Turbojoe
Elite member
OK, this is about to become a one way ticket to the loony bin for me......
Creality Ender 3. A year old. Absolutely love it! Only 1 1/4 spools through it. Glass build plate. I've been getting and still get great prints for things that don't require "precision" fit. Now that I'm getting better with TinkerCad (and just installed Microsoft 3D Builder last night) I'm designing parts that need to actually fit where I want them to go. I've spent hours upon hours upon hours ensuring bed level, extruder, X, Y, and Z e-steps are spot on based on a 1cm cube print. I can STILL get 1cm cubes to print at 10.0-10.02 on all three axis yet once I print larger items and one servo plate in particular I designed in TinkerCad is a 40mm x 51mm x 3mm plate with two 12mm x 24.5mm openings the as printed measurements are all over the place with no rhyme or reason. On both X and Y axis one of the two measurements is too large while the other on that very same axis is too small. I've updated Cura to 4.4. Uninstalled and reinstalled Cura 4.4 just because. Still no help.
I realize a 3D printer isn't going to give absolute precision prints like a laser cut but this is ridiculous. Something is wrong somewhere and I just don't know where. There are SO many (too many?) settings in Cura. I make very few changes in Cura and then only if a file I've downloaded suggests it. I don't know if the problem is with TinkerCad, Cura or the printer. Specified sizes should print at that specified size or hopefully very close. I've given up trying to get accurate hole sizes as that's obviously just not going to happen. Now I'd settle for fairly accurate basic flat plane prints. Printing cute little boats and other little toys come out great but they don't need to fit together with another printed item. There is apparently some compensation adjustment needed but I don't know what that may be. I took measurements from the last wrong print and input the difference into the next print and it came out VERY close to accurate. It's a one hour print. It's just plain stupid to have to spend all that time for a throw away print just so you can measure it to make changes to the next one hour print. I just know I'm missing something. This servo plate is just one item. The problem is with anything larger than 1cm square that I need reasonable accuracy on. Hoping someone can give me some pointers. I've got a lot of hair but at the rate I'm pulling it out I'll be bald soon.......
EDIT: Just added a poor quality picture of the servo plate I'm printing. The servo holes look different size but only because of picture angle.
Joe
Creality Ender 3. A year old. Absolutely love it! Only 1 1/4 spools through it. Glass build plate. I've been getting and still get great prints for things that don't require "precision" fit. Now that I'm getting better with TinkerCad (and just installed Microsoft 3D Builder last night) I'm designing parts that need to actually fit where I want them to go. I've spent hours upon hours upon hours ensuring bed level, extruder, X, Y, and Z e-steps are spot on based on a 1cm cube print. I can STILL get 1cm cubes to print at 10.0-10.02 on all three axis yet once I print larger items and one servo plate in particular I designed in TinkerCad is a 40mm x 51mm x 3mm plate with two 12mm x 24.5mm openings the as printed measurements are all over the place with no rhyme or reason. On both X and Y axis one of the two measurements is too large while the other on that very same axis is too small. I've updated Cura to 4.4. Uninstalled and reinstalled Cura 4.4 just because. Still no help.
I realize a 3D printer isn't going to give absolute precision prints like a laser cut but this is ridiculous. Something is wrong somewhere and I just don't know where. There are SO many (too many?) settings in Cura. I make very few changes in Cura and then only if a file I've downloaded suggests it. I don't know if the problem is with TinkerCad, Cura or the printer. Specified sizes should print at that specified size or hopefully very close. I've given up trying to get accurate hole sizes as that's obviously just not going to happen. Now I'd settle for fairly accurate basic flat plane prints. Printing cute little boats and other little toys come out great but they don't need to fit together with another printed item. There is apparently some compensation adjustment needed but I don't know what that may be. I took measurements from the last wrong print and input the difference into the next print and it came out VERY close to accurate. It's a one hour print. It's just plain stupid to have to spend all that time for a throw away print just so you can measure it to make changes to the next one hour print. I just know I'm missing something. This servo plate is just one item. The problem is with anything larger than 1cm square that I need reasonable accuracy on. Hoping someone can give me some pointers. I've got a lot of hair but at the rate I'm pulling it out I'll be bald soon.......
EDIT: Just added a poor quality picture of the servo plate I'm printing. The servo holes look different size but only because of picture angle.
Joe
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