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Strings and Poor Detail

Discussion in 'Troubleshooting' started by jappenzeller, May 5, 2018.

  1. jappenzeller

    jappenzeller New Member

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    I've been using my r1+ for almost a year and the quality was really good. I just got my R2 and I've tried a few prints and I'm getting a lot of strings hanging and the detail of the prints isn't very good at all. I'm using the same filament I used with my r1. Also I'm using simplify3d default r2 settings. I'm assuming there are some settings somewhere I need to tweak considering many people are getting good quality prints with the R2. But not sure best place to start.
     
    #1 jappenzeller, May 5, 2018
  2. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    Print a temperature test tower (stringing usually means you are too hot).
    retraction settings can help too. Don't expect two printers to print the same filament the same way :)

    You might have some over extrusion as well, but start with the other things first.
     
    #2 mark tomlinson, May 5, 2018
  3. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    Some of the other folks who actually use an R2 can add more specific advice.
    @Geof @WheresWaldo
     
    #3 mark tomlinson, May 5, 2018
  4. jappenzeller

    jappenzeller New Member

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    The temperature is slightly lower than what I had with the R1 , but I'll try dropping it some more. What is a temperature test tower?
     
    #4 jappenzeller, May 5, 2018
  5. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    https://www.thingiverse.com/search?q=temperature+test&sa=&dwh=235aee4a610b23b

    Something like those :)
    Pay attention to the details on each one for any editing or specifics needed to print it.

    The temperature gets reset between sections so that you end up with a model that is printed at more than one temperature. You then compare the sections to see where your best range is for that filament.
     
    #5 mark tomlinson, May 5, 2018
  6. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    You mostly will use the GCode versions of those so make sure any startup GCode you need is added before printing (you may not need any on the R2 if you use OctoPrint).

    Eventually you get enough experience that simply printing something like a DePrime Test object at a given temperature will allow you to make adjustments and print another (they are small and quick to print)
     
    #6 mark tomlinson, May 5, 2018
  7. drbanks

    drbanks Active Member

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    I usually print my PLA at 190, but sometimes as low as 180. I get decent(-ish) detail and little to no stringing.
     
    #7 drbanks, May 5, 2018
  8. drbanks

    drbanks Active Member

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    I printed a temperature test tower for PLA on mine once. Seemed to indicate that there isn't a good reason to go over 195 for PLA.

    One thing to note about the default Simplyfy3D settings for the R2 is that they pretty much suck.

    One place to start is under the infill tab, they have some ludicrously large value for "outline overlap." Cura's value for that is something like 8. They had it set to something like 40. The result, in my case, was so much infill poking out the sides that I spent nearly a month chasing down what I thought was a retraction issue.
     
    #8 drbanks, May 5, 2018
  9. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    In general probably not, but it is very printer and even filament specific. I have one that prints all my PLA about 10-15 degrees hotter because... reasons. Same spools. Same room. Different printer.
     
    #9 mark tomlinson, May 6, 2018
  10. WheresWaldo

    WheresWaldo Volunteer ( ͠° ͟ʖ ͡°)
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    In my particular room and printer combo, I get bad prints below 205° with most PLA brands. It is one of those things you just have to find on your own.
     
    #10 WheresWaldo, May 6, 2018
    mark tomlinson likes this.
  11. jappenzeller

    jappenzeller New Member

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    Thanks for the comments, reducing the temperature did help a little with the strings, but it turns out the Wipe Nozzle setting was causing most of the issue. Once I unchecked it the detail improved greatly and almost all the strings went away.

    Another issue I'm trying to figure out now is the layer height. The R2 spec says it should be able to do a much smaller layer height which I was hoping would help me get more detail, but when I go below .1 the quality gets bad again. Are there other settings related to layer height I should be looking at?
     
    #11 jappenzeller, May 6, 2018
  12. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    Speed and nozzle size.
    Print speed needs to go down linear with the size of the layer. (i.e. 0.2 -> 0.1 = cut speed in half)
    Also remember that for best results you want your nozzle size to be 30%-70% the size of the layer height. With 0.2mm layers (the default) this is why you have a 0.4 nozzle :) Can you print outside that range? Sure, but the best results will be close to 50% of the nozzle size.
     
    #12 mark tomlinson, May 6, 2018
  13. WheresWaldo

    WheresWaldo Volunteer ( ͠° ͟ʖ ͡°)
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    > 0.1 mm is pretty small and usually not necessary even for fine details, of course if you are using a 0.1 mm or 0.2 mm nozzle it is a bit easier to retain the finest details with comparably smaller layer heights. Just be prepared for your prints to take forever. Follow the directions @mark tomlinson listed in the previous post, smaller nozzle, smaller layers, more details all force you to go slower than molasses.
     
    #13 WheresWaldo, May 6, 2018
  14. jappenzeller

    jappenzeller New Member

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    Thanks for all the replies. Gonna keep experimenting. :)
     
    #14 jappenzeller, May 6, 2018

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