How to print small object?

3 Attachment(s)

I'm trying to print a small part that has a vertical "tower" piece 2.5mm x 4mm x about 7mm high. I'm using a 0.3mm nozzle, Prusa i3 printer. The drawing looks like:

Attachment 6694

It's actually part of a larger print, but I've come up with a test print that eliminates all but a small base and the "tower" so I can work out the issues with printing the "tower"

Problem is, the layer is so small that the PLA is still soft when subsequent layers gets printed and so the "tower" kind of moves along with the extruder. It's actually soft 3-4 layers down, so I get a very messy, inaccurate print. I have a fan running 100%, but with the head so close to the tower and the tower being so small, it stays soft for a while.

Attachment 6695

Attachment 6696

I've tried a few prints at lower and lower temps, all the way down to 170C when the extruder stops flowing.

Any ideas on how to print such small objects? Thanks.

Print two of them at a time, layer by layer, a few inches apart. One will cool while you print the other.

That was a great idea. I printed 4 test objects as you suggested and they came out perfectly. The difference is like night and day. Thanks.

Also think about adding an active cooling duct to your printer.

usually lots of already made ones on thingiverse :-)