FolgerTech X axis homing problem

Hello all!

I recently got my first 3d printer. It is a FolgerTech 2020 i3 Prusa. I'm in the process of configuring it, and I'm running into a problem I haven't been able to figure out after spending about 3 hours on it.

Basically here are the symptoms of my problem:

• When I home the X axis, it moves in the wrong direction
• But just slightly
• Then it thinks it’s homed there

Can anybody provide some pointers on how to go about troubleshooting this? I'm using the Arduino files exactly as they came from the FolgerTech Google Drive link mentioned above.

Any help much appreciated!

First check under the stepper motor driver that the 3 jumpers are present thus enabling microstepping. Plug back in the driver and try again.

If the motor still moves away from the endstop unplug the motor, rotate it 180 degrees, and plug it in again. This will reverse the direction of the homing operation.

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Prusa i3 Rework - Ramps 1.4 - E3d Lite6 - Full Graphic LCD Controller

According to the instruction manual, The plug for the X motor should have the red wire to the left. Put it just like the picture shows. The instructions call this the 'Z' motor again. Also these things need to be done that are different from the instructions.>>


Change the following in configuration.h

#define INVERT_X_DIR true to #define INVERT_X_DIR false
#define X_HOME_DIR -1 to #define X_HOME_DIR 1
With the printer off PHYSICALLY move the x-axis stop plug to the left one set of pins (this makes it so it's the x max instead of x-min)

Now if you are using rep host, you need to go to printer settings > printer shape and change home X: from min to Max.

One big glaring mistake in the build manual is putting the X stop plug in the wrong place on the board. It should be right next to the Y stop plug, not two over as the manual says. Also, for the X motor plug wires, keep them as you see. It's not a mistake to have them reversed from the others. I DID end up reversing the extruder motor plug because it was pushing the filament out the top!

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Folger Tech 2020 i3 and FT-5 as well as modified JGAurora A5 with direct drive E3D/Titan. All running the BLTOUCH.
Great kits. Having fun and running the heck out of them.
Running Marlin 1.1.0 RC8 on the i3 and FT5. Custom firmware on A5.
Folger Tech Wiki board >[folgertech.wikia.com]

Thanks so much for taking the time to chime in, tjnamtiw! I'm doing my first print! You've gotten me a lot further along with that input. It's running pretty smoothly so far, except that the bottom corners are peeling up a bit. But I'm sure that can be mitigated with fine-tuning.

One strange thing I'm noticing is that when I home the X axis, it bounces. What I mean is that it moves toward the stopper until it hits it. Then it immediately backs off it for a moment, then it moves back over and reestablishes contact. Is that normal? The Y and Z axes don't do that.

Quote
grant
Thanks so much for taking the time to chime in, tjnamtiw! I'm doing my first print! You've gotten me a lot further along with that input. It's running pretty smoothly so far, except that the bottom corners are peeling up a bit. But I'm sure that can be mitigated with fine-tuning.

One strange thing I'm noticing is that when I home the X axis, it bounces. What I mean is that it moves toward the stopper until it hits it. Then it immediately backs off it for a moment, then it moves back over and reestablishes contact. Is that normal? The Y and Z axes don't do that.

Mine bounced too. They all are really supposed to come back more slowly to be more accurate but I never found out why the x and y didn''t do it. Since then I've upgraded to 1.1.0 RC3 and now all 'bounce' and come slowly back. It's all adjustable in the new version.
As for the peeling, is this with PLA? If it is, 70 degrees on the bed with a light spray of cheap super hold hair spray will stop it. Make sure you are close enough to the bed at z=0 (0.1mm) and that your first layer is 150% extrusion.

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Folger Tech 2020 i3 and FT-5 as well as modified JGAurora A5 with direct drive E3D/Titan. All running the BLTOUCH.
Great kits. Having fun and running the heck out of them.
Running Marlin 1.1.0 RC8 on the i3 and FT5. Custom firmware on A5.
Folger Tech Wiki board >[folgertech.wikia.com]

I'm actually using ABS. After fine-tuning the bed more precisely, using a wide brim and hairspray, I'm getting it to stick so well it's actually pretty hard to get off.

One vague problem I had this morning is that about 1.5 hours into a 2.5-hour print, it just abruptly stopped and logged the error "communication timeout reset send buffer block". It happened just a moment after I unplugged and re-plugged my laptop charger, and the laptop kept running normally. I'm certain it was the laptop plug, not the printer. I don't know if the timing of the error was a coincidence. I've googled around about that error message, and people talk a lot about the importance of setting an optimal baud rate. Do you have any insight into what may have caused the unexpected stop? And/or recommendations on baud rate?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/27/2016 06:49PM by grant.

Quote
grant
I'm actually using ABS. After fine-tuning the bed more precisely, using a wide brim and hairspray, I'm getting it to stick so well it's actually pretty hard to get off.

One vague problem I had this morning is that about 1.5 hours into a 2.5-hour print, it just abruptly stopped and logged the error "communication timeout reset send buffer block". It happened just a moment after I unplugged and re-plugged my laptop charger, and the laptop kept running normally. I'm certain it was the laptop plug, not the printer. I don't know if the timing of the error was a coincidence. I've googled around about that error message, and people talk a lot about the importance of setting an optimal baud rate. Do you have any insight into what may have caused the unexpected stop? And/or recommendations on baud rate?

Sounds like you are printing via USB and the laptop reset the USB port when you plugged in the laptop charger.
The Arduino would have reset like it was booting up.