to interface with Marlin Ender 3 Pro
I plan on adding OctoPrint or mainsail to an Ender 3 Pro running Marlin 2.
As I understand it, the OctoPrint on the Pi runs klipper, which then feeds commands to the Ender 3 Marlin via the USB port.
Is the klipper advantage of speed and quality going to get lost going through Marlin (32-bit board)?

Does this answer your question: Can you use OctoPrint on an Ender 5 pro with the stock firmware??


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Ender 3 motor cable not working
I had my Ender 3 packed away for the past two years while I was traveling. I came back and reassembled it, but there is no movement from certain motors/wires. I swapped some of the cables around and the x and z axis cables work fine on all motors. Meanwhile, the Y axis cable only works in one direction, and the extruder cable doesn’t work at all. Could it be due to a faulty cable, or is it on the firmware side? And what fixes could there be?


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Motor still locked after pressing disable all steppers
My extruder 1 (IDEX - robin pro board) is locked in position when turning on printer while the other motors are free to move. When I press the disable all steppers button the e0 is still locked while all other steppers are free to move by hand. (When starting a print all motors are still functioning normally) Anyone who knows why or how to fix?


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How come certain parts of my model don't print?
I use Elegoo Cura.
The blade and other parts of my print do not get sliced, and I don't know how to fix it
This is what is meant to be printed:

And this is what the print looks like, with the holes inverted, handle gone and the entire blade gone:

Appreciate any help.

Cura is terrible. The option "Print Thin Walls", which is disabled by default for some reason, should help though.

@towe no? that's inverted surface error

The model has surfaces that are inverted. This is most notable with how the hole in the grip is turned into a cylinder, or the cutout in the blade being turned into a block.
To fix this, you need to fix the model.

I downloaded it from Cults3D and I have no idea how, I will try to find another model.

Bad model, as Trish says. Now onto how to fix it.
Install Blender and open it.

Go to Edit > Preferences > Add-ons.
Select the Mesh: 3D Toolbox plugin and install it.
Restart Blender.

Import your STL (File > Import > STL). Press N to bring up the sidebar if not already visible, find the 3D Print tab and select it, and open the Clean Up subsection.
Select your model in the main view (left-click it so it has an orange outline) and click Make Manifold.
The process may take a while, and Blender will be unresponsive throughout. After it completes, you'll see a message on the bottom: "Modified:" and some numbers of elements fixed. Repeat Make Manifold until "Modified:" shows only zeros.

Make sure the repaired mesh is selected (orange outline). Pick File > Export > STL, and make sure you check Selection only then save the fixed mesh.

As of now, this is the easiest, most comprehensive, and most successful auto-repair option for meshes. That's not to say it's extremely successful—if the mesh is a hot mess, it may not help, it may even make things worse. In that case, you're up for a manual repair—you may need to look into more advanced repair tips, like from CG Boost's YouTube video "How to Solve Common Sculpting Problems in Blender".


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My nozzle is heating up even when it shouldnt
I would like help with the printer. When I wanted to print yesterday, the display wouldn't start, so I restored it and everything worked. Then the motor that pushes the filament didn't want to move, so I cleaned it up a bit. When I wanted to print something, the bed started to heat up, like 120 °C in a few seconds. So, I quickly connected everything and the nozzle showed -15 °C degrees. Then I replaced the whole extruder, and when I turned it on, the temperature was displayed, but it rose within 2 seconds to 250 °C.
The printer is Artillery Genius Pro.
I tried a new cable to the extruder, and also a new firmware, but it didn't help.
I really don't know what to do anymore.

The heaters (and power supply) aren't capable of heating that fast*, so what you've observed seems to be an error in measurement of the temperature, not a sudden increase in temperature. This can be caused by a faulty thermistor, faulty wiring to the thermistor, or something wrong on the controller board where the thermistor connects to the microcontroller.
I would first make sure all the connections are not loose, and in the right places. Swapping a thermistor connector with some other type of connector may be able to cause a problem like this; typically a few different things use the same 2-pin JST type connectors.
If all the connections are right and you already replaced the hotend assembly (which includes a new thermistor, unless you moved the old one), your board is likely damaged.
(*) Note that this still creates a potential heat/fire danger, because any heating that takes place won't be controlled by accurate measurements of the resulting temperature change! So don't operate it like this.


