q: Would it be posible to design something that is as flexible and that can be printed with PLA that would work as a cloth? I did some research and found that there was a company named Electroloom but that didn't make it. I'm not looking for anything fine, just something that would work for wiping

[A]
Maybe you would be better off with TPU or some other type of flexible material...
I have been able to print PLA and have it flex quite a bit, but that was an ~0.2mm single layer print, I guess maybe up to 0.3-0.4mm should still be a little bit flexible, but not much. Also since you want it to wipe things, maybe you should look if TPU even has all the properties required for that as Carl mentioned in the comments.


q:
My printer is calibrated for a certain clearance from the heated bed, which is chosen based on PLA.

I would like to try to increase it for the first layer for PETG, so that adhesion is reduced. The printer has M5 screws with 4000 steps/mm, so the resolution clearly allows that.

I don't want to modify the printer, I would like a G-Code or another option that I can apply in Prusa slicer in association with the specific filament when desired. I don't want to change the flow rate of the first layer, only the "zero" distance.

How can I do that?

s: huggingface

c: devops

d: intermediate


q: Specifically using stainless steel nozzles, but I guess it's worth knowing about brass too. Is there any reason to be concerned about dimensional accuracy of the nozzle or anything like that as a result of repeated heating with a butane torch?

[A]
If you carbonize the filament or other particles that are clogging the nozzle, then you will never get them clean. In my experience, it's not worth cleaning the nozzle with anything other than cleaning filament. If that doesn't work then change the nozzle. Heating the metal nozzle with a torch will change the temper of the material. I used to try cleaning with a soldering iron; which was to no avail.
Purchase a dozen brass nozzles and save your self the headache. Either that or a good quality set of stainless steel ones. They are easier to clean with the cleaning filament and aren't ablated by the filament as quickly, allowing for better dimensional accuracy over multiple prints.
https://www.amazon.com/eSUN-CLEANING-Filament-Printers-Cleaning/dp/B00MVIYNFW/


q:
I'm having some issues with my Prusa i3 prints. I'm trying to print the default beer opener print that came with the Prusa's memory card but the infill will break causing clogging and now allowing the print to finish. I've attached a picture of one of the failed prints.

I've checked Prusa's website and tried tightening the extruder gears and made sure the gears are clean. I'm using the PLA sent with the printer (1.75 mm) and with a default G-code file so I'm fairly sure it is a hardware issue, but I'm not sure what the issue could be.

Here is the link that I've used to help me troubleshoot.


q:
PLA has a heat capacity of 1.8-2.1 J/g-K, while PETG 1.1-1.3 J/g-K. This means that each gram of PLA needs more energy to heat up. I assume no "melting latent energy", since we talk about plastics.

The density is about the same.

Still, printing speed for PETG is said to be kept at max at 60 mm/s, while PLA can easily go up to 100 mm/s.

Why is PETG supposed to be printed slower than PLA?

Edit: a link to a more recent question may be of interest: Power consumption of filament extrusion

[A]
The density of PLA is around 1.25 g/cm³ and the density of PETG is around 1.38 g/cm³. When you're talking about the amount of energy needed to melt a particular
volume
(which is what your extrusion units are) rather than mass, you need to scale the heat capacities (with units of
$\frac{\mathrm J}{\mathrm g\cdot \mathrm K}$
) by the density to get
$\frac{\mathrm J}{\mathrm{cm}^3\cdot \mathrm K}$
. This brings their volumetric heat capacities somewhat closer: 2.25-2.63 vs 1.52-1.79 (about 47 % higher for PLA rather than your figure of about 62 %), but with PLA still higher.
You also have to account for heat loss to the environment. PLA is typically printed around 200 °C or 210 °C at most; PETG in my experience requires 250 °C to reach low enough viscosity to be printable at any speed. Assuming an ambient 20 °C, the rate of heat loss should be something like 25 % higher for PETG. So the hotend has that much additional energy needed to begin with.
Beside that, PLA is printed at temperatures where it's still extrudable and able to bond even if the temperature drops significantly below the nominal nozzle temperature (down to 180 °C, maybe even slightly lower), whereas PETG has trouble with increased viscosity and poor bonding right away if temperature drops.
Going broader still, PETG seems to need to keep its heat longer after being extruded in order for layers to bond well. (As evidenced by the need to lower fan or turn it off completely.) A slow-moving nozzle both provides heat (from the proximity of the nozzle itself) to slow the cooling, and reduces air flow across the part (by not causing as much air flow itself just by moving).


q:
I have two options - to buy either the Ender 3 or the Mega Zero. I'm heading towards Ender 3 because the Mega Zero doesn't have a heated bed.

My question is, how is a printer without a heated bed (the Mega Zero) a better option than one with a heated bed (the Ender 3)?

Why would I even consider buying a printer without a heated bed when the Ender 3 can do the same things and has a heated bed? I want be able to print not only PLA but other materials as well. Doesn't the Mega Zero limit you to using only PLA?

[A]
Lack of a heated bed does not necessarily limit you to using PLA. I would say (among those I've used) the material that's least sensitive to whether you have a heated bed is probably TPU. Depending on your model, it can even be hard to print PLA without a heated bed, unless perhaps you're willing to use a brim or raft. Printing ABS or ASA without a heated bed is almost certainly out of the question, and PETG
might
be possible, but I'd expect it to be difficult.
Mechanically, the Anycubic Mega Zero looks very similar to the Ender 3. The claimed bed size on the Mega Zero is slightly smaller (220 mm vs 235 mm) but they might just be counting the usable part.
The only possible objective advantage to the Mega Zero I could find is the double gear extruder, which may help with printing faster or flexible filaments.
Presumably you could add a heating element to the bed if you want.


q:
The heater cartridge on my CR10 V2 broke so I ordered a new one(12V). After replacing it the new one heats of very quickly past the target temperature and the slowly decreases to the target. Once it hits the target temp it goes up and down by 10 °C or so during prints. During the prints there is under extrusion. I read that if the filament gets hot too high up the hotted it could cause clogs. I replaced the nozzle as well and cleaned out everything.

Some things that I think may have an effect:

Could the new heater cartridge not be compatible?

does a poor solder job with heater cartridge wires have an effect

It's possible I messed up the thermistor when replacing heater cartridge, could that explain whats happening?

Is there anything else in the hot end assembly such as fans that would cause this?

[A]
This sounds as if you have bought an incorrect heater element, e.g. one for 12 V instead of 24 V. The CR-10 uses 24 V. The 12 V cartridge has a lower resistance, so when powered by 24 V, the current is much higher and therefore also the heating power (
$ {(\frac{24}{12})}^2 = 4 $
times higher). For details on the calculation, the
this answer
on question:
"PID autotune fails 'Temp too high' with 12 V heater cartridge but works with 24 V?"
. This makes the hotend heat up very fast resulting in a large overshoot. You need to replace the cartridge for one for 24 V.
Note that I recently experienced exactly the same problem by mixing up the cartridges see
this answer
.


q:
Does a filament exist that can resist ozone (like certain silicone tubing's can). Most glass bottles come with tin or plastic screw hard tops and I would like to replace the screw caps with something that is more resistant to ozone.

The reason for this is I make my own homemade ozonated oil in glass bottles and I would like to print out different hard screw top caps for some of the bottles.

[A]
If making your own caps ends up being the best solution, TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane) is probably your best bet. I don't have specific information on printed TPU filament and ozone, but TPU is widely regarded as one of the most chemical-resistant materials you can easily print with, and
this page by Ozone Solutions
rates polyurethane (no mention of specific types) A/Excellent described as:
Ozone has
no effect
on these materials. They will last indefinitely.
Being at least slightly flexible, TPU will also yield a good seal without any additional gasket. You should probably choose an unpigmented "natural/clear" TPU filament in case the pigments do react.
It might (probably would) also work to coat an existing cap with polyurethane. I'm not sure how you'd best get it to adhere, but lightly sanding the plastic then using a spray in multiple coats is what I'd try first.


q:
I've found many Youtube videos of makers upgrading to BLTouch sensor.

I have a Creality CR-10S Pro, so far bed leveling hasn't been an issue (after some days of trial and error).

My question is what are the problems/issues users need to face in order to need (or justify) an upgrade?

[A]
I don't know your printer but I don't have BLtouch, and I have to set the height every time because the bed expands with heat.
If you print at variable bed temperature (PLA, ABS, PETg, nylon require different values) then that sensor helps a lot.
BL touch can also speed up bed calibration: you scan the bed, see the values to be corrected, adjust the bed without having to guess (given the thread pitch and required correction).
Also, if you print only in the center it's easy but if you print fully using the size of the bed, I doubt you can get very flat bed. The BLtouch helps for that too.
Also, there are clones like 3D touch which were tested and work equally well. Depending on your budget, they may be an interesting alternative.


q:
I am curious, what is the purpose of printing a single-height outline around the objects to be printed?

Also, how would it affect the outline if the object to be printed extends to (very near) the very edge of the print area?

Update, I received a hint that an existing question has the answer; that link was not really to my satisfaction -- but it did link to another one that did: What are main differences between rafts, skirts and brims?

[A]
My understand is that's is basically a purging extrusion, so that you get flow through the extruder before you start printing the object, as filament that's been inside the hotend during warm-up might have been "overcooked" by spending too much time in the hotend at temperature. It also helps stabilise the PID loop controlling the extruder temperature by allowing the PID loop to stabilise the temperature of the hotend as it's got filament flowing through it compared to it being idle.
It also shows the user where it intends to start printing, which is a useful check if something went wrong with Gcode generation.


q:
Are there any defacto standards for interfacing between common 3D printers and custom extruders or other tooling? I was thinking how it would be good to have switchable nozzle widths mounted on the same heat block and switched between using a solenoid so you could have say a 0.25 mm for surface layer and details, then swap to 0.6 mm for the infill.

What would be the path of least resistance so it could be accessed in generic firmware?

The design I was thinking would be similar to a generic aluminium heat block with two nozzles screwed in side by side with there inputs meeting in an inverted Y junction with its center drilled out and replaced by a rod with appropriate channeling to divert the already molten plastic between nozzles. Turning the rod would be done from a solenoid mounted somewhere behind the heat-break.with a clamping mechanism.

