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Method Series 3D Printers: Print Quality Issues

The MakerBot Method is designed to produce prints that require little to no post-processing. This is due in large part to the range of geometries now available with FDM printing with the use of dissolvable supports and measurable dimensional accuracy.

If you are experiencing unusual defects in your prints, there are some things we can do to resolve those issues and ensure you are producing parts at the highest quality. 

 

Roofing Issues

 

If you are noticing that the roofs of your prints are sparse or appear compressed or rough, you will want to consider running the calibration script.

  1. We want to make sure that our Firmware is up to date. 
  2. If we are up to date, let's try running the Calibration script from Settings> Calibrate Extruders on the touch panel. Make sure to thoroughly clean the nozzles, as the nozzle is a crucial component in establishing the calibration. If there is residue on the nozzle, this residue will be taken into account during calibration and result in a bad calibration.
  3. If you continue to experience issues, you’ll want to consider unloading and reloading your material and purging the extruder. This is to ensure that there is not any partial obstruction in the nozzle which would cause under extrusion in the roofs of the prints.
     

Purge Tower Intersects Model

If you noticed that your model was intersected by the purge tower, you may need to re-slice your model, ensuring that the purge tower is not intersecting with the model.

In MakerBot print, the purge tower is a small dark gray square on the build plate. You can move this square by clicking it and dragging it around the build plate.

PVA Support Material Not Adhering

If you note that the PVA Support Material is coming loose from the model, or is dispensing “shards” around the build plate, there are a few things we can look at. 

  1.  Let's pause or cancel the print that is in progress and purge the extruder from Extruders>Purge. Let's let this run for some time. While purging let's look closely at the material coming out of the nozzle. We want to ensure that we see uniform, smooth extrusion and do not note any air bubbles. If we do se air bubbles, let's allow purge to continue until we don't see them anymore
  2. If the PVA has been loaded into the printer for a significant amount of time or has not been stored inside of the airtight bag, the material may have been exposed to air for too long. This will cause it to be brittle. You may consider unloading the material and removing approximately 3’ from the end of the spool, then reloading, and testing again. 
  3. If you continue to experience the same issues, you may need to test with a different Spool of PVA to see if the issue resolves. If you are experiencing the issue across multiple spools of PVA, please contact MakerBot Support. Please make sure to include the Serial Number of your Method, as well as an image of the PVA Spool ID sticker, which includes the Lot #.

 

Base Layer Adheres Too Well

If you note that your base layer is sticking too well to the build plate, You’ll want to try running the calibration again, as the calibration values may be off.

  1. During the calibration script, we want to make sure to thoroughly clean the nozzles, as the nozzle is a crucial component in establishing the calibration. If there is residue on the nozzle, this residue will be taken into account during calibration and result in a bad calibration.
  2. If you are using Brims and Padded Base as your base layer, you may consider switching to Rafts. Rafts will be the best option for a base layer on the MakerBot Method, as they are primarily constructed from PVA and will dissolve from the final product.
     

Purge Tower Tiger-Striping

The Purge Tower, being a repository for residual material during the print process, is not intended to result in the same quality as your final print. You may notice some dropped layers, as well as a “tiger stripe” feature on the sides of the purge tower. This is perfectly normal and expected, and should not be cause for concern.