Hi there! New to 3D printing but have put in many, many hours printing and experimenting (read troubleshooting) since the A1 with AMS Lite arrived.
Initially, prints were working beautifully, all different shapes and sizes, primarily printing with Sunlu PLA, PLA+, PLA+ Silk.
Things have gone downhill with regards to bed adhesion and prints failing/skidding off the bed partway through the print (but not at exactly the same point). I have included a bunch of photos to illustrate the issues I am having.
What have I done so far?:
I have been cleaning the plate with soap and water/paper towel between each print and have stopped using alcohol wipes
I have checked the nozzle for clogs and followed instructions on how to clean out the nozzle, do a cold pull etc.
We did have a giant blob incident and I have familiarised myself with pulling things apart, cleaning them, putting things back together (however the issues with PLA existed before and after the blob incident)
I replaced the hotend after the blob incident
I have supervised scores of prints, repeating the same couple of items over and over, with incremental changes to the nozzle temps, bed temps, and some speed settings (although as I am new to Bambu Studio I am being mindful that I am not fully across the speeds)
I have used the temp setting as provided by the manufacturer for the different types of filament
I have used the presets for both generic and Bambu filaments before experimenting with incremental changes, and I have trawled various sites looking for user-recommended settings
Edited to add: I have changed the infill pattern to gyroid
I would appreciate any advice, or tips and tricks!
The printer is in our home office which is a renovated garage. There is insulation, but the ambient temperature fluctuates +/-10 degrees celcius throughout the day, say from 15 degrees to 25 degrees. There are no sudden temp changes, and the printer and the filament receive no direct sunlight or breezes.
Filament is stored in itâs original zip lock bag with a silica sachet, and then 5x rolls are stored in lock-tight storage tubs which also have silica sachets inside.
Is there a way to compensate for temp/humidity if the ambient temp is not ideal? (itâs summer here in Australia)
What are the upper and lower limits of usable nozzle and bed temps?
Donât worry about clogs or anything, itâs just a issue with a âdirtyâ plate. (Try not to touch this kind of build plate with your hands or the adhesion will get bad due to oils from your hands) Soapy water isnât enough, you need to put dish soap on it and scrub it with a very small amount of water, then you can rinse. The point of the dish soap is to latch onto the particles that are causing the bad adhesion then rinse away with those oils.
I used to have problems like that on my old Kobra neo 2 or whatever. Glue sticks help. Painters tape worked really good but you have to swap it out every 2-3 prints. My best solution was a G10 (garolite) plate from Amazon for about $15 USD but you have to adjust settings by the thickness of the plate. A thinner plate is good and heats up fast but might not attach well. Thicker plates take forever to heat up but will attach better. I used this black metal clip thing you find at school. (Use 4) I hope this fixes your problem.
-Fiddleford McGucket
Also if you donât want to deal with not being able to touch the plate and having to wash it every once in a while, I recommend the Bambu supertack plate, it has great adhesion and doesnât need washing like this.
Sorry, I should have clarified that the âsoapy waterâ I am using is in fact dish soap. I have tried a couple of different brands (and checked that they donât contain oils etc). I really hope this is a âdirtyâ plate issue, as I feel like that is something I can keep working on!
I just did my first print on the other side of the plate, which theoretically hasnât been touched, except for the scrub that I gave it beforehand.
The result was these parts coming loose and ruining the print 75% of the way through. I heard one piece click loose so I immediately increased the bed temp to 80 hoping to help the print hold on, but adjacent parts kept coming loose
Thanks for that suggestion, I actually will probably get one myself now. This one at least appears to be a metal plate coated in whatever the g10 stuff is, not sure if they typically are though. Darkmoon G10 Plate for Bambu Lab Printers
Have you printed anything besides regular pla, like glow in the dark or something? Iâm wondering if maybe the nozzle is damaged and extruding filament unevenly and then hitting those parts. Happened to me once after printing with marble filament and a standard nozzle.
I have printed the yellow glow in the dark at the manufacturerâs recommended temps and it printed just fine (this was early on in the journey). The hotend has been changed since then due to the blob incident, to the hardened steel 0.4.
I think I was probably underestimating the level of scrubbing that I should be doing between each print, and my print success has greatly improved since I stopped wiping with alcohol!
Can you tell me what you would recommend to clean the Bambu 3D effect plates? I have purchased a couple but havenât used them yet. Is using a soft plastic scrubbing brush (with the dish soap) likely to damage the surface? The surface obviously doesnât seem as durable as the PEI plate
Yeah the thing with wiping with alcohol is that it doesnât really do much. It mostly just smears the impurities around with the alcohol, then the alcohol just evaporates leaving the impurities. The effect sheets should be cleaned with hot water and a small amount of dish soap. They are considered consumables and you should try to clean them gently. I doubt it will damage them to clean them a few times but I think the best solution is to just avoid touching them unless necessary. BTW you can replace just the film if they are worn out.
I got a g10 plate that is magnetic from Darkmoon. No more issues. I just wipe it after every few prints with alcohol to keep it clean and I never touch it with my hand. No glue and a 55 degree bed temp. Pull it out to cool to room temp when done and you donât ever need to use a scraper to remove the prints. They just slide right off.