[A]
Generally: nozzles are not changed, the whole tool head is
While "tool change" is easy to implement in a G-code and could be easily adapted in the firmware, there are several practical issues to hot-swapping nozzles without swapping the whole hotend assembly:
The hotend is a fluid-dynamic system that needs to be sealed to operate under pressure and temperature.
The seal of the nozzle-heatbreak system is in most systems a metal-on-metal pressure seal
Rubber seals are not an option in a system that runs over 180°C
Moving metal seals are very hard to make and run smoothly.
Your idea: especially
No
There is literally no way to design a turning Y-switch that fits the following bills:
sealed
filament path ~2 mm
screw-in diameter for heatbreak and nozzles M6
creates enough free space between the lower outlets to mount 2 M6 nozzles with enough space to hold a wrench (=15mm diameter of centers)
fit into the form factor of a conventional heater block
Your idea would need to be considerably larger, need a stronger heater element and creates an impossibly to clean area around the turning junction peg. Atop that, you would trade 1 area of possible leak (between heatbreak and nozzle) for 3 areas of possible leaks (nozzle-block and heatbreak block) and one area of guaranteed leak (the turning peg).
How is it done then?!
Currently, there are the following ways to swap between different of nozzles mid-print that have been proven to work somewhat reliably:
fixed independent print heads with independent carriages.
fixed independent nozzles and heaters on one carriage.
swapping print heads on one carriage.
The first design is used for example in the Leapfrog Bolt, combined heads are for example the
e3D Chimera, Cyclops and Kraken
. e3D also designed on a reliable printhead - or rather tool  - swapping system starting about 2018 and did release it to the public in
late 2019
.
Type 1 needs you to level the printheads well and to the same height in the easy case, but with the right setup of firmware, a Z-offset of the two tools can be included and compensated for - possibly even automatically. Type 3 does usually demands you to include very accurate offsets of the used tools or includes a way to measure the offset during operation, though I lack insight into how e3D solves it. Both setups can mitigate oozing of the unused nozzles out of the printing volume.
Type 2 not only demands hyper exact leveling, but it
also
is very prone to create some sort of oozing of the unused nozzle.


q:
I recently purchased a BIGTREETECH SKR mini E3 V1.2 and need to adjust some of the settings in configuration h to accommodate for my custom built 3d printer. In the past I've used the RAMPS 1.4 board and adjusted the firmware in the arduino IDE. What is the best way/recommended way to do this for the mini E3 V1.2.

Thanks.

[A]
Basics
Firmware can be distributed in 2 ways:
As a compiled file (for example as .hex).
As an uncompiled repository (as in a preconfigured marlin distribution) that needs to be compiled at the users' side.
compiled file
Compiled files
can't
be altered easily. The only way to change settings after installation is to send the correct commands via a
console
to alter the settings in the SRAM then save the new settings into the EEPROM via
```
M500
```
from the
M50X family of commands
- and hoping that EEPROM was activated in the firmware to begin with.
uncompiled distribution
To alter an uncompiled Repository, you can follow the basic path in
Updating Marlin Firmware - Step by Step Guide


q:
I'm new to printing resin miniatures for Dungeons & Dragons and most of my prints are successful, i.e. one or more miniatures print as expected.

However when I have multiple minis on the build plate the one in the middle works okay but the ones on the edges don't adhere to the build plate.

Should I limit myself to one or two minis in the center of the build plate? Or should it work and I just need to get my settings correct?

Note I'm using a Beam 3D Prism printer.

[A]
You can definitely print full build plates of minis. You just need to find correct settings. If nothing sticks to the build plate - then you should increase bottom exposure time. Also check if the build plate is even. You can also sand your build plate a little bit to make adhesion better. Additionally, print with lower print speeds to increase success.
Finally, if your FEP is worn out and scratched or hazy, you should replace it.
I own a company producing 3D printing resins. We also write extensive printing guides from time to time. You can read more on finding correct settings in this
article
of mine.


q:
I’m new to 3D printing and have the Creality Ender 3 Pro. I work a lot with clay for earrings and wanted to design my own cutters with a sharp edge to create clean shapes.

I use PLA and have been using the speed and nozzle (0.4 mm) that was already set when I bought it. It’s been creating fine edges but I’d like to make it a lot sharper. Using the instructions from videos I saw online, I created the following "U" shape (extrusion of .5 mm Is the “cutting edge”. I started getting some weird bubbles too and am not sure what has created that either (see pic).

I use Fusion 360 to make the cookie/clay cutter and then send it to Ultimaker Cura to slice.

Any help with how to make it sharper and more clean cuts would be great!

[A]
An extrusion width of 0.5 mm is too wide for making a sharp outline, I do use this sometimes for extrusion width for the infill.
Note that you can sand plastic (e.g. PLA or ABS) to sharpen the edge.


q:
I have an Ender 3, I got a new glass bed, the bed comes with glue on the back.

Should I stick the glass bed to the aluminium base? or just use it with the clips?
I saw other people just use the clips, but my glass seems to have a sticky back...

[A]
Yes, the Volcano or the Super Volcano allow for larger flow rate (typically when using larger nozzles), that is where they were designed for. Just the nozzle will not help you, you need this larger nozzle shaft to be inside a Volcano heater block, else you cannot transfer the heat.
According to measurements from Metaform, the volumetric flow of a Volcano hotend is larger than the regular E3D V6 hotend.


q: My printer is ignoring the "Z offset" setting in Cura and the "Bed Z" stored in the printer LCD settings? It has been working before but after a firmware update of my printer, it doesn't work. Even after flashing the previous firmware back "Bed Z" changes no longer affect anything. No matter if I change "Bed Z" during prints or if I use the "Z offset" option in Cura, the nozzle still prints at the same height.

[A]
I have the same problem. You need to check your G-code to detect where's the problem.
Try comparing the G-code file with different values of the Z offset.
In my case it looks like this:
No offset
```
```
;LAYER_COUNT:107
;LAYER:0
M106 S255
G1 F300 Z0.84
G0 F6000 X124.645 Y78.208 Z0.84
;TYPE:SKIRT
G1 F300 Z0.44
G1 F1500 E0
```
```
With offset (comments made by Cura)
```
```
;LAYER_COUNT:107
;LAYER:0
M106 S255
G1 F300 Z2.06 ;adjusted by z offset
G92 Z0.84 ;consider this the original z before offset
G0 F6000 X119.093 Y42.498 Z0.84
;TYPE:SKIRT
G1 F300 Z0.44
```
```
I hope this helps.


q:
I have this CTC i3 printer; when I print square test prints, as it moves along the Y-axis back to zero (front). It extrudes lines but very thin or none at all.

But opposite direction along the Y axis is 100 %

[A]
Clearly you're having an extrusion problem. Extrusion problems usually come either from a clogged nozzle (as @Adam S. said) or from the extruder it self. To determine where the problem is located I would first do a flow rate test using
this
. When doing this test you can determine if the extruder is grinding the filament or if it's not grabbing it too much. After the calibration of the flowrate you can be certain that the printer is (by .gcode) pushing the correct amount of filament. If the problem persist I would first do an unclogging (since it's cheaper than the following option) using something like
this
.
If both previous options do not solve the problem, I would highly recommend you to by a mk-8 like metal extruder. After a while, the plastic one that comes with the printer loses force and you'll lose steps. Personally, I had a similar problem where the first layer was printed in a droplet pattern and was solved by changing the extruder to a metal one.
Try these options and if the problem persist you could upload some pictures of the first layer or a video. Other possibilities I think of are that the filament is having trouble passing through the Bowden tube or maybe you'll have to reasemble the hotend.


q:
When I have overhangs in my model, Cura colors them red. However, I noticed if I make layer thickness thinner, the red area is reduced or disappears.

This could mean that thinner layer thickness is better for overhang, but it could also mean that a larger ratio of line width to layer thickness is better. It makes sense that if line width is 4X the layer thickness (such as 0.15 layers with 0.6 line width), overhang performance should be better than if line width is only 2X (such as 0.3 layers with the same 0.6 line width.

Is there a model that explains the optimum ratio of line thickness to layer height? Is only the ratio important, or is layer height also important by itself?

[A]
In terms of Cura's model for showing overhangs, I'm nearly sure it's just the ratio - rise over run, or rather run over rise. And indeed that's what makes sense mathematically:
At least some portion of the wall extrusion in layer N+1 needs to sit on top of the corresponding wall extrusion in layer N. For a given 3D surface slope, the "run" - the distance the cross-section moves from one layer to the next, which needs to be bounded by some fraction of the line width - varies proportionally to the "rise" - the layer height.


q:
From what I understand, UV curing of resin prints works by starting a chemical reaction that hardens the resin permanently.

Also, a curing step after print is needed to speed up the print and also to reduce the curing during print, which would cure resin beyond the current layer.

However, what is the transmissivity of UV light in partially cured prints? If I print a more massive object, or if I use an opaque resin, how deep will the object harden properly? Absorption is always exponential, meaning that it decreases quickly with depth.

Depending on the resin, how thick prints can be effectively cured? This information is not provided with the resin, which I actually would expect from reputable manufacturers.


q:
Currently, I'm using a Creality printer to print PLA (that's what I have on hand) but I'm definitely interested in working with other materials that require higher temperatures (both much higher, and just enough higher that the stock hotend is very marginal) in the future.

I understand that all-metal hotends are less forgiving and that they particularly are not the best for printing PLA, and shouldn't be assumed to be an upgrade when only printing PLA.

What I don't understand is, how bad are they? Are they so bad that I should plan on changing back to a PTFE hotend whenever I print PLA or ABS? Or are they suitable for use on a printer that is sometimes used for printing PLA and ABS and sometimes printing high-temp filaments?

