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LulzBot™Mini 3D printer User Manual

1. Figure 2 18 Cutoff Example Dual Extrusion Overlap This will determine how far your Dual Extruders will overlap when laying down material This will help adhesion between the two different colors or types of filament This setting is only used when the printer is equipped with two hot ends and extruders Travel Speed This setting will determine how fast your print head moves while not ex truding filament A normal travel speed of 125 150mm s is recommended 39 Cura Bottom Layer Speed This will control your initial layer speed In general a slower initial layer speed will help with first layer adhesion Infill Speed This is how fast your print head speed will be while laying down the interior portion of your model Faster speeds are usually tolerable here as none of the infill will be visible from the outside of your object If you go too fast compared to your inner and outer shells you can have adhesion issues or globs of filament left behind from the printhead Outer Shell Speed This will be the outermost surface of the model This is the most important setting as it controls the speed of your print head on the visible layers As a general rule of thumb the slower you go the better looking print you will get Inner Shell Speed This affects vertical walls that are in between the outer shell and infill This will not be visible but will help support the outer shell and the infill We recommend keeping
2. Maintaining Your 3D Printer Maintaining Your 3D Printer 4 1 Overview Little maintenance is required keep your Mini 3D printer running Depend ing on your rate of use you will want to perform a quick check of your printer every 2 to 4 weeks The following maintenance guide lines will keep you printing quality parts 4 2 Smooth Rods Wipe the smooth steel rods with a clean rag or paper towel The linear bushings leave a solid lubricant that builds up over time Hearing squeaking noises while the printer is moving is likely a sign that the smooth rods need to be cleaned NOTE Never apply any lubricant or cleaning agent to the smooth rods the bushings are self lubricating 4 3 Lead Screws Periodically you will want to wipe down the threaded rods with a lithium based grease Never use any petroleum based grease which may compro mise the plastic parts We utilize Lucas White Lithium Grease NLGI 2 Apply the lithium grease both above and below the X ends on the lead screws threading and wipe down the excess Use your printer host software to drive the Z axis up and down to help further distribute the lubricant 4 4 PEI Surface After repeated use the PEI print surface will begin to need cleaning To clean the PEI print surface Wipe clean with Isopropyl Alcohol and a clean cloth If you encounter prints lifting from the PEI surface use a fine grit sandpaper typically 2000 2500 grit to clean the PEI print surface We do not
3. 75 Slic3r e Infill As the infill is hidden this can be extruded a little faster Take care though not to go too fast as higher speeds results in thinner extrusions and this may affect how the extrusions bond e Travel The jump between the end of one extrusion and the next should usually be performed as quickly as the printer will allow in order to minimise any mess caused by material oozing from the nozzle Brim Brim width is used to add more perimeters to the first layer as a base flange in order to provide more surface area for the print to stick to the bed with in order to reduce warping see 3 3 The brim is then cut away once the print is finished and removed from the bed Figure 3 18 An example of brim Sequential Printing This feature allows to compose a plate of objects but have the printer complete each one individually before going back to Z 0 and starting with the next one See the subsection about Sequential Printing in the Advanced Topics chapter Filament Settings The Filament Settings will normally be used infrequently for example on receipt of a new roll of filament 76 3 4 SIMPLE MODE File Plater Window Help Plater Print Settings Filament Settings Printer Settings Filament Diameter mm Extrusion multiplier 1 Temperature C Extruder First layer 0 Other layers 0 Bed First layer 0 Other layers 0 Want more options Switch to the Expert Mode Figure 3 19 Sim
4. notes Notes to be added as comments to the output file resolution Minimum detail resolution mm set zero for full resolution default 0 Flow options advanced extrusion width Set extrusion width manually it accepts either an absolute value in mm like 0 65 or a percentage over layer height like 200 first layer extrusion width Set a different extrusion width for first layer perimeter extrusion width Set a different extrusion width for perimeters infill extrusion width Set a different extrusion width for infill solid infill extrusion width Set a different extrusion width for solid infill top infill extrusion width Set a different extrusion width for top infill support material extrusion width Set a different extrusion width for support material bridge flow ratio Multiplier for extrusion when bridging gt 0 default 1 Multiple extruder options extruder offset Offset of each extruder if firmware doesn t handle the displacement can be specified multiple times default 0x0 perimeter extruder Extruder to use for perimeters 1 default 1 infill extruder Extruder to use for infill 1 default 1 support material extruder Extruder to use for support material 1 default 1 118 3 8 ADVANCED TOPICS Post Processing Scripts There may be times when the G Code generated by Slic3r has to be tweaked or modified after it has been created For this reason there exists the ability to run arbit
5. Cancel Motors off uP RETRACT DOWN EXTRUDE do TEMPERATURE bo o HE a BED TEMP o a Figure 2 12 Control Screen Recommended Temperatures Different filaments have different ideal temperatures for extrusion bed ad hesion and part removal Your LulzBot Mini will have these automatically set when using our recommended profiles 30 2 5 REMOVING YOUR FIRST PRINT Filament Type Bed Preparation Nozzle Temp Bed Temp Removal Temp ABS Clean PEI 240 260 110 50 PLA Clean PEI 195 215 60 45 HIPS Clean PEI 240 260 110 50 Laywoo D3 Clean PEI 175 195 60 45 Laybrick Clean PEI 175 195 60 45 Magnetic Iron PLA Clean PEI 220 230 60 45 Stainless Steel PLA Clean PEI 220 230 60 45 Conductive PLA Clean PEI 215 230 60 50 t glase Glue stick 240 260 60 45 Flexible Filaments Glue stick 215 230 50 35 Nylons Glue stick 220 270 110 50 Polycarbonate Glue stick 260 300 110 50 Polycarbonate ABS Glue stick 260 280 110 50 N Vent Glue stick 220 260 110 50 2 5 Removing Your First Print After your first print has finished you need to wait for the part to cool down Your parts will be easier to remove if you allow your heated bed to cool down to optimal temperature This will allow the plastic to contract making it easier to remove Your print bed will move forward once it is ready to be removed Once your heat
6. LULZBOT Aleph Objects Inc LulzBot Mini User Manual by Aleph Objects Inc Copyright 2015 Aleph Objects Inc Permission is granted to copy distribute and or modify this document under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4 0 International Public License CC BY SA 4 0 Published by Aleph Objects Inc 626 W 66th Street Loveland Colorado 80538 USA For more information call 1 970 377 1111 or go to www LulzBot com and www AlephObjects com ISBN 978 0 9893784 6 8 Mini 20151029 Contents WARNINGS Safety Information Read Me First Hazards and Warnings 1 3D Printer Software 1 1 Software Overview 1 2 Software Types 1 3 Installing Drivers 1 4 CAD and 3D Modeling Software 1 5 Alternative Printer Host Software 2 Cura 2 1 Cura pr e 2 2 Quick Print supine 2 3 View Options a s 2 4 Starting Your First Print 2 5 Removing Your First Print 2 6 Full Settings ees 2 7 Basic Tab Options 2 8 Advanced Tab scsi 2 9 Plugins 2 10 Start and End Gcode Settings 2 11 Expert Settings 2 12 Retraction 2 13 Skirt 2 14 Cool 2 15 Support 2 16 Black Magic iii ix 13 14 14 15 15 17 19 20 21 25 29 31 31 33 37 41 42 42 43 44 45 45 46 CONTENTS 2 17 Brim 2 18 Raft 2 19 Fix Horrible Slic3r 3 1 Introduction 3 2 Getting Slic3r 3 3 First Print 3 4 Simple Mode 3 5 Expert Mode 3 6 Configuration Organization 3 7 Repairing Models 3 8 Advanced Topics 3 9 Troubleshoo
7. Highly active community chat room where help can easily be found slic3r Slic3r chat room where Slic3r developers and users can give help RepRap org forums forums RepRap org 136 Contact Information Contact Information 8 1 Support Email Support LulzBot com Phone 1 970 377 1111 x610 8 2 Sales Email Sales LulzBot com Phone 1 970 377 1111 x600 8 3 Websites Aleph Objects Inc the makers of LulzBot 3D Printers www AlephObjects com LulzBot 3D Printers and parts www LulzBot com forum LulzBot com 138 Index A acetone 127 Adhesion Type 36 Advanced Options 37 advanced techniques 130 Airgap 48 aluminum panels 134 AMF 66 Apple OS X 15 17 B Base Line Width 48 Base Thickness 48 Basic Options 33 bed plate 134 belts 127 bill of materials 134 binaries 53 Black Magic 46 47 Blender 16 blog 122 BotQueue 17 Bottom Layer Speed 40 Bottom Thickness 34 Brim 22 36 47 burns x bushings 126 C CAD 15 139 calibration 54 134 Combine Type A 49 Combine Type B 49 Combing 43 command line 114 community support 122 136 configuration export 109 import 109 Configuration Wizard 56 Control 29 Cooling 45 cooling 92 fans 93 slowing down 94 Cura 20 134 Custom Gcode 42 Cut Off Object 39 D download 15 53 127 134 driver 15 Dual Extrusion Overlap 39 E electronics x 128 134 Enabling Cooling Fan 40 Expert Settings 4
