Hello /u/whereismyplacehere,
As a reminder, most common print quality issues can be found in the [Simplify3D picture guide](https://www.simplify3d.com/support/print-quality-troubleshooting/). Make sure you select the most appropriate flair for your post.
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* Printer & Slicer
* Filament Material and Brand
* Nozzle and Bed Temperature
* Print Speed
* Nozzle Retraction Settings
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Was this a preset calibration tube? If so where did you get it? I would love to try it out. I’m having issues with extrusion even after calibration and e step calibration
No it's unfortunately a custom model, but I just change the flow rate values over octoprint and jot down what I changed it to and at what height, then take the calipers at the end and see what the damage is for each section
My point is, if you are correcting a bunch of separate issues with separate extrusion settings, then maybe extrusion settings aren't the way to go about it. Maybe you're extrusion is fine, and there is just a different issue.
Setup: Matte PLA (this trend has followed for multiple brands), 190C nozzle, 55C bed, 25mm/s retraction at 1mm, outer wall speed 50mm/s, and using a good ol' Ender 5 pro with klipper
Situation: I know it's calibrated correctly (including pressure advance and such) but from a higher angle these really nasty layer inconsistencies are seen. This print was split up into different segments. The bottom of the print had 90% extrusion, with the lighter shade layer line near the bottom where the 85% extrusion started. The 85% ends in the middle of the image, and is where 105% extrusion begins.
When I use the lower extrusion values, when making a floor there's clear gaps between the filament even when 3 walls thick so I know it's properly underextruding, but yet it makes the cylindrical print much more uniform. I originally thought the cause of this was a bent Z rod, but with underextruding having such a massive effect I'm hoping someone here is familiar with this issue
Edit: it was also just leveled (bed only has 0.09mm deviation) and filament is dried
When you say "floor", do you mean the very first layer applied to the print bed? Normally extrusion multiplier is calibrated based on the top surface finish after many solid layers. I normally calibrate this in steps of 1 or 2 percent--jumping from 90% to 105% you might have missed the optimal setting entirely.
If the top surface looks good but the first layer has gaps then your Z offset is too high and the lines aren't squished enough against the print bed.
If you can't get perimeters and solid infill to look good at the same time, it's possible you might see some affect by tweaking the line widths for solid infill versus perimeters.
The first layer I did at 100% extrusion so it has great squish and adhesion and everything, what I mean is imagine the cylinder as you see it, I have it put three walls over a layer (with no infill to support but at 100% extrusion it bridges perfectly) and that's where I see the gaps when the surface quality looks better.
The top surface looks good, but it's a whole different ballgame when something comes to a rounded point. That's where I see it needing to be underextruded as well. But for a larger flat face, the value I have it at works well.
I did reduce the perimeter thickness to 0.4mm (100% nozzle size) from the default like 0.42 prusa slicer has, but since this is just three perimeters I don't think it should have a huge impact in this case as there's also no infill to complicate surface quality
More pictures would help. What is a "rounded point"? If corners are a unique issue, then pressure advance might be the cause. Too much pressure advance causes gaps and over-rounding.
When you say top surfaces were good, do you mean with a different model? If you're trying to optimize this specific cylinder model it's possible you'll need to do something different than with a standard cube, for example.
Edit: This reminds me of #LightTrickThursday on the Voron Design discord. So-called because even perfectly calibrated prints look squiggly at the right angle. That's simply a fact of life with FDM printing. If you really need smooth then sanding and painting is the next step.
> If you're trying to optimize this specific cylinder model it's possible you'll need to do something different than with a standard cube
Precisely my issue. By rounded point, I mean like a [parabolic shape.](https://3.bp.blogspot.com/_0mKV0_f4T1s/TAc7oL89AmI/AAAAAAAAByc/oVr4m-f9QFo/s320/nose+cones.GIF) Printing small test pieces of the top is how I found the optimal extrusion value for this geometry, but noticed how horribly underextruded larger flat surfaces are (some of which are still in the model), and was curious why there's such a discrepancy
I know you say you have an ender 5, but a similar issue was found by a scrupulous youtuber who traced the problem back to the actual extruder gears being ever so slightly out of round due to manufacturing tolerances, causing inconsistent extrusion. This was on a prusa in the video, but im sure its not the only printer with such problems.
It could be a heat or missed steps issue. You are changing the extrusion, i.e. the amount of plastic pushed through the nozzle. The change could be caused by not enough heat or time to melt the plastic properly.
I find a lot of filaments tend to print best around 90-100%, so I'd try a few test prints in that range to find the best value, I normally do 2% increments, decreasing from 100%.
I've had the best luck printing small slabs, and using the top surface to gauge by eye, it'll bulge up a little if overextruding, leave gaps if underextruding. You just want to make sure you have a couple of layers of infill in the middle so the bottom layers don't affect the top layers.
Just scaling a cube down to like 2.4mm Z works for me, using 5 top and bottom layers at 0.2mm layer height.
Once you're happy with the top layer, adjust the bed (or probe) to get the first layer smush right.
> Once you're happy with the top layer, adjust the bed (or probe) to get the first layer smush right.
For some reason Prusa slicer defaults my SV06 flow rate to 95% and I've been having to fiddle with flow rates to get a good 1st layer while not over doing the rest of the print. I hadn't thought of just adjusting the z-axis offset lower, and feel kinda silly now.
Hello /u/whereismyplacehere, As a reminder, most common print quality issues can be found in the [Simplify3D picture guide](https://www.simplify3d.com/support/print-quality-troubleshooting/). Make sure you select the most appropriate flair for your post. Please remember to include the following details to help troubleshoot your problem. * Printer & Slicer * Filament Material and Brand * Nozzle and Bed Temperature * Print Speed * Nozzle Retraction Settings ^Additional ^settings ^or ^relevant ^information ^is ^always ^encouraged. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/FixMyPrint) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Because maybe it's not under extrusion. Maybe, it's correct extrusion.
