Cracks Have Appeared in Tall Objects

What’s the Problem?

There are cracks on the sides, especially on taller models. This can be one of the most surprising issues in 3D printing as it tends to manifest itself in larger prints, and usually while you’re not looking.

Why it happened?

In a print’s higher layers, the material cools faster. The heat from the heated print bed doesn’t reach that high, and because of this, adhesion in the upper layers is lower.

What to do?

1. Check the hot end temperature and raise it in 10-degree intervals. Start by increasing the extruder temperature; a good start would be to increase it by 10ºC. On the side of your filament box you’ll see the working hot end temperatures, try to keep the temperature adjustment within these values.

2. Check the direction and speed of the cooling fans. Double check your fans, make sure that they’re on and aimed at the model. If they are, try reducing their speed.

Print Offset

What’s the Problem?

The lower and top layers shift as in the above image.

Why it happened?

There’s a variety of reasons for shifting layers, and these can be as simple as someone knocking the printer during the print process. More complex causes can be bent or misaligned rods, or even the nozzle catching on the print and causing a slight shift in position of the platform.

What to do?

1. Ensure the printer has a stable base. Avoid the printer being knocked, poked and generally fiddled with, for even a small nudge will cause the shift issue.

2. Watch out for warped upper layers. A print’s upper layers can easily warp if cooled too quickly. If your prints are suffering from warping in the upper layers, try reducing the speed of the fans slightly.

3. Reduce print speed. It is possible to speed up the print times for your machine by increasing temperature and flow.

4. Check the belt. Make sure the tension in each belt be the same. Over time the rubber belts will stretch. Over tight belts can also be an issue but this is usually only a problem if you’ve built the machine yourself.

5. Check the drive couplers. These are usually connected directly to a stepper motor, and one of the main rods that drives the print head. If you carefully rotate the coupler, you’ll see a small grub screw. Please tighten the grub screw and try again if necessary.

6. Clean and oil the rods. Over time debris can build up on the rods and increase in friction. This can affect the free movement of the head and cause layer shifting. A quick wipe and re-oil of the rods helps solves the issue.

7. Check for deformed rods. If you feel resistance, then you know something is amiss. Start by seeing if the rods are aligned, if they are then remove the rods and roll them on a flat surface. If any are bent, then it will be quite obvious.

Common 3D Printing Problems and Solutions (3)