Lots of Print Problems

[Nath5]

Hello,

I finally thought I had my Rostock Max V2 working well but after trying a larger print I am having a bunch of problems.

1. This is a print where the part was oriented vertically, since the finished part is 10 inches long. I canceled the print after the first two inches because it was already very wrong. There are two main problems. One the print seems to be shifting as the printer gets higher. It seems to drift to the right. Two I am seeing this in all my prints where the print seems to be stretched vertically. The circle becomes an oval.

[img]http://i.imgur.com/x9aTakFl.jpg[/img]
http://i.imgur.com/x9aTakF.jpg

[img]http://i.imgur.com/cWqdMEPl.jpg[/img]
http://i.imgur.com/cWqdMEP.jpg

[img]http://i.imgur.com/wEHqrpil.jpg[/img]
http://i.imgur.com/wEHqrpi.jpg

Here you can see how the circle has been stretched. The lower black line is the width of the circle and the top black line is the height.
[img]http://i.imgur.com/eFMYhGtl.jpg[/img]
http://i.imgur.com/eFMYhGt.jpg

After failing to print the model vertically I split it into two parts so I could print it laying down. Then I had even more problems as seen below. In the top left corner and the right side no filament is being extruded. It also seems like the extruder is slipping a lot. I lightly grabbed the filament as it was printing so I could feel the filament moving and it seems to move for a bit then stop even though the white gear on the extruder is still rotating. Has anyone else had problems with the filament slipping or does my problem lie elsewhere?

[img]http://i.imgur.com/g34TIiil.jpg[/img]
http://i.imgur.com/g34TIii.jpg

[img]http://i.imgur.com/Kj7Kn8bl.jpg[/img]
http://i.imgur.com/Kj7Kn8b.jpg

Thanks for any help you can offer!

[DavidF]

Yes you have a few problems going on there. First off looks like your calibration is off. Look at the thick and thins spots of the first layer, they should be even thickness. Having those spots where the line is really thin will cause your extruder to kick back as there is no space between the bed and nozzle for the extruded plastic to go. On the second problem, first check your mechanicals make sure the delta arms are properly installed and not half popped off or anything stupid.
Then double check you eprom settings and make sure all the arms are set to the same length.

[bdjohns1]

One problem you're having (thick in the middle, getting thin on the edge) is a function of not having the right horizontal radius set. Re-read the calibration section - looking at that first layer, I can 100% guarantee you've got something not right going on there.

Don't touch arm length - arm length affects your X/Y scaling, which is not the issue in your first print.

[Captain Starfish]

I'm going to go with:
- you need to sand and clean your effector and arm universal joints and mounts, because it looks like something's catching.
- you might need to tighten your belts a bit if it walks off in one direction as you get higher.
- you definitely need to go through the horiz. radius and bed levelling calibration a lot more thoroughly.

[Holy1]

I agree with checking to make sure the ALL ujoints are free ( do this first!) and redoing the calibration if they are OK. It is critical that the effector plate move on a completely level plane parallel with the bed. I know calibration and horizontal radius calibration is a pain and time consuming but so worth it.

[Nath5]

Last night I went ahead and reflashed the firmware and recalibrated everything to make sure that was good to go. Things went much better. I seemed to get a fairly even first layer. My problem is now that the corners of my print are warping up when the print gets to level 15 or so. I am currently using hairspray to hold my prints down which for small prints has worked almost too well. I also am using 100% infill because I need this part to be solid. The print is abs with the bed heated to 90 and the hotend at 225. Any ideas on how I can keep the edges down?

Also I have seen a bunch of threads where people print a 200mm calibration ring, does anyone know where I can find that model?

Thanks,
Nathan

[Captain Starfish]

Make some ABS juice up.
Print a 3 or 4 mm brim around your part. As the first layer is printing, at any corner and every inch or so, use a brush to smear a little puddle of the abs juice down outside, inside and around the skirt. It will help hold it down.

[Nath5]

I was planning on giving the abs juice a shot. I am also thinking about mounting some plexi glass to somewhat enclose the build space to better regulate temperature. How much abs do you mix with the acetone when making the abs juice?