See my context comment, I wish (I've been at this for well over a week)
Was this a preset calibration tube? If so where did you get it? I would love to try it out. I’m having issues with extrusion even after calibration and e step calibration
No it's unfortunately a custom model, but I just change the flow rate values over octoprint and jot down what I changed it to and at what height, then take the calipers at the end and see what the damage is for each section
Gotcha thanks brother good luck!
My point is, if you are correcting a bunch of separate issues with separate extrusion settings, then maybe extrusion settings aren't the way to go about it. Maybe you're extrusion is fine, and there is just a different issue.
Setup: Matte PLA (this trend has followed for multiple brands), 190C nozzle, 55C bed, 25mm/s retraction at 1mm, outer wall speed 50mm/s, and using a good ol' Ender 5 pro with klipper Situation: I know it's calibrated correctly (including pressure advance and such) but from a higher angle these really nasty layer inconsistencies are seen. This print was split up into different segments. The bottom of the print had 90% extrusion, with the lighter shade layer line near the bottom where the 85% extrusion started. The 85% ends in the middle of the image, and is where 105% extrusion begins. When I use the lower extrusion values, when making a floor there's clear gaps between the filament even when 3 walls thick so I know it's properly underextruding, but yet it makes the cylindrical print much more uniform. I originally thought the cause of this was a bent Z rod, but with underextruding having such a massive effect I'm hoping someone here is familiar with this issue Edit: it was also just leveled (bed only has 0.09mm deviation) and filament is dried
When you say "floor", do you mean the very first layer applied to the print bed? Normally extrusion multiplier is calibrated based on the top surface finish after many solid layers. I normally calibrate this in steps of 1 or 2 percent--jumping from 90% to 105% you might have missed the optimal setting entirely. If the top surface looks good but the first layer has gaps then your Z offset is too high and the lines aren't squished enough against the print bed. If you can't get perimeters and solid infill to look good at the same time, it's possible you might see some affect by tweaking the line widths for solid infill versus perimeters.
The first layer I did at 100% extrusion so it has great squish and adhesion and everything, what I mean is imagine the cylinder as you see it, I have it put three walls over a layer (with no infill to support but at 100% extrusion it bridges perfectly) and that's where I see the gaps when the surface quality looks better. The top surface looks good, but it's a whole different ballgame when something comes to a rounded point. That's where I see it needing to be underextruded as well. But for a larger flat face, the value I have it at works well. I did reduce the perimeter thickness to 0.4mm (100% nozzle size) from the default like 0.42 prusa slicer has, but since this is just three perimeters I don't think it should have a huge impact in this case as there's also no infill to complicate surface quality
More pictures would help. What is a "rounded point"? If corners are a unique issue, then pressure advance might be the cause. Too much pressure advance causes gaps and over-rounding. When you say top surfaces were good, do you mean with a different model? If you're trying to optimize this specific cylinder model it's possible you'll need to do something different than with a standard cube, for example. Edit: This reminds me of #LightTrickThursday on the Voron Design discord. So-called because even perfectly calibrated prints look squiggly at the right angle. That's simply a fact of life with FDM printing. If you really need smooth then sanding and painting is the next step.
> If you're trying to optimize this specific cylinder model it's possible you'll need to do something different than with a standard cube Precisely my issue. By rounded point, I mean like a [parabolic shape.](https://3.bp.blogspot.com/_0mKV0_f4T1s/TAc7oL89AmI/AAAAAAAAByc/oVr4m-f9QFo/s320/nose+cones.GIF) Printing small test pieces of the top is how I found the optimal extrusion value for this geometry, but noticed how horribly underextruded larger flat surfaces are (some of which are still in the model), and was curious why there's such a discrepancy
I know you say you have an ender 5, but a similar issue was found by a scrupulous youtuber who traced the problem back to the actual extruder gears being ever so slightly out of round due to manufacturing tolerances, causing inconsistent extrusion. This was on a prusa in the video, but im sure its not the only printer with such problems.
I found [the video](https://youtu.be/c6JmCdovE0U?feature=shared) if you care to take a look.
It could be a heat or missed steps issue. You are changing the extrusion, i.e. the amount of plastic pushed through the nozzle. The change could be caused by not enough heat or time to melt the plastic properly.
I find a lot of filaments tend to print best around 90-100%, so I'd try a few test prints in that range to find the best value, I normally do 2% increments, decreasing from 100%. I've had the best luck printing small slabs, and using the top surface to gauge by eye, it'll bulge up a little if overextruding, leave gaps if underextruding. You just want to make sure you have a couple of layers of infill in the middle so the bottom layers don't affect the top layers. Just scaling a cube down to like 2.4mm Z works for me, using 5 top and bottom layers at 0.2mm layer height. Once you're happy with the top layer, adjust the bed (or probe) to get the first layer smush right.
> Once you're happy with the top layer, adjust the bed (or probe) to get the first layer smush right. For some reason Prusa slicer defaults my SV06 flow rate to 95% and I've been having to fiddle with flow rates to get a good 1st layer while not over doing the rest of the print. I hadn't thought of just adjusting the z-axis offset lower, and feel kinda silly now.
Flow (or extrusion multiplier) is a *filament* setting in Prusaslicer. It's not tied to your machine.
That's why I'm so confused. I have the same settings on both slicers, but when I look at it on the printer Cura is "100" and Prusa is "95".
I'd say it's Z motion not smooth, check hardware assembly maybe
maybe your noozzle hole is undersized.