PLA success?!

I figured, what the hell – I built it and I can (probably) repair it, right?

So, I backed out the black ABS I have been printing in, jammed in some freaking sweet PLA, ramped up the heat on the extruder to the exact settings I use for ABS, and then FIRE THE MAKERBOT!

For comparison’s sake I used the same exact settings, same exact Gcode file from the last single walled test piece.

What did it look like, pray tell?

I thought you’d never ask.

PLA printing success!

PLA printing success!

Skeinforge calibration test 1, 2

Test 1, Test 2

Test 1, Test 2

For these tests I used the “single walled test piece” from Da3v

  1. Test 1 on the left
    1. Temperature: 220
    2. Skeinforge -> Carve -> Layer Thickness (mm): 0.36
    3. Skeinforge -> Speed -> Flowrate PWM Setting (if PWM Setting is Chosen): 230
    4. Skeinforge -> Speed -> Feedrate (mm/s): 40
    5. Skeinforge -> Speed -> Travel Feedrate (mm/s): 40
    6. Extrusion diameter: 0.57
    7. Skeinforge -> Speed -> Extrusion Diameter Over Thickness (ratio): 1.583
    8. Wall thickness of the test piece: 0.40
  2. Test 2 on the right
    1. Skeinforge -> Speed -> Feedrate (mm/s): 30
    2. Skeinforge -> Speed -> Travel Feedrate (mm/s): 30
    3. Wall thickness of the test piece: 0.40
    4. Skeinforge -> Speed -> Extrusion Diameter Over Thickness (ratio): 1.583
    5. Skeinforge -> Carve -> Extrusion Width over Thickness (ratio): 1.583
    6. Skeinforge -> Inset -> Extrusion Perimeter Width over Thickness (ratio): 1.583

That’s a pretty big improvement.  I haven’t tried printing something small with lots of details, but now I’m curious how well these settings hold up.  My previous settings (which I zipped in case I totally messed this up) were reasonably good, but the layer adhesion was merely adequate.