My prints are... so far so... mess

Hello

I need some help, but I don't know, maybe with correct Slic3r settings.

I changed 0.7mm nozzle (of Prusa) to 0.2mm nozzle and adjusted some slic3r settings, like nozzle diameter to "0.2" and layer height to "0.1", but my prints are... a mess. It was everything OK with a 0.7mm nozzle in the past.

I am using a sample of white 3mm (2.95mm) PLA, that came with my Prusa. Tried various temperatures: 185, 195, 200C...



Here are the photos:

Part1.jpg - This is how it should look like



IMG_1024.jpg - This is how it prints. I watched all the process and the beginning was fine (you can see it in the photo: the lower layers), but then it come worse and worse...



IMG_1019.jpg - a cube (a well known calibration sample). You can see some gaps here



Config.ini - Slic3r configuration

I had a similar problem to IMG_1024.jpg, and after tearing my hair out for weeks, it turned out that just making my fan run at full speed constantly whilst using PLA (apart from the first 2-3 layers) solved it for me.

I'm not saying its the same, but might be worth a try.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/07/2013 10:45AM by twisted.

Oh, hi, TWISTED,

Thanx, for a quick response (you are quicker than 3DStuffmaker e-mail support ). A fan? Ammm... there is no fan on my Prusa to cool a print. I must think how to attach and power-up one. One of my thoughts is to slow down print speeds to 10, 10, 20, 20, and 20

I agree with Twisted - get yourself a fan (and maybe print 2 at a time.)

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Waitaki 3D Printer

What print speeds and what temperature was the IMG_1024.jpg printed at? Since you moved to a much smaller nozzle you should also take into account the much great force it takes to push 3mm filament into the hotend, so checking your filament drive to see if there's enough pressure against the drive wheel might give you an insight as well.

Hi,

Thank you guys, for all your thoughts. The forum is really alive :-)
So... after some complete failures, IMG_1029.JPG is the best that I achieved. As you can see there's still some curling at the top of the print. But... here's another obstacle: the edges of the bottom wants to bend and all the print wants to jump off. I can hardly keep it in place.
TWISTED, attaching a fan makes things only worse.
WAITAKI, "print 2 at a time" - I'll keep this in my mind on the next print (maybe this would solve my new obstacle).
KBURR, both times I used 190C temperature.

Here's the comparison of my OLD vs NEW config:
bottom_layer_speed_ratio = 0.3 vs 1
bridge_speed = 25 vs 15 (haven't tried bridges yet)
fill_density = 0.8 vs 1
first_layer_height_ratio = 0.1 vs 0.5
infill_speed = 25 vs 15
perimeter_speed = 20 vs 15
small_perimeter_speed = 20 vs 15
solid_infill_speed = 25 vs 15

P.S. One thing I noticed, on preparation I can not extrude ( i mean press a button "Extrude") two times in a row, because, the extrusion mechanism eats away a hollow on my filament

Are you sure that's PLA?

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Waitaki 3D Printer

WAITAKI, yes it's PLA. It comes as a sample with my purchased Prusa, I've checked my packege "Check List" (also it does not stinks, when it is hot).

I have that problem when my hobbed bolt was home made and without teeth. so i make a new one and also stronger springs on the extruder so it have a better controll of the Plastic volume.

Your image looks like your first layer wasn't that good, it printed fine for the next few layers (before the part with the cylinder), then your piece started lifting from the bed as it tried to print the other stuff. If the first layer goes down that messy and you don't use a raft, you can expect this stuff to happen.

The first thing I'd check is if your print bed is level. Since you're using a small nozzle, that becomes a lot more important. I've recently become a fan of dynamic levelling patterns to do this. I do a rough levelling of the build plate (intentionally putting the plate too low), then try to print something like this:
[www.thingiverse.com]
When it fails, I raise the part of the bed where it failed by a fraction of a mm.

About your note of the filament getting eaten by the drive gear, that means your hot end is jammed or your extruder just can't push your filament through the little nozzle. Clear the jam if any, and if it happens again, you'll have to play with your temperatures or maybe get a better hobbed bolt. Don't forget to clean up your extruder as well when this happens - that eaten filament had to go somewhere