Welcome to the SeeMeCNC Community

I started with a simply vinyl cutter, then an IHCNC milling machine, then a 6x8' CNC router and now it's time to try 3d printing. It's been very exciting so far and much lower stress than machining. Failures cost almost nothing by comparison and the complicated parts which can be created are very impressive. So far I'm only working in ABS and have had great success with small parts. I have a spool of PLA (all from SeeMeCNC) and didn't like the stringy prints. I'll work on refining the settings for this material, but most of the things I build need to be functional in a variety of climates and relatively tough.

So here's the new kid on the block. I named her "Rosie" and she's rapidly consuming all my free time. I've made quadcopter parts, toys for the kids, Lincolns death mask (from Smithsonian) and crystal lattice models. However, when I tried to print a box for XRD aperture slits, I ran into the dreaded "bed adhesion" problem with ABS. After measuring with an infrared thermometer, it seems that there are severe "cold" spots on the bed. Dropping as much as 15 degrees C. This has severely limited my ability to use the full work envelope of the machine. The next step seems to be an Aluminum heat distribution plate or some other type of build plate entirely. The last part I printed was about 3" tall and every layer is perfect, but getting outside the center of the build plate by more than 2-3" almost guarantees failure. Any suggestions aside from the Al plate solution? Something I'm overlooking?

Ken

Hi neighbor! I live just down the highway from you in Lewisville! I just got an Orion printer two days ago and have been printing up a storm with it.

I'm still a newbie at all this, but have you tried the hairspray trick? A spritz of it on the bed leaves a slightly rough, slightly gummy texture to the bed that the ABS sticks to quite well. If that doesn't work for you, then try mixing some ABS scraps in acetone to make a slurry. Brush that onto a cold bed evenly. I used that on my previous printer. I never got to really test that machine, but I did find the slurry messy and smelly. I love using the hairspray!

The last trick is to add a brim to your project in Slic3r. It adds a thin skirt (you decide how big) that spreads out the footprint of the first layer. It's thin enough to easily snap off the model when done. I haven't tried that yet, but seems like a way to bridge the colder gaps in the bed.

Oh, I did think of one more thing. I've seen where some people have used heavy plastic ($10 shower curtain liner) and velcroed it to the top of the printer to make an enclosure that keeps in the heat. Do a search on shower curtain to find the details.

Happy printing!

Hi, I've had good luck with larger prints with a fresh coat from a glue stick. The elmers "Transparent Purple" I believe it's called. For large prints, I clean the cooled glass with a razor, then apply two coats, perpendicular. Bring up the heat to dry it and I haven't had any problems with adhesion.

Good luck!