Any ideas how to make the top surface look better as well without all the lines?
The one-click method is to turn on ironing. But for a model that size, it could conceivable add 2 or more hours to printing. If you’ve never used ironing, it is like a garden rake over uneven soil in that he nozzle just drags back and forth in much finer movements after the filament is laid down. This back and forth movement is akin to how a concrete sidewalk is smoothed out after the concrete is poured. But it has a really nice look.
Here is an example of recent results using Bambu PETF-HF. In this case the ironing was also isolated to the base which is why the lettering is rough.
If you want to try something that is quicker but a lot less smoother, change the patter or your top layer to concentric. This will create a more radial pattern without necessarily needing to iron. It is more of a camouflage than it is a true smoothing in that it is just hiding the imperfections.
There real need here is to properly tune that filaments flow rate. To me it looks like it really needs to be calibrated.
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I have calibrated several times, I have times when the surface looks better than this. It seems to be the holes and therefore where the speed is constantly changing so would lowering speed or acceleration help. I currently have it set to 150mm/s but havmt touched acceleration settings.
I usually use Bambu filaments as the bulk discounts work out for me… but it does mean always have too much filament on stock … and always the wrong colour or type … a bit of viscious circle 
For PLA Basic I use 55°C on the Smooth and Textured plates (but would increase by 5° for the first layer if I had adhesion issues) and 220°C for the nozzle (but would go for 225, maybe even 230°C for the 1st layer, again, if I had adhesion issues), Aux fan at 70% above layer 1. With the Lid and Door closed, that usually gives me around 40°C chamber temp. It also means that the Aux fan driven air is at 40°C and sometimes even higher, i.e. when the heat bed is close to the aux fan intake.
- Option 1 is straightforward: Reduce the speeds (red). Less material per second = Less heat per second => More even cool down. Not my favorite though. It is still the same heat per volume after all.
- Option 2 is also straightforward: Reduce the layer height (blue). Less material per layer = Less heat per second & less heat per layer. Very effective. Again, not my favorite though as there is one better.
- Option 3 is the use of adaptive layer heights: Using this, you can tweak the local layer height by right and left clicking at the layer where you want to make changes. Helps with print speed versus quality optimization and can really help with curling. You can also use it to reduce warping although you’ll need to reduce layer height over a wider range.
Still, I expect that the really important changes for your PLA prints are the drying, a really clean bed (maybe glue and brim) and the closed lid and door. It is the higher temp filaments that usually need more tweaking for curling and warping control.
Just tried a little test print at a lower 55c bed temp and it came completely unstuck and was being flung around the bed. Never had this happen yet, nor have I ever had to use glue so I really don’t understand why the sudden change. Will keep trying I guess.
Lost confidence now though I used to set prints going in the morning, go to work then come home and be done.
One more thing what do you run your chamber fan at?
I usually drop the chamber fan from 100 to 70 or 80%. But that will not really influence anything that much (for PLA).
Here’s another thought: Your prior pic’s showed a print on a textured plate, but the Slicer image shows a Smooth PEI plate. A plate mismatch would lead to an incorrect nozzle distance…
And another: For severely contaminated build plates (not neccessarily visible!), a single wash is not neccessarily enough. Give it several really good scrubs. Do not be too gently and use a brush. I had PLA not stick after printing PETG for example.
In very rare cases, individual users also had to go all the way to use steel cleaning pads/wool (I had to do that once). And finally, build plates do have an end of life. Getting a spare is definitely a good idea.
Thanks for all your help.
The pic of a smooth plate was from Jon Raymond I don’t think I’ve made that mistake yet 
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Don’t worry, that mistake will happen at one point 
I know I have 
Hi mate,
Quick question, how are you monitoring chamber temp have you fitted a small thermometer inside somewhere or does the p1s have a sensor and you can view it’s reading somewhere in orca slicer or bambu studio?
I have an X1C which gives me the chamber temp on the printer display, studio and handy. There are also holders around on MakerWorld which can mount a cheap thermometer/hygrometer.
But your question is very good for another thought. Do you have the chance to independently measure your plate temp? Just in case your plate temp is lower than specified. More commen with the nozzles than the heat bed but it does happen…
Not currently. I would like to get an infrared thermometer but don’t really know how much I need to spend to get an accurate one.
