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Cant get my printer to work

Posted by wardy1010 
Cant get my printer to work
May 01, 2016 06:54AM
Hi I'm new to 3D printing and had my printer set up for a couple days now and i cant for the life of me get anything to print.

The material (ABS) just wont stick to the print bed at all. i have tried hair spray, blue tape, just glass, different temperatures, ect.
Just wondering if i am doing anything wrong as I'm a newbie

my printer is a prusa i3 with heated bed and 1.75 abs filament


This is a video of what the printer is doing when i click print

[youtu.be] -EDIT updated video link

Can anyone help? i have not been able to get 1 print off yet

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/01/2016 08:08AM by wardy1010.
Re: Cant get my printer to work
May 01, 2016 07:49AM
Might help to upload the video where people don't have to download it to watch...
Re: Cant get my printer to work
May 01, 2016 07:55AM
download to slow, to watch.


P3steel DXL, with Due/RADDS/Raps128 dual Wade's extruder
Re: Cant get my printer to work
May 01, 2016 07:59AM
sorry i thought you would be able to watch from that link... i will upload to a different location - EDIT - New link has been placed in original post

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/01/2016 08:09AM by wardy1010.
Re: Cant get my printer to work
May 01, 2016 08:46AM
Can't really say by the video but my best guess is that the first layer height is not correct.
When doing the first layer the nozzle should be at layer height over the bed, to me it looks like yours is way higher.
And I would try with a lower speed for the first layer if I encounter adhesion problems too.
Having the right temperature also helps.
Re: Cant get my printer to work
May 01, 2016 09:31AM
Like Down' said, try bringing your Z=0 height closer to the bed, slow down the first layer speed to around 15mm/s, use 100+ degrees for the bed temperature and 250 or more for the first layer nozzle temp. Elmers purple glue stick on glass works well for me. I also print the first layer wider and thicker than the rest, typically about 0.7mm wide and 0.28mm thick using a 0.4mm nozzle.
Re: Cant get my printer to work
May 01, 2016 10:06AM
Here is a little trick I use to make sure the first layer is at the right height:
Get something of known and fixed thickness, best some feeler gauges of course.
Set your first layer to that height.
Start the print and pause/stop it once the first layer starts.
Check if the feeler gauge passes through or gets stuck.
E.g. you set the first layer to 0.2mm:
Take a 0.2mm feeler gauge to check the nozzle clearance to the bed while the nozzle is still hot so you can push the plastic out of the way if required.
If the gauge has no reistance at all it means you need to go lower.
If it is hard or impossible to get it to pass through you need to go higher.
If it just scrapes slightly on the nozzle you are at the correct height.

In most cases you can set a Z-offset in the slicer, it can be used to address the issue but I prefer to do a real adjustment through the endstop here and to use the offset for the printing alone.
Like to continue aborted prints or to print onto a case directly.
Re: Cant get my printer to work
May 01, 2016 10:38AM
In that video the layer was set to 0.1mm with feeler gauges. i have just tried lowering it and got the same results. i have just cleaned off the rest of the tape from the glass and re adjusted the z using the feeler gauges to 0.1 again and it still wont stick. maybe its the type of hairspray im using?

i will try the pva glue next to see if that helps but the height of the nozzel on the first layer seems correct as i have paused it and tested with the gauges

Also the nozzle temperature was set to 240 and the bed set to 110

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/01/2016 10:40AM by wardy1010.
Re: Cant get my printer to work
May 05, 2016 02:16PM
found the problem... turns out the thermistor on the heat bead was completely gone ... black and charred and fell apart when removed

i have replaced it now and the printer seems to be working,

thanks for the help guys
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