Top Surface Roof layer is really rough

Quote:

Originally Posted by curious aardvark

don't bother with ironing. a few minutes with a sanding block will be quicker and probably give a much better finished surface anyway.

I mean the surface looks like it's been melted - which is what ironing does. So, yeah lol

I'd really like to see some serious ironing done right, but I sure haven't been able to achieve it yet. I'm still at the beginner level of using 3D design software. One package I do use is Front Panel Express. While not a full-featured design app, I do know it and have used it primarily to design front and back panels for my DIY audio gear I've built over the years. However, FPE of course is geared towards milling panels professionally. You're really only working in 2D without any relief type structures. So, I tried it with my 3D printer and got surprisingly good, but limited results. I simply ended up designing my panel in a mirror fashion which is somewhat awkward, but doable for simple flat panel purposes. The finished side is the 3D bed side, where everything is 'iron' anyway with good results from a heated glass bed. I'm just surprised I cannot get similar results with ironing on the final top layer. I'm still trying different setting in Cura, but to no avail. Trying to do any inset engraving in FPE and then exporting yields no results. I don't think it can be done, even though FPE allows for exporting a .ste file for further processing by other apps to get the results I want.