Been playing around with various settings. As a test I printed a Marvin. The first layer went down well. The next two layers were kind of iffy. The lower half of the Marvin looks fantastic. The upper half looks like a sponge. The whole thing did print though.

I need to upgrade my Ender 3 firmware. (Octoprint tells me my printer firmware lacks thermal protection.)

So, I have an arduino in hand and an ICSP on order.

- With the stock motherboard, can I put new firmware and auto bed leveling on it?

- Is "firmware upgrade" a reason to upgrade the motherboard?

S3d

Just finished printing a test cube sliced with Cura 3.1. No signs of under extrusion.

As I recall, the  limiting factor on the stock board tends to be available memory.  You have to pick & choose mods to work in the available space.  I have seen some videos where stock boards were given boot loaders & then loaded updated firmware & auto leveling but it was a tight fix.  The TH3D unified Marlin firmware package lists the stock Ender 3 as being compatible with their update & EZ abl install, but needs the bootloader install. http://support.th3dstudio.com/support/solutions/articles/43000460446-th3d-unified-firmware-package

A new board could be a way to have more memory & more options (as well as controller improvements).

Any chance some kind of layer related post processing tweak was enabled in S3D (or the S3D equivalent)?

I forgot & left auto nozzle temp changes (done for a temp tower) in place in Cura  once & had unintended temp changes going on for a couple of  prints a while back until I realized I had not removed the post processing temp tweaks based on layer count.

Here is the same part that I posted last but this time sliced with Cura. Print time was about 50% longer than Simplify 3D.



It print really good up until the top solid layer.

ETA - After the bed cooled I removed the part and had a close look. There is a big area that saw lots of under extrusion and did not stick. On the 3 mounting tabs it looks like a whole layer was skipped. There is also many places in the top layer that skipped a whole line of infill. Overall I would say that slicing with Cura helped in some areas but the print is still a failure.

Silly question, you don't have 3mm filament size selected do you?

I was surprised too. printed them depressed and filled in with some linoleum printing ink.

No. I double checked. It printed really good before it went to shit.

Could someone help me identify a high quality, large bed nylon 3D printer model?

You might try here.

I am new to 3D printing and have used the F170. It works pretty good.

ETA here are a couple of pictures of my first print.

Well, whatever fucked up my Tornado has now got it's hands on my Ender 2. Last night I printed a nice looking part. At lunch I got it going again printing a fan duct. When I got home from work the duct was mostly done. I set my settings to print with 100% infill. 3 top, 3 bottom and 3 perimeters. What I got was a part that looked like 15 % infill with no bottom, no top and no perimeters. I cleaned that off and reset it to print two small mounting tabs for a PC fan. When it was done it looked great. It broke getting it off the bed. It seems that it printed the just the outer shell with no infill.

Normally I slice with Simplify3D. The last couple of days I have used Cura 3.6.0. I transfer files via a Sandisk SD card or MicroSD card.

Got started with an upgraded enclosure for the Ender 3.   There were so many examples of the Ikea Lack tables being used, I ended up going that route to take advantage of the available resources.   The final version should be based on 3 tables stacked, with stilts on the top units legs to get 21" or so clearance.   The spool mount will get removed & replaced by a set of spool rollers on the top & a pass-through for the filament.

I'm putting together an upgraded exhaust filter using a pair of replacement filters for the Holmes AER1 (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M9CJOFC/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01__o00_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1 ) .  I placed the two HEPA filters back to back with the 4 activated carbon sheets sandwiched in the middle.



parts for the top filament feed:

The reel rollers are constructed with 608 Rs skate bearings.



One of the roller sets is secured to the table top.  The other is not, so it can accommodate reels of different widths.

The blue tube runs through the ball mount as the filament guide.  The ball mount allows constrained movement & controls air flow.



top section stilts (the black spool was running low when I got to the fourth, so switched to white to be safe):



filter parts:



The white printed item is a plenum mount for the exhaust filter (seen behind it).  It holds two 12v 80x80x25 axial tube fans coming in from DigiKey.   They are a compromise for power draw, cost & static pressure.  They are rated at 60 CFM each,  static pressure of 0.41" H2O, drawing 0.34A for about $10 each.   The mount will get attached at an upper corner & the filter fitted to the exterior.  An additional bit of charcoal filter material may get added as well.

