1. Got a question or need help troubleshooting? Post to the troubleshooting forum or Search the forums!

Partially Solved Z-banding. A different perspective.

Discussion in 'Troubleshooting' started by Marcus T, Jul 19, 2015.

  1. Marcus T

    Marcus T Member

    Joined:
    Aug 14, 2014
    Messages:
    39
    Likes Received:
    6
    This post is partially about asking for tips about fixing a particular cause of z-banding/ribbing; and part about taking another look at an often overlooked possible cause of this issue.

    When the extruder pulls from the spool, it can pull the filament taught, and then turn the spool and the filament goes loose again. The effect that this has is that the taught filament actually pulls up on the carriage, creating a slightly thicker layer. This thicker layer will be slightly concave due to being too tall for the amount of plastic being extruded.

    So, for those that have tried other possible causes for z-banding, but have come up short as far as getting it resolved, here's one more possibility. For those that have determined that this is the cause, what are some possible fixes to this issue?
     
  2. Ziggy

    Ziggy Moderator
    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Feb 20, 2013
    Messages:
    707
    Likes Received:
    530
    I have been using this active filament spooler for about a year now. The friction drive pulls the filament off the spool so there is no tension on the filament feeding into the extruder. The friction drive has enough grunt to clear spool tangles as well.

    The friction drive rate is kept aligned with the extruder using the extruder stepper pulse info from the RAMPS. If the spool is getting low I put the filament end/break monitor on the filament as well.

    IMG_0689.JPG
     
    Marquis Johnson likes this.
  3. Marcus T

    Marcus T Member

    Joined:
    Aug 14, 2014
    Messages:
    39
    Likes Received:
    6
    Brilliant. I'm currently using this spool holder (http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:434333), but there is still a little bit of friction, though it is less than there was with the stock spool holder. Eventually, I'm going to change it to a bowden setup. That seems to be the best option for removing that force from the carriage. In the meantime, I'm just going to use a different spool holder like one of the ones that uses barrings.
     

Share This Page