8. Level bed Having a level bed is critical If the distance between the nozzle tip and the bed deviates by even a small amount it can result in either the material not lying down on the bed because the nozzle is too close and scrapes the bed instead or the material lying too high from the bed and not adhering correctly Higher temperature The extruder hot end and bed if it is heated can be made hotter for the first layer thus decreasing the viscosity of the material being printed As a rule of thumb an additonal 5 is recommended Lower speeds Slowing down the extruder for the first layer reduces the forces applied to the molten material as it emerges reducing the chances of it being stretched too much and not adhering correctly 30 or 50 of the normal speed is recommended Correctly calibrated extrusion rates If too much material is laid down then the nozzle may drag through it on the second pass causing it to lift off the bed particularly if the material has cooled Too little material may result in the first layer coming loose later in the print leading either to detached objects or warping For these reasons it is important to have a well calibrated extrusion rate as recommended in 3 3 First layer height A thicker layer height will provide more flow and consequently more heat making the extrusion adhere to the bed more It also gives the benefit of giving more tolerance for the levelness of the bed It is recommended
9. behind it File Tools Machine Expert Help Material ease of use y Beginner zl E Material HIPS eSUN z Material Information Select a quickprint profile Standard High speed O High detail Other options C Print support structure C Print brim Figure 2 7 View in Ghost Xray Xray is very similiar to Ghost mode It will alow you to see into objects ensuring that inner details are correct File Tools Machine Expert Help Material ease of use Beginner Material HIPS eSUN pa Material Information Select a quickprint profile Standard High speed High detail Other options O Print support structure O Print brim Figure 2 8 View in Xray 27 Cura Layers To view the toolpath of your print head and to ensure no skipped layers or gaps use this option Use the slide bar on the right hand side of the window to move up and down through the toolpath layers The button just below the slide bar will toggle cumulative layers and individual layers File Tools Machine Expert Help Material ease of use Beginner lz Material HIPS eSUN Material Information Select a quickprint profile Standard High speed High detail Other options O Print support structure C Print brim Figure 2 9 View in Layers file Tools Machine Expert Help Material ease of use Beginner
10. e Solid infill The bottom of the model and any additional solid layers is usually slightly slower than infill but faster than perimeters e Top solid infill Allow time for the extrusion to cleanly cover the previous top layers and result in a tidy top surface The last few layers should have bridged the infill structure nicely preparing the way for a neat finish e Support material Generally support structures are quick and dirty and so long as the base is adequately supported they can be built as quickly as they can e Bridges Having the extrusion span distances depends on the material and cooling Going too slow will result in sagging too fast will result in broken strands Experimentation is the key here but generally bridging runs slower than perimeters Gap fill Filling in small gaps results in the extruder quickly oscillating and the resulting shaking and resonance could have a detrimental affect on the printer A smaller value here can guard against this A setting of zero disables gap filling completely e Travel As fast as your printer will allow in order to minimise ooze e First layer speed As mentioned in subsection 3 3 the first layer is important to lay down correctly and a slower pace helps enormously Setting a value of 50 or even less can really help Acceleration control is an advanced setting allowing acceleration settings for perimeters infill bridge as well as a default setting to be mad
11. load lt file gt Load configuration from the specified file It can be used more than once to load options from multiple files o output lt file gt File to output gcode to by default the file will be saved into the same directory as the input file using the output filename format to generate the filename j threads lt num gt Number of threads to use 1 default 2 GUI options no plater Disable the plater tab gui mode Overrides the configured mode simple expert Output options output filename format Output file name format all config options enclosed in brackets will be replaced by their values as well as input_filename_base and input_filename default input_filename_base gcode post process Generated G code will be processed with the supplied script call this more than once to process through multiple scripts export svg Export a SVG file containing slices instead of G code m merge If multiple files are supplied they will be composed into a single print rather than processed individually Printer options nozzle diameter Diameter of nozzle in mm default 0 5 print center Coordinates in mm of the point to center the print around default 100 100 z offset Additional height in mm to add to vertical coordinates default 0 https github com kliment Printrun 114 3 8 ADVANCED TOPICS gcode flavor The type of G code to generate reprap teacup makerbot sailfi
12. 30 external perimeter speed Speed of print moves for the external perimeter in mm s or over perimeter speed default 70 infill speed Speed of print moves in mm s default 60 solid infill speed Speed of print moves for solid surfaces in mm s or over infill speed default 60 top solid infill speed Speed of print moves for top surfaces in mm s or over solid infill speed default 50 support material speed Speed of support material print moves in mm s default 60 bridge speed Speed of bridge print moves in mm s default 60 gap fill speed Speed of gap fill print moves in mm s default 20 first layer speed Speed of print moves for bottom layer expressed either as an absolute value or as a percentage over normal speeds default 30 Acceleration options perimeter acceleration Overrides firmware s default acceleration for perimeters mm s 2 set zero to disable default 0 infill acceleration Overrides firmware s default acceleration for infill mm s 2 set zero to disable default 0 bridge acceleration Overrides firmware s default acceleration for bridges mm s 2 set zero to disable default 0 default acceleration Acceleration will be reset to this value after the specific settings above 115 Accuracy options layer height Slic3r have been applied mm s 2 set zero to disable default 130 Layer height in mm default 0 4 first layer height Layer height for first laye
13. Wizard Firmware Type 57 Slic3r 2 Bed Size This setting defines the maximum distance the extruder may travel along the X and Y axis The dimensions of the Mini 3D print surface are X 160 and Y 160 Be sure to measure from the lower left corner where the extruder nozzle rests when are the home position to the maximum distance the nozzle can travel in each direction Configuration Assistant t Bed Size e Welcome Enter the size of your printers bed then click Next e Firmware Type Bed Size Noi Diameter Bed size x 158 y H58 mm Filament Diameter Extrusion Temperature Bed Temperature Finish lt Back Next gt Q Cancel Figure 3 3 Configuration Wizard Bed Size 98 3 3 FIRST PRINT 3 Nozzle Diameter The diameter of the hot end nozzle is usually clearly displayed either in the description of the hot end or in the associated documentation when the hot end is purchased The default nozzle size on the Mini hot end is 0 5mm If the nozzle was home made or came from a source without a diameter given then carefully measure the aperture as accurately as possible One way of determining nozzle size is to very slowly 1mm s extrude some filament into free air and measure the thickness of the resulting extrusion This has the benefit of taking die swell into account Configuration Assistant tx Nozzle Diameter e Welcome Enter the diameter of your printers hot end nozzle then click e Firmware Type N
14. a model has small heated bed contact points and overhangs Brim Brim will create a single layer of filament contacting and surrounding your model This will increase the surface area of the part contacting the build platform thereby preventing it from popping off the heated bed Brim will also help in situations where you are seeing corner lift Brim settings can be adjusted in the Expert Settings options Raft Raft will generate a layer of material underneath your object Raft was more often used before the addition of heated plates to increase surface area Raft settings can be adjusted in the Expert Settings options 36 2 8 ADVANCED TAB OPTIONS Filament Diameter The filament diameter setting is one of the more important settings Make sure that you update this value periodically with your average filament diameter While your filament may be referred to as 3mm it is more likely going to be near 2 9mm 0 1mm You will want this to be an accurate average as it will allow your printer to correctly calculate how much filament it is pulling into the hot end Filament Flow This controls how much filament your printer is extruding in relation to speed This setting is mainly used to adjust for filament density variations Leave this value at 100 as changing it can lead to surface quality issues 2 8 Advanced Tab Options Advanced Machine gt Nozzle size mm Retraction Speed mm s Distance
