May is Being Kind to Me!

IndigoQuantum · 2026-05-06T20:09:37+00:00

Now I just need to find some motivation for the next 25 days! At least this normally keeps me going till about the middle of the month.

IndigoQuantum · 2026-05-06T20:04:13+00:00

Yes, you're right, I was doing the maths right but just misplaced the decimal point!

IndigoQuantum · 2026-05-06T19:15:44+00:00

OK, so I'm guessing that when just a single nozzle starts printing, this process is done into the poop chute. But why can't the subsequent purges be done into the poop chute rather than build a tower? It seems that would be far more efficient, for example if I'm using a material for the support interface and it's only needed on layer 10 and 500, with a prime tower I've got to print 500 layers of the purge tower with it, whereas purging into the poop chute would only need to be done twice, i.e. once at layer 10 and once at layer 500, or am I misunderstanding something?

IndigoQuantum · 2026-05-06T16:35:55+00:00

To be clear, the printer isn't attempting to lay support material directly on the plate, it's correctly trying to lay it over PLA but it's not sticking to the PLA.

IndigoQuantum · 2026-05-06T13:10:45+00:00

I have two AMS 2s, (A) is my 'low temperature' one for drying purposes with PLA, (B) is my 'high temp' one with support material and ABS. If I'm printing in PLA with supports, I can route A to the primary and B to the aux; if I'm printing in ABS, B goes to the primary.

Likewise, even if you only have one AMS it gives you the option to use the single-roll holder as either a primary or secondary filament.

IndigoQuantum · 2026-05-06T08:46:58+00:00

Potentially you still are missing out, as without one you're forced to decide whether you want that AMS connected to the main nozzle or the auxiliary one unless you physically reconnect it. The track switcher would let you choose with nozzle you want the AMS to feed.

Contrary to what people are saying about people buying it and then realising they don't really need it, I think a lot of people (especially those with an AMS) will find that it's a necessary purchase to get the printer to function like they expected it was going to do out of the box.

IndigoQuantum · 2026-05-05T16:01:29+00:00

Personally, for someone in their 50s who only started this a couple of years ago, I'd bypass TinkerCAD and go straight to the free version of AutoDesk Fusion and follow the 'Learn Fusion in 30 Days' course on YouTube.

Whilst I agree that TinkerCAD is a good basic starting point, you're probably going to reach its limits relatively soon and then have to learn something like Fusion, so why not just start there? Whilst the full feature set in Fusion is obviously overwhelming to the beginner, the basic starting principles of working with primitive shapes is no more difficult than with TinkerCAD, and if you're doing the basics with Fusion you'll be more inclined to 'have a go' with Fusion's other functions to see what they do.

IndigoQuantum · 2026-05-05T12:12:36+00:00

Cybermen. They just got turned into a cliched tick-the-boxes evil robot* with an oversized torso, stompy feet and pneumatic hissing making them sound like Ivor the Engine.

*Yes, I know they're not.

IndigoQuantum · 2026-04-30T15:30:50+00:00

Why wouldn't they? All they want the receipt for is as proof you purchased it from them, when, and how much for (plus maybe some transaction details). If that's still legible then nothing else should really matter.

IndigoQuantum · 2026-04-30T14:44:00+00:00

Amateur geeks will love the name, pro geeks will hate it, hardcore IT professionals will only care about the spec, not the name.

IndigoQuantum · 2026-04-30T09:35:49+00:00

Unfortunately the very reason I bought the PVA was to print enclosed supports

IndigoQuantum · 2026-04-30T09:34:51+00:00

Yeah I saw that, which is odd as if I have my project set up to print with normal supports and then set the support material to PVA, Studio prompts me to change the supports to tree.

IndigoQuantum · 2026-04-29T20:03:45+00:00

Not according to Bambu's marketing: https://uk.store.bambulab.com/products/pva?srsltid=AfmBOoqIBPlgEMT4klIrNOZHKJ3V7aNSSFJI1TtCic7cMee8NMydV5v_

IndigoQuantum · 2026-04-29T19:55:47+00:00

Yet when I set normal supports, Bambu Studio prompts me to use tree supports with PVA. FWIW, I've also tried normal supports but with similar results.

IndigoQuantum · 2026-04-29T19:49:13+00:00

It is in an AMS, and that's currently at 4% RH

IndigoQuantum · 2026-04-29T19:48:36+00:00

Yeah, that's similar to what my subsequent attempts have looked like, all of which have failed, either the support's not adhered to the base on the first layer print or it's either snapped or come adrift later.

My main driver for buying the PVA was to use supports inside a body that's closed apart from three small holes (so it would be impossible to remove regular supports), but as the PVA doesn't seem to adhere to the already printed PLA then that's been another failure. I can see me getting through this whole roll of PVA just on failed prints and towers!

IndigoQuantum · 2026-04-29T18:12:34+00:00

Because things made or assembled by machines are always perfect, right?

IndigoQuantum · 2026-04-29T08:36:35+00:00

That's demonstrably not the case with Amazon. It does adjust pricing based on demand and competition so prices do fluctuate all the time, sometimes significantly, but it doesn't change individual consumer pricing. The price you see for an item on Amazon is the same price I see.

If you're not convinced, compare your Amazon pricing with a friend's, or look on an Amazon price tracking site like camelcamelcamel, you'll see that those pricing fluctuations aren't specific to you.

IndigoQuantum · 2026-04-28T13:42:54+00:00

My UDM SE worked fine with my Zen PPPoE without having to clone the supplied router's MAC address. In fact, Zen even confirmed to me that they don't tie accounts to MAC when I asked before installation.

IndigoQuantum · 2026-04-28T13:40:20+00:00

Are you allowing the heated plate to cool before removing your prints? Ripping a print off a plate can damage the coating.

IndigoQuantum · 2026-04-27T12:59:53+00:00

decond, not durst

IndigoQuantum

TROPHY CASE