[A]
Are they so bad I should plan on changing back to a PTFE hot end?
No, all metal hot end are not that bad, and may even be beneficial when printing at higher temperatures. You mentioned that you want to print ABS and other such materials. At temperatures this high, my understanding is that the PTFE tube in the hot end may melt, or at least become so damaged that the hot end is blocked, leading to needing to replace the tube. My first 3D printer used a PTFE ho tend, which due to the printing temperatures I was using, and lack of knowledge of the many types of hot end, the tube got damaged after about 2/5 hours, leading to me needing to replace the tube. I eventually sent the printer back, got my money back and got a printer with an all metal hot end. That has never failed me in hundreds of hours of printing.
Are not the best for printing PLA
I have never had a problem printing PLA with an all metal hot end, however if you are printing just PLA, a PTFE hot end would be just fine, although not as versatile if you wanted to try different materials in the future.
In Summary:
Provided you print fast enough (I regularly print at 60 mm/s) to ensure that no filament cools down in the hot end you should be fine.


q:
Typically in Arduinos, most of the 5 V outputs that have a limited amount of current (40 mA).

Are there any 3D printer boards, or is there even a more usual spot, where you can get a 5 V output that isn't capped by the microcontroller?

I know that USB 2.0 is (typically) limited to 500 mA especally when connected to a laptop. Just wondering if there was a way to for e.g. get a 200 mA output from one of the 5 V pins, or more if there is a stronger power supply connected to the USB port.

[A]
Any pin that is labeled as "5 V" can supply the full amount of current. Looking at, for example, the
Arduino MEGA pinout
, we can see several pins labeled in red with "5 V". These are the pins you can use. Most 3D printer boards will expose the 5 V pins at several points. For example, the endstop connectors often have a 5 V pin that can be used.
The pins that are limited to 40 mA that you are thinking of are the digital pins, i.e. the pins that can be switched on/off by the microcontroller. These are actually more limited than this, and while in some cases drawing 40 mA from them may be possible, it is not a good idea.


q: I want to be able to control my FLSUN QQ over Wi-Fi and don't have OctoPrint or a Raspberry Pi to run it on.

[A]
Assuming you use Ultimaker Cura to slice, there is a MKS plugin that allows connecting to the MKS WiFi module that comes with the QQ. Just follow these steps:
Install the MKS WiFi Plugin
Open Cura
Click "Marketplace" in top right
Select "Plugins"
Scroll down to find the "MKS WiFi Plugin"
Click on the plugin.
Click "Install"
Restart Cura (quit and reopen)
Configure WiFi
Turn on your QQ
Tap Settings
Tap WiFi
Enable WiFi
Note the IP address and network name
Connect your computer to the printers network
Open your browser
type the IP address of your printer into the address bar
hit enter
Scroll down to "WIFI Configuration"
Select STA
Enter your home network SSID into the field labeled "WIFI"
Enter the password into the field labeled "KEY"
Click configure and reboot
Setup your printer in Cura
Open Cura
Open settings > Printer > Manage Printers...
Click "MKS Wifi"
Click "Add"
Enter the new IP address of your printer (can be found by opening WiFi settings on the printer)
Click Ok
7, Click connect.
Now you should be connected to your printer. After slicing you should have the option to "Print over FLSUN..." In the Monitor interface you should have some other options such as sending commands to the printer, and printing any files already on the SD card, as well as uploading gcode files to the SD card.
Happy Printing


q: Is there any DRM or license management solution for 3D printing? I'm looking for something, that would help me limit the number of prints someone can make from my projects. Basically, I would like to sell the "right to make no more than X copies" of my design. I don't expect it to be bullet-proof (like Widevine L1 for video), but it should at least help me with license management.

[A]
Good luck with that.
Issues you will face:
using a G-code editor (or built-in printer software) to create multiple copies of the object in a single print session
user writing the printer file to an SD card, then block-copying the SD card
defining a "print". Specifically:
is #2 another functional copy of the object, or did #1 fail? Failed prints happen a lot.
is #3 another functional copy of the object, or was #2 damaged in post-processing? Like removing supports or left it in the acetone 5 seconds too long and it's now a blob.
is #4 another functional copy of the object, or was #3 tossed because the guy running the printer grabbed the wrong spool and made a perfectly good print in the perfectly wrong material/colour.
is #5 another functional copy of the object, or was #4 damaged in shipping?
The whole process is one-way. There just isn't a path for anything other than the end user to know what they pulled off the print bed. Unless you make the entire process from design software to printer you won't change that. And good luck selling it, 'cause the user base is rather strongly opposed to that kind of thing. For example, ANY kind of DRM in the product, from printer software to filament, is an immediate no-buy for me. I don't care if you are paying me to take it, I will find an alternative without that particular annoyance. And no, I don't use Microsoft or Adobe products either.


q:
I recently heard that the 3D printing lab at my college can do fused-deposition with ABS and PLA, but I would like to use TPU, for greater flexibility.

Is it possible to feed a TPU filament into the same machine built for ABS/PLA? Or is there no difference? Assume the diameters of the filaments are the same.

[A]
Most printers can print most filaments. However, some more exotic filaments are not suitable for all printers:
To print a flexible filament such as TPU, the filament path from the extruder needs to be well-constrained. A bowden extruder is generally less good at handling flexible filaments than a direct extruder. Some direct extruders without a well-constrained filament path may also be unsuitable.
A printer without a heated bed won't be able to print filaments that tend to warp such as ABS.
A printer without a (heated) enclosure won't be able to print filaments that tend to warp
a lot
such as polycarbonate
A printer with a PTFE-lined hotend won't be able to print filaments that require higher temperatures. PETG is at the upper end of what can be (safely) printed with a PTFE-lined hotend, while filaments such as polycarbonate require temperatures well outside the usable range.
A printer with a standard brass nozzle won't be able to print (not long, anyways) abrasive filaments such as glow-in-the-dark.
It is likely the printer at your lab will be able to handle TPU just fine. If it is a bowden printer then you might have some difficulty printing but it might still work depending on exactly how soft the filament is and how well-constrained the filament path.


q: If I have an issue with my FLSUN printer how can I contact customer support?

[A]
I have had good luck contacting them via AliExpress
https://flsun.aliexpress.com/store/2383013
even though I bought my printer on Amazon.


q:
I find that white filaments are quite translucent and printing 5 layers of white filament onto 2 layers of black filament (at 0.2 mm layers, the white layers being 100% infilled and the underlying black layer covering about 85% of the whole area) produces a slightly grey color on the top.

Is that a limitation of the white colour (or the actual material used)?

Are there materials, that address this issue to some extent?

Adjusting layer thickness while keeping the overall height won't change things, right?

[A]
This could be caused by under extrusion, often caused by the bed being too close to the hot end / extruder nozzle. You could try to relevel the bed, or change the screws so that the bed moves down slightly. Often when levelling, you want to feel slight resistance when sliding a piece of paper between the bed an the nozzle. You should do this for all 4 corners. Be careful though, you dont want the bed too far away from the nozzle, or problems maybe arise with the print not sticking to the bed.
Hope this helps, Luke.


q:
I installed a BLTouch bed leveling probe on my printer which uses Marlin 2.0.5.3.

Now the printer seems to be of two minds when it comes to finding the origin. Homing XY moves to the lower left as it always has, but homing Z moves not only to Z=0, but also to the center of the build plate. The printer knows this is (100,100,0) and is not mistakenly thinking it is (0,0,0).

This causes some issues such as now the nozzle wipe at the beginning of a print happens right in the center of where the print is supposed to be.

Is this expected behavior?

[A]
This is a consequence of enabling
```
Z_SAFE_HOMING
```
:
Z Safe Homing prevents Z from homing when the probe (or nozzle) is outside bed area by moving to a defined XY point (by default, the middle of the bed) before Z Homing when homing all axes with
```
G28
```
. As a side-effect, X and Y homing are required before Z homing. If stepper drivers time out, X and Y homing will be required again.
Enable this option if a probe (not an endstop) is being used for Z homing. Z Safe Homing isn’t needed if a Z endstop is used for homing, but it may also be enabled just to have XY always move to some custom position after homing.
My default Cura start G-code contained this sequence:
```
```
G28 X0 Y0 ;move X/Y to min endstops
G28 Z0 ;move Z to min endstops
```
```
I changed this to
```
```
G28 ;safe homing
G90 ;absolute positioning
G0 X0 Y0 ; move to bottom-left corner for nozzle wipe
```
```
However any oozing will still happen at the center of the build plate, which is a problem.


q:
My Ender 3 LCD display was working ok, I went to turn it on recently but is not showing any signal of life anymore...

I have tried unplugging and plugging again, is there a way to test if the screen still works?

What is the issue? Or should I just buy and install a new LCD?

[A]
The fact that the bumps were in the same spots on multiple occasions points to z-axis problems. Turn your printer off and manually turn the z-axis all the way from bottom to top. If there are any tight spots, there is some
z-axis binding
. If there are no tight spots, skip to the last paragraph.
Try taking off the z-axis by removing the set screws (pictured below). Remember which side was pointing up for a later step.
Once you do that, clean the screw thoroughly with a brush, cloth, solution, or a combination of those. Put the screw back in the opposite way this time.
If you get no bumps, then it was indeed the z-axis
If the bumps are still there, try lowering your temperature some more(200 is still a little high compared to what I do for PLA), and
calibrate your e-steps
if you haven't already.


q:
I have a few 3D printers and now want to start building a custom 3D printer.
I want to build a 3D printer with multiple nozzles, and I want to make the hotend thin so the nozzles can be closer together.
What is the thinnest nozzle avalible to buy?
Are there any guides or details on how I could make a custom nozzle or modify a nozzle if I can't buy a thin nozzle?

[A]
The size of the nozzle usually isn't the main factor for how close you can put nozzles together.  To keep the filament drive gear system from being the limiting factor, you would need Bowden extruders. "Then, the heat sinks and fans would be your limiting factor.  Have you considered a single nozzle with three extruders?  Otherwise, you need custom angled heat sinks similar to the three heat sinks on a single nozzle, and still a way to orient the nozzles at the same Z-height.  That would be difficult if all the nozzles are on the same heater block.  It still seems that nozzle size is the least of the issues of putting nozzles close together.
If you search for smaller nozzle sizes, you will get nozzles with smaller openings, not smaller overall size.  The threads on the nozzles are a standard size.  Thus, the smaller opening size can't be put closer together than the larger opening size.  Otherwise, you have only small variations between different types of nozzles and need room to screw them in to the heater block if you put all of them into one block.  You can get a nozzle using a 6 mm hex wrench that is smaller than one using a 7 mm hex (E3D).


q: I am building a medium-sized printer which needs to produce super-precise parts at a moderately fast print time. I frankly don't want to deal with belts or their tension issues but on the other hand, having ball screws on each axis will increase inertia...right?. I'm using Rexroth rails and will use (depending on what I decide) name brand belts or name brand ball screws.


q:
I had filament on my 3D45 coming out of threads on the nozzle.