15. and only focus on the external holes This is helpful when only the outside finish of the model is important Keep Open Faces This will ignore all manifold errors in the object It can create issues generating the Gcode as Cura does not know how to interpret the open holes This option should only be used if you are sure that the holes in the mesh are intended In general you should not use this option Extensive Stiching This causes Cura to automatically add triangle meshes in an attempt to fix manifold errors This algorithm will greatly increase Gcode generation time and may end up adding in un intended meshes It is recommended that you repair your model through Meshlab or your CAD program before attempting this option 49 Slic3r Slic3r 3 1 Introduction Overview Slic3r is a tool which translates digital 3D models into instructions that are understood by a 3D printer It slices the model into horizontal layers and generates suitable paths to fill them Slic3r is already bundled with the many of the most well known host software packages Pronterface Repetier Host ReplicatorG and can be used as a standalone program This manual will provide guidance on how to install configure and utilize Slic3r in order to produce excellent prints This portion of the manual is derived from the complete Slic3r manual It has been customized for Mini users The original unabridged version can be found at manual slic3r org G
16. are available Other common non free CAD and 3D modeling software are also capable of exporting the required STL files On some CAD and 3D modeling software you will need to select millimeters as the output unit If possible it is best to build your 3D design in metric units rather than imperial units Slic3r requires STL files sized in millimeters If an STL with inches as units is loaded into the Slic3r the model will be scaled much smaller than expected You can scale the model 15 3D Printer Software by 2540 to compensate The software listed below outputs millimeters as the unit by default FreeCAD Website http free cad sourceforge net Although still in development FreeCAD is a great free libre CAD application Containing a full GUI for building CAD models FreeCAD is capable of creating simple to complex designs STL files can also easily be exported for use with 3D printing FreeCAD is available for GNU Linux Windows and Mac The latest development version is recommended OpenSCAD Website http openscad org OpenSCAD is another free libre CAD software however different than FreeCAD it is script based Rather than using a GUI to generate CAD designs OpenSCAD CAD designs are created using script based renderings Users with programming experience would find this very useful Also OpenSCAD uses a simple script language that is easy for users with little or no programming experience to learn Blender Webs
17. define how wide your support material is for the raft This setting will determine how well the surface layers of the raft print Interface Thickness This will determine how thick the surface layers of the raft are The surface layers are the platform that is built upon the supports Interface Line Width This will determine how wide the top layers of the platform will be In general you can keep this set to your nozzle size as surface quality of the removable raft is not important Airgap This will define the distance between your raft and your print A larger gap will make your part easier to remove but will make the bottom of your print look worse Surface Layers This will determine the number of layers that create the platform of your raft If you have a wide line spacing you may want to increase this number to ensure a solid platform 2 19 Fix Horrible These are some of the more advanced and experimental options They are designed to help repair models with errors to make them suitable for 3D 48 2 19 FIX HORRIBLE printing They do not always work Please be cautious when using these options as they can have unintended effects on your print quality Combine Everything Type A This will attempt to fix all external mesh errors while keeping internal holes intact This can accidentaly fill in intentional internal holes Combine Everything Type B This will ignore all internal holes of the model
18. ease of use Beginner z Material HIPS eSUN z Material Information ES 96 quater 6 am jam Select a quickprint profile Standard High speed High detail Other options C Print support structure Print brim Figure 2 3 Rotating your Model Lay Flat The Lay Flat button will ensure that the flat portion of your print is securely attached to the bed It is highly recommended to use this option after rotating your model in the Z direction as it will help prevent adhesion issues during the print Reset The Reset button will return your model to the original orientation as defined by the CAD program used to create the model Scale The Scale button displays the model dimensions along with the ability to scale along the X Y or Z axes Anything below the number 1 0 will reduce the objects size while anything above the number 1 0 will increase the objects size As a default it will be set to uniform scaling This will cause the X Y and Z axes to be scaled by the same amount when you make a change to any of them To disable this select the lock in the lower section 24 2 3 VIEW OPTIONS of the scaling window File Tools Machine Expert Help Material ease of use S mues Material mawr 6 HIPS eSUN y Material Information Select a quickprint profile e Standard High speed High detail W D H 73 3 74 0 23 5 mm Other options Pr
19. oa Material E 26 m n HIPS eSUN RA 0 80 meia Material Information Select a quickprint profile Standard O High speed High detail Other options L Print support structure D Print brim Figure 2 10 Viewing Specific Layers 28 2 4 STARTING YOUR FIRST PRINT file Tools Machine Expert Help Material ee mines HIPS eSUN lr 0 80 meter 6 gram Material Information Select a quickprint profile Standard High speed High detail Other options Print support structure T Print brim Figure 2 11 Viewing Individual Layer 2 4 Starting Your First Print Once you have your model profile and filament loaded it is time for your first print Control Connect your 3D printer to a computer using a USB cable and power it on and select the Control button You must have an STL file loaded in order for the control button to appear This will bring up your Pronterface user interface You will not be able to send any commands until the window title changes to Operational As soon as it is operational select Print This will start the printing process set the appropriate temperatures go through the auto leveling procedure and start printing your model Watch your automatic bed leveling sequence every print If your nozzle bends down your corner washers turn off the printers power and restart the print 29 Cura Operational Temperature 22 Bed 22
20. personal taste The more exotic fill methods are usually too slow and unnecessarily complex for most use cases and so most of the time the infill http slic3r org blog tip printing vases 74 3 4 SIMPLE MODE pattern is either rectilinear line or honeycomb Honeycomb gives the most strength but is slower than both rectilinear or line Support material Printing a model from the bottom up as with FDM means that any significant overhangs will be printed in the air and most likely droop or not print correctly Choosing support material Generate support material will add additional structures around the model which will build up to then support the overhanging part The Pattern spacing option determines how dense the support material is printed Figure 3 17 An example of an object printed with support material Tip It is sometimes worth considering altering the orientation of the model in order to possibly reduce overhangs Raft layers will add additional layers underneath the model and stems from the early days of 3D printing It can help with prints without a heated bed or where the bed is not very flat but it is usually not required and is not recommended The raft also requires post processing to remove it Speed In simple mode there are only three speed settings to consider e Perimeters The outline of the model may benefit from being printed slightly slower so that the outside skin of the print has fewer blemishes
21. skipping steps and it is worth experimenting with this value to find the quickest retraction possible e Extra length on restart Adds an extra length of filament after the retraction is compensated after the travel move This setting is rarely used however should the print show signs of not having enough material after travel moves then it may be useful to add a small amount of additional material Minimum travel after retraction Triggering a retraction after very short moves is usually unnecessary as the amount of ooze is usually insignificant and it slows down the print times Set the number of millimeters minimum distance the nozzle must move before considering a retraction If the printer handles ooze well this can be increased to 5 or 6mm e Retract on layer change Movement along the Z axis must also be considered when dealing with oozing otherwise blobs may occur It is recommended to leave this setting on e Wipe before retract Moves the nozzle whilst retracting so as to reduce the chances of a blob forming Additionally there are several settings in the Print tab which can help control oozing 90 3 5 EXPERT MODE Only retract when crossing perimeters Infill Tells Slic3r to only retract if the nozzle will cross the threshold of the current island being extruded Slight ooze within the walls of a part are not seen and can usually be accepted Avoid crossing perimeters Layers and perimeters Advanced Wil