As a test I’ve been heating my bed at 60c for hrs with and without the aux fan running, no chamber fan, door and lid closed, and the temp doesn’t go above 33c. I just have a cheap digital thermometer so not sure how accurate this is. It’s sat in the top of the enclosure at the min.
It’s too big to have in there whilst it’s running so cant check real world scenario as if it was printing, but assumesl the nozzle would also give out and make a difference?
If I install a proper sensor and monitor the temp whilst printing and it stays below 40 without chamber fan running I assume it would be fine to keep it off or just run accordingly to keep the chamber temp where it needs to be?
What I understand from all this is if possible to print with door and lid closed but chamber temp remains correct and stable as to not cause heat creep this is better and will lead to better prints as your maintaining a more constant temperature in the chamber?
That is a bit low compared to my X1 experience. It may be quite different for the P1S, but still, there may be more than just a single issue at play here.
There are cheap thermo-/hygrometers on the Bambu shop with holder prints on MakerWorld. May be cheaper on Amazon or Ali. Regarding the nozzle, you can heat it up as well using Studio, Handy or the printer controls to check with what you have.
The chamber fan will not drop the chamber temp as it draws its air from insides. In fact, if the heat bed is close to its intake, it will help in getting a more even heat soak.
The 40°C is not quite that relevant. Ideally, you’d have a chamber temp at the same level as the build plate (just below softening). But with the Aux fan running, it’ll cool freshly printed areas close to it faster than areas further away. That is why warping and curling is more common close to the fan.
Indeed you’ll want to print with a warm chamber, but below the materials softening temperature to reduce warping and curling.
I am afraid not having one myself, I can not really recommend anything although I have seen some from €20,- on Amazon.
Due to the settings and issues you have reported, I do have a feeling that there may be more than one thing that is happening here. It may well be worth opening a ticket and running the gauntlet.
Similarly, I would really like to hereby ask @Olias and @JonRaymond to have another look at this thread. Not only due to @Olias P1 experience, but also for their sharp eyes and extremely wide ranging experience.
Don’t get caught up in accuracy. We’re not doing NASA-class work here. Any non-contact IR thermometer will be within 1-2c which is more than enough headroom for the kind of verification one needs.
If you paid more than 10 {Fill_in_Your_Local_Currency:heavy_dollar_sign:
} you overpaid.
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=ir+thermometer&s=price-asc-rank
It should look like one of these. The only thing I can recommend is that you get the one with the laser pointer for convenience.
All that need be done is that if your plate is set to let’s say 60c, then if the thermometer isn’t more than 5c off, then that should be close enough by Chinese standards. 差不多 (chà bù duō)
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However, can we get back to basics for a moment?
I read and re-read through this thread. There is no reason why this problem should be happening that I can see. So let’s do a really simple test.
Perform a first layer test.
Please follow these steps and then post a photograph of the model as it appears on your plate right after you print.
- Right-click and select Cube-Primitive
- Select the model and scale it to 200x200x0.2mm
- Right-click the model and ensure that it is centered. If it already is, that choice will be grayed-out.
- Do not make any changes to your current profile and just print it.
- Post picture here.
- Save 3MF file that you just printed to “First Layer.3mf” and upload it here using the upload tool at the top of the forum post window.
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Hi Olias,
The print is underway, i have messed around with various settings since my original post when the warping problem first appeared so i have put everything back to where i think it was originally. These settings worked well with a finish that i was quite happy with in general, although im new to 3d printing so have no reference really.
The only thing different now is the filament has been in the drier for at least 10 hrs and i bought a non scouring pad and thoroughly cleaned the plate. Before i was just using dish soap and my hands, i thought this would be enough to break down any oil from touching the plate but maybe there were other contaminents on there. So it should be clean now.
FYI im printing with door and lid closed as i did before.
Chamber fan running at 70%.
Here are all my settings for your reference.
Heres the 3mf file.
First Layer.3mf (26.8 KB)
Ill upload photo once complete.
The first layer looks clean and no issues from what I can see. Clean wall and good Infill fully covering the bed.
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@Olias is there a next step to your diagnostics?
