Reddit reviews eSUN 3D Printer Cleaning Filament 1.75mm Natural 0.1kg for All 1.75mm FDM 3D Printers, 1.75mm Cleaning

So here is what you can do.

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1. Check the side door on the extruder. Make sure it isn't too tight or lose. If you don't know how to check, then please let us know.
   
2. Check the filament. Basically, check to see if it has too much water in it or if the size is all over. Even if you're getting normal looking walls, if there is too much water this will require higher temp to work. If the filament is pretty new, then you don't have to worry about water being a problem.
   
3. Check if there is a clog. You can do the normal atomic pull stuff, or you can use cleaning filaments like the following. With pretty much any type of cleaning filament, you need to keep an eye out on when it's coming out of the nozzle. It's clear for a few seconds before it gets cold. If there is stuff inside then you will see it within the clear coming out. https://www.amazon.com/eSUN-CLEANING-Filament-Printers-Cleaning/dp/B00MVIYNFW/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=cleaning+filament&qid=1555863155&s=gateway&sr=8-3 (NOTE there is a few different brands. Pick whichever you trust. There could be a wide gap in price. But you only need 1 of them since you will hardly ever use it. I bought mine a good year ago and maybe only used 10% of it.)
   
4. Check for this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSPPrb0J8CY&feature=youtu.be (I'm thinking this might be your problem, but everything above is far easier to deal with)

I highly doubt it's the SD card. If it was the SD card the printer would likely just simply stop instead of continuing to move without extruding. It could be a settings issue, something you changed and forgot to set back though.

Is the extruder motor still moving, or in your case likely grinding away bits of the filament? That's an important question.

Did you make sure to get all the PLA out before going to PET-G and vice versa? If you plan to do filament type changes on a regular basis you should pick up something like eSUN's cleaning filament. It has a really wide temperature range (150C to 260C) which means it's good for making sure you've got all your previous filament type out.

I use a hotend cleaner when I switch filaments, it works very well with removing old particles.

eSUN 3D Printer CLEANING Filament... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MVIYNFW?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

What both /u/NoVTekku and /u/Wiggles69 said. Definitely underextrusion.

I found with printing NinjaFlex that it was unusually hard to clear the PLA from the nozzle. Usually I heat a bit above the previous plastics print temp and push HARD then pull back a bit and push HARD, etc a couple times.

It creates a push then suction effect that usually clears the old plastic fast.

Won't work for flexibles. You can't push hard, it just absorbs the pressure, so the old plastic sticks in there, lurks around then clogs.

I bought some cleaning filament and use it when changing to flex.

This: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MVIYNFW

Also, my method for clearing clogs on the CR-10 series (look for my comments):

https://www.reddit.com/r/CR10/comments/7qs7nf/soooo_uhhhh_that_happened_the_first_1015_layers/

Works to get clogs that get missed by other methods...


PuterPro

Good luck getting the clog out. Last time I had a cold end clog like that I had to remove the heatsink, let the hot end plus heatbreak get up to temp, and pushed through some Nylon, I think, cleaning filament I got online but pulled it out before it softened too much. Pliers and channel locks were used to grip the hot end so I could do it without burning myself.

A lot of people swear by plain white (so you can see any stuck crud) ABS. I personally never print ABS and don't want to buy a spool just for cleaning, so I was happy to find eSun cleaning filament. It looks expensive, but you only use 6 inches/150mm at a time. The big pluses for the cleaning filament are that they are "sticky", so should do a good job pulling crud out of the hotend, plus they melt over a very wide range, so if a bit gets left behind, it'll melt right out even if you print PLA next.

Hello all,

I'm trying to solve a persistent clicking / extrusion / constant print failure problem with my Qidi X-One 2.

I own a Qidi X-One 2, and for the last few weeks I am experiencing a clicking, extrusion problem that I cannot seem to fix. The filament twists and turns coming out of nozzle.

I changed the nozzle and tube a few weeks back, and printed ok for a few prints, but now the same problems are back. I only use PLA.


I recently placed this order through Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MVIYNFW/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I used the cleaning filament last night, following the instructions on the package. I ran about one to two feet. I tried cold pull but the filament broke both times and did not pull all the material from the nozzle.

