Prints either don't stick from the get go or fail after nTh Layer

[TrickierStinky]

I own a CTC 3D dual extruder (Flashforge clone) and I’m having issues with the prints sticking with both PLA and ABS Heated bed or not, can anyone help?

I originally got the product with blue masking tape on it which helped and allowed me to get one print off but I found the tape had ripped so I stupidly took it off thinking Kapton tape would just work.

I’ve have re-applied Kapton tape with hairspray but doesn’t seem to help.

I’ve also re-levelled the bed multiple times.

Using ABS either it doesn’t stick on the first layer or partly ticks but then comes loose through movement lets say printing the circumference of a circle. The odd time it will get to the nTh layer and then mess up.

PLA now I don’t heat the platform I just use the default setting Simplify3D offers, But I get better performance but this still often fails when I has to do anything other than a straight line

I did seem to have better success (in that it lasted longer) using ReplicatorG software it seemed to allow the print to stick better then Simplify3D but I’m not sure why.

I have not made any custom settings I have used the defaults for the machine that both ReplicatorG and Simplify3D offer.

I know you’ll get this problem a lot but until I can get my hands on some glass or blue painters tape, I’m at a lost.

Also heres an example of PLA printing a Impossible Bearing Mini

[failed print](http://i.imgur.com/k3wvOEa.jpg)

Thanks in advance

[MB3D]

Hi there !

I have no problem printing ABS, PLA and more on a heated glass bed with gluestick (it has to be solvent free !!).

I also used blue painters tape for PLA but i like gluestick much more because it is cheaper and easier to apply to the surface.

You should concider adjusting the height of the first layer (there’s a setting in Simplify3d) so that the first layer gets sqished onto the kapton/gluestick/whatever.

I use 55-60°C for PLA and 80°C with ABS even though 90°C for ABS would be better. You should also print the first layer very slow so that the filament has enough time to bond to the adhesive of your choise.

I have not yet tested hairspray so i can’t tell you something about this.

Please publish some of the key settings in Simplify3d like layer height, speed and temperature.

-Marius

[coberdas]

I use glass that I cut to fit the bed and use the black binder clips with purple Elmer’s glue stick. You put the glue on the glass with 2 layers and the abs and pla will stick and no warping of parts.

[chrislefrois]

Hello,

I also have a CTC printer… I use blue painters tape and works very well. It is very important to have a level bed… also your first layer should be slightly smashed on tape or glass… and again… bed level very important… there is also an ABS slurry you can try … I use 8- grams of ABS and 40ml Acetone. Acetone is found in beauty supply places… and in Westlake hardware stores… and I’m sure other hardware stores as well but the beauty supply was the lowest price for me. Make sure you use ABS and not PLA… If using slurry… do not use painters tape… use on glass… use a cloth to put it on so you do not get contaminant’s on your glass bed. You can use this method for PLA and ABS… Also, try raising your first layer print temperature… this will allow it to adhere better to bed. Here is my email: 3dprinterfilaments@gmail.com… please feel free to contact me as well…

- Chris

[Eduardo_Garcia]

Hi.

I have a ctc dual and had the same issue with abs; pla not as much. This printer is great but needs tweaking.

First, get the painters tape. Pla will print great with it. I print abs on it with some hairspray. I know that’s not the norm, but it has worked for me.

Second, level your build plate with an index card and not a sheet of paper. Make sure it’s a tight fit btw the nozzle and the build plate.

Third, custom profile is a must. The default print settings don’t really work.

Fourth, go to thingiverse and search for ctc nozzle calibration. This will calibrate your nozzle. For some reason the ctc over extrudes with default numbers. I could not print abs at all until I did this.

Fifth, when starting a print if You see it does not stick at all, stop it and close in the build plate and repeat; usually the front left need to be a little closer than normal. If only a partial line sticks then see which of the four corners didn’t stick and close that one in. Repeat until you get it to stick.

Also, slow down the first layer substantially, I do about 15mm/s then I bring it up for the rest of the layers. Always measure your filament diameter.

Lastly, when doing abs so the print does not fail, you have to enclose the printer.

Hope this helped. Good luck.

[TrickierStinky]

Hi guys thanks for the replies I tried the glass bed with printers tape…and success(ish)! It sticks and finished a print.

I have only tried PLA at the moment but it seemed to work.

I had the bed to start at 40% speed for the first layer with a bed temp of 90 degrees then to drop down to sixty and seemed to work, however the prints seemed to stutter towards the top and left boogers everywhere(see photos) any ideas?

Photos of print

https://dl.pushbulletusercontent.com/2r586vGD7ixoaBiweaN2RrMZg9WmQ4tI/IMG\_20150404\_183628.jpg

https://dl.pushbulletusercontent.com/wwDuQU9JXjOkDuUsFaWVVD8QNZLTQ7Dw/IMG\_20150404\_183604.jpg

https://dl.pushbulletusercontent.com/PJfvEVpN51kYRIRDF5cutDe8911ZCCLE/IMG\_20150404\_183558.jpg

Also in turns of settings heres just a few if need more please let me know

[Eduardo_Garcia]

I suggest you calibrate the extruder. Thingiverse search ctc 3d nozzle extruder.

[BobD1001]

Make sure your print surface is extremely clean. If using just glass and printing PLA, clean then apply a solution of white elmers school glue. Get blue painters tape off amazon or at your local hardware store. Just get the standard everyday blue painters tape, the special verions like the “advanced multi surface” dont work as well, at least in my opinion. Ive been printing with blue tape since day one, and absolutely love it. If printing ABS directly to the glass bed, try making ABS/acetone solution, then just wiping a small amount of it onto the glass surface, and allow it to dry. This will for an extremely thin layer of ABS bonded to your glass bed, which will allow prints to stick beautifully.

