3D printer choices

[Tony Pratt 1Participant @tonypratt1]

‘Damp’ filament issues are very prevalent across all the 3D printing forums I look at, I’m in Bedfordshire, printer is in a spare centrally heated bedroom, I print only PLA at the moment and use desiccant in the AMS [27/29% RH] with no pre drying, I’ve had no issues thus far but a dryer is on my list.

Tony

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Another step on my learning ladder:

https://youtu.be/dYPW5Rlwn8g?feature=shared

MichaelG.

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[Tony Pratt 1]

On Tony Pratt 1 Said:

‘Damp’ filament issues are very prevalent across all the 3D printing forums I look at, I’m in Bedfordshire, printer is in a spare centrally heated bedroom, I print only PLA at the moment and use desiccant in the AMS [27/29% RH] with no pre drying, I’ve had no issues thus far but a dryer is on my list.

Tony

Thanks for the further info, Tony

I may live to regret this but, I bottled-out of buying either version of the AMS and bought just the Printer and one reel of Black ASA filament.

Exciting times ahead …

MichaelG.

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[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Once again the forum software has prevented us from seeing your excitement!

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Presumably it doesn’t like .png files

… it was just a small clip from a screenshot, showing the three available options.

MichaelG.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Oh dear, what a mess !

After a successful self-test, followed by a firmware update, followed by a 26 minute calibration run … I finally got to choose a test file to print; and selected ‘Screw Gauge from the list.

I think it took 1 hour 44 minutes to produce this worthless heap of scrap plastic.

🙁

Any advice would be gratefully received.

MichaelG.

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[Matt HarringtonParticipant @mattharrington87221]

Oh dear. Is the nozzle temp too high?  (not that I have much experience yet!!)

I’m surprised it took 26 mins to calibrate.

Not sure what slicer you are using but assume you have it matched to the filament you are using….

Matt

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Thanks, Matt … I need to try again, with some smaller files

I may have set something wrongly, but I think not.

No slicing done by me on this one … it’s ready to go as one of the sample files.

Filament was the sample reel provided with the P1S … fresh out of its sealed pack.

MichaelG.

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It all sounds so easy in the little booklet 🙁

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[Stuart Smith 5Participant @stuartsmith5]

I have only used pla filament. I think it is recommended for beginners .

Only had a problem once when the first layer came unstuck from the bed.

Perhaps you need to change the settings. I notice on the screenshot it says suitable for pla, so may need changing for asa.

Stuart

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Sorry I wasn’t clear, Stuart

… I am currently using the ‘starter spool’  of green PLA that came with the printer.

MichaelG.

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P.S. __ adhesion to the bed seems absolutely fine … sticks as it should, but  lifts without too much effort,

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Here’s a crop from that snapshot  I posted earlier:

MichaelG.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

… and I believe it’s supposed to look like this:

https://www.printables.com/model/482704-original-bambu-lab-screw-gauge

MichaelG.

[Grindstone CowboyParticipant @grindstonecowboy]

I’d say hot-end too hot, or cooling fan not working.

Rob

[FulmenParticipant @fulmen]

Looks like a serious case of under-extrusion. Check for clogs, slipping extruder and filament jams.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Thanks for the comments … although I confess to being bewildered by Fulmen’s

… the bad areas look like dripped candle-wax, which suggests to me an excess of material rather than a shortage.

Whatever … I am perfectly willing to accept having made some stupid ‘operator error’ and I will need to proceed more carefully.

 

It may be a few days before I get back to this.

MichaelG.

[FulmenParticipant @fulmen]

It’s hard to diagnose something from a single photo, but look at the cross hatched flat sections. It looks like half the surface is missing, suggesting under extrusion. Should be simple enough to confirm with a scale, the slicer should provide the theoretical weight.

How does the nozzle look?

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

I take your point about the about the missing surface layer … the model that I linked is clearly fully skinned !

This was the first run on a brand-new machine … everything [except the result] looks perfect.

Urgent domestic chores to do now, but thanks for the suggestion about weighing … I will do that this evening.

MichaelG.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

O.K. __ I still don’t know what went wrong yesterday, but I am much happier now, and really rather impressed with the Bambu Handy App

I switched the printer on, adjusted nothing, and retired to another room

Then searched for something reasonably small and familiar to print … and found a 1/4 20 camera screw

Having simply confirmed a few details of the printer, filament, and plate, I then sent it to print [no physical interaction with the printer]

Twenty minutes later I collected this:

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It’s not perfect, but it’s very useable

 

MichaelG.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

For info … I have just weighed yesterday’s scrap on the postal scales, at 33g

The source file is on the printer’s MicroSD card as a  .3MF [a format which was previously unknown to me]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3D_Manufacturing_Format

MichaelG.

 

 

 

[JourneymanParticipant @journeyman]

Be wary of .3mf files they are basically a .zip file that contains both the model and the printer settings, possibly contain text and pictures as well. Unless they are made using the same printer you can end up with some strange results if the settings are non compatible with your printer. Safer to stick with the plain .stl file and slice it yourself. You can extract the .stl file from the .3mf either by importing just the geometry into the slicer (there is a setting for that) or you can change the file type to .zip and extract the contents that way.

John

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Thanks for that warning, John

… I did have a nagging suspicion that the Screw Gauge file pre-dated the P1S, but didn’t know enough to investigate whether it mattered.

Bambu Lab are so slick with their presentation that it’s natural to presume that everything will be good … but if that .3MF file was originally intended for a different printer, then that may possibly explain my disaster.

MichaelG.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

I am still only in the low foothills of this adventure, but I am already astonished by the capability of the Bambu Lab P1S and its software.

With enormous thanks to Jason for preparing an stp file from his fancy drawing package, I imported this into Bambu Studio [accepting its default settings for things I don’t yet comprehend] and then ran its slicer, which gave a warning about the cantilever and promptly created a support tree [again I simply accepted its suggested settings].

Although the result could clearly be improved by changing the orientation, or whatever … this first run demonstrates, without a shadow of doubt, that the printer will do what I want.

Lots of learning to do …

MichaelG.

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Observant readers will recognise the shape of the bracket from my Avatar [which is taken from a Zeiss patent]

[JourneymanParticipant @journeyman]

The learning curve is indeed steep. Have been using 3D printers (now on my 3rd) for years and still learning the the finer points in the myriad of settings. Have just started using Orca Slicer (well AnyCubic’s version of it) having spent a couple of years using Prusa Slicer.

As to orientation that part would probably print if the larger diameter section was laid flat on the bed with the curved section pointing up. The software may suggest support or a brim but would likely print without.

Worth considering when orienting parts on the plate that, depending upon what the object is, it will be stronger in one direction than the other. The filament being in layers is prone to breakage along the ‘grain’ like wood but much stronger across the grain. Always worth  thinking about the intended use before deciding which side should go on the plate. This is particularly so with small parts where there is not much plastic.

It can often be beneficial to design things in two or more sections to take advantage of the ‘grain’ direction and create a mechanical joint, mortice & tenon or dovetail, between the parts.

To quote Prusa ‘Happy Printing’.

John

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