To fix this I removed the nozzle to find the PTFE Liner in really bad shape. It looked crushed and deformed. Now the tough part, how do I replace the PTFE Liner. You can't seem to buy the liner and getting a replacement nozzle assembly from Dremel takes weeks. Can anybody help me figure this out please, I really would like to get back to printing!!

[A]
The initial problem you had with filament coming out of the threads at the nozzle is caused by improper seating of the heat break to the nozzle. In a "from the ground up" installation, you'd have an empty heat block, containing your heater core and your thermistor. Threaded into the "bottom" of the block is the nozzle, just a turn shy of being flush with the heat block. The heat break is the thin threaded segment extending from the heavily finned heat sink.
The heat sink/heat break combination is threaded into the heat block until it contacts the nozzle, at which time, the nozzle is snugged into place securely. This keeps continuous the filament path from the heat break to the nozzle. Somewhere in time, a gap opened between the two.
When you have assembled everything (including the PTFE liner), you'll want to heat the extruder assembly to about 250 °C and re-snug the nozzle to the heat block and heat break. Hold securely the heater block, as you do not want to apply force that will snap or otherwise damage the fragile heat break. Use a wrench that fits the heater block without contacting the wiring. Use a wrench that will keep your fingers safe, as the heat block will be hot.
Stepping back in time a bit, when you remove the assembly, you should be able to determine the necessary length for the PTFE tube. I checked the manual for your printer and it is lacking in detail for this information. The diameters you've specified are standard and you should be able to locate a suitable substitute from many online sources. Amazon, Matterhackers, eBay, etc.
Examine the heat break tubing. The diameter should not be so small as to allow you to push the PTFE tubing in from the heater block side, unless you have an unusually manufactured product. Dremel may have decided to create a new bit of engineering, but I'd expect not.
You'll purchase more PTFE than required and examination of the upper portion of the heat sink should give you a clue how much to use. When the cover of the extruder assembly is removed, is there a guide for the filament to make it easier to push through the PTFE tubing? If so, the length of the PTFE is from the bottom of the guide to the bottom of the bore of the heat sink/heat break assembly.
Photos of the upper entry to the heat sink/heat break, with the cover removed, would be useful, but you may have sufficient resources in hand to resolve your problem, once you replace the nozzle and purchase PTFE tubing of the correct size.


q:
I'm printing 6 separate parts in one go, after 4 hours of printing one part failed, but the other 5 are printing nicely.

Is there a way to prevent the print from printing the failed part and continue printing the other 5 parts.

I'm using Cura and an Ender 3 printer.

[A]
No, once you sliced the 6 parts on the build plate in your slicer, the G-code is fixed and the printer will print as the sliced instructions. During printing it cannot skip the code of a part that failed along the way; there is no way to interfere with the printing other than stopping the print. For that reason, many people don't pack the build plate too full, the more parts, the higher the chance it fails. You could print the part one after each other. Packing the plate with multiple parts is usually not faster than printing one at a time (if it fails you have nothing, otherwise a single failed print).
Depending on the size of the parts you can also tell the printer to print each part on the plate one after another in a single job; note that the printhead dimensions limit this. If one fails you stop the job, but the already printed parts are saved. You can then commence a new print of cut the G-code and reprint the shortened file.


q:
Got my Ender 3 v2 and stack with the bed leveling.

Used default settings, Creality slicer 4.2, test PLA from the kit and print model https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3013319 (4 squares in each corner and 1 in the middle), nozzle 200 °C, bed 60 °C.

After some adjustments, I have good solid pieces on the bed corners  but the center one has small gaps. Is it possible to fix this problem?

Corner pice:

Center piece:

[A]
The gaps are, because the nozzle is to far from the bed at this point. It may sound like a big deal, but actually this is not leveling alone, but it looks like the bed is not a perfect plane/perfectly flat. This is normal, my ikea mirror and my stock bed show the same thing. Now here's one solution:
Print calibration stickers, like you already did on various places around the bed to get a feel, where it is too low. Let it cool and put painters tape (the very very thin tape, that should not burn) on areas, where the bed is too low. Print more calibration rectangles and check if you have enough. Repeat until you cannot see a difference.
It took me about 2h to level everything absolutely perfectly. This was 2 years ago and I didn't have to touch the tape below my bed ever since. It just works.
Alternative solutions involve mesh bed leveling and buying a new bed surface or even the surface below the bed. However, I found that to neither of them work reliably, whereas the simple tuning does what it's supposed to.


q:
I'm new to this game, and recently upgraded the hotend on my Ender 3 Pro to a clone of an E3D V6, as I'm keen to do nylon prints at some point. I noticed however that this one I got has a teflon liner which seems to negate the advantage of a metal hotend entirely.

I'm wondering what temperature it's safe to run this hot end up to?

[A]
It depends how
deep
it goes. If the teflon goes into the hotend then yes, it will limit the temperature end.
But: the teflon may just be something that ends
somewhere
in the cold side and sticks out so there is something to put into the extruder or higher up into the connector.
I cam currently setting up a Slice Mosquito for a Bondtech DDX. The Mosquito is full metal, but there is a (actually printed nylon) adapter for the DDS. In this adapter you put a teflon/capricorn tube, that ALSO sticks out only around 5 mm. Here is the point though: it never goes into the even cold side and is only there so the connection to the extruder on top has a width limitation.
So, it really depends how
long
this tube is (and no-one here will know because a v6
clone
may be different internally from the original). I would suggest pulling it out (it should move out easily) and then seeing how deep it goes. As long as it stays on the cold side before the heatbreak, it never gets in touch with anything that is hot.


q:
I am building an enclosure for an Ender 3 Pro printer, and am planning on the power supply and LCD unit being outside the enclosure.  How important is it to move the printer controller (where the SD card is inserted) outside the enclosure?
Would leaving it in place affect its longevity?

Answers to the first round of comments/questions:

I expect to be primarily printing in the 200C-270C range.

I'm not worried about losing heat from opening the doors - I'll be putting the SD card in prior to initiating printing.

I'm thinking the stepper motors are somewhat of a moot point, there's no way I could move them outside of the enclosure.

My printer is all stock.

[A]
It depends on what kinds of prints you make, and especially what kind of materials you want to use.
Certain materials (ABS especially, but also PETG to some degree) will print
much better
if the entire build area, which usually includes the printer chassis and controls, is enclosed to protect from drafts and allow a much higher ambient temperature.
If you print often with these materials, and the control board is included in that enclosed area, you
will
significantly reduce the life of the electronic components,
especially the capacitors on the board
1
.
On the other hand, if you print mainly with PLA, which is not as susceptible to issues requiring an enclosure, and prints better with an ambient temperature closer to room temperature, you can put the electronic controls wherever you want.
1 See especially this excerpt from the section on "Premature Failure":
Electrolytic capacitors that operate at a lower temperature can have a considerably longer lifespan.


q:
I am going to design and build a 3D printer. I want the highest quality and accuracy so nothing except that is important for me. Which cartesian design has the highest quality and accuracy? CoreXY, Prusa, or Gantry (Ultimaker)?

Also, is it better to have a nozzle that moves in just direction "X", directions "X and Y", or "X, Y and Z"?

[A]
The tradeoffs in these systems are all about quality achievable at particular speed and acceleration profiles. If you really don't care about speed at all and want maximum accuracy, you probably want some type of Cartesian setup with no belts, only rigid lead screws which you can take to as fine a pitch as you like, and you can make all the parts as rigid as you like because mass doesn't matter (since acceleration doesn't).
Note however that extrusion accuracy is the limiting factor to quality and dimensional accuracy in even a half-decent printer. Rather than trying to design something with "perfect" spatial kinematics for quality from the outset, I think you should look at existing printers, figure out what about them isn't meeting your quality needs, and start from there to improve. You should also figure out what your speed constraints will be, even if they're only minimal.


q:
I know that CoreXY kinematics is very complex and hard to calculate for the firmware making it better to use a 32-bit board. For some reason, I can't use any 32-bit board. What problems will occur if I use an 8-bit board like Arduino Mega with a CoreXY 3D printer?

Everything that I wrote in this question about hard kinematic calculations was referenced from this video, HyperCube 3D Printer 8-Bit Speed Wall, by Tech2c (the designer and builder of hypercube). After watching the video I doubted using an 8-bit board.


q:
I'm trying to model the threads of a "Poland Spring" 500 ml bottle so I can 3D print an adapter for it. But I can't find information about it. I emailed them but they said they didn't have the information.

How can I find this information out?

The bottle seems to use non standard threads. It uses 3 threads 120 degrees apart that does not go all the way around.   Any information on how to get this information?

[A]
You can use a program known as
OpenSCAD
with the
threads library
to assist your objective.
The important aspects of a thread are the major diameter (outside diameter at the thread surface), the length of the bolt/nut and for your project, the start count. The noted library has a parameter called n-starts, which covers your triple start requirement.
It may require some trial and error processing, but you have a good foundation with OpenSCAD library.
Even if the bottle is manufactured with Imperial reference (unlikely), you'd probably have an easier time with metric threads. I just checked a Dasani water bottle, which measured at 27.27 mm major diameter, 10 mm length, thread pitch 2 mm. The thread pitch in metric is the distance between peaks (or valleys) from one to the next. This particular bottle has an interrupted thread, but that should not be a factor for creating an adapter.
This Dasani bottle does not have a multi-start thread. It's not a complete thread, but it is single start. Considering that a water bottle top has minimal length, you may also have an interrupted rather than a multi-start thread.
The code for the measured thread in OpenSCAD is relatively simple.
use <threads.scad>;
thread_dia = 27.27;
thread_pitch = 2;
thread_length = 10;
metric_thread(thread_dia, thread_pitch, thread_length, n_starts = 3);
The above code would generate a 3-start thread in the form of a bolt. Using a difference() code would provide for the inverse required for your proposed adapter.
top image is single start, bottom is triple start.
Top view comparison:


q:
Is there a way of reducing the amount and strength of Model support when slicing in Cura?

