Ok so I have been dealing with shifted layers for the last few weeks, it started out of no where. It is occurring on the y axis, I have taken others suggestions to help figure this out, but nothing has helped. So far I have made sure to lube the bearings and rods, all is good there. Checked the pulley on the y axis motor, it is tight. I did have a flakey connection on the y axis limit switch, replaced it. Swapped the y axis motor with one of my z axis motors, problem still occurs. Swapped the wires from y axis with x axis still shifting layers in the y axis. I am guessing the only thing left is a problem on the board, or in the software. Using Slic3r, both a new version, and an older, doesn’t seem to make a difference. Also using Pronterface, have been using this combo since I got the printer about 8 months ago and have never had an issue. Someone please help, nothing worse than having things to print and not being able too. This is a Migbot prusa i3, board is mks v1.3
I’ve had this issue on a mendelmax 2 (similar mechanics to i3). In my case the Y motor was being overworked, leading to overheating and losing steps. It was especially prominent when trying to print fast (>80mm/s).
If you can, feel or measure how hot the motor gets during printing. If it feels really hot that’s probably the issue and you can either replace the Y motor with a bigger one (i.e. 60mm nema17) or add a heat sink to it, or both.
Another option is to play with the acceleration/jerk settings in the firmware to reduce the forces when the Y motor changes direction.
I am currently trying to print a 40x40x40mm cube to see if the layers shift. This will naturally print slower since the print area is larger. If they do not then I know it is speed related
Use a multimeter, touch one probe to the ground pin on the driver, and the other probe to the screw. But don’t slip, you can easily short out a driver doing this. Also, you can try touching the chips on the driver while printing. If they get too hot, turn down the voltage or put heatsinks and a fan on them. Lastly, the simplest. The part you’re printing, does it have overhang? It is extremely common for PLA to warp up on the sides and when your extruder hits it, the whole print will shift.
It’s usually either warp, motor is too hot or driver is too hot. I think you’d know right away if acceleration was the problem. Belts can be too tight, that causes the motors to work harder.
