Tutorial on how to use Cura with FlashForge Creator Pro

[AliRassi 7]

here is the link:

Made a quick tutorial on how to install a Creator Pro profile for Ultimaker Cura!

I couldn't find any videos out there so I thought it may help some people!

let me know if you want a video to dive deeper into the .json files that I used in this tutorial and what is inside them (and possibly how you can make one on your own for another printer that is not listed in the the Cura machine library).

Share this with your friends who have the Creator Pro, and if you couldn't figure it out, ask your questions in the comment section and the community will help!

[Torgeir 242]

Hi @AliRassi,

 

Welcome in here.

Thanks for sharing/making this video, -quite interesting.

I'm sure there is a lot of people in here that are interested in how to make the "fdmprinter.def.json" file!

This is an issue over and over in here.. 🙂

 

Thanks

Torgeir

 

Edited November 22, 2020 by Torgeir
Text added.

[AliRassi 7]

Hey Torgeir!

yeah, I figured people might want that, as several folks asked for it in the FlashForge forum.

I could find an article on Cura's GitHub where it says what should you do to make a custom profile, but not many videos are out there to walk you through it!

will see if I get the chance to make another vid!😉

[Toylerrr 2]

I wrote the original version of the Creator Pro profile that Eugr based his off of (somewhat). 
I also made an installer with winrarSFX

I use mine because it doesn't use the confusing need to disable the other extruder to have a priming built into the start script. All you have to do is have skirt and cura will do the rest. 

Here it is in use https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbhV-MhUkcw&feature=emb_title

[AliRassi 7]

Hi Toylerrr!

I actually found Eugr's profile from your forked repo!

this is some good stuff!

wish you would've added more documentation to it tho!

[ramojaming 0]

hi thank you for your tutorial. Is it work for the Flashforge creator pro 2? if it doesn't work is it possible to use cura with an Flashforge creator pro 2. thank you for your response.

 

Swift

[ramojaming 0]

hi thank you for your tutorial. Is it work for the Flashforge creator pro 2? if it doesn't work is it possible to use cura with an Flashforge creator pro 2. thank you for your response.

 

Swift

[ramojaming 0]

hi thank you for your tutorial. Is it work for the Flashforge creator pro 2? if it doesn't work is it possible to use cura with an Flashforge creator pro 2. thank you for your response.

 

Swift

[Sicko666 2]

On 11/26/2020 at 9:46 PM, Toylerrr said:

I wrote the original version of the Creator Pro profile that Eugr based his off of (somewhat). 
I also made an installer with winrarSFX

I use mine because it doesn't use the confusing need to disable the other extruder to have a priming built into the start script. All you have to do is have skirt and cura will do the rest. 

Here it is in use https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbhV-MhUkcw&feature=emb_title

Thank you so much to both of you! Since getting FlashForge Creator Pro its been a nightmare just getting anything to actually work with it! Seems the driver for it is not supported at all, even in its own software! Every piece of software i have tried seems to see it, an it works if the file is transferred manually by sd card, so the machine an software work, but trying to get the thing to work via usb seems to never work! It must be terrible usb drivers an the fault at flashforge, or windows, end? Wish i never brought the thing! 

Anyway, just thought i would say thank you, as theres no support what so ever at flashforge. An this is the first time i have found anyone, anywhere, that has shared possible solutions, an their own, working, work arounds to something that should have been resolved by the manufacturer years ago! Thank you AliRassi, and Toylerrr!!! 🙂

[gr5 2,172]

Something like 99% of "cheap" 3d printers out there use Marlin firmware and the same CPU (atmega 2560) and the same USB chips and drivers.  Including I'm sure FlashForge and definitely Ultimaker.

 

Something about the hardware or software (not sure which) is a bit unreliable.  Yes you can do 500 prints in a row without issues on some printers but other printers made by the same company have seriously high error rates over USB when printing.

 

Because of this Ultimaker gave up and stopped officially supporting USB printing.

 

I have to agree with them - maybe you think it's a pain to walk that SD card over to your printer but it will save you so much headache.  Also if you have a windows computer - god - they tend to reboot for the most annoying reasons some of which you can not control such as operating system updates, security updates, critical updates.  Yes in theory you can turn off screen savers, lower power savers, and windows updates but they always find a way to screw you over and reboot when you step away from the machine.  Then there is adobe updates, and every other software on your computer that might just decide to reboot your computer in the middle of a print.  Then there is just slowdowns in your browser if you are working with the computer while it prints.

 

Another great option for some people is raspberry pi and octoprint.  For about $25 you can get a cheap raspberry pi.  It is a complete linux computer.  Put octoprint on it (lots of instructions out there) and connect that to your printer with a serial cable.  The Raspberry Pi is now on your network and has it's own web page.  You can control your printer completely through that web page - set temperature, set hundreds of parameters, and you can print an STL file and even watch what layer of your print is being printed live.

 

For some reason that I don't understand, Raspberry Pi is MUCH more reliable than any laptop or desktop windows computer printing through USB.  I haven't verified this but I hear a lot of stories.

[Sicko666 2]

I know its definetly a software issue! As i tried Simplify3D an it detects, connects, and can stop prints half way through, from that i can guess its not windows 11, or a hardware usb, motherboard, issue, or Simplify3D wouldn't work either. FF seems to keep making a lot of changes to its printers lineup configurations without releasing specific model named maked drivers, hence there seems to be so much confusion on correct drivers. I understand its a new technology, but think it is definetly a software driver issue, hence a manufacturer written driver issue. I know Simplify3D has written its own drivers for the printer, hence they seem to be working, lol, i think Simplify3D should write the drivers for FF themselves ,lol rather than them using there own programmers to write unworking drivers lol!

Got printer working, sort of, issue i am having now is Z levelling! I have a .25", or, 6mm glass base plate fitted. An all the software out there seems to have manual entry for X & Y adjusts, but the Z axis can only be done via gcode it says every where? In the basic gcode i found a X & Y setting, but again no Z entry? I am so afraid of messing something up mechanically, by tampering with the software entry's directly. I have searched around, but all the net talks about is installing phyton scripts, an changing  config files. No simple gui where you can just tell the machine the new base plate is 6mm high. Every thing i now print, either wraps itself around the nozzle in a lump, or grinds the nozzle into the glass. I just do not know what fiures i am suposed to enter where? Dont suppose you can tell me where exactly, (lol in plain english), an what figures i am supposed to enter, where, can you? Like i say i am now so afraid of breaking a motor or something else, i am reluctant to enter anything, anywhere, without someone who knows what they are actually  doing, says to go do it! Lol coward i know, but i cant afford to replace anything that might get broken!

How do i adjust the Z axis?

What figures do i enter? + or -

How should the gcode look with a higher Z axis position?

Lol where exactly, do i put this data as theres no Z axis in the bed levelling section in the gcode? Theres a nozzle Z position, but adjusting that would mess up print XYZ positioning wouldnt it?

Tried Jogging base plate on the printer itself, but once printing starts it ignores where i jogged it into an starts grinding into the plate again!

Aaagghhh!!!! If i still had hair i would have ripped it out by now lol!

[Cis4Cookie 0]

Thank you for the tutorial, I have been using FlashPrint for a while because I couldn't find anything else that worked.  I set it up and things looked good, except when I went to make a print it it looks like only the bed is heating up, not the extrudes.  Would you have any idea why?

Thanks!