3D printer build from scratch, tips and hints welcome

Your are right "the_digital_dentist" it is the width of the lines. On the diagonals, on the first and third quadrant of the star lines the extruded width in between the melted material is larger. It has been driving me nuts all morning. I checked the squareness of the bed and the motion of the Y axis to make sure it is perpendicular to the X axis, and unfortunately it is... I was hoping that it was the problem. I also re-adjusted the bed to 0.076 mm from the head all the way in the middle and on all 4 corners with a filler gauge. I know the bed is dead on. Something else is wrong. I am starting to think that either extrusion rate or after upgrading to new Marlin firmware, that something in there is not right.

Unfortunately I cannot go back to the old firmware version as it is not available. This is a first generation manufacturer printer. They do not support it any more. I upgraded to a third generation bed, the same company, so I had to change some things around. This bed is much sturdier design than the old one. The old one was made out of Plexiglas. After a couple of months it warped. I could only print smaller items. The new printer upgrade still comes with a Plexiglas print top, but I changed it to a borosilicate glass, which is great for bed leveling. So I am fine with the bed, the problem I'm having is elsewhere.

Hopefully I can figure it out with this thread help.

JamesK,

The print volume is 410 X 410 X 250

It is good to have it if you need it. I have utilized the larger volume about 4 times in the last year. For the most part the majority of my prints hover in the 200 mm range. This printer got me in the world of 3D printing. I have learned enough to get myself in trouble. I will build another smaller one that will be all about precision and high resolution. I am thinking 200 X 200 with a 0.25 ~ 0.30 nozzle, and a micron3dp extruder & hot-end, and ball screws. I just ordered another Ramps 1.4 board to start fiddling with.

Any way, I need to understand what is causing my issue with the printer I am dealing with right now, as It will help me understand how to build the next one better.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/22/2016 05:26PM by Pianori.

Could a admin split this discussion into 2 threads? ☺

The device that pushes the filament into the hotend. Can I choose one of those cheap mk10 things you find on eBay, or are they crap? Only thing I'm really unsure of with this thing now ☺

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/26/2016 12:14PM by Exinferis.