Dim3nsioneer

I guess you already checked if the specified filament diameter is correct? I usually measure the diameter 10 times and then take the smallest one. Gives very nice prints without overextrusion.

I think the Ultimaker design fulfils this spec quite well, doesn't it?

I agree on the fact that a good software takes care of as many dangers as possible. However, I agree with Daid's sentence. It's the usual way to go (I co-worked on the firmware of a device with fans some time ago). I strongly disagree with your first point. I don't see any reason why Marlin should not be able to achieve this protection. One would have to introduce a variable for minimum fan speed. The only allowed value below this threshold would be 0. The kickstart feature is already implemented in Marlin but disabled in the Ultimaker version. I could imagine that Daid would activate the feature for the next firmware version if he is asked nicely. I'm not sure about your second point. A lot of these machines are Ultimakers today. Then there are a lot of RepRaps driven by Marlin...

Could you please write the print speed in mm/s? 100% could be anything...

It's on an UM1, isn't it? (You wrote 'fan' and not 'fans'... ;-) ) 1: Most probably you have to decrease the temperature. What temperature and what speed are you printing at? You may also try to rotate the print by 90 degree counter-clockwise. 2 and 3: Make sure you have retraction enabled. Since Cura 14.03 you can set a retraction hop in the expert settings. This leaves even less traces. If you have combing enabled, disable it to get rid of the lines or - if completely disabling combing is not an option - use the RetractWhileCombing plugin. For a not too small print like yours I would recommend switching it off completely; I think you won't loose much time with it.

But you would have to hard-code the swap code into the plugin...there is no alphanumeric input up to now...right?

On your last picture one can see some effusion of the first layer. That means you are overextruding on the first layer. If this happens, material is squeezed around the tip of the hotend which results in not very nice lines. So please try it again with the 210°C or reduce the flow on the first layer. What filament diameter did you specify? I don't know what the whole wheel should look like (if cross-section somehow changes) but if you want to have a concentric infill you can achieve this with Cura by setting the shell thickness to at least half the width of the rim. The result is a print with '100% infill' (actually a print with only shell and no infill). And maybe disable combing in order to get rid of the crossing lines.

If a circle is not round then it's backlash in most cases. Please check that: - the short belts are tight - the long belts are resonably tight (you should be able to move the print head around with your little finger when the printer is switched off) - the pulleys are not sliping (mark the pulleys and the rods with a pen) You may test the backlash of your machine with https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/15273556/Ultimaker/models/BacklashTest1.stl. For printing the very top of the dome, you should reduze the temperature significantly and set the minimum layer time to 5-7s (cf. http://umforum.ultimaker.com/index.php?/topic/5651-sphere-problem-with-last-layers/).

Having a closer look at your picture I'm not sure what exactly you're talking about. What aspect of the surface has to be more uniform? If I look at your picture, I clearly see the single lines of the print. Is this what disturbs you? You will always see the different lines when you hold the bottom surface like that and have some light reflected on the surface. Could you please repost the picture including some arrows and/or circles and a clear statement what it's wrong on distinct spots? However, please also state the print speed you used for the first layer in mm/s, the infill overlap and the bed temperature. These are important influences on the first layer quality. Another important question: Did you print anything else than PLA before on your UM2? A picture from the first layer of this print FROM TOP would also be very helpful (just print the first layer and then abort the print). I use the very same filament from Faberdashery. Try to print the first layer at 20mm/s and 210°C. Together with a proper bed leveling this gives me a perfect first layer.

Be aware that any Cura plugin can be used more than once in a print. With the RetractWhileCombing plugin, you could specify two single layers, some layers apart, by setting start and end layer number the same for each time.

AFAIK there is no custom extruder swap gcode in Cura up to now. But the behaviour you describe might be implemented in Cura in future, when the new GUI is released. I guess (from the way your question is asked) you know Slic3r; there you have the extruder swap gcode.

As I have an UM1 with a heated bed, I work in RepRap flavour. Thus, I have a start.gcode where I can determine the order in which hotend and bed are heated. I first heat the bed and then the hotend, so I don't have any significant oozing. The same thing would be possible with an UM2 when the flavour is switched to RepRap from UltiGCode.

You most probably have to increase the coefficient. The plugin requires some time until it works as it should. Could be I even found a bug and eliminated it; but can't remember right now. I'll have to check.

The lines on the top come from Cura. They won't be there if you uncomment lines 6 and 7 of the start.gcode. And then you can add other commands before these two lines.

Instead of slowing down the print speed due to the minimum layer time, the layer is printed with normal speed. For the remaining time of the layer, the head is lifted. You find the feature in the expert settings of Cura.

First, set the minimum layer time to 5-7s in order to give the deposited material enough time to cool. The minimum speed should not be below 10mm/s. Furthermore you can try the cool head lift feature. Personally, I use either the Flowthermostat plugin or the TweakAtZ on the layer where the print speed drops below 25-30mm/s.

As illuminarti wrote, ABS can only be printed with a heated bed in order to avoid the strong warping you experienced. So, I wouldn't talk about a 'problem the printer has'. A standard UM Original is just not the right tool to print ABS as a knife is not the right tool to drill a hole. The UM2 has a heated bed and can therefore be used to print ABS. However, you can upgrade your UM Original with a heated bed. Have a look at http://umforum.ultimaker.com/index.php?/topic/2771-complete-heated-bed-kit-for-ultimaker for a third party solution. Maybe the best way to go for you is to wait a few weeks as Ultimaker is expected to present a heated bed upgrade kit for the UM Original quite soon (it's already in the newest Cura version).

Maybe we didn't mean the same thing. I was referring to the vertical lines. And no, I do not have a spare teflon piece... :blink: never had a problem with it. But I do very rarely change the filament.

Looks like imprints from pliers to me... :sad: I guess you didn't buy this printer as a kit, did you?

The motors of both the x and the y axis are skipping steps. Important for what to do next is to know if you have an UM1 or an UM2. From the blue painter's tape it's rather an UM1. Did you actually tighten the pulleys or the belts? Tightening the pulleys (i.e. the grub screws) shouldn't do any major harm...

Die Reptar Blocks kenne ich nicht 'persönlich'. Mir gefällt daran nicht, dass Zollschrauben verwendet werden. Ich werde demnächst mal die Twister Blocks von chopmeister ausprobieren. Direct drive habe ich bei meinem UM1 realisiert. Falls es Dir zu mühsam oder zu teuer ist, extra Präzisionswellen zu kaufen, kannst Du auch mit einem https://www.youmagine.com/designs/bearing-adapter-for-direct-drive-um-originalarbeiten... Bei mir ist ein solcher Adapter erfolgreich im Einsatz; allerdings werde ich demnächst sämtliche Ultimaker-Wellen gegen Präzisionswellen austauschen, da mir die UM-Wellen z.T. etwas zu bananig sind.

@JonnyBischof: Please don't ruin our nice Swiss image of peaceful people... http://www.aeschbach-chocolatier.ch/images/intelli/shop/bsetzi_Stei_125g.jpgare the only stones we should throw... @Didier Klein: You have to know, that I'm a scientist. So I need proof... physical proof, not arguments...

Maybe this post? I'm glad you got an answer...

That's the disadvantage of having a forum full of clever members... But it's a small disadvantage compared to the advantages, isn't it?

That's almost three cents...