I originally thought two tables would be enough but it just looks to be too low, so a third one is on the way rather than finding something to set it on. I'm currently printing some clips for securing the second level table legs to the top of the base.  I'll probably use foam board for three sides of the enclosure & plexi for the door.

It's still a work in process, I haven't decided about the door mount hardware & the degree of air infiltration control to apply.  I want to have a reasonable expectation that any air exiting from the enclosure will be via the filter since venting to the outside is not an option where it will be located.

Got the last bits together & made the change over to the Lack enclosure.



I had some LED strip lights left over from a kitchen project, so they got added to the enclosure. I set up 6 strips fed in parallel.  The two outside strips run across the top & down the two front legs.   The same 12v supply runs the lights & the exhaust fans.



The printer & 12v supply are on a power strip plugged into the 1000VA UPS that is on the WIFI  inkjet.  Turn on the power strip & everything powers up at the same time.

The exhaust fans into the filter box is moving enough air for a detectable negative pressure on the enclosure if you crack the door open.  Two sides of the enclosure are foam board, one side & the door are 18"x24" acrylic.  Sides are sealed to the enclosure frame with packing tape.   There is just enough room for the build plate to move to the front & rear limits.

Your power supply will like you if you move it to the outside of the enclosure.

Yeah, I put a temp read-out on top of the power supply.  Figured I'd watch it & see how things look for a few prints.  If it looks excessive, I'll dismount the PS, do up a 10 AWG extension with a couple of XT60 connectors & mount it on the leg below the current position.

Finally got an extended print going.  PLA @ 210° C on a 60° C plate, the enclosure ended up stabilizing at about 31.4° C  (or just shy of 89° F) with the gauge sitting on top of the power supply.  I had removed any of the tape from the door hinge area & checked with a lighter flame for air movement to verify there was still negative pressure (there was).

I think I'm good with that. From what I could find, acceptable ambient high end temps for the same style power supply look to range from 50°C  (some low end models) up to 70°C (Meanwell class supplies).  Granted, de-rating occurs prior to that high end, but I don't expect my uses should reach that curve.

Edit:  unplugged the LED strips & the fans speeded up, dropping the interior temp by 4°C so far. Think I'll add a separate dedicated supply for the LED strips...

I finally upgraded the firmware on the Ender 3.  I bought a $3 icsp off of ali express.

Couldn't get it to work.

Flashed an Aduino to be a programmer.  4 minutes after thinging, "Oh CRAP! I bricked my printer!", I got a "COMPLETED" message.

No more thermal runaway risk!

Could anyone print me something like this picatinny rail spacer gap filler thing??

Only need a couple.. maybe 5 or 6.

I can probably design an STL for it, just need someone to print it.

@PnQ
I'll give it a try and let you know the results

@PnQ
Looks like it works.

Attached File

Dug out an old Arduino Uno and a handful of jumpers so I could flash a bootloader on the Ender 3 controller board.  Had a few hiccups with Windows 10 & Arduino IDE playing nice with COM ports, but finally got parts talking & the flash done.   Once that was done, I loaded of copy of the TH3D unified Marlin firmware package (based on 1.1.9).   Everything worked.  First thing I did was run the auto-PID tuning for the hotend.

Although I did the flash & download with a regular USB cable (carried the laptop over & perched it on a TV dinner table til finished) I later tried using a 30' USB cable (w/built in repeater) to connect printer to laptop & found it works fine.   The Pronterface G-code sender program that came with the TH3D unified firmware bundle could communicate with no trouble  - the output window provides a running listing of machine activity while running.    I'm currently letting CURA run a print via USB as a reliability test on the long cable.  I should be able to update the firmware without moving the laptop from it's usual place in the future.

So far, so good...

ETA:  Went back later & re-flashed with manual mesh bed leveling included as a menu item.   The only cost was losing the boot screen graphic, so no biggie ...

BTW, this is the 32'  active repeater USB extension cable I used.  Worked out very well.   $14.99 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01L81WQ2O/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01__o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

What about an 80% lower vending machine next to a CNC that you just load the stock and hit start. Like those machines that make spare keys.

Hadn't mentioned, but I went to a captive PTFE tube on the OEM hotend of the Ender 3.   I had had a few filament jams when moving between PLA & PETG when the bowden tube wasn't flush with the nozzle end & this mod takes the potential for insufficient insertion depth out of the equation.  (BTW, a trick to quickly remove jams of that type is to remove the nozzle,  bowden tube & fitting, then use a length of spare tube to knock the jam out  either from the bottom up or top down).

