We have 3 form 2 printers, and 1 of them is a lot slower than the others.
Yesterday I set off 3 prints - the exact same file, at the same time (heating was already complete when hitting print). The print time was supposed to be 19hours 58mins. I know that the timings aren’t 100% accurate, but would expect the printers to roughly finish at the same time. All have the latest firmware. New trays were installed prior, glass wiped and new cartridges.
The 1st finished after 20 hours 15mins (so not bad timing), the 2nd 24 hours, and the 3rd (which I have noticed over the past few weeks is the slowest by a long way and has the most inaccurate print timing), finished 25 hours 25 mins
What could cause this 1 to be so slow?
Over the past couple of years with each update, I have gradually seen the estimated print time get longer than the real time
Thanks so much for taking the time to post. That’s a great question!
You’re absolutely correct that print times can be a little variable, but I do understand your worries about your third printer that’s being especially slow.
Do you mind if I ask if the resin cartridge in that slower third printer was lower than the others? If the rest of the printer is working as we’d expect, I’m guessing a cartridge closer to empty was the culprit here.
Are your printers connected to the dashboard ? If yes then I would check the “log” for the print and see if there are any error messages. Typically a temporary missing tank error could trigger a resin sensing loop.
Also if one cartridge valve doesn’t open fully, it can also lead to more refill loops but I don’t know if that can translate into a 20% increase in print time.
The biggest variation we have seen has been down to the pinch valves. Some open a lot more than others, so some cartridges take a very long time to fill the tray. You coudl swap the cartridges to a differente machine and see if the slowness follows?
Thats an interesting call Andrew.
I mentioned on another post about having to cut every single valve in the past year (around 78).
Although the opening sizes should be around the same size, because we insert a scalpel in the centre of the valve, and keep pinching it for a while to open it out