So far I have bought some sky blue PLA as well as some chocolate brown PLA from a popular NZ supplier. I have been printing a lot with the sky blue and it is a real joy to print with for a noob - flows clean and smooth and printed products look nice when finished. I haven't got my heated bed running yet by the way. Anyway, yesterday I started printing with chocolate brown and it is a lot harder to get right. The first few prints I have done have gotten caught up with the printer head and a couple of times have caught the x-carriage and caused it to slip the x-axis belt. Adding a fan hasn't helped although I am still refining my fan arrangement so maybe if I get this fixed it might harden before it catches the hotend. So I have ordered some yellow PLA now which is described as having "great print quality" so I am hoping it will print like the sky blue. Is there some trick to printing with certain colours that I am unaware of? And what other colours have you used that are either easy to use or a pain in the butt? https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147058#msg-147058 Wed, 16 Sep 2026 17:11:14 -0400 Phorum 5.2.23 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,149497#msg-149497 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,149497#msg-149497 se5a New Zealand RepRap User Group Tue, 21 Aug 2012 03:42:09 -0400 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,149141#msg-149141 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,149141#msg-149141 NelsonRap New Zealand RepRap User Group Sun, 19 Aug 2012 02:25:33 -0400 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,149139#msg-149139 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,149139#msg-149139 [youtu.be]]]> Wired1 New Zealand RepRap User Group Sun, 19 Aug 2012 01:37:34 -0400 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,148464#msg-148464 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,148464#msg-148464
I have only been printing in plain white PLA so far. I figured that I would get used to printing in just the one colour first, until I understood what I was doing.]]> Inquisitor New Zealand RepRap User Group Thu, 16 Aug 2012 05:19:22 -0400 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,148445#msg-148445 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,148445#msg-148445
So some colours shrink more than other colours and so warp more if you are cold bed printing. I suspect the successes I had on a cold bed were due to the printer being in a warm room as a lot of the failures happend when the printer was out in the cold shed.]]> Wired1 New Zealand RepRap User Group Thu, 16 Aug 2012 03:08:14 -0400 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,148186#msg-148186 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,148186#msg-148186
I slightly buggered my x-axis idler end when I was building my Prusa so I have been intending on printing out a new one but I want to wait for my hotbed to be working as anything over 50mm warps and on something that high I think it might be an issue.]]> Wired1 New Zealand RepRap User Group Tue, 14 Aug 2012 16:36:26 -0400 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147676#msg-147676 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147676#msg-147676 I might also have something to do with how much it warps - ie brown might warp more than the blue and as I still haven't gotten my hot bed working it may go away when I sort that out.]]> Wired1 New Zealand RepRap User Group Sat, 11 Aug 2012 18:40:07 -0400 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147650#msg-147650 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147650#msg-147650 se5a New Zealand RepRap User Group Sat, 11 Aug 2012 15:15:29 -0400 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147097#msg-147097 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147097#msg-147097 -------------------------------------------------------
> you are re measuring the filiment thickness when
> you change colour and updating your software with
> the new value? they are all slightly different
> thicknesses.




I used too but for what i have been making it didn't matter.

Project is on hold now while we get this move to Chch sorted. I'm here and off house hunting in the morning so family can follow at the end of the month]]> NelsonRap New Zealand RepRap User Group Thu, 09 Aug 2012 04:27:50 -0400 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147070#msg-147070 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147070#msg-147070 Dust New Zealand RepRap User Group Thu, 09 Aug 2012 02:04:17 -0400 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147069#msg-147069 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147069#msg-147069
I love the way Amber tint behaves.
blue tint I never got bridges to work very well.. But I didn't get a lot of time to test.
red tint, orange, yellow,black, glow in the dark, dark blue and green where all very good
Purple was slightly rougher, but that was early on, so was probably me.
White is fine, but boring. :P

Silver I found difficult to print with..


All PLA, haven't tried any others (yet)]]> Dust New Zealand RepRap User Group Thu, 09 Aug 2012 02:01:46 -0400 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147068#msg-147068 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147068#msg-147068
What is the relationship between print head height and layer thickness? do you need to adjust z-axis height to allow for thicker layers?
I was printing at 0.3mm layer height and set the z-axis at the two layers of printer paper you suggested. Now I'm thinking it needs to be at least the same as the layer height so should be 0.3mm? and to print at 0.2mm could be less. I suppose the extruded filament will flatten out slightly too.]]> Wired1 New Zealand RepRap User Group Thu, 09 Aug 2012 01:50:52 -0400 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147060#msg-147060 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147060#msg-147060
So it could be a simple bad roll]]> NelsonRap New Zealand RepRap User Group Thu, 09 Aug 2012 00:46:57 -0400 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147058#msg-147058 https://reprap.org/forum/read.php?41,147058,147058#msg-147058 I haven't got my heated bed running yet by the way.
Anyway, yesterday I started printing with chocolate brown and it is a lot harder to get right. The first few prints I have done have gotten caught up with the printer head and a couple of times have caught the x-carriage and caused it to slip the x-axis belt. Adding a fan hasn't helped although I am still refining my fan arrangement so maybe if I get this fixed it might harden before it catches the hotend.
So I have ordered some yellow PLA now which is described as having "great print quality" so I am hoping it will print like the sky blue.

Is there some trick to printing with certain colours that I am unaware of?

And what other colours have you used that are either easy to use or a pain in the butt?]]> Wired1 New Zealand RepRap User Group Wed, 08 Aug 2012 22:08:00 -0400