I also got a cheap sheet of glass at home depot, cut it to size using a glass scribe, sanded any rough edges, and then put that on my heated bed. It creates a perfectly flat and level surface, to which I then apply blue painters tape.

[MB3D]

Hi,

good to see that the quality improoved, first of all the bed temperature should be around the glass transitions temperature (often called Tg). Meaning that more then 60ish °C should not be necessary, you have one key setting dialed in wrong in the settings and this is the extrusion width.

If you have a 0.4mm nozzle the extrusion width should be aroud 0.45-0.48mm.

The reason for this is pretty obvious: gravity.

Because the extruded filament is somewhat liquid when it leaves the nozzle it will “spread” in width.

Also the first layer width should not be 150%, this is unnecessary (at least for me), you force the filament to “spread” to a width of 0.6mm which is too much! Because you then might have seperated lines instead of a solid layer the prints do not stick good to the bed.

Height and speed adjustments are ok, you have to find what works best for you.

I guess the little boogers are caused by too high temperature, try to lower it (at least after the first few layers).+

As Eduardo allready mentioned your print is not watertight, you can see holes in the surface, adjust the extrusion multiplier !

I would recommend something around 95-98%, but you can determin the exact factor by following this guide:

Hope that all helps,

Marius

[Dan_Galligan]

I make an abs solution with acetone and abs plastic. I paint it on the bed ands has worked great for me. My CTC cam with blue painters tape and worked part of the time. This solution mix is easy to do. Scrap ABS I put in a jar fill part way with acetone let it melt down the ABS. You want it thick like paint. Not one fail with this method.

[RobertPaul]

First, you don’t need kapton tape it’s a waste. Just get a glass bed and apply aquanet UNSCENTED. Also be careful what you wash the glass with, if you use moisturizing soap it might not stick, or if you use windex it might not stick. For PLA, just apply the hairspray, let it slightly dry, but have the bed at around 50-55 degrees. That is what I do and I have a hard time un-sticking my parts. I have to actually throw the glass with the parts in the freezer for 3 minutes to un-stick my parts.

[MidWestMade]

+1 for ABS paste (ABS scraps mixed with acetone). Blue painters tape sucks, never had luck with it. You can also try this, I bought it and its been working so far. http://www.buildtak.com/product/buildtak-3d-printing-build-surface/

[TrickierStinky]

Thanks guys for all the responses I now seem to have a new problem after playing around with the settings and the bed.

Prints get so far into a print then seems to stop extruding or at least seem to no longer print but still acts like it therefore my printout is only ever half way finished…any ideas?

[MB3D]

Do you see filament rests on the drive gear? a possible reason is, that the tension on the drive gear (the force with which the filament gets pressed against the gear of the extruder motor) is too low. If that is the case you should also see a big cavity on the filament where the gear carved on the filament. You should then tension the spring so that there is more force that gets applied to the gear. This is also called “skipping of the extruder/ drive gear” -Marius

[Eduardo_Garcia]

If you’re printing abs, it will usually not clog. Pla will clog your nozzle if it’s not right. Make sure your temperature is set properly so the extruder is not working too hard or too hot which will burn the filament inside the nozzle. Also, this happened to me which I was printing and after a while the filament would get hot close to the drive and the extruder would start skipping and clicking. I solved this by removing the filament guide tubes that came with the printer, they provide too much friction. I printed a filament guide from thingiverse and removed the tube. I also used zip ties with a rather wide loop tied to the wire structure that goes to the extruder and routes the filament thought it. After that, I have not had anymore issues. I will post a picture later on for clarity.

[MidWestMade]

This happened to me, I had to upgrade extruders to those which have the adjustable tensioner. If you already have this and are still seeing the problem I would take the heat sink plate off the extruder so you can see the gear for the feeder. I had mine too tight to start and so it was grinding down the filament to the point where the gear was so clogged that it had no grip. From there I cleaned it off with a toothbrush and loosened it by a few turns, it may take a couple prints to find the tension “sweet-spot”

-Another thing to consider is the heat of the nozzle, when I first started I was printing at the low-end of the suggested temperature range, for example I was printing at 195 C for PLA. Depending on the quality of the filament the melting point can change, so I realized that it would stop printing (like your description) when it was too cold and so I ended up bumping it up by 5 C which fixed it.

*So clean and check the tension & gear, if it keep occurring maybe look into the temp and increase it by 5 C to see if that changes things.

[Dan_Galligan]

i had that problem too then it quit all together. i got extruder error. i changed out the thermocouple and that seemed to fix the problem. that was my right extruder my left one worked fine.

[Chris_Donovan]

Heard many good things about Simplify3D.

I use 230c for the extruders and 110c for the bed printing with ABS, and works well.

Try to use lined paper to level the bed. There should be some resistance to the paper between the nozzle and bed if you did it right.

[BruczLyn]

This thing, glue stick, works on everything, even better than hair spray!

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001PMJYAO/ref=sr\_ph?ie=UTF8&qid=1430842418&sr=1&keywords=glue+stick

I use hair spray on my Da vinci 1.0, and it works great, but not on my CTC with glass bed. Somehow, this “UHU Stic Permanent Clear Application Glue Stick” work perfect on the CTC. Whenever I have long hours ABS printings, I always use this UHU brand stick,

[TrickierStinky]

How do you apply this? I have tried it on a glass bed and I get far worse results then using painters tape.