Gross First Print

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ExplodedZombie
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Posts: 118
Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2016 12:30 pm

Gross First Print

Post by ExplodedZombie »

I finally got my printer to print something! Exciting! But results are hot garbage. I used MatterControl 1.6 with pretty standard settings, aside from all the calibrating. I made the "custom" ABS filament profile, setting the heat to 230/100. I didn't mess with retractions, and my filament seems stuck after the print. I also didn't change the diameter of the filament but left it at 1.75. So yeah...I didn't exactly do everything I probably should have to prepare, but I prepared most of the way and this is what I ended up with:

[img]http://i878.photobucket.com/albums/ab345/bharris990/DSC_0116.jpg[/img]

Pretty ragged looking. Some of the layers look thicker than others. Definitely some stringing. I noticed that the nozzle pushed the filament around toward the front of the print. Almost like it was spitting more than it should on each pass then on the way back pushing it out of the way. In the end the filament went back into place but it was a little startling to see it being moved around. Too hot could explain the ugly strings, but what about the super visible layers?

If it isn't obvious this is my first go and I'm learning as fast as I can.
gchristopher
Printmaster!
Posts: 175
Joined: Mon Dec 08, 2014 2:09 am

Re: Gross First Print

Post by gchristopher »

Others will give better answers, but one quick thing I see is the print quality visibly degrading as you get closer to the top, where the print is thinner/smaller. It looks like it might be printing too fast for the filament to cool enough to harden and support the next layers? When I did that first print on a V2, the instructions said to slow the print down for the higher sections, to allow for enough cooling. With ABS you generally don't run a cooling fan, but try it again at a lower overall speed, and when you reach that upper 2/3 of the print where things start to go bad, use the manual controls to slow things down.

I'm not sure on that blackened divot area on the near side bottom of the print. Did you notice anything weird happening there/ it seems to correspond with some layer inconsistencies around the rest of the print. (Which you'll often see, when something goes wrong, the whole layer will be visibly, if slightly, affected.)

Also, congratulations on a first print!!! That's definitely not a failure. Needs tuning and practice, but no smoke or explosions involved!
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