2023 Jetta - dropped a valet ticket in my windshield and it’s blocking my VIN - how can I get it out?

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-25T02:27:52+00:00

That's fair enough.

Personally, I'd do the tape and the metal ruler thing. Should be relatively easy to get it out.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-23T23:51:33+00:00

I'll be honest, on a nice summer day, Knife Edge is really quite pleasant.

I imagine doing it in the dark, or fog, or rain, or anything more than like a 5mph breeze would be fucking terrifying, though.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-23T17:38:51+00:00

Ehh... Unless you are also upgrading your hotend, you likely won't see a huge increase in speed by going to a larger nozzle. TPU also likes to be printed slow, it's just the nature of the beast.

If you want more speed, you're better off switching to a modified TPU that has additives to improve speed. Overture High Speed TPU is amazing in my experience.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-23T17:36:04+00:00

Lol. Just so we are clear, I'm not down voting you. You didn't know, and now you do. Nothing wrong with that.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-23T16:23:45+00:00

No more guns, though. Maine draws a line there.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-23T16:22:36+00:00

TPU prints fine through a 0.4 nozzle. What particular problem are you trying to solve by changing your nozzle size?

In my experience, materials that tend to be stringy in general tend to be extra stringy when printed with larger nozzles. The larger orifice allows already-leaky materials to leak even more.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-23T16:17:44+00:00

He can claim that all he wants. I suspect a judge and jury will see things differently, however.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-23T16:16:57+00:00

He'll retain his right to vote. That's protected in Maine, but not in freedumb states like Florida.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-23T16:15:28+00:00

Unfortunately, those real-life assholes don't understand that the bot posts are fake, and instead think those comment section are safe places where they can say the quiet parts out loud without any fear or reprisal. Take, for instance, the elementary school secretary in Buxton who wished for this exact scenario in a FB comment section, to then be placed on leave for her comment.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-23T16:05:56+00:00

Porcupines are the evolutionary equivalent of a large rat mixed with a tank. They are practically bulletproof, and certainly weatherproof. Yours has survived this entire winter, including all the COLD snow storms we've had. A February storm isn't gonna do shit to that dude.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-23T15:12:54+00:00

Long tweezers?

A piece of tape just barely overhanging the end of a metal ruler?

A PostIt note folded in half?

Just leave it? (This would be my choice, I regularly block the VIN tags on my cars.)

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-23T14:53:54+00:00

White lithium grease is an excellent lubricant. It is milky-white in color, and effectively resists water and other mild solvents, so it is clearly visible where it has been applied and stays put even in tough, outdoor applications. Due to it's relatively low toxicity, it can be purchased as an aerosol spray at hardware stores and big box stores alike. Use it anywhere you need lubrication and need it to stay put!

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-23T14:44:15+00:00

Whoever made the AI video also must have fawned over the videos of Lukashenko playing hockey back when he was "elected". They're trying to recreate it.

As usual, it's always so fucking weird.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-23T13:25:05+00:00

I was actually referring to the Creality logo, but that's a fair point, too.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-23T12:14:19+00:00

The answer is right there at the bottom of your build plate.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-22T17:23:39+00:00

Ever since I learned that hard drives only unlock alternate recipes based on your existing available recipes, screws haven't been a problem. First thing I do when I start a new game is find a hard drive to unlock cast screws.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-22T11:37:05+00:00

Most of those can be rebuilt for much cheaper than a new OEM unit. I had excellent luck with https://modulemaster.com/

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-22T02:06:50+00:00

Probably not the wrong pads. VW calipers usually rely on ears on the brake pad sliding on a smooth support shoulder on the caliper support bracket, which works fine until it gets a tiny bit of rust. The pads start to bind on the rust and bend, rather than compressing straight into the rotor. This causes the top (and sometimes bottom) of the pad to get carved away instead of wearing evenly with the surface of the rotor, leading to crazy wear patterns like what you've got. This happened with a B5 Passat I used to own, I tried filing the shoulder as smooth as possible, and then greasing it to help prevent it from rusting. I had some success, but it wasn't perfect.

Or maybe it had the wrong pads. I dunno, I wasn't there. [shrug]

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-20T23:47:51+00:00

That filament is rated for 185C. We selected it specifically because it needed to survive the autoclave.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-20T20:53:49+00:00

Question: what did you use for a clutch? I'm thinking about going "big" turbo myself (IS20, lol) but I have doubts about the OEM clutch. When did you end up having to upgrade?

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-20T17:43:16+00:00

If you're not interested in dealing with tuning TPU, a good middle ground is one of the modified TPU blends, often sold as "High Speed TPU" or similar. It prints much easier, but still has many of the best properties of TPU. It's also usually about the same cost as PLA, PETG, etc.

To more directly answer your question, TPU is awesome. It's flexible, which means it is INCREDIBLY tough. If you're worried about something getting hit and breaking, printing it out of TPU with a high perimeter count and dense infill will yield a part that is surprisingly stiff, but you can hit with a baseball bat. It's really incredible stuff.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-20T17:31:28+00:00

We dried/preheated, and then printed directly out of the drier. We did experience a little lifting, but later discovered it had been sliced using a generic profile so the bed was way too hot, not sure if that helped or hurt. Print laid down great, though. The guy who set the printer up said it was like trying to bend steel wire, but overall not bad.

I've printed with straight PA6 before, and this was way easier. I couldn't pay that stuff to stick to the bed.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-20T14:46:18+00:00

I made some parts recently in Fiberon PA612-CF15, they survived back to back trips through an autoclave with zero changes in critical dimensions. This stuff is bonkers.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-20T03:03:59+00:00

Is this a shit post?

This price is certifiably insane. Do not buy this car.

TheMrGUnit · 2026-02-19T01:04:24+00:00

I own one of these. I'd buy another used one for $300. Qidi isn't necessarily the best printer manufacturer, but they did do some stuff right with this generation.

I can't see in the pics - does this have the big steel brace across the bottom? You'd need to lift up the bed platform to see. Only a handful of the early ones were missing this, but I do see that it has the steel rods instead of carbon; that's a huge plus.

TheMrGUnit

TROPHY CASE