22. that no perimeters are crossed default no external perimeters first Reverse perimeter order default no only retract when crossing perimeters Disable retraction when travelling between infill paths inside the same island default no solid infill below area Force solid infill when a region has a smaller area than this threshold mm 2 default 70 infill only where needed infill first Only infill under ceilings default no Make infill before perimeters default no Support material options support material support material support material support material Generate support material for overhangs threshold Overhang threshold angle range 0 90 set 0 for automatic detection default 0 pattern Pattern to use for support material default rectilinear spacing Spacing between pattern lines mm default 2 5 angle support material support material support material Support material angle in degrees range 0 90 default 0 interface layers Number of perpendicular layers between support material and object 0 default 0 interface spacing Spacing between interface pattern lines mm set O to get a solid layer default 0 116 3 8 ADVANCED TOPICS raft layers Number of layers to raise the printed objects by range 0 default 0 support material enforce layers Enforce support material on the specified number of layers from bottom regardl
23. there are reports that people have success by applying hairspray to the bed before printing Others have reported that an ABS slurry made from dissolving some ABS in Acetone thinly applied can also help keep the print attached No cooling Directly related with the above it makes no sense to increase the temperature of the first layer and still have a fan or other cooling mechanism at work Keeping the fan turned off for the first few layers is generally recommended 65 Slic3r Working with Models Yet another step lies between now and the first print a model has to found and then sliced Model Formats Slic3r accepts the following file types e STereoLithography STL files can come from a wide variety of sources and are now a de facto standard in 3D printing The files simply describe the surface geometry of a 3D object without any additional information such as color or material and it is this simplicity that has probably made the format ubiquitous e Wavefront OBJ files are an open format originally used in an ani mation application from Wavefront Technologies but has since been adopted by the wider 3D modelling community It is similar to the STL format e Additive Manufacturing File Format AMF was developed in re sponse to the limited nature of the STL format In addition to describing the geometry of the 3D model it can also describe colors and materials as well as more complex attributes such as gradient mix
24. thickness of each layer and it is the step along the vertical axis taken before extruding a new layer atop the previous one There are several factors that influence how high each layer should be e Desired resolution Lower layer height should result in prints with less noticeable ribs or bands as each layer is smaller Aesthetics plays a role here but also the type of model for example a mechanical part may not need such a high resolution finish whereas a presentation piece may do so 12 3 4 SIMPLE MODE e Print speed Shorter layers will result in smoother prints but each print will take longer simply because the extruder must trace the pattern more times A later goal will be to strike a balance between layer height the speed of the printer and the quality of the resulting print Perimeters defines the minimum number of vertical shells i e walls a print will have Unless the model requires single width walls it is generally recommended to have a minimum of two perimeters as this gives some insurance that if a subsection of the perimeter is not printed correctly then the second perimeter will help cover it The upper and lowermost layers that sandwich the model are filled with a Solid layers pattern For the bottom layers the important factor to consider is how the surface will look should there be a mistake whilst laying down the first layer and for this reason it is recommended to have at least two bottom layers
25. this speed setting between your infill and your outer shell speed Minimal Layer Time This will determine a minimum amount of time your printer will spend laying down each layer If your layer print time falls below this your printer will automatically slow down to reach this time before moving onto the next layer Tweaking this can help get cleaner crisper prints Enable Cooling Fan Enables operation of your extruder s active cooling fan The fan settings can be adjusted in the Expert Settings options 40 2 9 PLUGINS 2 9 Plugins Plugins are custom settings which will alter your print at specific points The two that come pre loaded with Cura are Tweak at Z and Pause at Height More plugins and information can be found here http wiki ultimaker com Category CuraPlugin To activate one of these highlight the desired plugin and click the drop down arrow directly below the Plugins box Help Plugins Plugins Pause at height A A TweakAtZ4 01 O Enabled plugins open plugin location Figure 2 19 View of Plugins Tweak at Z Make basic changes at specified Z heights You can determine the Z height or layer count at which you want to make a change Then choose how you would like to change your settings You can alter temperatures fan speeds and print speeds Fine tuning these for specific STL files can produce cleaner prints 41 Cura Pause at Z Height Pause yo
26. to have a helping hand when starting out with new software The configuration wizard asks a series of questions and creates a configuration for Slic3r to start with When using the pre set Mini Slic3r profiles you do not need to complete the Configuration Wizard The Configuration Wizard can be later accessed from the top menu once you are ready to start creating your own Slic3r profiles Welcome to the Slic3r Configuration Assistant Welcome Hello welcome to Slic3r This assistant helps you with the initial Firmware Type configuration just a few settings and you will be ready to print Beda To import an existing configuration instead cancel this assistant Nozzle Diameter and use the Open Config menu item found in the File menu Filament Diameter Extrusion Temperature Bed Temperature Finish To continue click Next lt Back Next gt cancel Figure 3 1 Configuration Wizard Welcome Screen 56 3 3 FIRST PRINT 1 Firmware Type The gcode produced by Slic3r is tailored to particular types of firmware The first step prompts for the firmware that the printer uses For the Mini 3D printer select RepRap Marlin Sprinter Firmware Type e Welcome Choose the type of firmware used by your printer then click Next a Firmware Type Bed Size G code flavor RepRap Marlin Sprinter y Nozzle Diameter Filament Diameter Extrusion Temperature Bed Temperature Finish lt Back Next gt Cancel Figure 3 2 Configuration
27. 2 Extensive Stiching 49 Extra Margin 47 extruder x extruder jam 127 extruders multiple 98 extrusion width 103 F fan 128 Fan Settings 45 FCC xi Filament 21 Filament Diameter 37 Filament Selection 21 Filament Settings 76 Cooling Bridges fan speed 95 Disable fan for first n layers 95 Enable fan if print time is below t seconds 95 Fan speed 94 Keep fan always on 95 Min print speed 95 Slow down if layer print time is below t seconds 95 Filament 77 Diameter 60 77 Extrusion multiplier 77 Temperature Bed 62 77 Extruder 61 77 Fill Amount 46 Fill Density 35 First Layer 64 First Print 29 Fix Horrible 48 Flow Rate 37 INDEX forums 122 136 FreeCAD 16 111 Freenode 122 136 Full Settings 31 G g code 14 gcode 14 134 Ghost 27 GitHub 53 glass 126 128 GNU Linux 15 17 grease 126 H hardware 134 hazards x heater block x 130 Hexagon 134 High detail 22 high resolution 130 High speed 22 hobbed bolt 127 Host 17 hot end 127 130 I infill 84 88 Infill Speed 40 Initial Layer 38 Initial Layer Width 38 Inner Shell Speed 40 Installation 20 Interface Line Width 48 Interface Thickness 48 IRC 122 136 Isopropyl Alcohol 126 L latex 134 140 INDEX Layer Height 33 layer height 104 Layers 28 Lead Screws 126 license 53 Line Count 44 Line Spacing 47 Load Model 22 Loading Profile 33 lubricant 126 M mainte
28. A similar consideration is required for the top layers Because the intermediate layers are likely to be filled with a pattern set less than 100 then the covering layers will have to bridge this pattern and this can require more than one pass to cover completely Figure 3 15 An example of insufficient top layers 73 Slic3r Another tip to consider Setting the top solid layer to zero and setting the infill also to zero will result in a hollow receptacle ideal for turning models into vases for example Here manipulating the settings within Slic3r can be used to generate different kinds of prints and not only be used to control surface accuracy Figure 3 16 Creating a vase from a solid model Infill Fill density is defined on a scale of between 0 and 1 where 1 is 100 and 0 4 would be 40 For the majority of cases it makes no sense to 100 fill the model with plastic this would be a waste of material and take a long time Instead most models can be filled with less material which is then sandwiched between layers filled at 100 see Solid layers above A density value of 0 4 is enough to give almost all models good mechanical strength A value of 0 2 is usually the minimum required to support flat ceilings Slic3r offers several fill patterns which will be discussed in more depth in subsection 3 5 Infill Choices Choosing a Fill pattern will depend on the kind of model the desired structural strength print speed and