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Color phenomenon with MOPA Fiber laser on stainless steel
I just got a 20W MOPA fiber laser and of course the first thing I do is mark color on stainless steel.
The center of the squares pictured are the color for which I set the settings. I am wondering why there are those columns of other color on the left and right sides.

I don't see one square with bars, I see two overlapping squares, as illuminated here:

The reason for them might be manifold, but to me, it seems the most likely cause is bad focussing or a mechanical issue, where between two passes the laser or workpiece were moved by a tiny amount. You also see this offset with the Y you see that there are two lines that are separated by the same distance as the two boxes are shifted to one another.

Very interesting. I think these were marked with only one pass. If we look at the letter "e," it also has that dark and lighter shading even though it was one pass. Does seeing this change or confirm any of your suspicions? The workpiece isn't flat. Could that be the cause?


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Add base to STL mesh?
How do I add a base to the surface I'm trying to print?
Target machine is a Creality Ender 3 Pro.
I'm using numpy-stl and surf2stl to come up with the desired surface in python:
def SOquestion():
   pᵢs = [i / 100 for i in range(50, 96, 1)]
   pⱼs = pᵢs
   X, Y = np.meshgrid(pᵢs, pⱼs)
   Z = pₖGivenpᵢAndpⱼ(X, Y)

   stlFile = "surfaceOfCriticalValues.stl"
   surf2stl.write(stlFile, X, Y, Z)
   theMesh = mesh.Mesh.from_file(stlFile)

   plotFromStlFile(stlFile)

@np.vectorize
def pₖGivenpᵢAndpⱼ(pᵢ, pⱼ):
    a = pᵢ * pⱼ / ((1 - pᵢ) * (1 - pⱼ))
    return a / (a + 1)

I want this surface to be printable. I figure I could add the base to the mesh but I don't know how to draw all the triangles?

You generated a single mesh surface from a mathematical formula. If you can export this surface, you have the first step to a 3D model!
To turn the mesh into a solid item, you are just a couple steps away:

Import the mesh into blender
swap into edit mode
[E] to extrude

input a value that puts the resulting offset copy well below the item

[s] to scale the selected vertices

[Z]
0 to put them all on the sale Z height.

I don't know how surf2stl works, but in principle, given that you already have a way to make a single gridded surface, all you need to do is do that five more times:

Generate the same grid mesh but with all Z values at 0 (or whatever you want the bottom surface to be) instead of your $p_k$ function value.
For each of the four sides, generate a mesh that is only one row wide, along the Z axis; one edge has $Z=0$ and the other edge has $Z=p_k$, thus connecting the bottom to the top.

Make sure that the triangle winding order is correct (surfaces should be “facing outward”).
Then put all of these triangles in the same STL file and it will be printable.


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Bad print quality, Temperature Fluctuates about +/- 8 degrees
I've been having tremendously bad print quality lately and have been doing everything I can think of to fix it, none of it is helping. I tried printing a Temp Tower for the first time and since I was paying close attention to the temperature, I noticed that the printer is making some fairly wild temperature swings. My target temp is 200C and it's swinging between 192C and 207C back and forth, back and forth.

That is a video of test printing a cube. Took about 30 mins, video sped up 8x so you can watch the temp changes. It takes about 4 seconds in the video to swing from 192 to 207 so that was about 32 seconds in real time.

Monoprice Maker Select Plus
1.75mm PLA (Hatchbox), bought a brand new box
Cura 5.2.1

While trying to address the print quality, here are the things I've done before noticing the temperature fluctuations:

replaced the nozzle
replaced the bowden tube
leveled the bed
calibrated esteps
tried brand new box of filament in case other filament absorbed moisture
gently tightened the thermistor screw just so that it was snug, but not overly tight

Here's the thermistor connection on the hotend:

Any suggestions are welcome.

This looks like a an extruder PID tunning issue.
In Marlin ( I assume this printer use Marlin) there is a auto-tune command for the temperature PID (M303) you can check this page: https://www.3dmakerengineering.com/blogs/3d-printing/pid-tuning-marlin-firmware
You mentioned that you changed the sensor you need to be careful and ensure it is exactly the same type as the stock or to know exactly what type of sensor it is and ensure it is adequately set in the marlin settings
a wrong sensor will give you an offset on the measured value but will not generate fluctuations by itself

I'm not sure what "PID" tuning is, but I'll read up on and figure it out. I haven't changed any sensors though.

