So with the 3D Printshow coming up I have started printing Marvins as giveaways for the 3D Hubs stand. As a bit of a printing novice it was a task i welcomed to help me further my knowledge although like with any sentence containing the words ‘3D Printing’ there were evident challenges.
The first thing I learnt was don’t touch the hot end, there’s a reason it’s called that. After that initial steep learning curve I went onto pop my .stl files onto Cura as I was using an Ultimaker 2 and saved the Gcode onto the memory card, which needs to be unlocked apparently before you put it in. I thought this is easy save gcode here, pop in, click print and come back to find my Marvins. I did come back to find my Marvins, one had printed with the layer heigh of an 8 Bit Mario character the other had gone into it’s abstract art phase and spiralled out of control with almost a thin plastic comb over on it’s head.
Next stop ask for help, printer settings are important i reduced the temperature as printing at the temperature of hell when printing small items apparently makes them burn as if the prior was true. Then I slowed down the print to allow the hot end to contemplate itself as it printed to make sure it did not decide to wander off into thought causing my Marvin to become PLA spaghetti. Print bed issues had plagued me throughout as the temperature sensor was not working, it had followed me around like a bad smell or a dark shadow waiting to pounce at any stage of the process, I quickly learned printing without a heated bed works well for PLA almost compliments the process like a fine Merlot with some Oude Kaas as they say here in Amsterdam. Turning the Marvin 90 degrees also helped immensely, not only did it stop the Marvin from making eye contact with it’s beligerent printer runner but aided the cooling process whilst printing the overhang.
In conclusion It was a steep learning curve which is still bending to and fro as does my insanity but the fun of 3D Printing I have found is in the process of fixing the puzzle so it gives you your desired outcome, not necessarilly the outcome itself.
My final setting for the Perfect Marvin on the Ultimaker 2 are:
- 50% Speed
- 190 degree nozzle
- Printbed Temperature 0
- Marvins turned 90 degrees to either side
P.S When printing multiple Marvins make sure it print thems one by one to stop warping or cooling problems
Attached are some photos of my journey from downright failure to almost success.
7 Likes
Nice story! I would love to see the printer settings on each pic. to see what the results were for what settings
@Gfisherwils good to see you going through the process of discovery and all those mangles marvins :0 - turingin it to the side is a good one ot get even eye openings and setting the temp low with a low dwell time on small layers helps the ring holder.
Now rock it up by breaking off some 100mm lengths of filament - loading them into the bowden and ending with a roll to get a multicoloured marvin 
James
key23d
4
Hi @Gfisherwils,
50% speed of what ??
It is indeed a journey of learning all the time and making a lot of mistakes is not bad at all, you learn the most that way!
Suc7 (as I say in Elst)!
Kind regards, Guy
50% of Print standard print speed on the .stl download from thingiverse.
Frustrating but Rewarding, in summary!
Suc7!
Oh yeah so many mangled marvins, with torn limbs and heads.
Yeah Corey our Designer had some pretty cool ones done with this method, on the case or maybe oyu can bring a few to the print show if you have time.
Super cool 3d printer Marvins. Lokks like little minions…
HAHA thanks Miguel might try printing some bigger ones today!