I used this coupler:  https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3348742


The coupler shown above in a dummy hot end takes the place of the metal fitting that secures the bowden tube in the hot end.  There is a juncture seperating the captive portion of the tube & the tube that goes back to the exturder.

The nut used on the original would not work with my parts cooling plenum, so I modified it into a finger friendly nut that would fit within space constraints.

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3375036





I chose my captive tube length by inserting a length of tubing from underneath & then installing the nozzle to push it into place .  I marked the point where it exited the hot end to know where to cut it to fit within the coupler.   Since making the change I have not run into any jams when changing filaments and/or material types.

The location of the coupler at the top of the heat sink generally does not exceed 30° C or so (as long as the hot end fan is running), so pretty much any material can be used.

Just thought I'd pass it along.

So I have the Ender 3 pretty dialed in for PLA.  I keep it busy with personal prints as well as prints for friends.

...And then I get a wild hare(hair?) that I want to build my own 3D printer with a MONSTER print surface, and maybe the possibility of multiple filament colors..

Source ALL of my own parts...

OR....

Build a DELTA...

@Mugzilla

Get both?

3D printer Gurus:  I have a 3D printing question and not sure where to ask. I'll start here.

I need to print a couple of 3" hose adaptors to get additional cooling air to the belt drive on my side-by-side. I have some 3" silicone hose from specter, and am using some PVC adapters now but they are not the right size and keep coming loose.

The plan is to print some adapters to allow me to make corners with the hose,  and get more air into the belt.

What's the best filament to use for something like this? It's going to be sort of warm in the compartment, up to 110 degrees at worst,  and will have some vibration from the motor, and will need to take the pressure of a hose clamp holding the hose onto the adapters.

ABS seems strong but also feels kinda brittle.  Are there other filaments that make sense?

Edited to add: Don't have a printer yet but looking at the Ender 3.  Will read back through the last 20 pages of this thread,  looks like several have the ender 3.

nylon might be best/toughest, I see Taulman Nylon 910  is going for about $39/lb (not kg.)  on amazon ...

Not been printing much lately , still have my ender 3 and CR-10s at home... but we got a ultimaker 5 2.85mm version with the .4 and .8 print heads at work some weeks ago and i get to use it whenever i want !   Very nice machine , I was asked to help set it up and show some design engineers people how to use it so they can do some product prototyping . not sure what to make yet , it came with 5 rolls of PLA and some kind of breakaway support material rolls.

Hang printer is what you seek.

[youtube]watch?time_continue=55[/youtube]

Finally got around to trying the manual mesh bed leveling feature I had enabled when I loaded the TH3D version Marlin firmware on the Ender 3.  So far I'm pretty impressed.

I have a large print I wanted to try that covers the majority of the bed.  Up til now, I've been printing things positioned pretty much in the center of the bed.  Going to far towards one side or another tended to result in problems getting a good first layer unless the bed leveling was tweaked to better accommodate printing close to that particular edge.

Running the manual mesh leveling from the LCD menu was pretty straight forward.  You initiate the process & the head moves to the first point.  You use the LCD encoder knob to raise or lower the head til the nozzle scrapes on a piece of typing paper.  When you find the right height, you click on the encoder knob & the head moves to the next point.  Rinse & repeat until it has done 25 positions.  Click on the menu option to "save settings".  The only other thing is to add a line ("M420 S1") to the printer startup G-code in the slicer that tells the machine to load & use the mesh data.

After a couple of go-rounds, I had a decent full bed test print (it is a bit tricky trying to be accurate about getting the same tension on the paper during the process).   I loaded up the large print I was wanting to do & got it started.  The first layer w/brim all stuck & looked decent, so I let it continue. It will probably be printing for the next 15-17 hours if nothing goes wrong.

I know I should just read the entire thread.....but can anyone recommend me a 3D printer that's big enough to print gun stuff for say $1000?

Also any recommendations on free/cheap modeling software?

Avatar is appropriate.

I am looking at ABS filament.

Hatchbox recommends 210 - 240 C

Amazon Basics ABS filament recommends 245 - 265C

Does this seem strange to anyone else?  Yes, different filaments need different temps.  But the two ranges don't even overlap!

Just use what the manufacturer recommends on a test piece.

If it comes out good, all the better and if not you adjust and dial it in.

