i3 setup- Is there a better setting?

Hey all, long time lurker, first time poster.

I've had my i3 for a while now, and most of my prints are good but a bit rough. I'm looking for input as to what I could do better for a better quality print.

This is my latest print (bonus points if you guess what it is). It printed fine, no warping or issues, but it looks rough, and has a bunch of "fringe" material on the corners.









Print settings:

-PLA 1.75mm 195* (glow in the dark)
-Bed- 40* for layer 1, 30* for the others
-5% infill, rectilinear, 90* orientation
-30-45 mm/s travel speed

(those are the specs I remember off the top of my head)

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--Ian
"now if only I could print more time..."

have you tried lowering your extruder temp ? or adding more retraction ?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/14/2016 03:52PM by wampablo.

Thank you! I did another print last night, and it came out near perfect. I think I was over-compensating for the material not sticking to the bed, so I turned the heat up. It's better now that it's back at ~185*

With something that large, you don't need a brim. Just a waste of plastic. You shouldn't have to compensate for the material not sticking. If it isn't sticking and your temp is in that range for PLA, then you have a problem that needs correcting. Start over with the Z endstop and get your nozzle 0.1 mm or 0.004" away from the bed everywhere when you hit Z home. Don't use anything in the firmware to adjust this distance! Use the Z endstop. It takes a while but it's the right way. Also, for your first layer go about 50% speed and put 150% extrusion in the slicer. Don't forget to add the "%" sign!!!!

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/15/2016 02:12PM by tjnamtiw.

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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!
I knew most of that, but the 50% speed and 150% extrusion helps a bunch! Also the brim. I think that was more of left-over from a small model previously.

I need to do a rework of the printer sometime, tidy up the cables, and relevel the bed.