Cleaning a model with large amounts of support can consume large amounts of time.

[A]
You could reduce the
```
Support Density
```
:
A higher value results in better overhangs, but the supports are harder to remove.
Furthermore read
this answer
on question: "
Difficult to remove support material
".


q:
Does anyone know of a hot end that is sealed? What I meaning is that the hot end has a rubber seal where the filament enters to keep the top airtight (in order to eliminate oozing).

I am looking to build a dual extruder printer but, I do not want any oozing from the hot end which is not in use. I could build a system to retract and 'close' the nozzle but it would be much more elegant if it would work to just seal the top of the hot end. Thus achieving the same effect as when you pull up water with a straw by covering the top with your finger.


q: Lately I've been having problems with overhangs not adhering when curvature is outward (stringing across instead) that look like what you'd see at insufficient temperature, and that go away with temperature jacked up a bit (PLA at 220 °C, which is a bit extreme) or fan disabled. Is it possible that the hotend thermistor has drifted and is no longer accurate, making the actual temperature lower than nominal? Or do these things fail hard when they fail?

[A]
It is indeed possible that the thermistor is broken (yet not sure). I am aware of two types of issues with thermistors:
The contact (soldering) is broken, usually due to the temperature extreme variations. The thermistor will indicate the maximum temperature in case of PTC or minimum temperature in case of NTC. In some cases, due to vibrations or other factor, the contact will eventually touch, showing improbable jumps of temperature.
The thermistor is broken internally. In that case it will just indicate a wrong temperature. I can't say if constant temperature or constant delta.
For how to troubleshot the component, however, EE.SE seems more convenient.


q:
After a resin print completes, what is the expected process to finish the print? Is some cleaning expected? I also some manufacturers sell UV chambers to cure the print surface, is this required?

I purchased a low-cost printer from China that is quite high-quality hardware, but sadly short on documentation. Insight on the proper post-print process is appreciated.


q:
In all the bigger prints I print on my Ender 5 with PETG I have problems with warping and raft detachment during printing. I have a glass bed and I'm using Ultimaker Cura 4.6.1 standard printing settings for PETG (Recently I had some success using 245 °C nozzle temperature and 80 °C build plate).

Any ideas how to reduce those problems?

[A]
This sounds like a bed leveling issue.  As reported by others, I get much less warping with PETG than with ABS or even PLA, and deal with too much adhesion with PETG rather than too little.  With a Reprap x400, I printed a faceplate for the extruder to hold a electronic drop indicator.  This gives me much higher precision leveling. Of course, I remove the drop indicator after leveling.
If leveling isn't the issue, then you may be printing too fast.  The recommendations I've seen are to print PETG at 50 mm/s or less.  I print a a lower speed than that.


q:
Is it possible to use a standard color inkjet cartridge to color filament for full color 3D printing?

It seems like a natural next step to me, but I haven't seen much of anything on this. (Just a few ancient experiments on reprap wiki.)

I've learned that some inkjet printers have the heads built into the cartridge whereas others it's part of the printer.  I think the former would be more appropriate.

Unfortunately I haven't seen anything on actually how to drive the cartridges.  I'm guessing the mfgr's treat this as a trade secret (?)  Still, there's got to be some overseas reverse-engineer... something... on this, right?

Anybody have resources/notes they'd like to share?

[A]
I don't think it makes a lot of sense - you don't need that kind of resolution, and getting a sufficient amount of ink that way to coat the filament would be hard. If you're going to be switching colors rapidly, you'd need a long purge between colors anyway. I also doubt the type of ink is suitable for sticking to filament materials.
If you really want an automated filament coloring system, I would do it with Sharpies and actuators to move individual ones on/off of the filament as it passes through. Coloring PLA with Sharpies prior to printing is a known-working technique, and there are even models available on Thingiverse for holders to keep them in place while the filament runs through. Designing the actuators to switch individual ones on/off, and the firmware controls for them, would be the natural next step.
Here are some examples I did with manual coloring of natural translucent PLA (from left to right: uncolored, silver Sharpie, and red Sharpie):
I didn't color a long enough segment of filament or properly purge for any of them, which is why the coloring is inconsistent/incomplete. But the technique definitely works.


q:
If I need to 3D print a hollow box that can not have any light permeating into the box, what would be the best course of action? Should I 3D print the hollow box as a whole or print out the 6 sides individually and put them together at the end? And if I do the second option, what would be the best way to put the pieces together (design/connect grooves or use glue)?

I am very new to 3D printing so any feedback would be very much appreciated!

[A]
Print it as a whole object
Use 20% infill.
Profit!


q:
I already tried a lot settings in Cura and try to search for a solution but without success. Maybe someone got this issue and solved it.

I want to prevent Cura from printing such gaps at the wings to make it in one run. With ironing one run would (hopefully) bring better results. See the animation for what I mean.

Why want to do this? I hope to prevent thes ironing issues shown in the following pic.


q:
Im using Prusa Slicer 2.1 for my FlyingBear Ghost 4.

I just changed my 0.4 mm nozzle for a 0.2 mm but it seems to jam in the heater probably due to too much filament trying to get out by the nozzle. Where is the setting to reduce the filement speed and how much I should reduce it?

Here are my settings:
Config.txt

[A]
0.2 mm and 0.4 mm are half the diameter, but the maximum flow is not just half: Flow scales with the area. The 0.4 mm nozzle has an area 4 times as the 0.2 mm one:
$\frac{A_1} {A_2}=\frac {0.2^2}{0.1^2}=4$
You need to reduce
```
print speed
```
or the
```
volumetric flow
```
by this factor or make sure your printer can handle the increased flow by reducing the viscosity of the melt - for example by increasing the print temperature.
Also note, that a 0.2 mm nozzle can't be operated with layer heights above 0.15 mm.


q:
I am using "Pretty PETG" along with PrusaSlicer's consecutive print mode.

What I am noticing is that upon finishing the first print, the printer hits MINTEMP BED Fixed. I'm not sure if it's immediate because I let the prints run overnight but I assume the bed cools down and then the error is hit.

I'm just starting to learn G-code and my initial thought was there's an errant bed temperature instruction but the only M140 S0 instructions I see are in the end_gcode and near the bottom of the file. Maybe there a goto in G-code which may be running after M140 S0 which then causes the MINTEMP BED issue? Perhaps there's something else going on?


q:
I took the plunge and bought a resin printer. I was wondering if I could use full strength home-brew vodka at 90 % instead of using isopropyl alcohol before anything is added to clean prints with?

I cannot seem to find anywhere or anyone that has tried this.

[A]
Isopropyl-Alcohol - Propan-2-ol - and Ethyl alcohol - Ethan-1-ol - are different chemically. As a secondary alcohol, Propan-2-ol has quite different solubility of different materials than ethyl-alcohol.
Now, let's look at home made alcoholic destillate. That stuff is, if done in one refraction and without tossing the first low temperature part, some percentages Metanol, Ethyl alcohol and maybe some water. That has not the same solvent properties as Propan-2-ol.
While it
might
work, nobody will sign a guarantee that it doesn't negatively impact your print.


q:
I'm trying to connect my PC to my Anet A8 through Pronterface on Ubuntu.

But when I'm clicking on the "connect" button in Pronterface, all I see is "Connecting ...".

What I did so far

added my user to the dialout group

tried to run it as root

tried different baudrates

switch to different USB cables

tried to install and run it on a different machine and different OS (Windows) with nearly the same result (additionally I see repeated lines with M105, but no response)

The printer itself works - I want to connect to it, to "PID tune" it, because I added a different fan duct.

How can I make sure the board isn't somewhat damaged, and its just my setup?

[A]
You may need to install a device driver for the USB interface chip that your printer uses. I'm guessing that the Anet A8 uses a clone of the FTDI FT232RL chip (which was and may still be common with cheap Chinese printers).
If this is the case, you will need to install the appropriate driver from this site:
FTDI Chip Virtual COM Port Drivers
.
Edit: I can confirm that Pronterface will not work with my Tronxy X1 (which uses an FT232RL clone) on the latest version of Ubuntu.


q:
So I have some old filament that I originally got for a 3D pen. The problem is it's unlabeled and I haven't been able to find anything that might help me distinguish whether it's PLA or ABS. The bag it all came in says that wherever this filament came from only makes PLA and ABS so it's got to be on of those two.

I have a roll of PLA in my 3D printer right now, but I can't tell if it's the same as the filament I have for the 3D pen. It's been a while since I've used the 3D pen, but I do remember whenever you used it, it would produce a very very bad smell. I've also noticed that the filament seems to be more flexible that the PLA in my machine. This makes me think it could be ABS, because the PLA smells far better than what I remember the 3D pen smelling like, and it's more flexible.

I also don't really want to do any heat tests or anything on the filament, so if the smell and flexibility is enough to determine which filament it is, could anyone tell me?

[A]
Mick's suggestion is a good one. PLA may shed some color in acetone, but ABS will dissolve completely in a suitable amount of time. If you have dark filament, you can test by flexing the filament until it breaks. ABS will sometimes/often/usually fatigue with a white break line, while PLA does not exhibit this tendency as much.
PLA has a somewhat sweet smell, which may be the corn sugars burning off, while ABS has a much more chemical-like odor.
Not doing heat testing does limit your options.


q:
What materials work well for lubricating moving PLA, ABS, or PETG parts? I'm talking items like the
the Gear Bearings or Print in Place Engine.

I've played with a few lubricants on my own, including hand lotion, trumpet valve oil, and carmex/vaseline. Of these, the vaseline has worked best for me so far, but I'd like to hear what has worked well for others, or especially if there's anyone here who understands the chemistry involved and could explain what to look for in different situations.

