I had a tangle in the filament and it yanked pretty hard and broke the extrduer idler block right at the screw that holds it in place.
I glued it back together with super glue and started printing a replacement. The new part looks like a mess and before I risk going further here are the questions I should have asked before I started;
What type of plastic is used for this part?
What resolution is it printed at with Cura?
Are there any special instructions or settings I need?
I started in ABS plastic and maybe its cheap crap stuff but the part doesn’t look anywhere near like the original.
I am new to this and everytime I print with ABS it comes out looking all blobby. I assume this is because i am not printing with an enclosure?
I printed a replacement in PLA at 100% infill and it popped right in. I figured it would break pretty soon so i printed a handful of them
You have knowledge of somewhere that would have a ABS turtorial that would help out a noob like me? Specifically something that would include enclosures?
Whew! That helped a lot! I have sat all day printing the same part over and over and over. I now have what you gave but the hot-end is 220. The fans are set to an aggressive ramp up and the ABS is looking really sweet! Its a white version of what I got from the factory.
Well, maybe mine looks a little neater. Not as many blobs on it
I may stick with ABS for a while now I have it working. Thanks again for the pointers you gave. ABS has frustrated me to no end but now I think I have a handle on it!
ABS works best at 240-245C… 220C seems low. But double check the filament manufacturer’s recommended temp range. Usually there’s a sticker with the range on the spool.
ABS contracts when cooled too rapidly. Start with no fan and let the object cool on its own, at about 3mm or try a 40-50%. Stick with that for the rest of the print or go up to 70-80% max. If the object is cooled too quickly the middle of the print may contract causing delamination (splitting) in the project.
A low extrusion temp may also lead to poor adhesion with the previous layer… again leading to splitting for taller prints.
Hope that helps! ABS is a great material to stick with if you can figure out how to combat the warping and splitting.
This ABS is from Inland and its low side is 220. It really turns into a melted mess so the aggressive fan works well. But this is a small part so I image as I get bigger parts it will mess up and warp more.
I’ve gotten back up to the 110 bed and staying at the 220 extruder and the prints are flat and nicely smooth.
I kind of cheat when I print replacement parts! I take the gcode files they use/supply for the Mini or Taz printers they print parts in their printer farm with. Then if needed I replace/substitute the start/leveling code for the printer I am using currently.
Mine stick out a little more, but not enough to be a worry. The nozzle portion itself is actually shorter though, so you have abit more thread but less nozzle sticking down?
