Ender 5 Printing Issue

[Doug Larimore]

Hello All,

I am totally new to 3D printing, and got into to it to print things for my model railroad. I just acquired an Ender 5 as my first printer. The Dr. Vax test print seemed to print ok, but the squares have a lite cross-hatched pattern on them. I have leveled the bed with a piece of printer paper. When I print anything else, the print head would run across the top of the object being printed. At first I thought it was over extrusion, and re-calibrated the eSteps. That didn't resolve the issue, so I started playing with Z hop and Retraction, as well as print temp. these are the best two print. BTW, I am using the Creality PLA that came with the printer.

Any suggestions?



Thank you,

Doug Larimore

[Alan]

Welcome to the craft of 3D printing! What slicer are you using and what is combing set to? The test print picture is a bit fuzzy, but printing too close to the bed can cause nozzle clogs and extruder motor stepper skipping which could result in the prints in the other two images. Z-wobble could as well. So, if the printer is extruding ok and you don't observe skipping, some things to check as your printer is new:

• That the bolts and screws that connect your extruder and hotend to your printer are tight.
• For rattling in the X-axis carriage.
• For wobble in your print bed including replacing any bearings and tightening all harnesses.
• Check that both the X and Y-axis belts have zero droop.
• Make sure the Z-axis rod is not bent.

Ender5r


Hope this helps! Hopefully, Ender5r and others who own that machine can weigh in too.

Cheers

[Ender5r]

In addition to the things Alan mentioned:
.
If the Ender 5 is new, please check the version of Marlin it has installed, and the Z steps/mm. You can do both of these using the LCD display. If the version of Marlin is 1.1.8, I would be looking to change it. I had dropout issues with the Y axis stepper motor with 1.1.8. If the Z steps/mm is set to 400, you almost certainly will want to change it to 800. Print a calibration cube, to check if the dimensions are close to correct, particularly the Z dimension (height).

[Alan]

In addition ... If the Ender 5 is new, please check the version of Marlin it has installed, and the Z steps/mm.

I forgot about that! Guess I'll have to buy an Ender 5 to commit this to the right brain lobe!

[Doug Larimore]

Hello,
Thank you for the replies...

• I am using CURA 4.6.1
• I have replaced the stock 8-bit board with a TH3D EZ Board Lite running Marlin (2.x) TH3D U2.R1.B3
• Combing is OFF
• I get the same results if I use a singe sheet of paper to level the bed, or if I fold the sheet in half and use double thickness.
• I do not see any wobble of the Z-Axis or bed.
• I do not notice any belt droop, but will look at You tube to re-tension.
• All bolts are snug, and not loose.
• I changed the Z steps/mm to 800, and will reprint the test print, and print a cube. Pictures will follow.

Is the sample PLA good to use, or should I start using the spool I purchased?



Thank you,

Doug Larimore

[Ender5r]

Now I'm jealous. An EZ Board Lite is one of the upgrades I'm hoping to do in the fall or winter.

That said, I agree with you: the DrVAX test print does indeed look pretty good. The light crosshatch pattern, AFAIK, is perfectly normal. The other 2 prints are another story. Let me ask you:

1. have you done an extruder feed calibration?
2. have you done a flow control calibration?

Both of these items have a lot to do with over and under extrusion. For the flow control, I print a 20mm calibration cube, following the settings laid out in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gz8lieo0Nx8

For extruder calibration, I followed this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlSSa19_gMY

Glad to hear you've got the Z steps changed. Now, to fine-tune the Z steps, follow this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlSSa19_gMY

Here's a more general video (but I feel it's worth watching) of things to check & watch out for: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qddYsbHawno

And, of course, this post would not be complete without mention of Irv's DrVAX calibration/maintenance video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PChOqIBNwOs

Looking forward to the photos. Remember, photos, or it didn't happen!

[Doug Larimore]

Again, thanks for the help... I did the extruder feed and flow control calibration, and the results are great. The cube is better than the picture reflects, and it is pretty accurate at 20.02 mm x 20.03 mm x 20.08 mm.. The strain relief printed great, compared to the original attempt.


Thank you,

Doug Larimore

[Ender5r]

That cube is really accurate. Good job on the calibration. And the strain relief (didn't know that's what it is) also looks good.