[A]
When dealing with lubrication of plastics, any solvent or reactive substance is to be avoided. Petroleum is risky and Vaseline™ is a brand name for petroleum jelly.
I've had quite good results using inert lubrication such as PTFE and silicone based lubes. PTFE is the generic term for
Teflon™
and is quite a good lubricant. There are both silicone and PTFE greases for higher viscosity applications.
From the Teflon™ link:
Teflon's amazing properties are down to its structure. Like most
polymers, Teflon has a carbon-based chain. However, instead of
reactive C-H bonds which occur in most polymers, Teflon has all its
hydrogens replaced by fluorines. These strong C-F bonds are extremely
resistant to attack by any other reagents, making Teflon very inert.
This means that no other molecules will react with or stick to Teflon.
The exception is Teflon itself, which will stick to itself quite
readily, forming thick layers or solid blocks. With a friction
coefficient of <0.1, Teflon has the second lowest friction coefficient
(surpassed only by diamond-like carbon), which makes it perfect for
non-stick items e.g. pans. DuPont invented the non-stick pan coated
with Teflon in 1956 and have manufactured it ever since. Teflon
coatings are so slippery that they are the only material that a gecko
cannot stick to.
Who knew that gecko testing was a thing?
Wikipedia
for silicone grease:
Although silicones are normally assumed to be chemically inert,
several historically significant compounds have resulted from
unintended reactions with silicones.
Powdered graphite is also a good lubricant if one can tolerate loose powder in some constructions.
I've read of others using lithium grease, but not for plastic lubrication.


q:
Not storing left-over photopolymer resin back with pristine resin in its original shipping can seems to be a common recommendation.

What is the best practice here? Store in a separate bottle and pour this "once around the block" resin first for the next print?

[A]
Considerations for storing resin include using a light-tight bottle, preventing stray ultraviolet radiation from prematurely curing the resin.
You'll also note that users will filter the resin through a fine mesh filter. I've seen some videos in which the user pours through coffee filters to remove as many particulates as possible.
Left-over resin that has been carefully filtered is effectively the same as fresh-from-the-bottle material, from a purely technical view, but you can pick up contaminants that bypass the filter.


q: My only functional computer at the moment is a raspberry pi, and I was wondering if there was any software that supported it. My printer is a Newmatter mod-t, but I might be able to modify other software to support it


q:
I want to print a part from Thingiverse. In the description, the creater writes that he used SBS to print it. I did some research because I never heard of SBS.
I found a description on Filaments.directory that describes it as:

Poly(styrene-butadiene-styrene) is a hard, durable rubber that is commonly used for shoe soles, tires and other products that experience high wear.

But if I search for SBS filaments to buy, there only shows ABS up. Did I misunderstood something and SBS  is the same as ABS.

[A]
As you found and according to this site, SBS is a
Styryne-Butadiene
polymer that only contains Styrene and Butadiene chains interlinked. This is similar to ABS, but not identical.
Some people have access to filament manufacturing machines or use pellet extruders, however, googling for
"SBS" filament
I was able to source at the moment two sites with information:
Craftbot.nl
is a reseller who also explain why this stuff is such expensive with 40€ for 750 grams
the
very site you had (apparently defunct, no waybackmachine grab)
, which tells us there is exactly one brand:
Filamentarno
from Russia, but the link to the amazon marketplace from there shows no availability of this product at all.


q: Of course I'm referring to side by side and not stacking or overlapping.  200 x 200 mm PEI and Kapton sheets are more readily available than 400 x 400 sheets.  I'm wondering if anyone has tried this and if the edges of the sheets cause a problem.

[A]
I haven't tried such a thing, but a speculative answer covering the constraints and expected failure modes may suffice here.
Unless the sheets have squared (rather than rounded) corners, the corners will almost certainly be a problem. In particular you'd end up with a hole right at the middle of the bed.
If the sides aren't entirely square (perpendicular) with each other then you'll have large gaps at one end or another.
As Trish noted in a comment, it's also possible that you may hit problems due to mismatch in thickness between the different sheets, although I'd expect these are fairly well-controlled in the manufacturing process; otherwise I'd expect bed leveling issues even with just a single sheet. If you do hit this kind of issue, it may be possible to avoid it with shimming of some sort.
Assuming you can avoid all of the above potential problems, I would expect what you've proposed to work reasonably well, especially if you're ok with very minor surface defects at the seams.


q:
My goal is to have a speaker inside a PLA casing to produce a nice hearable sound from a submersible item.

I intended to produce that sound from a Piezo buzzer stuck on a membrane held tight in hollow place between two pieces, but the result is unsatisfactory as the sound gets muffled to inaudible levels.

Is there any known 3D printable methods to permit for a sound to be heard from PLA?

[A]
In space, no one can hear you scream. That's because there's no air to be vibrated, which is part of the definition of sound.
In the case of your model, the described diaphragm will generate sound because it is surrounded by air. The vibrations in the air will transfer (and reflect) from the PLA shell you've created.
In order to hear as much sound as possible, you have to have as thin a shell as possible and only one of them. It would be more effective if you could incorporate the membrane into the shell, which eliminates the sound damping effect of the plastic sphere.
Barring that option, one layer (vase mode, but probably not) would present the created sound with a much less massive amount of plastic to vibrate.
Additionally, PLA is not known for being water tight. One can apply epoxy or other sealants to make it so, but that will add mass to the overall equation.


q:
I have a 3D print where there are 5 holes with a diameter of 4 mm in a cup, and I would like liquid to flow through all 5 holes at once while slowly draining the cup (by slowly I mean: just take a few seconds and not drain instantly). Therefore the holes can not be very large.

When I fill water in the cup it drains fine until there is a small amount of water left, and then it just stops with a small layer of water flowing over the holes.

I'm guessing it is due to surface tension and not enough pressure from water above to push the water through...

Is there a hole design that fixes this problem? I don't know what to Google or if this is the right place to ask the question. It just takes too long to guess my way through and print every attempt at the right size or shape of hole (which I have done so far and still got nothing).

[A]
What you encounter there is a combination of Adhesion, Cohesion, and Capillary Force.
Cohesion is what holds the water together. Adhesion is the force to retain water against a wall or hanging from a pen's end, it is proportional to the surface wetted. Capillary Force is the resulting effect where water moves up through a thin tube, it is anti-proportional to the diameter and in the opposite direction of the weight (force). Their relation can be shown in this picture, where a droplet hangs on the end of a glass rod, which has a capillary in it:
How to reduce the water sticking in the cup then?
Make the straight part of the bore as short as possible. This can be done by having a thin cup. The shorter the hole, the less surface there is the water can adhere to vertically, and you might overcome capillary force.
Smooth the hole. Maybe print it 3.5 mm and drill it up to your 4 mm diameter. This reduces adhesion.
Smooth the inside surface. Reducing the adhesion to the inside by having less steps.
Chamfer the inside of the holes. This alters the whole geometry and flow setup in the very low water level case, especially when the surface separates into several areas, above each hole. Then the larger volume belonging to each hole on the inner side means there is a little more pressure and you can get out some more water - and it also shortens the distance the hole has to bridge.
make sure there is some slope everywhere inside so that the water will collect in one of the holes.
An example for a (non measured) design which relies heavily on chamfering to guide the water to the already chamfered holes and then keeps the straight section as short as possible could look like this: the central hole has a very wide chamfer, the whole plate directs water to the center and each of the other holes has a chamfer to guide out water.
However, there is a lower limit to where just tweaking the design will workd, which is based on cohesion. Cohesion is what results in surface tension and viscosity. You can only shift those limiting factors by altering the properties of the liquid, for example by adding an agent that lowers the surface tension and viscosity (soap).


q:
I would like to create a case or a box which has two holes for incoming and exiting water. I want the box to be opened and closed. Therefore it is good to be something like a treasure box.

Is there a way to design the lid of the box to prevent water from leaking around the areas where the box and the lid are meeting without using glue?

[A]
"Completely" is always relative, but for water at the pressures involved it's probably achievable. Normally you need some sort of
gasket
(material that can bend/compress to slight imperfections in the mating surfaces), and a means of holding the two surfaces tight against the gasket, to get such a seal.
With 3D printing, it's plausible that the print itself could be sufficiently non-rigid to achieve this, if you have a way of keeping the lid and box pressed tightly against each other - bolts through the lid, clips around the edges, etc. But it's unlikely to work well.
I would either print I suitable gasket in TPU, or cut one from some suitable material if you don't have the capability to print with TPU. Either way you still need to design your box and lid so that they're pressed tightly against the gasket.
One possible frame challenge would be doing a round box instead, with a circular threaded lid. It's likely that you could achieve a decent seal for your purposes without any gasket just by tightening the threads, and if not, you still have a really good setup for use with an added gasket.


q:
I have an SKR PRO control board with a dead (shorted, it's burning hot) main processor. I ordered a new board, it was my mistake.

The voltage regulators work, so I ordered a replacement STM32F407 processor from STM (a free sample actually) and I'll repair the board in my free time.

How can I test all pins of the new board, so that I can ensure the board is working when I'll sell it/when I'll use it for my next project?

I think that programmatically turning on and off each pin would be enough, then I would use an oscilloscope or a LED to verify the result. The pins which have special functions (heater, fan, MOSFET in general) would be tested accordingly, but I still need the pulsating input.


q:
I'm trying to build a DIY 3D printer for myself. I've been exploring many different styles of printers and found this type of printer that has a fixed bed that stays fixed in one place and the whole gantry moves which includes all axes.

Why is this so rare?

Are there flaws in this design?

Will print quality be affected by using this approach?

Check out this video for reference and skip to 10:50:

[A]
Why is this so rare?
Such kind of printers usually harder to assembles, calibrate, and maintain because 3 axes machine is a bit more complex than 2 axes. For instance, it's can be tricky to move an entire extruder among all 3 axis and some of such printer's designs may require even dedicated exruder's design like Bowden Extruders.
Are there flaws in this design?
The key disadvantage of such kind designs is complexity with moving of an extruder among all 3 axes. Moving platform by at least one axis simplifies that.
Will print quality be affected by using this approach?
It depends on the exact printer's design, so, potentially you can have issues with ease of assembling and maintenance due to more complicated construction and as a consequence higher risk of low printing quality due design, assembly or configuration mistakes.
On the other hand, if you already have some device with precise enough 3 axis machine, like CNC milling machine, you can upgrade it to 3D printer by installing an extruder, however, it would also require update of software and, probably, electronics.


q: I am running an Ender 3 pro with an Octoprint connected. I accidentally set the print speed too slow in Cura and the print will take very long. Is there a Marlin command I can issue to the printer to speed it up without stopping the print?

