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Andy Roid
USA
Asked
— Edited
I have been working with my new printer and find PLA seems to print very well on smaller flat pieces. I am still trying to figure out orientation to get the larger structures with overhang to have the right support but I guess it is mostly trial and error. Some parts come out nice, some not so nice...
I have been trying to do more with ABS but find problems. Layer separation, improper bonding and not knowing when to use cooling, high speed or low etc. Is there anywhere I can go to get a better understanding of how to use the ABS?
Anthony has mentioned he may have 3D printing tutorials soon. I look forward to this kind of tutorials.
Any advice?
Ron
Ron
The setting info is pretty minimal. The disadvantage of buying a kit is you get minimal operation information.
PLA works well on tape. For ABS I used the hairspray and tried a slurry but got best result from the glue stick (too good). I had a problem getting the part off the plate. Next I will try the slurry again or maybe glue on tape.
I will look at the sites recommended and try again.
One last thing is, should I consider building an enclosure? I have heard it sometimes helps.
Thanks to All,
Ron
Look to see if Simplify3D supports your printer, I can highly recommend this software.
For ABS and for ME (almost everyone has there own settings), I mostly use Glue Stick on the heated glass at 110ºC. My nozzle is at 235-240ºC. Yes sometimes it to sticks to well. If your making/designing your own parts to print, you can purposely raise one corner slightly and that will help give you an edge to pride against. The z-axis set point is crucial for ABS, you want it to slightly squish out against the glass.
I will go back in the settings and review them. Meanwhile I will look at the forums mentioned.
Thanks to all,
Ron
Without the fan my last PLA print came out nice. I will reset for ABS and run the same part to see how it comes out.
I found some high temp wrap and will install it on the block of my hot end which should keep it at temp when the fan runs. This way I can try the tall intricate part I want to print.
Ron
The finish was poor from start to end.
Any advice?
Ron
235-240 should be ok. but you might try to raise a little. But try without fan first.
What are some of your other settings?
Object Infill
Layer Height
Number of shells
Feedrate
Travel Feedrate? For ABS I use 80mm/s, 45mm/s may be too slow which may be causing the separation issue.
Heatbed temp?
First layer .30 mm
layer height .20 mm
layer thickness 3
infill 15 % hexagone
print speed 60 mm
travel speed 80 mm
nozzle temp 220
heat beed 105
cooling auto
all these set-up are provide by flashforge SW named Flashprint
http://www.flashforge-usa.com/support/downloads/
Even if you do not have the Flashforge printer, the settings given by this SW might help you to set-up yours
I am going to start with the original settings I used based on my best test and will post my results. I think I got too far from these base settings. Thanks to all for the information and the input so far. I will try to do it on thursday am.
Ron
Ron
I am going to reset to PLA and run a part to be sure machine is printing ok.
Then post settings.
Ron
PLA hot end 220 bed 50. layer height 0.1, shell 1, fill 20%, print speed 45
Test 1
Ran PLA and saw stringing. At 50% print I reduced the temp to 215 which reduced the stringing and the part finished out decent.
Test 2
ABS hot end 220 bed 70. all other settings stayed the same. I was pleased with the results. The overhang was a little lumpy but I assume that can't be helped.
I was surprised the lower temperature helped the ABS. I will try the large part again using the same settings but will increase the shell to 1.5. A future test will be 2 shells if this works
I found I can have no drag on the filament. The guide I was using may have caused too much drag at certain locations during the print. This may have caused some of the defects. I will build a new guide and a friction free spool holder to allow the smooth payout of filament.
Advice welcomed.
To All, Thanks for the help.
The Insanity Continues..
Ron
The first picture (blue parts) does not show the buidup of material, just the problem areas where it occurs. Second picture gives a better idea.
My next test will be to print in PLA which I think will have less warping. I wanted this part in ABS.
Second test
I printed with PLA (red part) and found the same problem. I found I needed to tape the part to the base to have it sturdy enough to print up near the top. I still have the warping as shown on the blue part, but I manually tap the warp downward as it cools between layers while it is printing. I do this a few times when the nozzle begins to hit the warped edge. The tapping flattens the part and it is fine for a while until it hits again, until the gap closes.
Any advice?
Thanks,
Ron
These light weight parts are a tough part to learn on. I will need to eliminate most of the warping when I begin the next group.
I will use the PLA (red) parts I printed for the two arms. The two leg pieces which are about the same size in height will be ABS. I will try to keep the warping to a minimum.
Ron
Anthony, I look forward to your videos, and tutorials. I also hope to see more of the mini and it's cousins still in your mind. (LOL)
Ron
The ABS issues still are a problem. The size of the legs are too tall for my printer so I have to lay them down. Trying to print the leg portion of my build I now have warping and cracking problems. Due to the fact these parts are a 22 hours+ print time I don't want to mess to many of them up.
I returned to PLA an the first one came out ok, but I had to adjust settings as I went along. The second part is printing now and I will see if the adjustments improve the part quality.
I have heard ABS parts with walls, are long, and fairly high are tough to keep from warping and cracking. I used air blocks to prevent drafts. I messed with temps and speeds, and still the problems .
Has anyone had similar issues?
I wanted to use ABS but I may have to stay with PLA. The lower temps and print stability of PLA is helping a lot.
Looking for opinions.
Ron R
I will be printing out matching parts in PLA for now but I want the strength of ABS so I need to print them in ABS soon.
I may try to make some tall hollow rectangle boxes with walls about the same thickness as my part. This way I can play with the settings.
Any other suggestions?
Ron R