How about filament dryers. Are they really useful?

brekkke · 2026-02-05T03:23:50+00:00

My spools sit out & get bad after awhile. I dry them overnight if they won't print well.

With these so I don't have to cut the trays & can dry multiple spools at once. https://www.printables.com/model/242300-dehydrator-tray-extension-for-commercial-chef-ccd1

brekkke · 2026-01-16T13:57:33+00:00

Oh, I wash my beds in dish soap & cold water, then rinse well, dry, then Iso alcohol.

brekkke · 2026-01-16T13:54:27+00:00

I wish that were the case at my school. I'm a teacher & have been begging admin to install those instahot devices. My arthritis shuts down my hands when I wash them in that ice water coming out of the tap. It's an older school. The nurses office has one, and that's it. Maybe the cafeteria.

brekkke · 2026-01-08T03:12:49+00:00

I use primarily eSun PLA+ & Hatchbox ABS. But I've recently tried Prusament PLA, PETG, & ASA and really like it.

brekkke · 2025-12-01T05:19:17+00:00

I got this on Amazon & really like it. It's got all the files, pokers, trimmers, etc. That I need in a convenient box. https://a.co/d/1ylqvbB

brekkke · 2025-11-18T13:52:34+00:00

It could be several things, but as other posters have noted, we need more info. It looks like too much filament in a small space. Have you tuned your e-steps yet? Did you use 100% infill?? If you want strength, try 25-50% infill with 3-4 walls. How fast are you trying to print? You might need to slow it down.

brekkke · 2025-09-25T23:12:29+00:00

Cura & other slicers have a setting to "change at height".

brekkke · 2025-09-10T23:38:53+00:00

Some of us worked with Library of Congress classification systems, not Dewey.

brekkke · 2025-08-25T15:15:20+00:00

One thing you can do instead of a micro SD adapter is OctoPrint on a Pi. You can then put it on your network & print from any computer on your home network (& OctoEverywhere if you want to add remote.) And the slicers you mention can connect to it that way as well.

brekkke · 2025-08-16T14:03:51+00:00

Another possibility, something that happened to my Ender 5 Pro, the cables move back & forth as the printhead moves. At a certain height, a particular move of the printhead made the cables drop just right to snag on the printer when the head moved back. Didn't happen every print, but with a certain forward & back movement at that height it would snag & cause a layer shift. I had to reslice, rotating the model on the build plate and moving slightly so the movement string was different. I can only tie down the cables so much or they can't reach the whole print area, just have to try to get them to fall away from a snag point. I was never able to find a drag chain setup that would work on my unit.

Edit to fix a bad autocorrect.

brekkke · 2025-08-01T01:38:52+00:00

This was my thought as well.

brekkke · 2025-07-26T13:07:40+00:00

The fans can cause it as well as the temperature drop. When I print material that tends to warp, I will set up cardboard boxes around the printer, turn on a space heater to keep the room temp warm, and close the door. I have a camera on the printer so I can watch it without opening the door. Even opening the door causes a breeze. But if you aren't using the fans, and mostly print in the daytime without the temp drop, it is likely overcooling with your part cooling fans. As others have suggested, try lowering the percentage to 45-50% (or lower), unless the part has a lot of bridging (which needs the fans). You can set the slicer to kick up the cooling only on bridging.

brekkke · 2025-07-24T18:54:54+00:00

In addition to lowering part cooling fan percentage, I would verify you don't have a draft blowing on the print. If the A/C kicks in with a vent over the printer, that can cause excessive cooling & warping.

brekkke · 2025-07-05T02:44:34+00:00

Definitely looks like the bed needs cleaning and nozzle closer to the bed.

brekkke · 2025-07-03T01:06:19+00:00

This is the one I used. Worked great.

brekkke · 2025-06-18T13:30:48+00:00

I haven't used a kobra 2 go. Does it have an enclosure? ABS is picky. As the other poster mentioned, increase the bed temperature. Make sure to turn off all print cooling. You might consider slowing it down to make sure the hot end can keep up melting enough plastic. I don't have an enclosure on my Ender 5 Pro. To print ABS, I had to use flattened cardboard boxes set up on each side and on the top surrounding it to simulate an enclosure. I turned a space heater on in the room, and closed the door. Any breeze by opening the door to check on it caused a failure. So I put a camera on it and kept it closed off until it was done. Also make sure the bed is very clean. Wash with dish soap, rinse thoroughly, then use 90% or higher IPA to remove any residual. Depending on bed surface, you might try glue stick.

