Partial Answer 3D Printing Newbie with Multiple Printing Issues.

Howdy folks,

So I have a multitude of problems with my printer, and I want to work hard to diagnose and get my printer up and running again so that I can toy around with science. So I'll start with the changes I've made to it. My old RAMPS board had a problem where one of the motors, specifically the extruder motor, would not receive any power/signal, not sure which. So I purchased a new board and the little small boards that go on top of it and that seemed to get it running again. Apart from that I tried upgrading the print nozzle and changed it to the E3D print nozzle, this was before the RAMPS board change and it worked great (Should have said this before the RAMPS replacement). Another change was the Y-Axis belt holder was broken. So I had to phone a friend to print me a replacement part and that's about everything with changes. I will add that I am trying to print upgrades for the printer for more quality prints, but with the current state that it's in, it is very difficult to improve the situation.

The replaced board fixed the issue with the idle motor, but after the RAMPS change it doesn't print like it used to. It has significantly less print quality and I also noticed that the way it extrudes the first layer leaves a lot of gaps. What I mean by bad print quality, it that before it would make a circular shape with no problem, but now, it cannot make a decent shape properly. I believe it to be that when I replaced the Y-Axis belt holder, I may have shifted one of the belt teeth and could be causing the problem but I have not tested that theory. Another problem is that as the print continues, the later layers start to shift and cause the subsequent layers to shift after. I believed it was a mechanical problem at first but after cleaning up the linear bearings and adding a little lubricant to the Z axis rods, the problem still persisted. Now, I also get this occasional problem where the print seizes completely after a few hours of printing. The odd thing is that the motors aren't running, but the print bed and print nozzle are still hot and MatterControl, connected via USB, is still running the code as if it's running just fine. In this case, my guess is that the board is overheating and shutting down to protect itself, or the USB lost it's signal. However, I have tried multiple Operating Systems and multiple platforms to see if I could get one of the symptoms to go away, but no luck.

If you guys can help a fellow science nerd out I would greatly appreciate it, I've seen so many cool 3D prints out there and I want to contribute a collection of my own to the community. Ad Astra.

 

This is one of the prints after the RAMPS board changes.

This is one of the prints before the RAMPS change but after the hotend change to E3D

Also forgot to mention I have a RoBo R1 3D.

 

I'm no one hundred percent sure if I have the R1 or R1+ but I believe I reloaded a file named Auto_Level_7_17_8mm. Hopefully that's the one you're asking for. It's been a bit since I've messed with the firmware. And as for the picture I'm not sure why they aren't showing up, but if you right click the IMG icon and press open in new tab they worked for me. Not sure if it only works for me. And Yes I have replaced both The Mega and the RAMPS the problem seemed to be the micro chips sitting on top of the RAMPS board for motor issue. I believe one of the RoBo 3D reps had said their is a difference in the LEDs they used for lighting, so mine are blue if that helps.

 

I'll try this out tonight after work, hopefully that is the case, I was having doubts on the firmware I loaded onto it after replacing the MEGA board. I'll keep you guys posted on this topic thanks for the replies so far.