3D printer Ender 3 pro setup help

[Ace_killer887]

Good day all my dad has a 3d printer an Ender 3 pro that has some upgrades from the person he bought it from and it was printing just fine until he was tinkering with the settings and accidently reset the settings to default and now its not printing well. Because of this he kinda gave up on it and I was hoping to use it to print miniatures for tabletop gaming. The ender 3 pro is version 4.2.7 with I believe a Marlin 2.1.2 board from 2022-12-17. With 1 extruder and Bilinear Leveling. Its running Creality 4.2.7, Baud 250000, Protocol 1.0, Psu Generic. Bed I believe is  E1 EPCOS 100k, Min temp 5, max temp 275 Runaway watch on. Not sure what other info I can give but would greatly appreciate the help in getting the printer back up and running and what settings I need to tweak and update to fix it. 

Thank you all!

[Sawa Takahashi]

I never used that specific model but for 3d printing you usually make sure the hardware is properly adjusted (end stops, bearing/wheels, and belt tension) then you dial printing parameters in the slicer software (Cura, Prusia Slicer, etc.)

Do you have any specific problem ?

[Ace_killer887]

5 minutes ago, Sawa Takahashi said:

I never used that specific model but for 3d printing you usually make sure the hardware is properly adjusted (end stops, bearing/wheels, and belt tension) then you dial printing parameters in the slicer software (Cura, Prusia Slicer, etc.)

Do you have any specific problem ?

From what I know the hardware hasn't been adjusted and was fine before the settings got reset. I have no Idea how to dial in the printing parameters nor what software would be best for it. One of the problems I do know is that I guess settings are not staying from print to print and also that they are not smooth like if making a wall some layers are to the left or right so its an uneven path on the way up if that makes sense 

[Sawa Takahashi]

Here's a link to the official resources page of the ender 3 pro :

https://www.creality.com/pages/download-ender-3-pro

On top of the page you'll get the user manual. I suggest you read it to get some familiarity with the printer. There will probably be some setup procedures you can be interested in too.

At the bottom of the page, you can download the Crealty Slicer software that will allow you to convert the model files (.stl) into printable format and specify printing parameters.

 

Here's a few basic pointers.

• Before the first print, you need to level your printing bed. I think this printer has an auto-level, so it should be pretty simple to do.
• Try download a simple test print (like benchy) on a website like thingiverse.com or printables.com and save it on your computer.
• Open the file with Crealty Slicer. Select the parameters according to your filament type (PLA, PETG, etc.). There should be some presets you can use as a starting point and you can save profiles for next time you use that filament. Extruder temperature and bed temperature are probably the most important parameters you'll need to fine tune eventually.
• Click on the Slice button and save the resulting file (.gcode) on your computer.
• If your printer is connected directly to your computer, you can press a Print button and watch the printer go. If your printer is not connected to the computer, you probably need to transfer the file to an SD card and insert it in the printer and choose Print in the control panel of the printer.
• The goal of the test print is to see if parameters need to be adjusted. If the model does  not adhere to the print bed, you can increase the bed temp or use painter's tape to increase adhesion. If the print has some tiny holes in it or if layers are not staying together, the extruder temperature is probably too low. If there is excessive stringing (or hairs), then the extruder temperature is probably too high. If the layers are wiggly or misaligned with each other, you probably have a wheel or bearing misaligned and you should redo your set-up according to the manual.
• Be ready to spend some time dialing your first prints. 3D printers are precision devices and nothing replaces some trial and error to get the best print. Remember that each spool of filament has different parameters and may require some adjustment.

Hope this long rant can help you

[Ace_killer887]

9 hours ago, Sawa Takahashi said:

Here's a link to the official resources page of the ender 3 pro :

https://www.creality.com/pages/download-ender-3-pro

On top of the page you'll get the user manual. I suggest you read it to get some familiarity with the printer. There will probably be some setup procedures you can be interested in too.

At the bottom of the page, you can download the Crealty Slicer software that will allow you to convert the model files (.stl) into printable format and specify printing parameters.

 

Here's a few basic pointers.

• Before the first print, you need to level your printing bed. I think this printer has an auto-level, so it should be pretty simple to do.
• Try download a simple test print (like benchy) on a website like thingiverse.com or printables.com and save it on your computer.
• Open the file with Crealty Slicer. Select the parameters according to your filament type (PLA, PETG, etc.). There should be some presets you can use as a starting point and you can save profiles for next time you use that filament. Extruder temperature and bed temperature are probably the most important parameters you'll need to fine tune eventually.
• Click on the Slice button and save the resulting file (.gcode) on your computer.
• If your printer is connected directly to your computer, you can press a Print button and watch the printer go. If your printer is not connected to the computer, you probably need to transfer the file to an SD card and insert it in the printer and choose Print in the control panel of the printer.
• The goal of the test print is to see if parameters need to be adjusted. If the model does  not adhere to the print bed, you can increase the bed temp or use painter's tape to increase adhesion. If the print has some tiny holes in it or if layers are not staying together, the extruder temperature is probably too low. If there is excessive stringing (or hairs), then the extruder temperature is probably too high. If the layers are wiggly or misaligned with each other, you probably have a wheel or bearing misaligned and you should redo your set-up according to the manual.
• Be ready to spend some time dialing your first prints. 3D printers are precision devices and nothing replaces some trial and error to get the best print. Remember that each spool of filament has different parameters and may require some adjustment.

Hope this long rant can help you

some of this is helping but now the printer is having feeding issues like the nozzle keeps getting blocked with pla current temps are 220 and bed is 60, pla is good for 190-230

[Sawa Takahashi]

13 hours ago, Ace_killer887 said:

some of this is helping but now the printer is having feeding issues like the nozzle keeps getting blocked with pla current temps are 220 and bed is 60, pla is good for 190-230

Welcome to the joys of 3d printing

It is possible that you have unwanted fragments of something clogging your nozzle. Do you have a tool to poke into the nozzle ? It is a very thin metal wire (0.4mm in diameter) that may be included with your printer. You can use it when the extruder is hot (watch out for burns) and hopefully move the obstruction out of the way.

If your problem arises again, you may have to remove the nozzle remove the clog. You should have a little wrench in your included tools (or you can use small pliers) to unscrew the nozzle from the heating bloc. Be cautious not to damage the silicone jacket. Once removed, you can use the small metal wire to push filament out the back of the nozzle.

In some rare cases (if the nozzle is damaged or the clog is too damn hard), you may have to change the nozzle for a new one. These are pretty inexpensive in themselves and can be found wherever they sell 3d printers and online.

As for the temps, they are acceptable at first glance. I usually go for 200-210C for the extruder with PLA but this can vary with brand and color so 220C may be correct for all I know. Only you can tell with some experimentation. The bed is certainly ok with 60C.

Good luck !