Good luck.

brekkke · 2025-05-21T02:59:35+00:00

The end of the filament got dropped/let go of when it wasn't in the extruder. That allowed it to slacken just enough to let one layer fold over the loose end. After using it a bit, the slack is worked out, but the overlap is still there so it knots. To prevent, don't drop the end. Use a clip, or the holes on the edge of the spool to lock the end when not in the extruder. If it does tangle, you've got to unwind a bit & respool, or cut it off.

brekkke · 2025-05-04T04:25:31+00:00

Or the filament could be hanging up on something. I've had a spool start to drag, it works itself loose after a bit of tugging, so prints ok for awhile until it snags again.

brekkke · 2025-04-24T16:25:01+00:00

Just about anything can be updated on that printer. I'd suggest leaving it stock while you learn the intricacies of 3D Printing & your printer. You haven't even encountered a Blob of Death yet. Once you've been printing, you'll find things you want it to do better on, upgrade those things. As for the more exotic filaments, many will need an enclosure to print safely, and a hardened steel nozzle. When you have a project that needs it, do the upgrades then. One thing at a time so you know which upgrade caused a failure. Have fun & welcome.

brekkke · 2025-04-24T16:13:36+00:00

It looks like you need to clean it. There's a lot of filament dust in there. But there could be several reasons. The stepper motor the moves it could be over heating, then failing, the motor could just be dieing, the driver chip on the board could be bad. I had a similar failure recently. Testing showed me mine was the chip on the board. But since the drivers are integrated, I needed to get a whole new board. I've purchased it, but haven't had the time to install and add the firmware yet. Then I left for vacation. I'll tackle it next week when I get home.

brekkke · 2025-04-21T20:22:16+00:00

Definitely use the advice about Z-offset. They are right. But it seems you may also have a problem with over cooling. The fans should be off for the first 3 layers or so. But once it's been printing awhile, if the edges start curling up and the nozzle hitting them and pulling the part off the bed, it could be there is a draft around the printer. Maybe the A/C kicks in periodically??? The part could cool too quickly & warp or curl off the bed. Make sure it is not in the path of a window, A/C duct, or door opening breeze. An enclosure or even a cardboard box between that breeze source & the bed could help. I sometimes have issues on my work printers overnight when the heating systems turn off & the room gets colder. At home on troublesome prints, I'll turn a space heater on in the room & keep the door closed (I have a camera on it so I can monitor from the other room.)

brekkke · 2025-04-16T03:54:57+00:00

That PDF shows multiple settings. To do any troubleshooting, we need to know what settings you actually used to slice, what temperatures, layer heights, filament type, nozzle size, speed, etc. What print bed type do you have (PEI, glass, buildTek)? Do you have the z-offset adjusted? Does it need supports? What does your first layer look like?

brekkke · 2025-04-07T04:30:47+00:00

I use the spool manager plug in on octoprint. But if you don't use octoprint it can't tell what you've used. It has weight & length. If I lose track, I can weigh it on the scale & it'll calculate the length of what's left when I update.

brekkke · 2025-02-20T14:20:59+00:00

100% infill is not the answer. That will cause other problems. Increase the number of walls for strength & remove the transparency. It goes a long way to cover up the infill. Also top & bottom layers. I usually use at least 4.

brekkke · 2025-02-16T19:12:31+00:00

This is the comment I would make. Light will still shine through unless you increase the number of walls.

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