29. Pattern Angle 98 Pattern Spacing 98 Pattern spacing 75 Raft layers 75 Print Speed 35 printed parts 134 Printer Host 14 Printer Settings 77 Custom G code End G code 79 Start G code 79 Tool change G code 101 Extruder Extruder offset 100 Nozzle diameter 59 79 Firmware G code flavour 57 79 Size and coordinates 78 INDEX Bed size 58 78 Print center 78 Z offset 78 Printing 71 Printing Temperature 35 Printrun 134 profiles 109 create 109 delete 110 Q Quick Print Profile 21 Quick Print Settings 21 R Raft 36 47 RAMBo 128 134 Removing a Print 31 RepRap 122 136 Resolution 21 Retraction 34 43 retraction 89 Retraction Distance 38 Retraction Speed 38 S scripting 114 scripts 119 Sequential Printing 112 Shapesmith 16 Shell Thickness 34 simple mode 71 Skirt 44 skirt 91 Slic3r 134 Slicers 14 Slicing 14 smooth rods 126 software 14 15 17 127 134 142 INDEX Source Code 53 Z source code 134 Z hop 44 speed 80 Z Wobble 121 Spiralize 46 Standard 22 Start Distance 44 static xi STL 15 17 22 66 134 cleaning 70 Support 46 Support Material 22 45 support material 95 Support Settings 45 Support Type 35 Surface Layers 48 T technical support 136 temperature x 92 Temperatures 30 threaded extension 130 Top Thickness 34 Travel Speed 39 Tweak at Z 41 V View Options 25 W warnings X website 122 Wind
30. Smaller layer heights will also increase print time as it will take more layers to complete the object 33 Cura 0 linm 0 25mm 0 4mm Layer Layer Layer Height Height Height Figure 2 15 Differences in Layer Height Shell Thickness This defines the number of vertical walls that comprise the outside of your model We recommend keeping this set to multiples of your nozzle width Your LulzBot Mini 3D printer is equipped with a 0 5 mm nozzle Enable Retraction Retraction tells your printer to pull filament out of the hot end upon travel moves Travel moves are when your print head moves from one area of the print to another without laying down filament We recommend keeping this on for all filament types and adjusting the retraction length and speed for the specific filament Bottom Top Thickness mm Also known as Surface Layers this will determine how thick the top and bottom layers are A larger number here will create a thicker top and bottom which can be helpful for strength bridging and quality purposes We recommend keeping this number as a multiple of your layer height 34 2 7 BASIC TAB OPTIONS Fill Density This number is expressed as a percentage 0 will give a completely hollow print while 100 will give you a completely solid object We have found that 20 to 40 fill density is functional for most prints Print Speed mm s Your overall printing speed can be adjusted here If no other speeds are de
31. ady printed parts Slic3r should warn if it detects the nozzle or extruder will collide with a part but double check that the layout of the 112 3 8 ADVANCED TOPICS parts will not cause problems The Extruder clearance parameters help Slic3r detect potential collisions e Radius The clearance that should be given around the extruder Take care if the extruder is not mounted centrally take the largest safe value Height The vertical distance between the nozzle tip and the X axis rods or lowest part which may interfere with a finished print Figure 3 60 The clearance cylinder around an extruder 113 Slic3r Command Line Usage Slic3r can also be used from the command line instead of via the GUI as part of a script or as part of another tool such as Printrun All options found in the GUI can be used from the command line in the form of switch parameters The latest version of these are given below and the most up to date information can be found by issuing the command perl slic3r pl help Preset configurations can be loaded from a ini file using the load option and options can be overridden further on the command line e g perl slic3r pl load config ini layer height 0 25 file stl Command Line Options Usage slic3r pl OPTIONS file stl help Output this usage screen and exit version Output the version of Slic3r and exit save lt file gt Save configuration to the specified file
32. ages are available for Windows Mac OS X and Linux Windows and Linux users can choose between 32 and 64 bit versions to match their system Manual The latest version of full Slic3r manual with BTFX source code can be found at https github com alexrj Slic3r Manual Source The source code is available via GitHub https github com alexrj Slic3r For more details on building from source see 3 2 below Installing Linux Extract the archive to a folder of your choosing Either 53 Slic3r e Start Slic3r directly by running the Slic3r executable found in the bin directory or e Install Slic3r by running the do install executable also found in the bin folder The archive file may then be deleted Windows Unzip the downloaded zip file to a folder of your choosing there is no installer script The resulting folder contains two executables e slic3r exe starts the GUI version e slic3r console exe can be used from the command line The zip file may then be deleted Mac OS X Double click the downloaded dmg file an instance of Finder should open together with an icon of the Slic3r program Navigate to the Applications directory and drag and drop the Slic3r icon into it The dmg file may then be deleted Building from source For those wishing to live on the cutting edge Slic3r can be compiled from the latest source files found on GitHub https github com alexrj Slic3r Up to date instructions for co
33. agram Spiral 318 63mm 5m 15s Certain model types are more suited for a particular pattern for exam ple organic versus mechanical types Figure 3 30 shows how a honeycomb fill may suit this mechanical part better because each hexagon bonds with the same underlying pattern each layer forming a strong vertical structure m Nae SOS Figure 3 30 Infill pattern comparison in a complex object Left to Right honeycomb line Most models require only a low density infill as providing more than say 50 will produce a very tightly packed model which uses more material than required For this reason a common range of patterns is between 10 and 30 however the requirements of the model will determine which density is best Figure 3 31 shows how the patterns change as the density increases 86 Slic3r Infill Optimization Slic3r contains several advanced infill settings which can help produce better extrusions Advanced Infill every 2 layers Only infill where needed Solid infill every 0 gt layers Fill angle 45 sa Solid infill threshold area 70 mm Only retract when crossing gt perimeters Infill before perimeters Figure 3 32 Infill advanced settings e Infill every n layers Will produce sparse vertical infill by skipping a set number of layers This can be used to speed up print times where the missing infill is acceptable e Only infill where needed Slic3r will analyse the model and choo
34. all then the Pattern Angle option allows the direction of the support lines to be rotated Lp A Figure 3 42 Example of pattern angle rotated 45 Multiple Extruders A printer with more than one extruder can be used in different ways The additional extruder could print a different color or material or it could be assigned to print particular features such as infill support or perimeters Multi material printing requires a suitably designed object usually written in AMF format as this can handle multiple materials see Model Formats in 3 3 Details on how to create such a file are given below 98 3 5 EXPERT MODE Configuring Extruders In the Printer Settings tab there is an Extruders option under Capabilities which allows the number of extruders to be defined In crementing this value will dynamically add another extruder definition to the left hand pane File Plater Window Help Plater Print Settings Filament Settings default 5 8 Size and coordinates General Bed size x 200 y 200 mm Custom G code Print center x 100 y 100 mm y Extruder 1 Z offset 0 mm Firmware G code flavor RepRap Marlin Sprinter Repe Use relative E distances Capabilities Extruders 1 El Advanced Vibration limit 0 Hz Figure 3 43 Multiple extruder options Printer Settings Tab General Note the two extruders defined in the left hand pane Each extruder can be configured as usual ho
35. and hot end off of the extruder mount Set the extruder body aside 5 Place the new 1 75mm compatible hot end back onto the extruder mount Make sure the wires are facing the rear of the printer 6 Place the extruder body back on top of the hot end and extruder mount Line up the two mounting holes Push the two 4mm screws through the bottom of the X carriage through the hot end and into the extruder body Thread the screws using the 3mm hex driver but leave them loose for now 7 Reconnect the hot end and extruder connectors 8 Finally push 1 75mm filament through the extruder and into the hot end This will align the filament travel path Tighten the two 4mm screws from the bottom of the X axis carriage 131 Advanced Usage Before printing with 1 75mm filament make sure to make the needed changes in your slicing software in Slic3r it can be found at Filament Settings gt Filament gt Diameter in Cura the setting can be found under the Quick Settings screen or under the Basic tab for 1 75mm filament You will need to re slice any previously sliced files with the new settings for 1 75mm filament 132 Hardware and Software Source Code Hardware and Software Source Code The LulzBot Mini 3D printer is a free libre hardware design All of the source files are available at http download lulzbot com Mini including The latest version of this document with MTX source code 3D models and print files for all
