Failed 3D Print

[Zak Smolen]

I just got to the space (11pm, Friday) and noticed that the 3D printer software was up. It seems like the software froze before it even started the print. So, whoever was printing a tool carousel and screwdriver rack and expected to come back later and have it done, sorry but it seems to have failed. Not sure what your printing parameters are or I would restart it for you.

[Avi Silverman]

So... I started that Thursday day (experimenting with some tool holders for the space), but I had to leave before it finished. Steve said he would remove it from the printer before the CNC class, so I'm thinking it printed and the software was just left as is.

Avi

On Jun 24, 2016 11:16 PM, "Zak Smolen" <zaks...@gmail.com> wrote:

I just got to the space (11pm, Friday) and noticed that the 3D printer software was up. It seems like the software froze before it even started the print. So, whoever was printing a tool carousel and screwdriver rack and expected to come back later and have it done, sorry but it seems to have failed. Not sure what your printing parameters are or I would restart it for you.

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[Zak Smolen]

Ah, well good deal. The software was frozen though so I was worried it failed and someone was expecting something in the morning.

[Steve Altemeier]

Yes - they printed successfully and are over by the tool box (or, perhaps I should say 'box of tools'...)

[Zak Smolen]

I saw them and they look great. New issue: I came in this morning and my print from last night was still going (about an hour longer than it originally estimated) and had CATASTROPHICALLY FAILED.  

I'm cleaning it all up but honestly I have no clue how that could happen. I printed HIPS high quality instead of standard and I saw that it was sort of smudging when it did the initial rings around the objects but I didn't stick around long after it started the base... Any suggestions as to what could have happened here?

Sent from my iPhone

[Zak Smolen]

Here's a closer up picture after I cleaned away most of the mess. There are random threads coming out of an otherwise solid structure like it was extruding too much or not stopping when it moved between parts. 

Sent from my iPhone

On Jun 25, 2016, at 7:33 AM, Steve Altemeier <steve.a...@gmail.com> wrote:

[Simeón Cogswell]

We've had a lot of sudden issues with the printer. I feel like it has something to do with how low the A/C is set. It's freezing in that room at night.

[Ian Baillie]

It looks like a layer adhesion issue to me. The strings that are hanging out are supposed to be in the structure, but got drug out when they didn't stick properly. It is possible that the ambient temperature was too low, and the filament was cooling before it was supposed to. Raising the extruder temp just a bit might remedy that. If it continues to be an issue, we may need to build an enclosure like the one for the CNC router to keep the heat in.

Also, I have seen prints of files that were poorly designed do this. Did you get any triangle errors when loading the .stl file or slicing? A bad design can cause irregular output and a poor finish as well. Just a thought.

Another good reason that I always advocate hanging out nearby when printing. If you had caught it when it started messing up, you might've been able to correct it, or at least abort and not waste the filament. Granted, HIPS is cheap, so its not a huge deal, but the mess is sometimes.

Just my .02. Everybody have a good day, and make out!

       Ian

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From: Zak Smolen
Sent: ‎6/‎25/‎2016 9:50 AM
To: ashevil...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: {Asheville Makers} Failed 3D Print

[Zak Smolen]

Yeh I planned on checking the webcam when I got home to see if there were any issues but forgot since it was so late. We actually addressed the coldness issue and chanted the extruder temps from 240 to 245. There were issues with both prints (two separate models) so it probably wasn't the model. I maybe should have used a raft on the second one though. 

Sent from my iPhone

On Jun 25, 2016, at 4:59 PM, Ian Baillie <mountain...@gmail.com> wrote:

It looks like a layer adhesion issue to me. The strings that are hanging out are supposed to be in the structure, but got drug out when they didn't stick properly. It is possible that the ambient temperature was too low, and the filament was cooling before it was supposed to. Raising the extruder temp just a bit might remedy that. If it continues to be an issue, we may need to build an enclosure like the one for the CNC router to keep the heat in.

Also, I have seen prints of files that were poorly designed do this. Did you get any triangle errors when loading the .stl file or slicing? A bad design can cause irregular output and a poor finish as well. Just a thought.

Another good reason that I always advocate hanging out nearby when printing. If you had caught it when it started messing up, you might've been able to correct it, or at least abort and not waste the filament. Granted, HIPS is cheap, so its not a huge deal, but the mess is sometimes.

Just my .02. Everybody have a good day, and make out!

       Ian

---

From: Zak Smolen
Sent: ‎6/‎25/‎2016 9:50 AM
To: ashevil...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: {Asheville Makers} Failed 3D Print

<image1.JPG>

[Robert Schultz]

So your spaghetti print failure is quite spectacular! I've never seen it do that before. I couldn't tell from the pictures what might be wrong.

I have very limited experience with 3D printing, only been doing it for a few months and have had very few problems.

But my gut tells me it's probably the cold.

It's astonishingly cold at night. AC kicks into full 100% at night and runs continually. Yes, I bumped the profile temps from 240C to 245C but I tested that change in the afternoon before it was very cold and that just might not be enough to counteract the AC at night.

To test whether it's the cold we could try just sticking a big cardboard box over the hole thing and see if that helps at all (I'd suggest printing back at 240C for this test). If that works, then an enclosure would be the best solution as Ian mentioned.

Here is one someone else made for their Taz 6:

I don't have a big enough box.

[Robert Schultz]

So I chatted with some folks on IRC and they kinda doubt that the AC/cold has anything to do with it. They said it the only way cold could be the cause is if the AC is like blowing directly onto the printer. I don't recall how the air is moving in the room.

One mentioned it was probably a bad model, or the slicer sliced it wrong as it looks like at some point the printer decided to lay down a layer in "mid air". Not sure if you had any gaps or anything in the model.

You mentioned this happened to you twice with different models?

I'd probably try the one of the prints again, lowering the temp back to 240F and in the afternoon. Of course I'd try printing a simple 20mm cube box just to make sure that still works ok, it's my go-to test print as it only takes about half an hour to print it, all in.

[Avi Silverman]

Zak... Just out of curiosity, what modeling software are you using?

[Zak Smolen]

These were thingiverse models. This only happened once, but there were two models printing at the same time. One turned out pretty well, though there were some issues with rogue strands of filament as if the tip of the extruder was dragging at some points. The other was the spaghetti mess. The other had some "floating" pieces that were rounded (it was a little articulated model so I could try out different types of joints) but I made sure to print with supports. I'm thinking rafts would have also helped since the pieces were so small. Still, it may have just been the model. I looked at some comments later and some other people may have had some issues with this model as well. 

Sent from my iPhone