MakerBot high resolution printing
Update: Since this post others have achieved sub-0.1mm layer prints with their MakerBots as low as 0.075mm/layer
Ddurand123 has probably just taken the world record for highest resolution. The current record holder is Rick Pollack at 0.15mm per layer. Ddurant123 was able to print a 10mm test cube at 0.1mm per layer.
Dave! How did you do it?
Did you print slowly or fast?
Did you run the extruder slow or fast?
Did you use a custom nozzle or the standard MakerBot nozzle?
Edit: Dave, sonny abuut misspenning your nmae. My bed.
I printed with 0.2 mm for a long time, but when I switched to 0.3 mm it was such a speed gain (both with software slicing and printing) that I’m never going back. Also I found that you get inter-layer adhesion / delamination problems more frequently with really thin layers.
dduranT.. T!!!! :P
> Dave! How did you do it?
Patience, practice, Grey Goose.
> Did you print slowly or fast?
Really, REALLY fastly.
> Did you run the extruder slow or fast?
Slow but not as slow as I expected I’d have to.
> Did you use a custom nozzle or the standard MakerBot nozzle?
I do have a 0.35mm hot end from makergear.com (props to makergear – much awesome to be found there) but haven’t installed it yet. I’m still using the 0.5mm nozzle from MBI.
My cupcake (#915) is all stock except:
– makergear.com heatercore & PEEK
– z wobble arrester http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2151
– 1 z wobble float from http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3057 (though I need to make another)
– 3 z wobble floats from http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3091
– MakerBlock y tensioner from http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1618 :)
– several small frogs (http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3284) sitting on top
Also using all the latest firmware, repg and skeinforge versions. No SD card, no HBP.
I’ve been trying to get something more interesting than the 20mm cube to print before claiming the record.. Maybe this weekend.
:)
Hey, it ate my comment!! :(
Or is it awaiting approval?
@Dave: I am the great and powerful MakerBlock! Your comments and tears are delicious to me!
@Erik: In the chase for the highest resolution, I hadn’t thought about inter-layer adhesion and delamination. I guess it really depends on what you’re printing. I would think a lower resolution is better for overhangs, speed, and now adhesion. High resolution gets you mad props and, you know, higher resolution.
@Dave: Ah, it looks like WordPress thought your insights were spammy. :)
Drat.. Guess it got eaten.. Anyway..
dduranT!! T!!! :P
> Dave! How did you do it?
Patience, practice and Grey Goose. Or maybe Sake, if I have something good around.
> Did you print slowly or fast?
Fastly. Really, REALLY fastly. Over 65mm/s. Silly 20mm cube still took 20 minutes to print, though.
> Did you run the extruder slow or fast?
Slow but not as slow as I expected I’d have to.
> Did you use a custom nozzle or the standard MakerBot nozzle?
I do indeed have a MakerGear.com 0.35mm hot end (props to makergear – much awesome to be had there) but I haven’t used it yet. Still printing with the stock 0.5mm nozzle from MBI but do have a makergear heatercore and PEEK on there.
Been trying to print something nicer than a 20mm cube this profile but am having some raft issues – you really don’t want warping when your layers are that thin and you’re moving that fast. Maybe this weekend..
Ah.. Nuke this & the last comment if you’d like then.. :)
@Dave: Are you kidding? And ruin the totally arbitrary and meaningless post comment count?? BTW, corrected the spelling. Sorry about that.
LOL.. It’s all good. (ty, though)
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After looking at this post I decided to try it myself. So far I’ve gotten down to 0.2mm with my 0.4mm makergear nozzle. But with a catch. I haven’t slowed down the extruder at all. This means that it takes the same amount of time to print with this resolution as with lesser resolution. I find this resolution to be far superior to my old 0.35mm layer height. The only problem with this is that I have to move the build platform really really fast(ly). We’re talkin’ 70mm/s. This is approaching the fasted the bot can move and with complex shapes (storm trooper is what I’ve tried so far) it skips a lot of steps. This means some layers shift and it looks bad. If I turn the stepper current all the way up it helps, but it still skips some steps. Going to try it with something a little simpler next.
And Dave, exactly what speed are you printing at?
Woah.. Unanswered questions – sorry, Beak!
Yes, the feed rate was probably the biggest challange… If you’re still messing with this, the keys were dropping the flow rate down and increasing the width/thickness. Aside from raisng the layer height, something I wasn’t really interested in doing, those are really the two controls you get if you need to drop your feed rate to something sane. I think the feed rate I settled on was about 65mm/second.