Settings for "Good" quality prints with the Replicator
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Domenick
Jul 25, 2012, 1:01:29 PM7/25/12
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Ok I admit I am new to 3D printing and I have read hundreds of threads on settings, firmware upgrades, RepG improvements. A lot makes sense and the one thing I'm finding is what works for one may not be the best choice for another. What I would like to know or perhaps see is of all the parameters that can be changed in preferences, G code, and physical mods (putting on a hood to keep temperature more stable), is there a generic listing of what has the most effect on print quality and examples with pictures?
I also love making things from Thingiverse but I find that very few give the settings they used. Coming from old school cnc milling time, where g-code was the program of choice, I understand when machining metal, speeds, feeds, and coolant were key, but then again I was able to turn a dial and slowly change the speed or feed to get the finish I wanted.
Enough about history. I guess I'm looking for the Holy Grail of Replicator + RepG037 with 5.5 firmware. Can anyone lead me to down the yellow brick road to OZ?
One other thing, once you do find settings for a particular "thing" does anyone find that they have to re-tweak for a different "thing"? If so what and why?
I also love making things from Thingiverse but I find that very few give the settings they used. Coming from old school cnc milling time, where g-code was the program of choice, I understand when machining metal, speeds, feeds, and coolant were key, but then again I was able to turn a dial and slowly change the speed or feed to get the finish I wanted.
Enough about history. I guess I'm looking for the Holy Grail of Replicator + RepG037 with 5.5 firmware. Can anyone lead me to down the yellow brick road to OZ?
One other thing, once you do find settings for a particular "thing" does anyone find that they have to re-tweak for a different "thing"? If so what and why?
JohnA.
Jul 25, 2012, 1:13:30 PM7/25/12
to make...@googlegroups.com
There's no great answer to this. A very detailed profile with low layer heights (and perhaps slow speeds) might not be the best for another kind of print. I'm working on a file now that if I leave it at .27 (stock) layer height it'll be a >20 hour print. So in that case I've upped the layer height quite a bit...
On some things we do 2 extra shells and low infill, but on really detailed parts sometimes you need 0 extra shells. The best profile will absolutely change depending on the detail of what you're trying to print.
It's like asking 'what's the best car?' - the answer will vary depending on what you're going to use it for.
JohnA.
On some things we do 2 extra shells and low infill, but on really detailed parts sometimes you need 0 extra shells. The best profile will absolutely change depending on the detail of what you're trying to print.
It's like asking 'what's the best car?' - the answer will vary depending on what you're going to use it for.
JohnA.
Owen M Collins
Jul 25, 2012, 2:21:00 PM7/25/12
to make...@googlegroups.com
People find the need for different temps and profiles for different plastics they use. Either different colors work better at different temperatures and different manufacturers of filament has different variances in diameter.
Depending on the overhangs of a model, I have found a difference between doing the outer perimeter before or after doing the loop or the extra shell.
O.
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thierry motomungu
Jul 25, 2012, 2:24:27 PM7/25/12
to make...@googlegroups.com
can someone help me here, i am trying to build a 3d printer from scratch and at the moment i am stuck with the printer head. i would to know what are the engineering procedures needed in order to determine an appropriate 3d printer. does it depend on the number of revolution handle by the stepper motor used for the axis. all my stepper motor are the same.
g. wygonik
Jul 25, 2012, 11:47:48 PM7/25/12
to make...@googlegroups.com
When I got my Thing-o-Matic a year ago, pre-assembled, it got "good" prints straight out of the box. I didn't want to tinker with settings because "it just worked" and was printing things way better than some of the RepRap (Mendel, Prusa, et al) stuff I'd seen online (no offense meant to those machines' users).
I can't imagine that the stock Replicator is not configured to at least get "good" prints. I'd imagine that by this point, stock ones are getting "really good" prints.
What I'm getting to is that I'd just print some things and see if they look good to you. There are a lot of people who just want to tweak and experiment, and others who just want to print things, tweaking only temperature or maybe filament thickness.
If you can't stand the default quality then go slowly -- start with number of shells, then maybe filament diameter, then maybe temperature depending upon color. See if these help make things "better than default".
A year after first getting my Makerbot, I've not moved beyond these tweaks, in fact most of the time I don't run faster than stock 30mm! Crazy, I know. But still after a year I'm getting prints that I now realize look significantly better than a lot of prints I'm seeing from highly tweaked Replicators. I have a machine that I know exactly what to expect, and can tell way more easily when something isn't right. But at those times I know it's not this or that tweaked firmware issue or what-have-you.
But, then, I'm one of those that just wants to create and print stuff. :-)
Good luck!
g.
I can't imagine that the stock Replicator is not configured to at least get "good" prints. I'd imagine that by this point, stock ones are getting "really good" prints.
What I'm getting to is that I'd just print some things and see if they look good to you. There are a lot of people who just want to tweak and experiment, and others who just want to print things, tweaking only temperature or maybe filament thickness.
If you can't stand the default quality then go slowly -- start with number of shells, then maybe filament diameter, then maybe temperature depending upon color. See if these help make things "better than default".
A year after first getting my Makerbot, I've not moved beyond these tweaks, in fact most of the time I don't run faster than stock 30mm! Crazy, I know. But still after a year I'm getting prints that I now realize look significantly better than a lot of prints I'm seeing from highly tweaked Replicators. I have a machine that I know exactly what to expect, and can tell way more easily when something isn't right. But at those times I know it's not this or that tweaked firmware issue or what-have-you.
But, then, I'm one of those that just wants to create and print stuff. :-)
Good luck!
g.
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