36. bottom of the hot end It has a small hole where the plastic filament comes out of the printer PEEK Polyether ether ketone an organic polymer used to insulate the hot end due to its mechanical properties at elevated temperatures PEI Polyetherimide PTFE Polytetrafluoroethylene is a synthetic fluoropolymer used in the Budaschnozzle for it s low coefficient of friction RAMBo RlepRap A duino MJega compatible Mjother Bojard De signed by Joynnyr of Ultimachine Thermistor A special type of resistor that changes resistance based on temperature It is used to measure temperature on the nozzle and the heated bed Threaded extension Used to separate the heater block and nozzle from the PEEK insulator The plastic filament passes through the threaded extension into the melting chamber 146 Colophon Created with 100 Free Libre Software GNU Linux BIEX Memoir
37. ccess to a wide variety of options You will notice 4 new tabs Basic Advanced Plugins Start End Gcode In the following sections we will describe each option and how they will affect your prints 32 2 7 BASIC TAB OPTIONS Basic Advanced Plugins Start End GCode Quality Layer height mm 0 25 Lath Shell thickness mm 1 0 v Enable retraction Fill Bottom Top thickness mm 0 8 Fill Density 20 Perimeters before Infill Speed and Temperature Print speed mm s 50 Printing temperature C 240 Bed temperature C 110 Support x Support type None None Platform adhesion type Filament Diameter mm Flow Figure 2 14 View in Full Settings Loading a Profile Profiles determine how Cura turns your STL file into Gcode that controls your printer Different filaments require different settings for optimal per formance As new filaments are being developed every day there may be a time you need to manually load a profile You can download our recommend profiles at https www lulzbot com support mini cura profiles Once downloaded load the filament specific ini file by going to File gt Open Profile 2 7 Basic Tab Options Layer Height The thickness of each printed layer is known as the Layer Height The smaller the layer height the smoother curves will appear Larger layer heights are better for bridging and overhangs
38. cessary Once satisfied click the save icon to the left above the setting titles and give a suitable name when prompted 109 Slic3r 5 Slic3r File Plater Window Help Plater Print Settings Filament Settings Printer Settings config 200s ini mod Extrusion width Layers and perimeters Default extrusion width 31 2 Infill _First layer 31 Speed o Skirt and brim Save print settings as 35 El Support material config 200s _ E y Output options Multiple Extruders upport materal Figure 3 56 Saving a profile Profiles can be deleted by choosing the profile to delete and clicking the red delete button next to the save button File Plater Window Help Plater Print Settings Filament Settings Printer Settings gs config 2 00s if Extrusion width a Default extrusion width 315 mm c Layers and perimeters hn Z infill First layer 315 mmc Speed Perimeters 0 mm c Skirt and brim Infill 35 mmc lal Support material Solid infill 0 mme ju Notes MON Top solid infill 3 mm c a Ontniut antinns y Figure 3 57 Deleting a profile 110 3 7 REPAIRING MODELS 3 7 Repairing Models If the 3D mesh described in the model contains holes or edges are misaligned known as being non manifold then Slic3r may have problems working on it Slic3r will attempt to fix any problems it can but some problems are ou
39. default 1 fan always on Keep fan always on at min fan speed even for layers that don t need cooling Skirt options skirts Number of skirts to draw 0 default 1 skirt distance Distance in mm between innermost skirt and object default 6 skirt height Height of skirts to draw expressed in layers 0 default 1 min skirt length Generate no less than the number of loops required to consume this length of filament on the first layer for each extruder mm 0 default 0 brim width Width of the brim that will get added to each object to help adhesion mm default 0 Transform options scale Factor for scaling input object default 1 rotate Rotation angle in degrees 0 360 default 0 duplicate Number of items with auto arrange 1 default 1 bed size Bed size only used for auto arrange mm default 200 200 duplicate grid Number of items with grid arrangement default 1 1 duplicate distance Distance in mm between copies default 6 117 Slic3r Sequential printing options complete objects When printing multiple objects and or copies complete each one before starting the next one watch out for extruder collisions default no extruder clearance radius Radius in mm above which extruder won t collide with anything default 20 extruder clearance height Maximum vertical extruder depth i e vertical distance from extruder tip and carriage bottom default 20 Miscellaneous options
40. e Deciding which values to set depends on the capabilities of the machine Any settings within the firmware may be a good starting point 82 3 5 EXPERT MODE Take into account any restrictions enforced by the firmware as many have settings for the maximum safe speed of each axis 83 Slic3r Infill Patterns and Density There are several considerations when choosing an infill pattern object strength time and material personal preference It can be inferred that a more complex pattern will require more moves and hence take more time and material Infill Fill density Fill pattern line v Top bottom fill pattern rectilinear y Figure 3 22 Infill pattern settings Slic3r offers several infill patterns four regular and three more exotic flavours The numbers given in brackets below each figure are a rough estimate of material used and time taken for a simple 20mm cube model Note that this is only indicative as model complexity and other factors will affect time and material Figure 3 24 Infill pattern Rectilinear 350 57mm 5m 23s Taken from http gcode ws 84 3 5 EXPERT MODE H Figure 3 25 Infill pattern Concentric 351 80mm 5m 30s Figure 3 26 Infill pattern Honeycomb 362 73mm 5m 39s AN Figure 3 27 Infill pattern Hilbert Curve 332 82mm 5m 28s Figure 3 28 Infill pattern Archimedean Chords 333 66mm 5m 27s 85 Slic3r Y Figure 3 29 Infill pattern Oct
41. e additional items or materials follow safety and usage guidelines as instructed by the manufacturer 5 2 Changing nozzles The Mini 3D printer ships with a standard 0 5mm nozzle which allows small layer resolution and layers up to 0 4mm thick Although the 0 5mm nozzle will be perfect for most printing applications LulzBot may offer smaller and larger nozzle sizes in the future The Hexagon hot end is the new all metal hot end used on LulzBot In most cases the nozzle is best changed when the hot end is slightly warm NEVER try to remove the nozzle when the hot end is at extrusion temperature At higher temperatures the threaded extension expands in the nozzle causing the nozzle to bind if turned Heat the hot end to 160 C This will soften the plastic inside the hot end and allow the nozzle to be loosened off the threaded extension Power off the printer and before it cools unscrew the nozzle Take care when removing the nozzle while the hot end is hot Wear leather gloves or use a towel to turn the nozzle off the hot end To change the nozzle you will need a 7mm wrench and slip joint or tongue and groove pliers Use the pliers to hold the rectangular aluminum heater block away from the heater resistor and thermistor wires Using the 7mm wrench turn the nozzle counter clock wise Make sure the nozzle is turning off of the heater block Do not allow the heater block to turn This can put strain on and possibly damage the wiring Once you
42. e no gaps between subsections 106 3 5 EXPERT MODE Info Layers You can use this section to override the default layer height for parts of this ohiect Set laver heiaht to 7era to skin nortions of the innut file Min Z mm Max Z mm Layer height mm 1 0 4 0 4 2 4 8 4 0 2 a m 99 4 0k Figure 3 52 Variable layer height options Layers The resulting G Code fig 3 53 shows a higher definition which should result in a higher quality print Figure 3 53 Example with variable layer height 107 Slic3r Fig 3 54 shows the example model printed The print on the left has 0 4mm layer height throughout whereas the print on the right has the variable layer height Figure 3 54 Example print with variable layer height An additional feature of the variable layers height option is that by entering a zero for a range that part of the model will not be printed Fig 3 55 shows the G Code where layers between 0 and 4mm are skipped This is a useful way of dividing a tall model into multiple shorter subsections which can be printed individually and assembled afterwards Mr Figure 3 55 Example with skipped layers 108 3 6 CONFIGURATION ORGANIZATION 3 6 Configuration Organization There are two ways in which to organize the configuration settings export ing and importing the configuration settings and profiles The former is available in both simple and expert mode whereas pr