I ran some more cleaning filament, and then switched to my Solutech white PLA. I started to run the PLA to flush out the cleaning filament, and as this happened, clicking is back, and the filament twists and turns coming out of the nozzle.

Its like it did nothing!

I have also ordered some needles for nozzle cleaning, but these haven't arrived yet. I have also ordered some more nozzles and tubes, and will exchange for new ones when they arrive. But ultimately I would like to prevent the problem from happening in the first please.

Please let me know what else to try. Any help is greatly appreciated as I am fairly new to 3d printing.

Thank you!

You might have partially cleared the jam, but left a layer of plastic still inside the nozzle. I know I was surprised at just how much plastic stayed in the nozzle even after repeated cleaning in acetone.

If you're really adverse to taking it apart, there are also these cleaning tools:
I haven't tried them, but they are an option.

Cleaning Bits
https://www.amazon.com/JOYSA-MakerBot-Printer-Cleaning-Registered/dp/B01CCF46EQ/

Cleaning filament
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MVIYNFW/

I use the plastic from monoprice and it's reasonably good, I wouldn't be able to speak about the quality of the stuff you have.
http://www.monoprice.com/product?c_id=107&cp_id=10724&cs_id=1072402&p_id=10552&seq=1&format=2

Another way I can tell mine is flowing properly is by heating it up to 200 and using the manual extrude option on the move menu. Clogged nozzles will look stringy and/or the filament will curl up. When it's extruding properly, the plastic will drop straight down and have an even consistency. When you forced the filament through, it will melt and pass through, but won't necessarily clean off the old crud stuck to the walls of the nozzle.

You're very welcome for the limited insight I have on this topic. I saw your post and said, that was me a couple weeks ago, and it was a lot of trial and error to figure out how to solve this issue of just getting it to print consistently.

Before you buy a new nozzle, have you tried cleaning filament yet?

eSUN 3D Printer CLEANING Filament 1.75mm Natural 0.1kg for all 1.75mm FDM 3D Printers, 1.75mm Cleaning https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MVIYNFW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_NetQBbX0VWR7E

This may help you get the gunk out of that nozzle. Run that thru it and do some cold pulls with it. It may revitalize your nozzle for a lot cheaper and you wouldn’t have to take apart your extruder to do it.

Consider getting some cleaning filament. This is an example from Amazon but there are other manufacturers/vendors with similar products.

It is not for printing, only cleaning. Its temperature range is quite broad, it's sticky, and has huge die swell, all of which make it great for cleaning.

To use, run it through at the temperature of the last used filament. It melts and sweeps up the residual stuff. Then prime with the new filament (at whatever temperature is appropriate for that) and good to go.

If your prints have become crap but no real changes in settings, you might have a clogged nozzle or a slipping PTFE tube.

Grab some nozzle cleaning filament and shove a few inches of that through your nozzle (while it's hot if course) and see if that improves anything. If you still have issues, you may need to disassemble your hotend and look for issues. If the PTFE tube has started slipping, you'll have a large pool of melted filament just above the nozzle and below the tube you'll have to clear out

Filament and cleaner.

Not from Prusa, but here are some other things I use over and over and over and am glad I bought. These are not affiliate links and you can probably find some of these items cheaper elsewhere:

Thin craft spatulas for removing prints: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075SLTY8B (some say "never scrape using a metal tool" but these are very thin and flexible and really help with some prints)

Cleaning filament: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MVIYNFW

Silicone socks: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07779TP4S

Good quality hex drivers https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0006O5014 these will make assembly and maintenance MUCH easier than the included tools. Especially the smallest one that fits the set screw in the Bondtech extruder gear really well, much better than the "decent" hex keys I already had in my toolkit

Just printed my first ninjaflex test print and it came out way better than i expected. The only problem is how long it takes for all the previous filament to be cleaned out. I was thinking of getting the following from eSun but wanted to make sure there wasn't any other options I'm missing.

http://www.amazon.com/Printer-CLEANING-Filament-Makerbot-Printers/dp/B00MVIYNFW/

If anyone has used eSun with a bowden setup i would love to hear how you used it. Did you put it right into the hot end by removing the PTFE tubing or did you just put in a piece between your filament chance and have the new filament push it though? I'm just wondering how that would work with ninjaflex already being hard to get back pressure on with a bowden.

