FlashForge Creator Pro, can get filament to stick to table

Hey all,
Total newb here. I just bought a Flash Forge Creator Pro and am trying to run the 20mm calibration cube as a first part. I have been trying unsuccessfully for two days now to get a line to stick. I have gone to the control panel and pre heated it to 220 for filament and 115 for bed temps. I am running the ABS that came with the printer. I have calibrated the table with a sheet of paper as well. I just cannot get a line to stick to the table. I have tried Painters tape, but to no avail. ANY HELP IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!

Thanks!

you've used decent blue painters tape.
I had this problem with abs. Only way I could get it to stick reliably was to use a raft.

What you actually need is to slow the first layer down to about 10% of the the rest of the print. That's one reason why rafts work so well. They always go down really really slowly.

Also 220 is very low for abs, at that temp it'll be fairly stiff and unsticky. Try hotter. 230, 235 and 240.

What software are your using for the slicer ?

I never had good results with tape, Glue is an option.

I am trying to run with the Slicr slicing program, it just sounded good.

Also, I have tried to heat the table up to 125 and 245 for the extruder, just to give it a go. Unfortunately according to the sceen on the front of the printer it looks like it tries to cool everything down to about 100 table and 200 extruder. The printer seems to position the head at about 0-x and 0-y and hold there until the temps drop, I am guessing that is a big part of my problem. Sometimes it helps to walk away from things for a while and clear your head. Will I have to tap in to the G-code and raise the temps to start printing at?

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Originally Posted by Marm

I never had good results with tape, Glue is an option.

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Thanks, I was going to give that a go last night but once I found the glue stick in the house it turned out to be pretty old and dried up. I will probably stop tonight and grab a new one.

Just get the Elmers or equivalent brand. The big mega sticks are the best value and coverage area. I believe I'm using Hercules Glue with great results.

umm, how are you using slic3r ?
By default it simply won't work with a flashforge x or pro.

And I never had bad results with tape. But I don't use cheap tape.

The glue stick on pet or kapton tape works well. It can sometimes be a problem getting the print off the bed.

But at the moment I'm leaning more towards how you're using slic3r.

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Originally Posted by ApocalypseCow

Hey all,
Total newb here. I just bought a Flash Forge Creator Pro and am trying to run the 20mm calibration cube as a first part. I have been trying unsuccessfully for two days now to get a line to stick. I have gone to the control panel and pre heated it to 220 for filament and 115 for bed temps. I am running the ABS that came with the printer. I have calibrated the table with a sheet of paper as well. I just cannot get a line to stick to the table. I have tried Painters tape, but to no avail. ANY HELP IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!

Thanks!

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Painters tape for ABS? Ditch that right now. If you want ABS to stick then use either kapton tape or slurry. Slurry is an abs-acetone mixture. 1/4 cup acetone to about 20-25cm ABS filament; let the ABS dissolve nicely in the acetone and use a brush to 'paint' a layer on your HBP once its hot.

Temperature-wise you want to aim for 230 for the extruders and 95 for the HBP. Let the cabin warm up nicely and make sure everything is closed.

Start with Makerware as it exports x3g directly. And set your feeds low. No higher than 50 (I usually set my first layer speed to 20)

Newb here too. Just got mine about a week ago but mine came with what looks like BuildTak already installed. I have better adhesion with ABS for smaller parts but have had a few larger ones break loose in the middle of the print. Didn't know if I could use the hair spray or ABS Slurry on the BuildTak to help it.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by super-d

Newb here too. Just got mine about a week ago but mine came with what looks like BuildTak already installed. I have better adhesion with ABS for smaller parts but have had a few larger ones break loose in the middle of the print. Didn't know if I could use the hair spray or ABS Slurry on the BuildTak to help it.

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ABS warps if not printed in a fully closed cabin. Keep the cabin warm and it should improve. Note though that doing large prints in ABS can be tricky due to the material's shrinkage. Do-able but tricky.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by super-d

Newb here too. Just got mine about a week ago but mine came with what looks like BuildTak already installed. I have better adhesion with ABS for smaller parts but have had a few larger ones break loose in the middle of the print. Didn't know if I could use the hair spray or ABS Slurry on the BuildTak to help it.

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Sounds like we received our printers at the same time. Did you have any issues getting the printer to recognize your Python download? Fo some reason no mater what version I try it keeps telling me I need to download it when ever I try to generate G-code.

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Originally Posted by curious aardvark

umm, how are you using slic3r ?
By default it simply won't work with a flashforge x or pro.

