1st print run was perfect (yesterday eve) [almost perfect, later on noticed some edges were missing and put it down to me trying to build direct on bed and part being shallow, zero degree angle]
2nd (this morning) was flashy and made a real mess of the build platform - (this one was direct no supports, 22 individual small parts - figured parts might have been too close together for direct printing and maybe too much heat) semi cured resin allover the built plate and some up the side walls of the platform
3rd (this afternoon) reverted back to original print file with supports (that did print OK yesterday) - still a mess 22 unusable parts - semi cured resin where gaps should be, semi cured resin on build plate.
Also, why does the build platform leak resin after its been cleaned? its obviously not an airtight box. seems like a great way to loose expensive resin??!!
Can you upload a picture of the .form file so we can take a closer look? Printing directly on platform can over-compress early layers which might cause artifacts or close small features. Oftentimes it’s the case that one part failing can affect the rest of the platform.
You might need to adjust the Z-axis offset a bit, it looks like maybe early layers aren’t sticking together well enough and so they shift during the print. You might also try using sandpaper on the build platform to rough it up a bit and that can help prints to stick better. Over time after printing the surface gets rough a bit naturally but sanding it can help that too.
Also, during after the prints that had issues there could be particles of cured resin in the resin which can then stick to later prints so it’s possible the second print caused issues with the third due to particles in the resin. You can use paint filters to filter out particles from resin.
Think you probably hit the nail on the head there… I thought about it long and hard afterwards and remembered that whilst my first prints were good, they weren’t perfect. They (all 22) were missing some small amount of material where indicated on the preform screen grab.
I suppose because i was being cheap with both platform height & support height and BUILD ANGLE, the geometry wasn’t supported sufficiently and ended up as a slurry in the bottom of the tank. (maybe rather that than Z offset being wrong, same result though, sludge?
build 2 and 3 would have exasperated this situation as I continued with the flat - un-angled build for those too.
I have now cleaned the resin tray and started another test print with part orientation at a default angle and default support and platform height.
Also have ordered 190um paint filters, so will have a look at whats in my “used” resin when they arrive.
Trying to do this test print,… printer keeps telling me that the tank is empty or the vent is closed… the vent isn’t closed & I’ve produced so far approx 46ml worth of prints & have 1 trays worth of resin in a pot waiting to be filtered…
Can this be correct?
I read here somewhere the tray holds around 260ml
so
260ml (waiting to be filtered)
56ml (parts produced)
upto 260ml dispensed
that’s only 566ml, so should be 434ml still in the bottle no?
The part itself had come out OK, but there was a weird bit of skin on the last tip of the part (as indicated by arrow) this was easily scraped off, sort of like a blister, underneath the parts was good.
The build support base has weird blisters around the 3 end supports and a similar mushy mess just next to the 4th support pillar.
The build platform was, again completely covered in semi cured resin and had to be scraped off with scraper.
It sounds like you were able to correct the issue you were having with getting the tank to read. Let me know if that’s still causing you issue and we can troubleshoot further.
After a failed print, especially if you notice material missing, it’s important to filter existing resin in the tank through a paint filter. Sometimes, rogue bits of resin from a failed print get stuck in your tank and interfere with printing. It’s possible that bits of cured resin from prior prints are getting stuck on your new prints and these are the same cured bits you’re seeing.
The new orientation looks great! Angling parts at around 45 degrees will improve the reliability of your parts and produce a better surface finish.
Yeah, but this is ALL 100% new resin from the tank. the suspect resin is still waiting to be filtered in a separate pot.
I have just done a factory reset, and will try another print.
& why all the cured resin all over the build platform, is that normal?
Factory reset seems to have done the trick.
Did this little test print last night after resetting (12mm OD ring)
I’ll confirm next time I have to do a real job, or I might re-run the part in the previous picture.
Oh, & no cured resin on the build plate either, just scraped the resin straight into a filter, for re-use.
Largish build last night - really not happy with this 1 week old 3.5K purchase at the moment.
There again was a fair bit of cured resin on the build platform so had to scrape like billy’o to clean up. Disappointing. Also will have to do a fair bit of finishing on the parts when they cure whereas if they had printed ‘normally’ - ‘as printed’ would have been fit for purpose.
Seems to me that most of the problems can be attributed to where the liquid resin hangs whilst the part is draining, on the tips of any down-slopes and behind any protruding features on the down-slope side & that scummy flashy bubble effect is back.
I know the resin cant cure inside the cover, but it really looks like it does to me.
Looks like i’ll be having to strain the tank contents again… this was all fresh resin and clean tank - except for that small ring print i showed earlier.
That’s very abnormal behavior. Usually where the supports touch the print will require some cleanup (the laser goes through the current laser and cures resin on the opposite side)
But it looks like you’re getting issues on the top as well which should look pristine since that’s the final part of the print that gets printed.
This is abnormal behavior that I’m not sure we’ve seen before on the forums. You did a great job documenting with all of the images and I’m sure this will be helpful to anyone who encounters similar issues in the future. Can you open up a ticket with our support team so that we can help to troubleshoot further? Including your PreForm and Firmware versions as well as a link to this thread in your ticket would be a big help.
Finally got round to filtering the contents of the first tray, what didn’t go through the 190um filter resembled blancmange.
I’m seriously thinking about filtering the entire contents of the tank to see what that looks like.
@Frew Yes, will open support ticket. Wee bit miffed at the moment as the only part ive produced on it so far that seems 100% perfect I didn’t actually need and I’m loathed / hesitant to test with my spare new tray or new carton of durable resin. Also build platform is starting to look kinda scabby with all the scraping.
Filtered remaining contents of tank. Looked OK - no ‘blancmange’. Filtered all other remaining resin in build tray. Looked OK - no ‘blancmange’.- and added back to the tank. Added first filtered build tray contents back to tank after putting contents through a second filter. Cleaned and inspected build tray (spatula only - no chemicals). some white spots where supports for last build were (last images posted), - Note:- no white spots were present before. Submitted support ticket request (91096)
Now trying the small ring test print I did before after the factory reset. This time I have not carried out another factory reset
BELOW
entire contents of the build platform (minus part) unwashed, - very little uncured resin.
AGAIN, - Even some cured resin on black sides of build platform.
What the hell is the laser doing over the rest of the build platform in order to cure all that resin? the part its supposed to be building it tiny!
… AND, why traces of cured resin up the side of the build platform? that cant be the laser can it? though admittedly much less than on the build surface itself.
Just carried out another factory reset… running same test print again.