I was hoping this would yield a definitive result, but it hasn’t. However, it has ruled out filament tuning as a remedy, leaving us with only one option: glue. Forgive me if I missed it, but was that diagnostic step ever performed?
It’s worth noting that the gold-textured plate has several issues, though I left that for last. Either way, glue should mitigate many adhesion issues with the build plate’s performance. It should be the children’s paste glue mentioned above, applied in a thin coat. A trick I use is to apply the glue, then spread it into a thin layer with a damp paper towel. Next, I heat the plate until the glue dries to a matte, “dry-looking” finish.
One step I didn’t see performed: have you tried reducing the infill on this model to 5% to see if the material behaves differently? I wonder if the current infill density might be excessive. The more infill, the more interior shrinkage occurs.
From what I see, I’m guessing you’re using tri-hexagon infill. While it’s very sturdy, try switching to monotonic at 5% for testing purposes. This will help us determine if reducing interior plastic can alter the shrink rate. The shrinkage is causing the curling, and until either adhesion increases or shrinkage decreases, this issue won’t be resolved.
There’ a couple of things in your first photos that simply aren’t adding up though.
How can we explain this rough infill layers? Why is this happening?
Here’s another quick test. Take a cylinder primitive and scale it to 25x5x50mm and print it in vase mode.
Also, here’s another test to see how the nozzle deals with weaving pattern. Although this is an unorthodox test, what we are looking for is a smooth checker interior. This test may yield nothing or it may tell us how your extruder/nozzle behavior is running.
waffle cut test.3mf (322.7 KB)
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No ive not used glue yet as ive printed similar parts before with no issue but maybe it is to do with the infill pattern/density.
I have a smooth plate coming tomorrow, so will try that first, if still got issues i will start trying glue.
This was adaptive cubic but i cant remember what percentage.
Ive printed adaptive cubic before but must have been at a much lower infill density as the infill was alot larger and it came out very smooth. Im thinking this is due to cubic being a pattern that crosses over itself on the same layer and because the infill % is quite high, So theres alot of crossing over going on causeing the blobs?
Ive since switches to gyroid. Compared to rectilinear is parts are feeling quite stiff.
I think what i will do is wait for the smooth plate and give that a go using gyroid on 15% infill and see what happens. If still curling ill then try glue, If still curling i will try your suggestion of monotonic on 5%.
What will the cylinder test show us?
Is it worth preheating the bed for a while before starting print to get the chamber temp up do you think?
Actually, there are two key points in your earlier post that may have already resolved key issues:
This would be a reasonable explanation for the difference between your initial warping/loss of contact issue and the good result on your test print.
Now, you also have a chance that the glue will help even more. Especially when you apply it as @Olias explained.
This was not the case before and has raised my hopes that your infill will print better. I would however again follow @Olias advice by going for non-crossing surfaces (monotonic) and sparse infill (honeycomb or gyroid).
I think with this alone, you may be ready for another try. Just make sure your plate is really, really clean, avoid leaving fingerprints and do not be afraid to use glue in the manner outlined. And of course keep your filament dry.
That’s a sound strategy. That’s one variable that hasn’t yet been ruled out. I have a number of different plates and the Bambu Gold Plate is my least favorite but my original black PEI plate that was shipping with the original P1s was my favorite, it just got beat to death. Now my favorite textured plate is the 3D Lab Black PEI which performs like the original Bambu Plate.
But you’ll not regret having a smooth plate in your tool box. They have just way too much utility especially when making parts that you want to glue together. Glue works much better on smooth surface contacts.
Think of the cylinder test with vase mode as sort of a vertical single layer test. Vase mode will only print one layer of filament. The slicer will give a warning so just click past it but it will essentially print the cylinder as an open-ended cup. It’s useful for detecting mechanical issues with filament feed.
Unless you have reason to believe the bed isn’t reaching temps, that may not give much in the way of indication. Leaving the bed or chamber to heat soak is unlikely to produce a different result. You could try it if you don’t mind spending the time but I’d say it’s very remote possibility.
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A thought just occurred to me. I had a very similar problem about three months ago. It turns out that it was the part cooling fan which I had to replace. Did you test your part cooling fan?
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