Yup, that was it. I guess that when I replaced the nozzle, the heating characteristics changed and needed to be recalibrated? I read up on how to do the PID tuning, ran it, updated the values, and now the temperature is staying very steady. Thanks! I haven't testing the print quality yet, but this did solve the temp changes problem.


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Help me diagnose these print problems?
I produced a cube model (XYZ) using a printer to test its capabilities. Could someone offer guidance concerning the issues visible in the image?.
Printer Used : Createbot F430
Slicer Used: Simplify 3D

You haven't provided any information about your printer. These artifacts look like oozing during retract or unretract due to an excessively slow retract/unretract speed, but might also be related to misconfigured or lack of pressure advance/linear advance.

Apologies, I have edited the question. Is my Retract Distance too small ?

These artifacts look like oozing during retract or unretract due to an excessively slow retract/unretract speed, but might also be related to misconfigured or lack of pressure advance/linear advance.
Based on the settings info you added to the question, I think this is a very plausible explanation.
The "extra restart distance" setting is probably the primary culprit. This is an extremely misguided feature and, with the configured value, is spewing out enough plastic to fill a whole 1.25 mm worth of linear movement (at typical layer height and line width). All this is ending up in one place as a blob. Turn that off (set it to zero) and the problem will almost surely go away. There is never a legitimate reason to extrude a fixed excess amount of plastic after each unretract, and doing so will cause catastrophic nozzle collisions dependent on your model geometry.
Beyond that, 2.0 mm is a very long retract distance for a direct drive, which I believe this machine has, and 15 mm/s is very slow retraction. Those combined make it take at least 1/7 of a second dwelling in place during retract/unretract, which could also ooze material. 0.3-0.8 mm is the usual reasonable range of lengths for direct drive, and 30 mm/s (1800 mm/min) or so a reasonable speed. Play with these, but set it back up closer to where you had it if you get stringing or other problems.
The coasting setting of 2 mm is really, really dubious too. Coasting is a hack to make up for printers with extremely outdated/bad firmware by underextruding. This doesn't seem to be the cause of your bulges, but it could be making them more noticeable by contrast between slightly over-extruded (from oozing) and severely underextruded lines juxtaposed. Coasting should always be off.
Assuming your printer has it (I would hope so at that price, but sometimes pricy printers are running really old firmware), you should also make sure linear advance is enabled and calibrated. This solves the problem that coasting was trying to solve, but does it in a way that's actually accurate and still extrudes the correct total amount of material, just modulating pressure up and down as it does so that it flows in the right places.
TL;DR: Set extra restart distance to 0, coasting to off, and maybe speed up and reduce the length for your retractions.

Thank you for your insight! I'll conduct additional test prints with the settings recommended and observe the outcomes


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What is this type of clamp called?
This is a flat, C-shaped metal piece with a singular hole at the bottom through which a grub screw assures that the heated bed and the glass plate are kept tightly together.
Looking for clamps, I've not found this one. I can get close through "glass clamp", but all of them have two screws.
Both plates together are about 9 mm in thickness.

These will commonly go by the term "bed clip". The problem with doing a search with those terms will not get the result you are looking for. Doing a search with the terms "3D printing bed clip" will get you what you are looking for.
There are different types and styles, so you will have to search for the particular one that you want.

I'm afraid this is not it. I've searched through the search results and none of them resemble the one in the picture.

They don't have to be the exact same. Their purpose is to hold the glass bed to the carriage, not to mention they are adjustable.


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Creality Ender 5 S1, I can move z axis downwards but not upwards, Why?
I bought a Ender 5 S1, 3d printer (without limit switch version), I could be able to asemble it. Every axis works fine, however I cannot make the printing platform move upwards from the GUI.
I can make Y axis and X axis move without any problem.But Z axis moves only down, not up.
I tried to fix it by installing the latest firmware 1.0.7, but it didn't worked.What can I do to debug or fix?

I found the problem, My wide CRTOUCH power cable was loose. I am a begginer so I didn't reliazed that loose CRtouch Power cable was the problem
When CRTouch is loose, you cannot move the Z axis probably because of security issues.