[A]
yes
Print speed is a setting that can be altered by just turning the click-wheel of the Ender 3. You don't need to push it to gain access to menus. A turn to the right does increase the speed, left lowers it. It is applied only some moments after
stopping the turning - then the firmware does inject a
```
M220
```
command as the next line. This means the current running movement is ended with the last set speed, the new speed is set and the following command will be done with the new speed.
As towe correctly states, one can also send a
```
M220
```
command to the printer via a terminal, but then you need to have one set up
before
the print starts, as plugging in a terminal will
reset
your printer and abort the print!


q: Assuming a Cartesian printer with a belt and smooth rod design in which one axis moves another (i.e. the X-axis rails 'sit' on the Y-axis rails), what are the main considerations in sizing the rods and belts?  For example, given a base design using 8 mm diameter rods and 6 mm belts (assume these are the limiting factors of the printer and that the frame, etc. can handle whatever you throw at it), what is roughly the maximum load, print speed and build size that this should be expected to support?  If you were to increase the rod diameters to 10 mm or even 12 mm on one or both axes (assume the steppers could handle the increased load), what would the increased rigidity buy you in terms of maximum speed and/or build size and would 6 mm belts still be appropriate?  Ballpark calculations or rules of thumb are fine as I understand the variables are likely not trivial and am looking more for a rough range of guidance to understand the trade-offs involved.

[A]
8 mm rods and 6 mm GT2 belts are generally accepted as a good tradeoff between price and performance, an exact calculation is possible but might not be very relevant if another part is flexing. Also, generally speaking, the smaller the part the sooner it will wear out of specification. Thus your service interval might be higher compared to an over-engineered printer.
In short, it depends on what your goal is, if you desire low maintenance and accurate machine, you might be better off with heavier gauge parts. Obviously, this will also affect the speed of printing.
A 6 mm GT2 belt might have a higher stretch factor compared to a 10 mm belt, but can be mitigated by adjusting the acceleration. In addition, a 10 mm belt has a larger pulley reducing the number of steps per mm, lowering precision. As such you might be better of using two 6 mm belts.
Increased rod size for the print bed will not affect printing speed much but might help with accuracy since the bending modulus is lower. Play around with the calculators below to get an idea of the force your beam will have to withstand. That said, there are a lot of other factors that will flex under load, for example, the bed leveling springs. You can replace them with solid spacers, but that might warp the bed when it heats up.
https://www.engineering.com/calculators/beams.htm
https://www.omnicalculator.com/physics/acceleration
To conclude, I would use the calculators to figure out if the 8 mm rods are within tolerance for the intended speeds and load, but don't forget to look at the overall picture. The quality of parts you choose is one such thing.


q: My 3D prints shift along the Y-axis on my Ender 3 3D printer. I don't know what to do. My Y-axis belt is tight, So I don't think that is the problem...


q: I am trying to print something that might take 15 hours. I don't want to risk my printer so if I print for 15 hours, what is the worst that can happen? So far, I haven't printed anything for more than 5 hours.

[A]
Correctly level your bed. Seriously, that's the answer. PETG does stick well, but it only gets difficult to remove if you're smashing the first layer against the bed with a nozzle that's way too close. With the bed leveled properly - using feeler gauges or test prints and a sub-0.1-mm-precision caliper - I have no trouble taking PETG prints off a buildtak-clone bed. Glass should be easier.
If you already have PETG stuck to a build surface you care about and don't want to risk destroying it, try heat, or alternating heat and cold.


q:
There are lot of advices on the web how to paint the 3D printed objects, but generally they are advices for manual painting and this required special skills, especially if the object is small. My guess is that maybe 3D printer can lay the color layers as well? I am especially interested in the layering of enamel paints (which can be transparent and which can required high temperature heating afterwards). Medieval art has fine examples how detailed enamel art was created on the metal. Maybe something like this can be achieved with 3D printers as well?

If 3D priner with the paint-printing capability is not available generally then what are the prospects when such printer can be available? Maybe there are some early, experimental efforts to create such printer and maybe test devices are available?

[A]
Painting Prints
Yes, you can paint your models with
enamel paints
. Actually, most paints will work. You might need to roughen the surface with sandpaper a tiny bit. Note that some spray paints might contain solvents that might soften or melt the prints, so read your ingredients!
...not with vitreous enamel
However, you can't use
proper enamel
, as that needs to be sintered after the paints have dried, and that will destroy your print unless you have used a metal-printer.
Printing Color
Now, if you want a printer to print a paste of vitreous enamel, you are looking for a
paste printer
. However, the paint for such a device needs to be very viscous, and the print quality (due to the large nozzle) will be far below what a skilled artisan can achieve. Also, you'd need one paste extruder per color.
Foils?
One could possibly work with foils, cutting them on a plotter and then carefully transferring them to the printed object. This would allow much finer details than a paste printer currently is able to create. Such a foil can also be printed upon by special printers - possibly achieving the full spectrum in a single application step.
Alternatively, one would use a "puzzle" of smaller pieces and apply each piece separately. The result might actually be somewhat similar to the
Chromolith
(Colored Stone) stonewares that had been created by Villeroy & Boch starting 1876.


q:
I have observed some occasional delamination in horizontal layers of my resin prints — see two examples:

What is the cause, and how can this be minimized?

[A]
With the information provided my thought is that your layers are underexposed for their thickness. Each layer is just barely bonding to the layer above it. After being pulled on by layers below eventually one of the layers fails. This is especially likely to happen on a thin part of the print any may need more support if it is followed by wider layers. But I would suggest trying to increase your exposure time first.
option two: it could be your FEP if that has seen too much use it may be time to replace it.
calibrating a resin 3D printer


q: I do not have a clear understanding of what causes resin prints to become brittle. Firstly, it appears excessive cold (in the 40s or even 30s, I am in New England) may be a factor. What else can cause brittleness in resin prints? Is there a difference between resin types?


q:
Given a .SCAD file which contains some modules, how can I execute one of those modules from the command line?

example.scad

module One() { ... }
module Two() { ... }

render.sh

openscad -q -o one.stl --module One example.scad

Note that there is no --module option, but that is what I'm attempting to do. The workaround would be to make another .SCAD file e.g. one.scad which includes example.scad, and simply calls One(); within and render that file from the shell file. But this is not ideal.

[A]
OpenSCAD doesn't have such an option on the command line, but the general idiom I believe you want to use is have
```
.scad
```
source files which are modules include invocations of the module(s) at the top-level controllable by variables you can set on the command line or GUI customizer interface. Any such invocations will be ignored if the file is used (via
```
use
```
directive) in another file so they don't hurt its status as a library and make it easier to preview/test. So for example you could have:
```
```
wantOne = false;
if (wantOne) One();
```
```
and then set
```
wantOne
```
to
```
true
```
from the command line.


q: For the purpose of cleaning, I need an aggressive solvent for cured or partially cured resin that will degrade resin down to its liquid state. I'm looking for one that would eat out specifically resin (I'm using regular Anycubic green resin) in a rapid fashion but would leave painted / metallic parts and screen of my 3D printer without damage.

[A]
Wear Gloves.
Returning is impossible
Resin does not just
harden
,
it
polymerizes
into shape from monomers in a chemical reaction.
That means to break it down, you need to destroy the whole chemistry. There is no solvent that can simply reverse it.
Wiping is easy
As long as the rein is still liquid, you can wipe it off. Then clean the parts with Isopropylic alcohol.
Manual work
Destroying Resin-Polymers is incredibly hard for most solvents. The most simple solution is usually oddly enough to use physical force. Resins are super brittle and chip off, but might damage the paint coat in the worst case.
Thermal shock
If you can, you might put your printer in a cold environment and see the resin gaining cracks, as it shrinks slower and less than the metal. Then, putting it back into the heat adds more.


q: I am making a bed for my 3D printer. I have bought a silicon heater (31x31 cm) and I want to glue it to my custom aluminum bed. The tape that it had from factory was bad, so I removed it. I want to glue it to the aluminum and I don't know what type of adhesive to use, I was thinking gasket glue with silicon, but I think that it will have bad thermal conductivity. I found this product, a silicon based,  heat transferring paste, but I think that it will not stick good. What is a good adhesive for this purpose?

[A]
Heat Transfer PAste will not work as a gluing agent. What you need is a high-temperature glue that bonds Aluminium and a silicone rubber. The benchmark temperature that the glue needs to withstand is about 100 °C or approximately 200 °F.
McMaster-Carr
allowed me to search for glue-properties and suggests among others contact adhesives, which are cans or tubes with a very viscous glue. You let that pre-cure on the items and then push the two together, resulting in very strong bonds. One of the items they suggest is
3M 2262
for which McMaster-Carr lists 230 °F as the max temperature, so just in the
safe
range. However, a 32 oz. can for almost 100 $ is surely overkill, the
3M manufacturer catalog
lists only 1 qt and 5 gal as the available packaging sizes, so, unless you build printers for a living or know someone who uses this industrially, this is not an option.
The same catalog also lists the
"3M™ 200MP& 300LSE"
series with temperatures of 148 °C (300 °F) to 204 °C (400 °F). That is enough to print anything on. And it's the same glue that' used on my Build-Tak replacement surfaces to stick them to the Aluminium bed, so it could be suitable for gluing the heater to the bed on the other side too. However, I wish you good luck to find a reseller that sells you a fitting amount. Industrial packaging is available, but you'll need to find a reseller that offers a somewhat fitting size for you - I have seen Amazon listings for both types in sizes that have only small waste for most common heaters.
I am not affiliated with 3M or McMaster-Carr, but I have very good experience with 300LSE.


q: Normally, I'm all fine with my printer and filament. But today I changed the filament for another brand and no matter what, it sticks to the nozzle so nothing comes to the bed and soon my nozzle is full of PLA... I use a sheet of paper for printer to level the bed at 0.1 mm. While leveling, I get the nozzle close enough to feel a bit of resistance from the paper while moving that sheet. Please help me...