There is also cleaning filament. It is safe to use at ABS and PLA temperatures. Just extrude the cleaning filament until it starts coming out clean. Then lower or raise the temperature to match the new plastic and extrude it until the cleaning filament is no longer being extruded. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MVIYNFW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_HzGvybEZNY8K2

It is possible you might need some of this.

I've been lucky and have never had to deal with a clog myself, so I'm afraid I'm not much help from here on. I think it's probably clog related and would suggest some more targeted Google searches with that in mind to find solutions.

A new heatbed is around $30. Another option is to buy a $10 square silicone heat pad from aliexpress, stick it underneath the stock bed and clip a sheet of picture frame glass to the top.

Don't be discouraged by a jam, it's a simple system. Take the fan shroud off, unscrew the fitting and take the tube out. Heat up the block and try to push filament through by hand. This usually clears blockages. If still a no-go, use cleaning filament instead. It's does wonders for cleaning hotends.

I swear by this filament. I run it through when doing filament changes, as well as nozzle changes. I also use it if I get a clog.

As far as quality gains you'll experience from changing over to a Bowden/E3d v6 is that you're lightening the overall mass of the Hotend carriage.

If you stop and think, the gantry is carrying the load of the stock Hotend as well as the weight of the stepper motor and the enertia it's contending with in those back and forth movements which can cause defects in your print if your frame isn't solid.
Is not a design flaw, but just an effect of the design.
Like I mentioned earlier you're limiting yourself with exotic filaments with a Bowden, but you're shedding weight to reduce vibration and gaining the opportunity for more speed without having to reinforce the frame a great deal.
But look at extruders like the Titan. These are high performance direct drive extruders that are lighter than stock, but still heavier than a Bowden but you keep the benefits of printing any filament you like.
As well as you don't have the bad characteristics of A Bowden. The Teflon tube that will run from the extruder to the Hotend on a Bowden system, that guides the filament will have a bit of 'give' in it when the extruder is pushing and pulling the filament.

Here is a crude way of describing it...
Let's say for the sake of simple math, that it takes 1 pound of pressure in your stock, direct drive extruder to properly push the exact amount of required filament required for laying a line of plastic onto the heat bed. Now realistically that pressure changes constantly but let's just say you need a consistent 1lb of pressure all the time. It only has to travel a couple of mm's before it's in the Hotend.
In a Bowden system, the extruder pushes the filament through the long Teflon tube and the tube will give way to that pressure. So though your extruder is pushing at 1lb, by the time it reaches the Hotend its only seeing 0.95 lbs because of the tube absorbing some of the pressure. You can compensate with firmware to tell the extruder to actually push 1.05lbs so that when it reaches the Hotend, it's getting the 1lb that it needs. But it's never really 100% accurate. And if your firmware isn't set perfectly you'll see it in the print, like uneven layers and such. Not a very elegant explanation but I'm typing from my phone.

PETG is stronger and much more heat resistant than PLA. PLA is good for whatnots and things you'll sit on your desk that don't need to be structurally sound. PETG is used for things like printing a hook to hang a rolled up extension cord out in your non climate controlled garage and it not break under the weight over time.
PLA is super easy to print and has a broad window of settings to get a nice print. PETG is not as forgiving in the settings department and you have a narrow margin for error. But once you get it dialed in, it prints like PLA. I mentioned polycarbonate earlier. It's even stronger and more heat resistant and you could print chain links with it and hang your front porch swing on it. But it's damn unforgiving and I struggle with it to this day.

Here is the cleaning filament I use. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MVIYNFW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_Q8bkDbV3KFZDT

I only use it when going from one type of filament to another. Like from PLA to PETG. Just changing colors of the same type of filament you wouldn't need it. It's the temperature differences between the 2 that cause jams. PLA prints around 190C. PETG is around 240C. That reminds me of another benefit of the E3d v6. It's all metal and can handle the hotter temperatures of filaments like PETG. You have a Teflon liner in the throat of your stock extruder. I think it's only good up to about 210C.

I haven't really shopped for SLA printers. Consumer SLA printers are still in their infancy. But what I have stumbled across are very small. Like only 6 inch by 6 inch build volumes for $200-$300. And you're limited to the resins that are available. I think only PLA type plastics are available right now. Nothing you could print anything functional with.

Get some cleaning filament.