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PLA Combining rolls

Discussion in 'Printing Filament' started by KCOQUILLARD, Oct 24, 2017.

  1. KCOQUILLARD

    KCOQUILLARD New Member

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    Have been printing for close to a year now with different colors. When I have a roll that gets close to the end I just shift to a new roll so I don't run out before the print is done. Is there any good way to combine the small rolls of filament I have left ?
     
    #1 KCOQUILLARD, Oct 24, 2017
  2. Geof

    Geof Volunteer Moderator
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    i've tried a great many ways and none of them work very well. I typically just pick a print, start it then keep swapping until the filament runs out. There have been many people who weld the filament togather then clean up the excess around the weld but its hit and miss if it will work.

    The Pallete uses something interesting that I'd like to be able to get hands on and check out but I have yet to justify the price tag.
     
    #2 Geof, Oct 25, 2017
    mark tomlinson likes this.
  3. Kilrah

    Kilrah Well-Known Member

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    I've had success relying on my filament runout sensor to swap spool and resume.
     
    #3 Kilrah, Oct 25, 2017
  4. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    Sadly the R1 units didn't have that tech by default :)
    You could add a 3rd party one (and one of our former members and Marlin contributor @Ziggy) did create one.
    Just wasn't stock equipment.
     
    #4 mark tomlinson, Oct 25, 2017
  5. daniel871

    daniel871 Well-Known Member

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    Depending on how "close to the end" we're talking about here, it usually isn't worth the effort and costs more to come up with a solution than it does to just keep doing what you're doing and trash the filament if it isn't enough for a particular printed object.

    This would be where configuring the filament options in your slicer to match what you are using and determining how much you need by weight (after adjusting your scale to compensate for the weight of an empty spool) is useful.
     
    #5 daniel871, Oct 26, 2017
    Steve0 and Geof like this.
  6. Geof

    Geof Volunteer Moderator
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    Solid information! The slicer will tell you what weight the model takes, weigh and mark your left overs and you can use them up.
     
    #6 Geof, Oct 26, 2017

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