I’ve been experiencing surface quality problems with my H2C printer since the day I first got it, and I can’t seem to solve them. During this time, I’ve adjusted the belt tension as instructed by the bamboo support twice. I’ve cleaned and lubricated the Z-screws. Still, I can’t get rid of this annoying problem.
I’m printing Z-test prints; they look perfect from distance. However, if the light hits from above, all the marks are visible. They’re not visible when the light hits perpendicularly to the surface.
Specifically, among the examples in the image, traces resembling VFA are visible in prints made with Elegoo Rapid Gray PETG. PLA, ABS, PETG, it doesn’t matter. It’s the same with all brands.
Model 1: the box, it has too many overhangs and bridging caused by the holes pattern. The filament would shrink more in those slower layers but shrink less on those faster layers. The difference of shrinkage between slow & cooler and fast & hotter layers are causing the uneven surface you see here.
Model 2: the “tower”. It’s a square with striaght angles, causing focused shrinking force/stress. It means that the corners would always tend to warp and block extrusion, causing uneven surface.
Model 3: same as Model 1.
If you want consistent nice-looking surface, print slow, use CF/GF filaments. But most importantly, improvise your models to avoid high density holes, avoid layer time drastical large changes. Learn about FDM design guidelines before blaming machines ;p
Thank you for your long and detailed answer. I have a question that’s been bothering me. I’ve tried several methods to reduce the print speed, but without success. Maybe I’m doing something wrong, I don’t know. My first attempt was to increase the minimum layer time. However, since this didn’t make much difference, I reduced the outer wall speed from 200 mm/s to 100 mm/s, and even to 80 mm/s. But sometimes it decreased, sometimes it increased. Strangely, the VFA test print from the slicer comes out well. The biggest problem is that I don’t experience these issues with the P1s, or at least the problem isn’t this big. That’s why I always focus on the H2C.