I haven't used ABS yet but from all I've read printing in a chamber helps to prevent warping and bed lift-off. I plan to do so when I start on my roll of ABS

Video is not available, no image is displayed in your post.

Ultra noob just getting started. I wasn't sure I'd enjoy the hobby, so I picked up a MP select mini v2. I have to say I was actually pretty impressed with the print quality out of the box with this little thing (benchy looks pretty good except for some trouble with the top of the arch which I understand to be a problem with inadequate cooling). Unfortunately/fortunately, I wanted to run octopi with it and the USB port is definitely dead on it, so I'll be returning it. From my short 2 days with it, I realized that I'd like a larger print space but would like to stay within a similar budget range of 200-300. I see the Ender 3 is extremely popular in this price range. Are there any other printers I should be checking out, or is the Ender 3 about the best in this price range? Also found the Anycubic I3 Mega for about $270. I'll be sticking to PLA and maybe mess around with ABS at some point in the distant future.

Second question: I'm happy making random crap off thingiverse, but I'd like to give a shot at making very basic items to print. Looking at Fusion 360 right now, any other programs (low cost/free preferred) to check out?

ETA: the more I look, the anycubic I3 mega looks like it might be a good fit for me. Does anyone have any experiences with it?

BLTouch came in today. I have 3 different part cooler ducts with BIT moun options & haven't decided which I want to go with. Probably be one of the dual 5015 ducts, either a Hero Me Gen2 or a Petsfang V2.  Leaning towards the Hero Me at this point.

Well, turned out the Petsfang had been damaged by an off center install (part of one duct got deformed being too close to the hot end), so going with the Hero Me was pretty much a done deal.    It made for a nice install.  Good clearance from the hot end, easy to adjust height & the BLTouch mount was also easy to adjust.



Adjusting the BLTouch mount was made easier by previously having printed a clearance block 8.3 mm high, w/ a notch for the plunger.  Set the nozzle just touching the bed & lower the mount until the probe shoulders just touch the block.   To get X Y offsets for probe vs. nozzle I just used a sheet of graph paper set parallel to the bed front, then marked positions relative to the points of interest & then measured those directly with calipers.

The wiring install was pretty easy as I picked up a little circuit board that sits between the LCD cable & the main board socket and breaks out the lines needed by the BLTouch (power/GND/buzzer line).   I pulled the Z limit wires w/sockets from the housing on the cable & plugged them directly onto the pins for the Z limit switch on the board.   Only one moment of consternation when the LCD was blank on start-up.   Turns out I needed to clean more of the hot glue blobs close to the LCD socket.  The little circuit card had been prevented from fully seating due to the interference.   Once it was trimmed back, everything worked properly.

It took a bit of trial & error to get the probe Z offset dialed in.  Not sure why the first try was so far off - it looked like -0.91  was the proper value, but ended up with -1.17 as what was needed to lay down PLA cleanly.

Had a print failure today halfway into a 16 hour print. The extruder jammed. Since I was at work at the time, it continued to try and print for another 6 hours. I shut it down as soon as I got home, and finally got the jam out after a couple hours of diagnostics. Trying a test print now. Seems to be working, but also may be under extruding now.

I've printed several of the Hero Me ducts. It seems that airflow through them is poor. How did you print yours and with what plastic?

I used PETG, printed at the hot end of the range for this filament (245°C) at a pretty slow rate (< 40mm/sec).  I wanted to maximize layer adhesion for a tough product.  I did get a fair amount of hair like stringing, but used a pencil point butane jet (a Benzomatic soldering pen) to clear them from the duct area during the print - just a very quick flick of the blue flame cleared them without affecting the print.  This particular style has a 5015 blower for each side with a pretty short, open, path to the output.  The output ducts have a little bit more area than the Petsfang did.

After installing it, it looks like I could have done it out of PLA & been OK.  There is good separation from hottest portion of the hot end.  The heatsink areas generally don't really exceed 30°C with a hot end fan running (from what I've read).

Too early to say how well it works as a parts cooler as I have only done some small test prints while getting the BLTouch dialed in.

BTW   the version I'm using is the one by Mediaman on Thingiverse (https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3182917) for Ender 3/CR-10.  There were some recent changes to the base as of 4 days ago.

Got my Qidi X-Smart in a few hours ago and just finished the test print. Turned out great:

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Printing a Fucktopus to give to my sister now

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