Is this the result of my bed not being levelled? I’ve experienced this more and more lately, especially on parts with a large surface area on their first layer. The heart in the picture is about 3" big and it was placed at the centre of my PrintrBot +
I’ve levelled my X axis to make sure it’s the same distance from my bed at both X home and at the far end of the X axis, besides that, what else can I do to level a PrintrBot Metal Plus’s bed?
If I drop my Z offset any more my head will start dragging at the bottom of the heart where the bed appears to be higher.
I had the same problem with my Prinrtbot Simple Metal - my build plate was twisted instead of perfectly flat.
You must check all the corners to see if it is truly flat - there is no reason to assume perfect flatness.
The G-Code command G30 will spot-test the height at the current X-Y point. Move the head around and use G30 to see how bad the problem is.
I fixed my slightly warped bed by placing 4 very tight spring-washers under the mount points.
These washers are extremely stiff - you cannot compress them by hand, but when used this way they allow the 4 mounting screws to make very fine adjustments to the height at each corner.
After I installed them, I then wrote a script to test the 4 corners with G30, and spend 5 minutes adjusting out any error. I got my bed level and flat to within 0.02mm. Since then, my first layers adhere very well!
It is possible, but unlikely, that your bed is excessively warped and cannot be straightened out this way. In that case you will need to ask for a warranty replacement.
I use a .3mm first layer and print the first layer at 50% speed. This usually takes care of the problem you show. It looks like maybe that would solve it. Also check belt tightness, those solid layer lines should be touching the perimeter and holding on. Printing too fast can cause this to happen, that’s why the flower first layer helps. Have you tried a two wall perimeter? When I get really thin extrusion lines, or the solid layer lines don’t touch, I check my extruder calibration and bump the extrusion flow a teence.
@Mark_Rehorst I don’t think that applies to the PrintrBot Metal Plus, the X axis is control by two screws, one on each side, sometimes they get out of sync. And manually turning them is a very easy way to re-level my X axis.
Also I’m pretty sure there is no way to actually align the bed on a PrintrBot Metal Plus, everything is bolted down tight, the liniear bearings to the frame and the bed is bolted tight with over dozen bolts to the linear guides.
I know Brook already said it but I just want to second it. I used to use a matching first layer to what I was printing at and had so many issues. I use a base layer of .3 and it fixes it all!
@Cornelius_Wiens I had a quick look at the assembly video for the Plus (starring @Brook_Drumm ) and its bed is held in place by rails, unlike the Simple Metal which uses a 3mm-gauge solid steel plate.
@Griffin_Paquette@Brook_Drumm , I would strongly recommend checking build plates for all-over flatness using the G30 command, and then using some appropriate method (for example spring washers on the Simple Metal) to trim out the errors.
A simple script automates the job of G30 sampling and takes only 10 seconds to sample the 4 corners plus the middle, and the results can be reviewed in the log window.
While the G29 auto-level program is good, it is better overall to have the bed already level and flattened.
This has some advantages:
A mechanically level bed causes less wear-and-tear on the z axis assembly (including the z-coupler) because there is virtually no need to use those Z-motors during printing except on increments of each layer.
I can reliably print 0.1 mm first layers since I installed the spring washers and manually adjusted them to within 0.02mm of each other, as reported by G30. (But first layer thickness is just a minor quality issue, so I accept that may not be very important to many people.)
Once my spring washers were installed, re-calibration only takes about 5 minutes with the G-Code script and a screwdriver.
Maybe because the Simple Metal is such a rigid machine, I only re-calibrate those spring washers every 2 or 3 months.
Regarding the bed perhaps not being level – look at the thickness of the inner heart (so the outer perimeter of the object) – see how much thinner it is towards the back, when compared with at the tip of the heart – that shows that the nozzle is significantly further away from the bed at the back of the print, which would tally with the lack of stiction you’re seeing…
This does look like a warped build plate as Paul says above, I use this to level my build plate and identify ridges on my build plate such that I avoid using an area if I need to…
@Nathan_Walkner Gave up too early how? I’m in the middle of a printing run and that print was clearly a bust so I aborted and moved on. After my run is complete I’m going to thoroughly check my Bed as per all the suggestion here.
As for now, I used the tip mentioned by @Brook_Drumm I’m printing my first layer at 0.3 at 50% speed and that works like a charm!
This seems like cheap filament. I have this issue when I go real cheap. It just doesn’t flow well and stick to the tape. Higher temp or slow initial speed may help.
