3D printer calibration: the basics and how to diagnose common failures
This month I came across a MundoBytes guide on 3D printer calibration that sorts out something nearly everyone has experienced: half an hour of printing thrown in the trash because of one small setting. The central idea is simple. Almost all failures can be fixed with three things: the Z offset, the temperature, and machine maintenance.
In the basics section, the text insists on leveling the bed often, whether by hand or with a sensor, and on adjusting the Z offset so the filament sticks without jamming the nozzle. As a temperature reference, PLA runs between 190 and 220 °C and ABS between 230 and 270 °C, and it is worth keeping the bed stable to avoid sudden shrinkage. For the first layer, it suggests going slowly, around 25 mm/s.
What I liked most is the diagnostic list, because it goes straight from symptom to cause. If the first layer won't stick: clean the base with alcohol, slow down, and use a brim or raft. For warping: a hot bed and, with ABS, a closed enclosure. Stringing on Bowden systems is fixed by raising retraction starting from about 8 mm. For overextrusion, lower the flow in the slicer; for gaps between infill and walls, raise the overlap to 20–25%. Elephant's foot improves if you lower the bed temperature slightly after the first layer, and cracks in tall parts can usually be corrected by raising the extruder temperature by about 10 °C.
I find it useful that the guide reminds us of the boring things: using filament from recognized brands, avoiding damp filament, and checking belts, screws, and cables from time to time. It is the kind of reading worth bookmarking for the next time a print goes wrong and we don't know where to start.
Source: MundoBytes
In the basics section, the text insists on leveling the bed often, whether by hand or with a sensor, and on adjusting the Z offset so the filament sticks without jamming the nozzle. As a temperature reference, PLA runs between 190 and 220 °C and ABS between 230 and 270 °C, and it is worth keeping the bed stable to avoid sudden shrinkage. For the first layer, it suggests going slowly, around 25 mm/s.
What I liked most is the diagnostic list, because it goes straight from symptom to cause. If the first layer won't stick: clean the base with alcohol, slow down, and use a brim or raft. For warping: a hot bed and, with ABS, a closed enclosure. Stringing on Bowden systems is fixed by raising retraction starting from about 8 mm. For overextrusion, lower the flow in the slicer; for gaps between infill and walls, raise the overlap to 20–25%. Elephant's foot improves if you lower the bed temperature slightly after the first layer, and cracks in tall parts can usually be corrected by raising the extruder temperature by about 10 °C.
I find it useful that the guide reminds us of the boring things: using filament from recognized brands, avoiding damp filament, and checking belts, screws, and cables from time to time. It is the kind of reading worth bookmarking for the next time a print goes wrong and we don't know where to start.
Source: MundoBytes
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