Nozzle too close to the print?

The first 2 or 3 layers come out good but then it looks like the nozzle is buried in the print pushing the plastic around. How do I fix this?

Either you Z steps/mm are wrong (or Z just isn’t moving correctly) or your E steps/mm are wrong or you filament width is wrong..

Most likely the latter... image is to small to tell.

Ie your extruding to much for some reason, re check your filament diameter (actually measure it, 1.75mm or 3mm is never 1.75mm or 3mm)
Then re calibrate your extruder steps/mm

Thanks, I readjusted the z steps/mm then dialed the flow back to 85% and that seemed to help. I'm going to find the correct way to measure the z-axis travel and further tune the machine to get the best possible result.

I also have this problem; thanks for posting The printer I'm using is an Ormerod 2
My threaded rod used for the z-axis has worn-out as it's become bent and causes steps the print at the same point of the bend, so it's going to be replaced with a new threaded rod for the time being but at later date with a proper lead screw.

From looking at this post, I have come to the conclusion that my steps_per_mm value for Z is not set; will need to send M92 when near the printer to see.
I'm sure it's the default value of 4000 for an ormerod using RRP 1.09 firmware, it's just listed in my config.g file

Here is information (c&p from the RRP documentation [reprappro.com] ) about setting the correct steps value and a link to Josef Prusa Calculator
[prusaprinters.org]

For reference, we supply 200-steps-per-revolution stepper motors (1.8 degree per step), use 16x microstepping, MXL belt (2.032mm pitch), and 18-tooth pulleys on the X and Y axis. On the Z axis, the thread pitch of the M5 rod is 0.8mm. If you change any of these, you can use these numbers to work out the steps per mm, where:

Steps per mm for belt (X and Y axes)
= ( motor steps per revolution * microstepping ) / ( number of pulley teeth * belt tooth pitch )
= ( 200 * 16 ) / ( 18 * 2.032 )
= 87.489

Steps for leadscrew (Z axis)
= ( motor steps per revolution * microstepping ) / thread pitch
= (200 x 16) / 0.8
= 4000

You can also use the above information to calculate the steps per mm using Josef Prusa’s calculator Link above.

Set the steps per mm by sending: M92 X87.489 Y87.489 Z4000 E420

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Supporting 3D Printers with Parts and Build services.
Printer: Ormerod 2 (528.4) Duel extruder set-up with Aluminium X-Rib, RRPro Firmware v1.11-ch (2016-04-08)

If you're sure that your steps per mm is correct, then you might be having problems due to warping and poor cooling.

Try aiming a desk fan at the part, just a gentle breeze. This often helps me with parts that warp upwards, grab the nozzle, and transfer a lot of heat to the part.