mbmast

There are models that are best printed with a raft and there occasions when the raft is very difficult to remove from the model, no matter what settings are in play. I think (?) it would be good if it were possible to print an interface layer between the raft and the model. With a PVA interface, soaking in water would make the raft much, much easier to remove. Is this a good idea?

@ahoeben Well, I can't replicate the printer settings from the old version of Cura to the new version of Cura. Isn't that a problem?

I bought a CreatBot D600 Pro printer. This printer comes with the old style Cura software with the printer pre-configured (after selecting from a list of CreatBot printers). There's no export feature here, so I'm just manually copying the printer settings into the newer version of Cura. I'm running into a problem setting the printer head settings. When I specify X min and Y min values of 75.0 and 18.0 respectively, Cura (the newer Cura) resets them to -75.0 and -10.0, respectively. See image. Why is it doing this? How do change these values?

I'm using Cura 3.2.1 to print large ABS parts and I'm getting extremely good results, with one minor exception: I'm getting separation between the part and the support. Note that I have no separation between the part and the build platform or between the support and the build platform. My build platform is heated to 110 and the filament heated to 240. What are the best practices in Cura 3.2.1 to increase adhesion between the part and the support underneath the part?

Ok, thanks. It would also be good if there was a way to import machine settings from the old versions of Cura (the 15.x versions).

I'm in a forum and I click on the magnifying glass to do a search. I happened to be in the Software/Cura forum and wanted to ask a question about configuring dual extruders. I type "extruders" (without the quotes) in the search and I'm YANKED out of the forum and presented with what looks a lot like a Google search result list that includes all sorts of hits, none of them in the forum I was in (at least on the first page of results). Google search, or whatever this site uses for search, is NO substitute for a forum based search tool, where you can specify the scope of the search (titles only, titles and posts, etc.). Nor can you basic boolean operations (all of the words, any of the words, user id of poster, etc.).

The machine settings for a custom FDM printer don't seem to have a field for indicating a dual extruder printer or what the offset is. Where are these settings?

Ok... I appreciate all the good input. Give me a day or two and I'll post back here, with photos. Is there a way to post the STL file here (or a zip of the STL file)? The 3D Upload appears to only want a photo of the printed model and doesn't accept STL files.

I've spent the last few days experimenting with actual prints and with viewing layers in Cura. I think what I've been told in this thread is the following: 1. If the walls of the model have zero thickness, then you must specify something for the shell thickness (and it should be a multiple of the nozzle diameter). And I find that this works, so long as the model has no internal structures. It does not work if the model has internal structures (perhaps because the model is a blend of surfaces and solids). 2. If I extrude my walls so they have thickness (within the model itself), then I can get a print by specifying zero shell thickness and 100% fill. My model prints reasonably well and is completely empty inside, except for the internal structures I've placed there (solid tubes) and these internal structures print fine. So this is the closest thing to what I'm trying to accomplish (the texture is very rough though, see photo below). If I extrude my walls and specify a shell thickness, the results are bad. One side effect of extruding the walls and printing with a shell thickness of zero is that the texture of the print is very rough, as the extruder has moved in a zig zag pattern. In the below image, on the left, the wall had zero thickness and the shell thickness in Cura was set to 1.2mm (and the model contained no internal structures). On the right, the wall was extruded to 1.2mm and the shell thickness in Cura was set to zero (and the model does contain internal structures). Note the difference in texture. Why was the image on the right printed with a zig zag pattern while the image on the left was printed linearly and is there any way to get a better print? The X-Ray view does show some red, but very little and only near the very top of the model. I have not fiddled around with the horrible settings yet.

Here's what I've observed. If I extrude my walls to 2mm, then Cura for some reason still wants to know the shell thickness. I get an undesirable print result, but the print takes a reasonable amount of time, consumes a reasonable amount of filament and weighs a reasonable amount, as my model is mostly hollow (except for a few internal structures and the thickness of the walls). If I give Cura the same model, only I have not extruded the walls (i.e. the walls have zero thickness), then Cura tells me the print time will be 68 hours, it will consume 161 meters of filament and it will weigh 587 grams. Clearly, if I were to print this, it would be solid. So no setting in Cura works. If I give it a model with wall thickness, then I must specify a shell thickness that makes no sense. If I give it a model with zero wall thickness, then Cura generates gcode to build a solid model. I can't seem to win here. I want Cura to print my walls, as specified in the STL (i.e. my extruded meshes) solid and not add any of it's own "shell thickness." How do I do this?

I don't believe this is true. My model has internal structures and those are preserved during the print. If STL were only a description of the outside, none of the internal structures would be preserved. Also, the "thickness" of the walls that I put there would also not be preserved, and they are.

I'm still confused by this. My model has vertical walls that rise perpendicular to the build platform (think of an upside down dixie cup). The walls are meshes taken from a solid and are 2mm thick. So why do I have to specify a non-zero shell thickness in Cura?

I am unclear on the Shell Thickness setting. This setting seems to make sense only when printing a 3D model that is not solid, but whose wall's have zero thickness. If, instead, the 3D model started as a solid and then has been "hollowed out" producing walls that are 2mm thick in some areas and 3mm thick in other areas (for example) then what should be specified for the "Shell Thickness" setting? My question also applies to the Top/Bottom thickness setting. Thanks.