Help! I Need Some Guidance For My CTC!

[saddlepiggy]

Hello! So, I am having a little trouble with my CTC 3D printer. I have a lot of questions, so be ready and keep in mind that I’m new, so I don’t know a ton. Also, I want to do this cheaply, if at all possible.

First of all, I can’t level my print bed. Well, I know how, it’s just that it won’t work. My bed always ends up so that the front of the bed is higher than the back. I have have only had a couple successful prints, but my success to fail ratio is like 1:10. However, usually the extruder stops extruding when it fails soooo yeah… Nonetheless, I know having a level print bed is super important and I want to fix it and the not extruding problem.

Next, I also want to install a glass print bed. My main question is if using a mirror (like in this video) will work. Or, should that be avoided and do I need to go with something else?

Thirdly, I also want to know if there are any mods that are super useful and/or almost needed. For example, supports where needed, or bearings or something like that. I am completely open to suggestions!

4th, getting out of the printer itself, I just want to know what filament to get when I run out of the stuff CTC gave to me with the printer. I know it might sound a little dumb, but I just don’t know what stuff is good and what stuff is bad. I’m thinking about ColorFabb, but, I just don’t know. Also, it needs to be PLA. I like PLA.

Now, the final question, getting out of physical stuff, I just don’t think Makerware is cutting it. I want to find a new slicer. Preferably free or VERY low cost. Don’t worry, I already know about Simplify3D, and it’s too much money at the moment, so please don’t say just get Simplify3D.

Holy cow. I am surprised at how short of a time this took me to write. However, thank you for taking the time to read this, and hopefully you’ll help me out, and maybe another lost person on the interwebs, just trying to get there CTC running well.

Finally, the last few sentences. Thank you all for reading this, -saddlepiggy

[MasterFX]

1. Leveling

After you leveled your printing bed with the internal leveling wizard, start printing a huge square (something like this: Yet another leveling calibration sheet by fluffy - Thingiverse or so). While printing the first line at the first layer watch carefully how your plastic sausage looks like. It sould not be thin as the nozzle but a bit flattend so it is about as double as wide as the nozzle. Where the line is very thin you loosen the screw in that corner. Do this on each corner until it looks everywhere the same.

I do always print a brim (double outline around the printing object) an on each print I observe if it looks good as described above. I didn’t hat any fail because of bad sticking prints.

2. Extruding problem

How exactly this happens the stopped extrusion? Do you hear a continously clicking sound (which happens when the stepper does not have enough power to push the filament though the nozzle? Well, when this only happens on the first layer it might be a too small distance from build plate to the nozzle. If it happens on higher layers it might something of:

• Print temperature is too low so the filament is not melting enough
• Print speed in conjunction with the temperature
• The tube where the filament is guided to the nozzle is too sticky (I removed mine and feed the filament directly from above)
• The filament roll moves too difficult
• The nozzle is jammed, if so start preheat until the nozzle is at its working temperature and stick a thin wire in the nozzle from the bottom

I’m using a printing temperature for PLA 210-230°C (depending on printing speed), ABS 240°C, PETG 245°C. Most times I print with 50-60 mm/s printing speed.

3. Glass Plate

I’m using the glass from a frameless picture frame. It is very thin, cheap and works really well. I put thermal grease between the heating plate and the glass to improve heating transfer.

To get a perfect sticking I put a very thin layer of ABS juice (ABS dissolved in acetone). This works very well with ABS, PETG and PLA prints. I use as bed temperature for PLA 65°C, ABS 110°C, PETG 100°C.

4. Filament

I don’t have an preferred filament manufacturer. At most I buy no name ABS and PLA from eBay, just which is the cheapest one. Until now I didn’t have problems with those.

5. Slicer

At first I used ReplicatorG but I wasn’t satisfied with it. Than I used a long time Makerware which was OK for me. After a year I finally brought Simplify3D to get more control over my prints and a faster slicing. And I must say Simplify3D is my absolute favourite. But to see if 3D printing is something you will do over a longer time or not I would go use Makerware or Cura.

