I need help discovering the correct settings (quality, speed, supports, etc.) to get the best quality print for a motor. I have a P1S and so far have only used PLA filament. I would love to eliminate the rough sides, and “threads.” They are particularly bad where the supports meet the structure. See sample images. Any tips and insights would be greatly appreciated.
- Orient the model so that it requires the least amount of supports. Put the big/fat end on the build plate. There is no requirement that the object be printed in its “real life” orientation.
- Make certain your filament has been dried.
- Use a dedicated filament for the support interface that won’t stick to your PLA, like PETG, set support interface distance to 0.
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Thank you for the tips. How do you know when filament needs drying? Ordering PETG today for the supports. Also instead of orienting the model with the big side down. I’m going to try splitting the model at a logical division and printing both parts with the new split side down. Then hopefully, I can epoxy the two sides back together.
Could the speed or temperature settings also be a factor?
If you haven’t dried your filament so you know it’s dry, it needs to be dried. One of the biggest mistakes I think people make is assuming their filament is dry and then wasting a lot of time trying to tune other parameters to compensate. If you haven’t dried it, dry it. 
It’s not a flow issue, since there are areas that clearly printed just fine. It’s not a speed issue, since there are areas where speed would be high that printed fine, and areas where it would be low that didn’t.
It might be temperature if it was only blobby on the smallest of features, where layer time would be shortest and a layer won’t cool off fast enough before the next pass. Doesn’t look like the problem you’re having. But a temp-tower print would answer the question definitively.
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- When it is fresh out of the bag
- When I see curling
- Stringing, warping, oozing, overhang performance, outer wall pull off’s inside holes… (it means I missed point number 2)
- Any kind of problem really (even if only to rule out moisture as a root cause). There’s no point in trying to fiddle with settings if there’s a chance the filament may be moist.
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thats a good filament dryer
Really? I think there’s something fishy about it…
If you really want the best quality, it doesn’t start with a complex model like a motor, but with accurate calibration and optimisation. You’re two steps too far.
- Dry the filament
- Calibrate flow rate
- Use profiles with lower layer heights and those that already have “high quality” in their name as a starting point.
- The best support is the support you don’t have to print, so see if you can optimise your 3D model. Orientation. Or even cut it in half and do without support altogether. There are many possibilities. I am sure that certain parts could also be printed individually.
- I’ll repeat that again because it’s so important: quality starts with the 3D model. You can’t fix previous errors in the 3D model by adjusting the settings afterwards. Think in FDM.
- If quality is your top priority, consider using a different material as support, or to be more precise, as an intermediate layer.
- If money is not an important factor, you might even consider purchasing a special support filament. However, I would only use it as a last resort.
In short: optimize the 3D model for 3D printing. Calibrate the printer. Use the high-quality profile as a basis, and then continue optimizing from there. Dry the filament. Want better quality? Then consider using support interlayers or even support filament.
Thanks everyone. I purchased a filament dryer. Should be here tomorrow.
I also split the model at a couple of logical locations that should reduce support.
I understand your comment that the best support is no support. I sliced the model with a “Support” filament selected and the quantity of filament used for the model TRIPLED. 50g to 150g. 100g purged.
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Thanks for the detailed reply.
When you say choose high quality profile, are you referring to the “presets” drop down list just above all of the settings on the Prepare tab? I have always just used the default. In the case of the motor it defaults to “0.20mm Standard @BBL X1C” (See screenshot below)
I don’t know why Bambu does have P1S presets. I’m assuming the X1C and the P1S have use the same settings, otherwise they would add it.
Although I’ve had the printer for a year, there are still many settings I have not explored.
I am printing another version of my motor now with the preset above. Using your advise, I am going to print another one using one of the High Quality @BBL X1C presets. .16, .12, or .08
Thanks again for your help.
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In the meantime, you can use the printers heat bed.
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