43. ed Support generation is a relatively complex topic and there are several aspects which determine the optimal support it is strongly recommended to set the threshold to zero and allow Slic3r to determine the support required Small models and those with small footprints can sometimes break or detach from the bed Therefore the Enforce support option will cause support structures to be printed for the given number of layers regardless of the angle threshold value To demonstrate the infill patterns the minimug model was tilted by 45 along the x axis as shown in figure 3 38 96 3 5 EXPERT MODE Figure 3 38 Minimug model tilted 45 As with infill there are several patterns available for the support structure Figure 3 39 Support infill pattern Rectilinear Figure 3 40 Support infill pattern Rectilinear Grid 97 Slic3r Figure 3 41 Support infill pattern Honeycomb Pattern Spacing determines the distance between support lines and is akin to infill density apart from being defined only in mm If changing this attribute take into account the width of the support extrusion and the amount of support material that will adhere to the object Care should be taken to choose a support pattern which matches the model where the support material attaches perpendicularly to the wall of the object rather than in parallel so it will be easy to remove If the support structure does run along the length of a w
44. ed bed has cooled use the blue handled knife that was included with your printer to remove the item Carefully insert the blade of the knife between your print and heated bed Once underneath the part rotate the blade lifting with the sharp edge into the part to gently pop the piece off your plate 2 6 Full Settings When switching to full settings it is important to transfer over a filament specific profile Your LulzBot Mini Operates on filament specific profiles and if you do not transfer over the settings your Mini will not function as intended The first time Cura is launched it will default to the Quick 31 Cura Print interface In order to have more control of your slicing and Gcode generation switch to Full Settings First select your intended filament and desired resolution Then Select Expert gt Switch to full settings Be sure to select Yes when prompted File Tools Machine Expert Help Material ease of use Beginner nA Material SS MNS HIPS eSUN E 0 80 meter 6 gram Material Information Select a quickprint profile le Standard High speed High detail Profile copy x Copy the settings from quickprint to your full settings mig will overwrite any full setting modifications you have Other options C Print support structure C Print brim Figure 2 13 Transferring a Profile Once the switch has been made to full settings you will now have a
45. elow the traditional RepRap Minimug is loaded and is viewed from above The ring around the model is a skirt a single perimeter several millimeters away from the model which is extruded first This is useful in making sure the plastic is flowing smoothly from the nozzle when the model is starting to be printed http www thingiverse com thing 18357 68 3 3 FIRST PRINT Figure 3 11 Minimug model File Plater Window Help Plater Print Settings Filament Settings Printer Settings ba Ss 2 ex More Fewer 45 ccw 45 cw Rotate Scale Split Name Copies Scale Minimug stl 1 100 Add Autoarrange Export G code Delete Delete All Export STL Figure 3 12 STL file loaded The model can be repositioned by dragging the representation of it on the left of the screen around the bed Note that the dimensions of the bed should match your printer as given during the initial configuration above 69 Slic3r On the right hand side is the list of currently loaded files The buttons along the top of the file list allow you to arrange the models e More Less Adjust how many copies should be printed e 45 Rotate Rotate the selected model around the Z axis either in 45 increments clockwise or counter clockwise or by a given amount e Scale Increase or decrease the size of the printed model e Split Divides a model which consists of more than one part into it s constitue
46. en be instructed with G code from Slic3r to turn on or off as the model requires and to rotate at different speeds Care should be taken with the positioning of the fan so that it does not cool any heated bed more than necessary It should also not cool the heater block of the hot end so as not to force it to do more work and waste energy The air movement should aim for the nozzle tip flowing over the freshly extruded material 93 Slic3r A duct may help in guiding the flow correctly and there are several designs available online for a wide variety of printers Slowing Down Slic3r can tell the printer to slow down if the estimated layer time is above a certain threshold Care must be taken as the intended effect could be mitigated by the nozzle not moving far enough away from the fresh extrusion a problem with small detailed layers For this reason it is usually recommended to use a fan where possible Configuring In simple mode Slic3r will attempt to choose the optimal settings for both fans and speed Expert mode gives more granular options File Plater Window Help Plater Print Settings Filament Settings Printer Settings config 200s ini B Enable Enable cooling Y 9 Filament 3l g If estimated layer time is below 20s fan will run at 100 and print speed will be reduced so that no less than 20s are spent on that layer however speed will never be reduced below 15mm s If estimated layer time is grea
47. ent between extrusions Setting the Length parameter to a positive value will cause the filament to be reversed by that many millimeters before travel The retraction will then be compensated for by the same amount after the travel move before starting the new extrusion path A value of between 1 and 2mm is usually recommended Bowden extruders may need up to 4 or 5mm due to the hysteresis introduced by the tube Setting the Lift Z parameter to a positive value will raise the entire extruder on the Z axis by that many millimeters during each travel This can be useful to ensure the nozzle will not catch on any already laid filament however it is usually not necessary and will slow the print speed A value of 0 1mm is usually sufficient Start End and Layer Chance G codes Custom G code commands can be run before a print starts and after a print finishes Placeholders can be inserted in the G code commands For example next_ extruder would return the index of the next extruder The RepRap wiki is a good resource to learn about the variety of G codes available http reprap org wiki G code Note Be sure to check that a given G code is valid for your firmware https github com alexrj Slic3r wiki FAQ what placeholders can i use in custom g code 79 Slic3r The codes specified in Start G code are inserted at the beginning of the output file directly after the temperature control commands for extruder and bed Note that if tem
48. er with multiple filament options Assigning Extruders for Single material Objects For single material prints where the secondary extruder is to be tasked with a particular extrusion the Multiple Extruders subsection of the Print Settings tab gives the ability to assign an extruder to each extrusion type 100 3 5 EXPERT MODE File Plater Window Help Plater Print Settings Filament Settings Printer Settings Skirt and brim E Support material j Notes y Output options Support material interface extruder default 8 Extruders gli Layers and perimeters Perimeter extruder 1 pS 2 infill Infill extruder 1 Speed a O Sp Support material extruder 1 Advanced Figure 3 46 Multiple extruder options Print Settings Tab Configuring Tool Changes The Custom G code subsection of the Printer Settings tab has an option for inserting G code between tool changes As with all custom G code subsections placeholder variables can be used to reference Slic3r settings This includes the previous_extruder and next_extruder variables Tool change G code Figure 3 47 Multiple extruder options Tool change G code 101 Slic3r Printing Multi material Objects If a multi material AMF file already exists because the CAD program can export such a format then this can be loaded into Slic3r in the usual way The mapping between object materials and extruders is sequential i e the first material is assig
49. es and multiple object arrangements constellations Whilst the format is deemed a standard it has yet to be widely adopted in the 3D maker community Finding Models The 3D model files may come from an online repository such as Thingi verse or GrabCAD or be created from a CAD program such as FreeCAD Sketchup or OpenSCAD or an online CAD tool such as Shapesmith http www thingiverse com 3http grabcad com http sourceforge net projects free cad http www sketchup com Shttp www openscad org http shapesmith net 66 3 3 FIRST PRINT You may wish to view the files before slicing and there are many free applications available one of which is Meshlab a comprehensive tool for viewing and working with 3D files heip mydesigns signout garyhodgson abc save import export geometry E workplane v subtract W8 v cylinder x 10 y 9 LALU ri3 Figure 3 9 Shapesmith online CAD tool Working with Plater Slic3r has a tool called Plater which allows one or more models to be loaded and arranged before being sliced Shttp www meshlab org 67 Slic3r File Plater Window Help Plater Print Settings Filament Settings Printer Settings o o e 9 2 8 i Name Copies Scale Drag your objects here Figure 3 10 Plater Once you have acquired a model drag it onto the Plater window or use the Add button below the file list to load it into Slic3r In the figure b
