Solved Z axis drop during print R1+

It is possible that is in the stepper dropping steps, but there are a couple of other possible things to rule out/

1) Make sure if you reloaded the firmware that you used the exact one for your printer. The Z steps is what is different on the various R1 flavors and if you use the wrong one it could look like you describe.
2) The stepper motor could be bad and skipping steps
3) The stepper driver could be bad and dropping steps
3) The RAMPS board could be bad and dropping steps
4) In rare cases it could be the Arduino.

Go down the list and see which one is yours

 

Stepper motors are cheap
Stepper drivers are dirt cheap
RAMPS boards are cheap
lastly even the Arduino is cheap

 

OK, good that eliminates a lot of possible issues If it happens only on longer print runs then that makes it more likely heat related and you should focus on the fan under the printer that cools the RAMPS/Arduino and the stepper drivers or stepper motors.

Honestly I have not had issues with the motors, but I have worked with people who did. That is why I usually leave that for last Yours might be a stepper getting hot and dropping steps, but I don't look to that first. The stepper drivers are more likely (and cheaper)

 

There should be a fan attached to the bottom that cools the RAMPS.

 

Either way. It needs to be working to keep the RAMPS/Arduino cool or weird things will happen

 

The direction of the air flow is less important that the fact that there IS some
I can't remember if the R1+ has the air blowing in or out, but towards the electronics is fine.
I don't have bottom covers on mine and the 3" side mounted fans I do have pull air across the Arduino/RAMPS and out of the case.

@Geof or @WheresWaldo might be able to answer that

 

Blowing at the arduino/ramps board. If you stick a piece of paper under the printer that fan should suck it to the cover

 

yep that would do it Amazing what nightmares that little fan can cause

 

Even the betas (which had no bottom cover at all) would run hot on the electronics. Usually not to the point of problems, but hotter than was really good. It was smart to add the fan when they added the bottom cover. Without it running however ... and a bottom cover over it ... things will die

 

@xfire_dragonx My R1 bottom looks just like that with an 80 mm x 15 mm slim fan in place of that ridiculously small 40 mm fan.

 

I agree (and I don't even have an R1+ to compare to) I have 3" muffin fans on the betas. That fan on the bottom cover is too small (and too easy to miss if it stops working)

 

That certainly looks a bit "high"

Use this as your reference:

https://printedsolid.com/blogs/news/37035715-get-your-prints-to-stick-check-your-skirt