I have owned the X1C with AMS for 5 months and have been very pleased on the whole. I have had a couple of issues which Bambu were very good at helping resolve. Most of my printing is one colour PETG and looks great.
However I have tried to produce multi colour prints on a couple of occasions and never had a good result, which defeats the object of the AMS. So, I was wondering if anyone can help. On nearly every attempt it is a poor first layer which means that the end result is poor. What seems to happen is that the filament is dragged across the bed when it goes to change colour. I have attached a photo of my last attempt as this shows what it looks like. Incidentally I have modified the wiper, as I have read that lots say that the original wiper on the X1C is not up to scratch. I have attached a photo of the modded wiper too - so you can see what I have doneā¦ but to be honest this was only done before my last attempt, so isnāt the root problem. I have cleaned everything to within an inch of its lifeā¦ the only thing I havenāt tried is replacing the hot end which is why I thought I would ask on here to see if anyone thinks this could be the problem?
Also attached is a close up of one finished two-colour print and you can see the poor finish of the first layer.
As an idea of usageā¦ I would estimate I have used about 5 x 1kg rolls of filament. I am using Bambu branded PETG HF as I thought using generic filament may have been the problem. I also had similar issues when I use PETG support (very expensiveā¦ but also Bambu supplied) - which of course is also in essence a two-colour print.
Poor bed adhesion can be finger oils or other oils on the build plate, improper temperatures, etc. Wash the plate with warm water and plain dish soap, handle by the edges, thoroughly dry.
Another thing that can cause bed adhesion issues is filament moisture. Filament moisture can also lead to stringing issues but so can filament retraction.
On the stringing in the print, for most prints itās better to print light colors first and go progressively darker on the first layer. You can set color orders in Studio in the options button for each build plate. Basically the lighter colors are a barrier to the darker stringing that can come later. They can still string but the issue is less noticeable.
Thanks - I had thought of filament moisture, but discounted that as when I print in just a single colour I donāt get any issues like this. I do wash the bed with plain hand soap and warm waterā¦ so am confident this is not the issue.
To date, I have not dried filament prior to use, but am imminently buying a filament drier so I can dry filament before using, or if I believe it is taking on moisture. I do have printed silica gel pots which are full of the reusable orange > green silica gel beads and the AMS typically shows 1 or 2 humidity level.
I didnāt realise that you can set the colour orders in studio, so will explore this and change to white before other colours.
Doubling down on what Jon said - drying is important with PETG HF as well as other especially hygroscopic filaments.
PETG HF likes to lift corners off the build plate if it has high moisture. Surfaces can look doughy too with little defects all over.
Hereās before and after drying of PETG HF prints of the same print file. Nothing changed but drying the filament and you can see corner lifting and the surface defects vs the prints made with well-dried filament. The second print has beautifully flat sides with no dough or surface defects like in the first photo.
To be completely honest I have not dried the filament from new. I am in the process of buying a dedicated filament drier - I was looking at one by Creality, but am open to suggestions.
The one I was considering would be similar to this one;
When drying, there are a few things that may help. If you have a scale with enough capacity and resolution you may want to weigh spools before and after as you get used to drying filament. Around 2kg capacity and 0.1 or 0.01g resolution is needed to see the changes well which tend to be around 2-4g.
But weight alone doesnāt tell the full tale. Keep an eye on humidity in the filament dryer. There are clips on MakerWorld that prop filament dryers open a little so the humidity can get out and they help a lot. If you have high ambient humidity, just know standard filament dryers may not be especially effective. Same for build plate drying.
The way Iām instrumented and drying, hitting 24% relative humidity in the filament dryer with PETG HF isnāt quite low enough for good prints with some colors. They seem happier if I hit 20%.
Getting drying sorted is really important for good prints with low defects.
I donāt know itās what is happening, but with single color prints, there is no pause while filament gets changed. The top surface of the model can cool while filament changes, and the anecdotes here are some colors print better than others. Printing single color is a bit more uniform just from being single color. I think multicolor printing is more demanding for those reasons.
About drying filament in an oven, be very careful. Ovens donāt all have good temperature regulation and with powerful heating can overshoot. If you heat filament too much it can apparently become brittle. Also, some filaments are more noxious than others. You probably donāt want those fumes redepositing in your oven to come back off when baking. And last, gas stoves produce moisture as a byproduct of combustion and raise humidity in the oven. Bakers love it but it slows and stops drying prematurely.
You might also want to try one of the new PEZ/Polyura plates. They have amazing adhesion, Bambu will have theirs out in a few days. Its my go to plate for anything with text as the tiny lines always stick perfectly. With other plates that is not always the case.
Thanks - we have a new (ish) electric oven - but I think I might make the investment in a purpose filament drier for all the reasons you mention. Not sure chips with PETG seasoning will go down well with the family
It seems like it should be different but new filament can be loaded with moisture. Taking new spools out of shipping boxes and bags is no guarantee of dryness.
But once you get filament dry, welcome to storage. Thereās a good thread here on filament storage options.
One other thing to know is silica gel can be a water sink or source depending on conditions. If your silica gel in the AMS picks up enough water and you donāt keep it dry, it can give up water to any dry filament you put in there.
Thats very good to know - This is the first time Iāve tried to print anything with text but as its for a commercial project, I need it to look as good as possible - Iāve never used glue any beds including the Bambu and never had problems with poor adhesion (sometimes stuck too well!)ā¦ Iāve never heard of PEZ/Polyura, but will certainly have a look - thanks.
I do a lot of black items with white text for commercial clients. Polyura plate is the way to go for sure. Bambu will have their āsupertackā plate out on the 12th of this month.
I will have a search on here for recommendations on which filament driers are best. I did think about using the X1C drying feature - but am not convinced it will do the printer any good being used as a drier when I can buy something purpose built.
Many thanks for the pointers - it may be a few weeks before I get this tested and can post back, but I will keep checking for any new thoughts here, and will post how I get on with dried filament and a new polyura bed.
In regards to dryers, get one with a PTC heating element and a fan. Those two features are most important. I use this one, it also maxes out at 70c, some only do 50-60c.
I think I may go for the SUNLU S4 as per my last message as this holds 4 spools and can be used to store them and auto turn on when the humidity gets higher than the preset level. I think what put me off the FIXDRY model was that on their own sales video it clearly shows that the plastic spool has melted and become deformed which makes me think that perhaps the heat is not properly controlledā¦
Sunlulu has the right features, its a PTC heater with fans. Keep in mind a larger one will take longer to heat up compared to a single spool model and obviously take up more space. And yes the Fixdry like most others does not have a temp sensorā¦ they just have an algorithm that controls the heating. Ive had no problems with mine, I use it to dry Nylon, PC, TPU, ASA, PLA etc. As long as you get a PTC + fan model, I think they are all decent from most manufacturers.