[A]
I believe the problem is not so much that the filament is sticking to the nozzle; it's that the filament is not sticking to the bed.
You've confirmed that you have correct clearance for the nozzle to bed distance. The next considerations are bed temperature and nozzle temperature. New brands often require new parameters.
Consider to raise the bed temperature 5 °C. If you're not using any adhesive medium, perhaps a bit of glue stick will help to have the filament stick better/properly.
It's unlikely that the nozzle temperature is incorrect, as too low would result in a nozzle clog, while too high would "drizzle out" and be everywhere, but don't reject too-high entirely.
If you can get the bed adhesion correct, your nozzle should remain clear.


q:
I was looking at purchasing the Creality CR-X or another similar dual extruder (note, NOT dual nozzle) printer. I know it was designed to print two colors of the same filament, but is it able to print two different filaments?

I would be printing HIPS with ABS or PVA with PLA, so the two filaments would have very similar characteristics. It's ok if the printer doesn't know there's two different filaments, I can make it work by playing with the slicing settings.


q: The art in question is https://www.instagram.com/p/CIfsO2ZD7Rj/ . I Think the concept artist, Jean Giraud, is dead.

[A]
While better fitted to our friends at
law.SE
, the general gist is:
No.
Art is protected by copyright, and any adaption (
derivative work
) requires the OK from the right holders
per se
. Only 70-75 years after the death of the author (or publication for company works), a work enters the
public domain
and the copyright expires.
There are some exceptions (
fair use/fair dealing/
...), but
media transformation
is not one of them.
Giraud died in 2012, his estate or heirs - or whoever he/they sold the commercial rights to - own the right to ok derivative Works till around 2087.


q:
Why does the Ender 3 only have 3 limit switches instead of 6?

How does it handle crashes on other sides?
Is it worth adding them with a new mainboard?


q:
I'm trying to print a gear for a robovac deal.

The issue I'm having is with gaps between the walls of the top part of the gear. It needs to have the corners filled to provide stability or else the tabs easily snap. I've tried adjusting the nozzle size, line width, filter gaps and print thin walls but seems to slice with variations on the same issue. Is this a Cura issue? Is there anyway to slice and print this to fill those gaps?

[A] The problem isn't Cura, rather its the precision of the 3D model. If parts of the model is smaller than the line width the model cannot be printed. A solution to this would be to increase the thickness of the cylinder, decrease the size of the square or reduce the line width to allow that region to be properly fabricated, another solution would be to decrease the line width (line width option) however, keep in mind that you should not reduce the line width beyond the nozzle hole size (nozzle hole > line width). As mentioned before, if the model requires sections that are smaller than the line width, Cura will ignore it. From the image you provided it would seem that the corners are extremely close to the wall of the cylinder which prevents Cura from making a extrusion path, the reason of which I explained above.


q:
While printing a paint rack from thingiverse I keep getting jams. Other prints (shorter) work fine. Can anyone give me a clue?

Here's a video of the printer

I thought it was heat creep so I increased the speed and decreased the hot end temperature. It generally prints for several hours then jams.

[A]
When I started printing ABS with my Prusa i3 MK3 MMU2+ printer, I started experiencing jams on some longer prints, which was heat creap, possibly combined with old filament.
I improved the cooling by filling the gap between the sides of the heat sink and the plastic extruder body. I think I stuffed it with some soft foam rubber, but anything that can handle the (what should be fairly cool) temperature should work.
My hypothesis is that with gap allowed too much of the air to pass without engaging the heat sink, compromising the cooling.
With that change, I haven't had heat-creap jams.
You aren't printing ABS, but the temperature is high, and PLA softens as a low temperature. IMO, it would still be worth making the change.
It is the gap on the front and rear sides that I blocked.  The heatsink fins are fully open for air flow.
Some people here have changed out the Noctua fan for one that is noisier and pushes more air, which should also work. I appreciate the quiet fan, so I tried to get more work out of the fan I had.


q: High temperature PTFE tape is rated up to 550°F, which is 288°C.  I'm wondering if it would be useful for components on the hot end to prevent oozing.  Has anyone tried it?

[A]
You'll need a custom firmware.
Yur custom firmware will have to react to the "Change extruder" command differently than a normal firmware: instead of just swapping to a different extruder, you'll need to perform some operations to alter the gearing (possibly a solenoid?), and possibly include some kind of "break" to make sure that the filament is not slipping back without the extruder attached. However, there already is a setup that pretty much does this: the Prusa MMU2 uses something similar. The MMU does use a Bowden setup, but you could use Bowden and direct drive in combination, especially if both motors run in sync.


q:
I assume SLA printing only works on Earth and upright.

But would fused-filament printer (e.g. Prusa Mk3) work in zero gravity? What about upside down or sideways? If not, could it be modified to work in other orientations? Have there been any demonstrations of it?

[A]
Yes!
3D Printing upside would only potentially have an issue with the first layer if you're using an extremely large gap on the first layer, however in normal circumstances there's enough pressure that the filament is squished into the bed, if you've got one yourself you can put it on it's side, the question when it comes to 3D Printing
isn't
upside down, but not the correct way, as it's presuming that gravity pushing down is the important thing, while in every other orientation it also works.
In theory SLA printing would work just fine, as long as you're able to seal the build plate and vat together so no resin leaks out.


q: I have a Monoprice Maker Select Plus (Wanhao Duplicator i3 clone) and I'm having issued with the top layer of my prints. The bottom surface and the sides always come out perfect but my top layer is left with gaps in it. I have tried adjusting the print temperature, flow rate, print speed and layer height all with no success. I use Cura for my slicing software. If anyone knows how to help it'd be much appreciated

[A]
This is probably caused by too few top layers in combination with a too low infill percentage. Increase skin layers and increase infill percentage.
If you have multiple layers already (at least about 4 for 0.2 mm layer height, for smaller layer heights even more), you might be printing at a too high temperature and or too few part cooling percentage and a too low infill percentage.


q:
I just got a new Ender3 version two for Christmas and was very excited to use it so I put it together and used the sample filament that came with the printer and everything worked okay for a bit.

That was until I switched something in the settings, or in Cura, or something happened, because the nozzle is too far away from the bed when printing. I will use the auto home feature to level my bed with a piece of paper and once I get that pretty close I try and start my print, and it starts a few millimetres further away from the bed than when levelling it.

Any ideas to solve this?


q: I am building a toolchanger CoreXY 3D printer. I am in big trouble to find mic-6 aluminium toolplate in my country. Can you suggest me an alternative to mic-6? In my country, I can find easily 5083, 6082, 7005, etc. I don't think, that theese aluminium plates are suitable as heated bed. The design of the bed is the same as the jubilee 3D printer, so it will be best to have minimum warpage.


q:
I keep having a recurring problem with my ender 3 pro.  The bowden tube keeps popping off here (pictured)

I've read elsewhere online where people are having a similar problem, i.e. the ptfe tube is actually popping out, but I don't know if thats the case here.  It's staying attached to the metal coupler, but that metal coupler is unscrewing during the course of the print and falling out.  Any tips to fix it?  New one? Some sort of loc-tite to get it to not unscrew?  Any ideas?

[A]
If the fitting is remaining attached to the PTFE tubing, that would indicate that the threaded end of the fitting is pulling out of the drive assembly. This implies that the internal threads of the drive assembly have stripped out. This is not unusual for a plastic drive assembly.
The best solution is to replace the drive assembly. I believe I paid about US$12 for the last one I purchased and it was aluminum, not plastic. A quick search for "Ender 3 drive mechanism" returned a number of choices. One of them from
Amazon
(14.98) is anodized aluminum and purports to be improved over the original.
A less than ideal solution would involve drilling out the stripped threads and installing an insert (sometimes called a Heli-coil™) but that could be as expensive as a replacement mechanism.


q:
The image below I indicated where the point where the tip of my extruder returns after changing the layer height, I don't know if I am right to call this point "Start Point" ...

The problem I am having is possible to see in the photo, because there is a slip of material and sometimes "webs" are created that compromise the quality of the print.

I tried to modify the retraction parameters, such as: speed and retraction length ...

Is there a parameter that I can modify to improve my print?

The slicer software I use is the : FlashPrint_4.5.1 (because I have a FlashForge Dreamer NX)

[A]
Photo interpretation: I understand that the image on the right presents the actual error: it happens on many layers, following the red "Starting Point" line (so above it on the photo). Interesting issue. Btw. which side of the print is the bottom (zero layer)? - I believe the left side, and the right side is the top of the print.
The problem seems to apeear only in the middle of print. Top and bottom layers are usually printed slower, this could be some hint to find the reason. Also, I guess that the vertical cross section is not just a rectangle, but is wider on the top part? - then print parameters (e.g. speed) may change because of overhangs.
Could you share what type of filament do you print with? For example flexible materials will specifically react to the pressure and should not be forcefully retracted and pushed.
What type
Is there any exccessive material anywhere on the table? Like oozing or stringing? Do you see any material lost before printing the first layer? If not, the retraction is good enough or even too heavy - then try to minimize it: you may go down until you see any oozing, and then check the wall.
Could you share what range of parameters you have tried- especially the speed and retraction values? Jerk and accelleration? Do you use coasting or other pressure affecting techniques?
What is the hotend diameter? - the specs says 0.4 mm and the direct extruder. And (in comparision) what is the wall's line width for extrusion? What is the real width of this wall? (Is it properly sliced and reflected in G-Code? I advice to use G-Code viewer and inspect the details in given area.) What is the infill %, and how many wall lines do you have configured? And the layer height?
I hope this is of some help for diagnosis.


q:
I was able to connect my terminal program (Putty) to my 3D Printer (Creality Ender 3 Pro) and was able to send G-code commands to my printer and it obeys.

Now suppose I sent long command like

G29 ; auto bed leveling

and it is still executing. Printer writes me

echo:busy: processing

How to interrupt it?

I tried to send M0, but it didn't work.