And I never had bad results with tape. But I don't use cheap tape.

The glue stick on pet or kapton tape works well. It can sometimes be a problem getting the print off the bed.

But at the moment I'm leaning more towards how you're using slic3r.

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What issues would I need to correct to get Slic3r to work? For some reason my printer will nt recognize that I have downloaded and installed Python. I was able try another run last night and changed the temp for the extruder in the g-code to 230, and it did stay there. Unfortunately I was unable to get a new glue stick so I wasn't able to try that trick, I will tonight, and things are still not sticking.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ApocalypseCow

What issues would I need to correct to get Slic3r to work? For some reason my printer will nt recognize that I have downloaded and installed Python. I was able try another run last night and changed the temp for the extruder in the g-code to 230, and it did stay there. Unfortunately I was unable to get a new glue stick so I wasn't able to try that trick, I will tonight, and things are still not sticking.

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There are two ways to do this. Either

1) Use slic3r to create G-code, open this g-code in RepG to export it as x3g. Not always flawless.

or

2) Use Makerware/Makerbot Desktop. This export x3g directly and is perfectly compatible with your FFCP.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying Slic3r is bad or a waste of time. Just that if you're a beginner and struggling with the basics then rather use a slicer that exports programs that required no extra tweaking in terms of formats. My 2 cents.

That makes sense to me, I will give it a try. After having a printer for a week and nothing to show for it I am willing to try about anything.

Yea I always keep the hood on and the door shut. I was actually printing covers for the sides and got to see what they meant by warping :-(

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Originally Posted by super-d

Yea I always keep the hood on and the door shut. I was actually printing covers for the sides and got to see what they meant by warping :-(

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Follow the link below to set up Slic3r to automatically send the GCode to GPX and get the required file for your SD Card...
I added a glass bed to mine and I get better results if I preheat the bed for 5-10 mins. This allows heat to build up in the cabinet.

http://www.3duniverse.org/category/calibration/

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ApocalypseCow

Hey all,
Total newb here. I just bought a Flash Forge Creator Pro and am trying to run the 20mm calibration cube as a first part. I have been trying unsuccessfully for two days now to get a line to stick. I have gone to the control panel and pre heated it to 220 for filament and 115 for bed temps. I am running the ABS that came with the printer. I have calibrated the table with a sheet of paper as well. I just cannot get a line to stick to the table. I have tried Painters tape, but to no avail. ANY HELP IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!
Thanks!

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I use the precut blue Flash Forge bed cover that came w/my printer and it's served me just fine. I've heard they're designed for PLA, but I've only ever printed ABS and it's worked. Also I use RepG or Makerware, again both work well once set up. Extruder temp I generally go 230-235 and bed temp I leave around 110. Sometimes I even start my prints at 100 and then move up to 110. Side note, I also have both side openings covered and even the opening in the back of the "glass house", top cover, or whatever you want to call it where your filament guide tubes go through, is covered also. Hang in there it takes some tweaking and when it comes to settings, different strokes for different folks.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by super-d

Newb here too. Just got mine about a week ago but mine came with what looks like BuildTak already installed. I have better adhesion with ABS for smaller parts but have had a few larger ones break loose in the middle of the print. Didn't know if I could use the hair spray or ABS Slurry on the BuildTak to help it.

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Mine also has that "BuildTak ". And I've been using it for some months now and I had very few failures. We use alcohol to clean it before each print and printing ABS at 250 and 110 heated bed.

sebastian - blue tape works extremely well with abs and a raft.

Maybe not for you - but it does work really well.
I never got abs to stick to kapton.
So just because it's not what you do - don't automatically assume it won't work.

The abs paint works too but it's a real pita to have to repaint the bed every time you want to print. And peeling it off the bottom of a complicated or articulated print is a real nightmare.
Not too mention acetone fumes.
People, DO NOT underestimate how harmful acetone fumes can be.
And also don't forget they are highly combustable.

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At temperatures greater than acetone's flash point of −20 °C (−4 °F), air mixtures of between 2.5% and 12.8% acetone, by volume, may explode or cause a flash fire. Vapors can flow along surfaces to distant ignition sources and flash back. Static discharge may also ignite acetone vapors,

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I've seen acetone ignited by a flame about 6 feet away from the original beaker. Looiks great in a lab - not so much fun in your workshop.
Prolonged exposure can also cause anosmia - which sounds funny. But means you have no sense of taste or smell.

Not saying don't use it, if you want to use abs you can't really avoid it. But be careful. It's not stuff to mess with lightly.