[adamcooks]

Be sure to tram your bed after preheating for a bit. The plastic cantilever arms WILL change shape at printing temps, and your hot end will get longer at temp.

[RobertPaul]

First and foremost, don’t use the filament ctc gave you, its crap and you’ll waste your time. You should of brought your printer with a few rolls anyway. Second of all you don’t tell us what settings you’re using so how can we help you? Easy way to level bed is put the extruder to “home axis”. The setting can be found on the printer’s lcd. Now you move the extruder head with your hand to all the corners and middle, and run a piece of paper under the nozzle and tighten until you can feel it barely grip. Next, you need spring loaded drive mounts (extruder upgrade) otherwise. Otherwise just wont work. You also need a centrifugal side discharge fan for cooling otherwise it will print like crap. After you fix all of that it will still fail or clog almost all the time because you have ptfe tubes. All metal hotends address the reliability of this machine. There’s nothing else to discuss about your printer that is everything. If you keep trying to print with ctc’s filament you’re wasting your time. If you buy filament and try to print without upgrades at least active coolingand spring loaded extruders you’ll waste material as well as time. Sorry, that’s just the reality of this machine. Its not designed for pla.

[RobertPaul]

That clicking also happens when heat creeps up to the cold end making the filament too soft to grip the gear. Not enough heat dissipation in the design. Before I switch to all metal thermal tubes I couldn’t increase retract distance past 1.5 and retract speed past 15. Now its at 6mm and 36 for rate.

[MasterFX]

I don’t think that clicking is the gear which had no grip on the filament. At least I didn’t see this after > 600 hours of printing on my CTC. The temperature on this position cannot be high enough to soften the Filament. The be sure… remove the fan and the cooler from the print head. Then you can see the gear. Start a print and observe the gear while printing. When it clicks I bet you’ll see that the gear is not moving (or only jumping one step).

In my Nozzle is a PTFE-Tube (3x2) which goes up in the aluminium. Please verify that.

It could also be that the stepper driver current is not high enough.

[saddlepiggy]

Thanks a lot! I will try all of your ideas! However, I never hear a clicking sound when I print. I do have my temperature at 180 though, so that might be the problem! Thank you again!

[Spooke]

I recently bought a CTC Printer too, and pretty much had the same issues as yourself!

Turned out that a load of screws were loose all over and mainly on the extruder head, I’d advise that you take it apart and make sure that everything is tight, especially the motors on the extruders, mine was loose which caused the filament to slip and not come out.

I also print ABS at 230C with the bed at 110C, prints still aren’t great at the moment but it’s getting there. I’ve just bought a MK9 upgrade kit and a glass bed which I hope will improve things!

Good luck!

[KimBrown]

Hi, are you still having problems? PM me if your stuck I’ll try to help.

[James_Evans]

I’ve had one Jam and I get very highly detailed prints with my ctc dual. 1 Jam in over 400 hours of printing is good isnt it? Obviously I’ve had bed adhesion issues with ABS so failed prints, but that’s normal and solved it with ABS juice. Got it about 6 months ago. Did they ditch the ptfe tubes or something before I bought it?

I mainly print ABS but occasionally PLA and have no additional fans other than the ones it came with.

[Andres_Santos]

hello @KimBrown, I also have a CTC 3d printer but mine stops randomly, I was wondering if there is a chance of getting some help.

Thanx

[adrianq123]

Are your all metal thermal tubes threaded? If yes, May I ask where you purchased them. Also, if they are threaded, I assume you needed a new cooling bar as well. Did you get the bar from the same place?

I have looked at the one provided by Carl Raffle (https://shop.raffle.ch/), but this is a direct replacement for the existing cooling bar.

Looking forward to your response.

[ShadowBlade]

I have some PVA filament stuck in the right extruder filament head. Not at the top or the bottom but in the middle, how do I get it out?