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3D Print Failing With Extruder Not Extruding After a While
I own a Qidi X-Plus 3D printer and have been trying to get it to print properly but to no avail. I've leveled the bed and have been fiddling with the Z-offset yet my prints still fail. Weirdly enough, the 3D prints seem to start off okay, however, after a while, they come out stringy, and then the extruder just stops extruding the filament altogether. I had something like this happen a while back which I sort of solved by adjusting the Z-offset but that doesn't seem to work now. Any ideas on why this happening?
Here are some failed prints:

I'm using the following print options:

Retraction distance is 1.5 mm;
Retraction speed is 38 mm/s;
Printing temperature is 210 °C
Building plate temperature is 75 °C (initial building plate temperature is 75 °C);
Print speed is 60 mm/s; fan speed is at 100 %; and
the Z-offset is at 0.06 mm

Hi Friend, welcome to 3DPrinting.SE! If I look at the image, it looks to me you are experiencing heat creep. Please update your question by [edit] to include some basic printing parameters. E.g. temperatures, printing speeds, retraction length and speed.

Hi @0scar, thanks for the welcome! My current settings are the following: Retraction distance is 1.5mm; retraction speed is 38 mm/s; printing temperature is 210 cel.; building plate temperature is 75 cel.; initial building plate temperature is 75 cel.; print speed is 60 mm/s; fan speed is at 100%; and the Z-offset is at 0.06. Hope this helps! : )


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Why does the PrusaSlicer trace random squares instead of the straight lines?
I'm using an original Prusa MK3S and the PrusaSlicer as my slicing software.
I want to print this net shape with only one layer and a thickness of 0.3mm.

Intuitively, I would expect the slicer to trace the diagonal lines one after the other, e.g., from left to right, and then follow up with the perpendicular ones.
But when sliced with the PrusaSlicer, it traces the individual squares of the net in a seemingly random ordering.

I'm using all the default settings and a layer height of 0.3mm. Any ideas why the slicer does that?
Printing the squares instead of the lines is probably more prone to breaking when bent.

Your model is not printable the way you "intuitively" think it is:

I would expect the slicer to trace the diagonal lines one after the other, e.g., from left to right, and then follow up with the perpendicular ones.

Once one direction of diagonal lines was finished, the other direction could only be drawn by "picking up the pen" over and over to draw each broken-up segment one at a time. Such a strategy has a lot of travel/retraction, and is thereby slow/inefficient and also higher risk for print errors. A pattern that snakes around in a continuous path, avoiding self-crossing as long as it can, is preferable.
However, the slicer doesn't even have that much high level reasoning at its disposal to choose between "these two options". It's just solving for a decent best effort at an optimization problem for covering all the perimeters which need to be printed, which is something akin to the travelling salesman problem or similar graph theoretic problems which are NP complete and thereby do not admit any efficient search for an optimal solution.
As an aside, you may notice that grid infill doesn't have this "problem". It prints the way you intuitively expected it to. This is because the slicer cheats and prints all of the crossing points twice. That often works out okay for infill, where it won't be visible, although lots of users, especially when printing at high speeds, run into problems with "self-intersecting infill patterns" where the sudden nozzle occlusion and resulting change in backpressure create broken extrusions and material sticking up past the layer height and colliding with subsequent layers. This kind of problem makes such a strategy a bad idea for the actual outer geometry of your print. But even if it weren't a bad idea, the slicer simply doesn't have a way of knowing "these features are ones the user wants me to print like infill". It's just solving the general problem of "print the perimeters for these polygonal regions", and in general, the solution doesn't look like an infill-specific hack.


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Rough printing surface
I'm new to 3d printing, printing with Creality Ender-3 S1 Pro. I had printed out some downloaded complicated parts and some simple parts of my own, and I was really impressed with surface finish.
Now I'm trying to print a lampshade from silk PLA.

First tried to print a sample where the profile of each element is half moon. But with 2 x 2 walls and space in between it would not let light through. But the finish was great! Then tried to make a loft where the profile is a 'moon skin', 0.8 mm. The loft turned out to be of variable thickness, but mostly 2 walls. Perfect thickness but the quality is far from perfect. 0.2mm layer height, 0.4mm line width, 200 deg C.

Tried a slice of a lampshade from Thingiverse, and it's opposite from smooth... Any advice very much appreciated. I'm at the bottom of that steep learning curve.
It's 200 °C, Ziro PLA Silk filament.
Also, I chose the same sample to print for the second time by mistake. It was exactly same lines that were under-extruded.

In future, please [edit] and add any additional info to the question itself and not in the the comments. I have done it for you this time.  Thanks.