Book: Mastering 3D printing Author Joan Horvath

Calibration Print: Usually good to print a small object many times and change variables one at a time.

Bed Adhesion issues: 

lightly heat the bed

For PLA use blue tape on the print bed.

For ABS use ABS paste: (mixture of acetone and a small amount of ABS dissolved in the liquid)

PEI print beds are good for Nylon

Extruder issues:

– Clogged Extruder: If you have a clogged extruder do NOT disassemble or use solvents, or drillbits.

Nylon filament extrude at 240 deg. and pull it out at 140 deg. it will remove any foreign body.

Acupuncture needles, or a single bristle from a wire brush will also work well.

– Calibrating the Extruder (rate): Mark 100 Millimeters of filament, then tell the machine to extrude 100 Millimeters. and make sure they match (should be within 10 microns).

– Calibrating the Extruder (temperature): Use ABS or PLA for testing, it should print in it’s temp. range. Thermasters are not very good so if the machine doesn’t freely extrude then increase the temperature. Ideally you will use the lowest temperature that will freely extrude for overhangs, but a higher temperature will give you better adhesion between layers.

Don’t assume that one roll of filament will run at the same temperature as another roll of the same filament.  It’s a good practice to write the extrusion temperature on the roll.  It’s also helpful to measure the diameter of the fillament in 5-6 places and take the average diameter and write that on the roll as well.

Printer lubrication:

The printer doesn’t need lubrication but Machine oil for metal rods, and lithium grease is generally safe.

Printer Calibration:

Prusa Calculator: gives calculation for setting your machine.