Hello from Virginia, USA

[game-mkr 0]

Hello all!

Purchased an original Ultimaker from an engineer looking to get a 3D printer with a larger print area. It had some minor damage to the Ulticontroller and has the original feed mechanism (not the advanced one) but otherwise seems fine and the price was fantastic.

I think I've got a handle on the 'bed leveling' but now have an issue with the filament (extrudes non-uniformly and I can't pull it back out...). I'm a complete novice to 3D printing so I'm taking this slow.

Can't wait for my first successful print!!

Regards,

-Jason

 

[illuminarti 18]

Welcome, Jason! Good luck getting up to speed with your new printer. I'm sure you'll find it to be a very useful tool, and a lot of fun.

Make sure the nozzle is hot before you try to remove the filament, and be sure to lock the extruder properly when trying to print. (Squeeze the clamp tight against the extruder motor block, and slide the little black lever all the way to the bottom of the slot before you rotate it into a horizontal position).

If you have any specific questions, don't hesitate to ask. Posting photos of relevant parts of your printer or prints is always a good idea to help us help you figure stuff out.

 

[game-mkr 0]

illuminarti,

Thanks! My extruder is the old one with a screw to turn. I'm afraid I may either be turning it too hard or not turning it enough. I do see marks on the filament where the extruder gear is scoring the plastic filament, which leads me to believe at one point or another it was too tight. As for pulling the filament back out, I've had no luck with this. Even had the head up to 250 degrees, but the filament just seems stuck. I was able to manually push some filament through but it took a lot of force (I'm guessing more than 5lbs).

More trial and error scheduled for tonight. As soon as I get this thing printing I'll build the improved extruder assembly and get it in place.

Memphis, TN?! I almost moved there earlier this year for work. Was working for Games Workshop at the time and they are headquartered there. Good BBQ.

If I get stuck again tonight I'll post with pictures.

 

[illuminarti 18]

Pushing filament through the extruder by hand is really hard to do at the best of times, but it sounds rather like you may have a plug formed at the hot end; perhaps some molten plastic oozed somewhere around the end of the bowden tube and then solidified. This could make it tough to pull the filament out, and also impede normal extrusion.

You probably need to remove the bowden tube at the hot end and take a look.

There are two upgrades that make the UM1 far more reliable: the first is the spring loaded extruder clamp; the second is the V2 hotend. Before these upgrades, I found that extrusion could be a bit hit-ot-miss. With them, I've found it to be rock solid. You can tell you have the V2 upgrade on the hot end if there's a short neck of bare brass tube visible between the heater block and the brown PEEK insulator part.

 

[game-mkr 0]

I'll post pics of my assembly tonight just to double check. I knew buying used was going to give me some trouble and need repairs, I just regret not having the experience of assembling one of these already as it would go a long way towards repair and upkeep. The low cost of entry for the BEST hobby 3D printer was too good to resist.

 

"You get what you get and you don't get upset."

 

I also have some damage on my Ulticontroller, one of the ribbons is obviously damaged and will need replacing. The LCD screen also looks like it's seen better days.

 

I appreciate the community and support here. Hope to start contributing soon.