50. ess of support material and threshold 0 default 0 Retraction options retract length Length of retraction in mm when pausing extrusion default 1 retract speed Speed for retraction in mm s default 30 retract restart extra Additional amount of filament in mm to push after compensating retraction default 0 retract before travel Only retract before travel moves of this length in mm default 2 retract lift Lift Z by the given distance in mm when retracting default 0 retract layer change Enforce a retraction before each Z move default yes wipe Wipe the nozzle while doing a retraction default no Retraction options for multi extruder setups retract length toolchange Length of retraction in mm when disabling tool default 1 retract restart extra toolchnage Additional amount of filament in mm to push after switching tool default 0 Cooling options cooling Enable fan and cooling control min fan speed Minimum fan speed default 35 max fan speed Maximum fan speed default 100 bridge fan speed Fan speed to use when bridging default 100 fan below layer time Enable fan if layer print time is below this approximate number of seconds default 60 slowdown below layer time Slow down if layer print time is below this approximate number of seconds default 30 min print speed Minimum print speed mm s default 10 disable fan first layers Disable fan for the first N layers
51. ext e Bed Size Nozzle Diameter Nozzle diameter 0 5 mm Filament Diameter Extrusion Temperature Bed Temperature Finish lt Back Next gt Cancel Figure 3 4 Configuration Wizard Nozzle Diameter 1 http forums reprap org read php 1 113374 113953 59 Slic3r 4 Filament Diameter For Slic3r to produce accurate results it must know as accurately as possible how much material is pushed through the extruder Therefore it is vital to give it as precise a value as possible for the filament diameter Although the filament used in FFF printers is sold as being either 3mm or 1 75mm this is only a general guide The diameter can vary between manufacturers and even between batches Therefore it is highly recommended to take multiple measurements from along a length of the filament and use the average For example measurements of 2 89 2 88 2 90 and 2 91 would yield an average of 2 895 and so this would be used Filament Diameter Welcome Enter the diameter of your filament then click Next Firmware Type Bed Size Good precision is required so use a caliper and do multiple measurements along the filament then compute the average Nozzle Diameter Filament Diameter Extrusion Temperature Diameter 2 89 mm Bed Temperature Finish lt Back Next gt Cancel Figure 3 5 Configuration Wizard Filament Diamter 60 3 3 FIRST PRINT 5 Extrusion Temperature The extrusion temperature will depend on t
52. f these because 200 6 25 32 5 40 4 50 nttp goo gl i0YoK lnttp goo gl ci9Gz 121 Slic3r 3 10 Slic3r Support Slic3r Support A variety of resources are available to provide support for Slic3r Wiki and FAQ The wiki provides up to date documentation and a FAQ sub section which may help resolve any queries or issues https github com alexrj Slic3r wiki Documentation e https github com alexrj Slic3r wiki FAQ Blog The Slic3r blog contains tips hints and advice e http slic3r org blog IRC Found on the irc freenode net server the following chat rooms are often filled with people who can provide real time help e reprap Highly active community of the RepRap project with many users of Slic3r e slic3r Slic3r chat room where Slic3r developers and users can provide help RepRap org Forum The RepRap forums contain a dedicated forum for Slic3r e forums reprap org list php 263 122 3 10 SLIC3R SUPPORT Issue Tracker If you find a bug in the software then raise the issue in the project issue tracker e github com alexrj Slic3r issues Please take the time to read through the existing issues to see whether the problem has already been submitted Also make sure that the problem is a bug in the application do not submit support related questions here If the bug appears to be unreported then please read the bug report guide before submitting http git io 11Hy_w 123
53. have removed the nozzle you can then thread on the other nozzle size you would like to use Make sure the nozzle has threaded correctly into the heater block before trying to turn it with the wrench Turn the nozzle clock wise until it tightens against the heater block The Mini 3D printer has a print surface of PEI This printing surface can be used without any additional bed treatment Keep the PEI sheet gt TM So 130 5 3 USING 1 75MM FILAMENT clean by wiping it with Isopropyl Alcohol and by lightly sanding the PEI surface with 2000 2500 grit sand paper 5 3 Using 1 75mm filament The Mini 3D printer is set up to use 3mm plastic filament by default Although we recommend using 3mm filament the Mini is also capable of printing 1 75mm filament To print with 1 75mm filament you will need to purchase a 1 75mm compatible Hexagon hot end or any other compatible hot end To change out the hot end 1 Remove the plastic filament from the extruder if there is any currently loaded by bringing the hot end up to extrusion temp and pulling out the filament 2 Using the printer host software s manual controls raise the Z axis to 150mm 3 Turn off all power to the printer and allow the hot end to cool Disconnect the hot end and extruder connectors on the extruder assembly 4 Using a 3mm hex driver loosen and remove the two 4mm screws from the bottom of the extruder X axis carriage This will allow you to lift the extruder body
54. have these categorized into ease of use depending on skill level Select A11 in order to view all 19 types of filament Selecting a Quick Print Profile The print quality settings can be found in the top left hand corner of the window For most filaments there will be Standard High speed or High detail options Some of the more exotic filaments may only have a Standard profile 21 Cura High detail Designed to give greater detail and finer objects This will have a smaller layer height which will make each layer thinner so that curves seem more natural and walls seem less noticable This setting will also require more layers to be laid down increasing overall print time Standard Designed to give a medium resolution by increasing the layer height and print speeds This will make the organic curves slightly more step like than the fine setting but will reduce printing time High speed Designed for the fast prints where overall model finish is not of concern Most commonly used for quick iteration of designs found in rapid prototyping Printing Support Material The LulzBot Mini 3D printer is able to print models that have angles and overhangs even without support material depending on the overhang distance and angle Turn this option on if your model could benefit from support material Brim Brim is used to increase surface area of the part your printing thereby ensuring proper part adhesion This will print a single
55. he Expert Mode Figure 3 20 Simple Mode Printer Settings Size and coordinates The Bed size setting is taken from the wizard see p 58 and is only used for previewing the model in the plater The Print center is the point around which the print will be centered A Bed size of 200mmx200mm and a Print center of 100mmx100mm would sit the print in the middle Should it be desired to print away from the center because of a scratch in the glass perhaps then this option should be used Z offset can be used to compensate for an incorrectly calibrated Z end stop If the nozzle stops slightly too far from the bed then adding a 78 3 4 SIMPLE MODE negative value will offset all layers by that amount The correct solution however is to fix the end stop itself The optimal Z endstop position is where the nozzle tip barely touches the surface of the bed when homed A sheet of paper makes a good gauge for this very small distance It is not recommended to use this setting to try and improve layer adhesion by squashing the bottom layer into the bed instead look at the suggestions in subsection 3 3 Firmware As selected in the wizard see p 57 G code flavour defines the dialect of G code generated Extruder Nozzle diameter was defined in the wizard see p 59 Retraction Unless the material being extruded has a very high viscosity it may ooze between extrusions due to gravity This can be remedied by actively retracting the filam
56. he material and most can operate over a range of temperatures The supplier should provide guidance as to which temperatures are suitable A very general rule of thumb is that PLA lies between 160 C and 230 C and ABS lies between 220 C and 240 C More exotic materials will have a different range This is one parameter which you will want to fine tune when you start producing prints The optimal temperature can vary even between colors of the same material Another factor which may affect the chosen temperature is how fast the extrusion is where generally faster extrusion runs hotter Note One may choose to control the extruder temperature manually from the printer controller In this case the temperature can be set to zero Extrusion Temperature e Welcome Enter the temperature needed for extruding your filament then e Firmware Type click Next Beddi A rule of thumb is 160 to 230 C for PLA and 215 to 250 C for e Nozzle Diameter ABS e Filament Diameter o Extrusion Temperature 6 Bed Temperature A pS Finish lt Back Next gt Cancel Figure 3 6 Configuration Wizard Extrusion Temperature 61 6 Bed Temperature Slic3r If the printer has a heated bed then this parameter may be set As with the extruder temperature the value will depend on the material used A rule of thumb is that PLA requires 35 C 60 C and ABS requires 85 C Note One may choose to control the bed temperature manually from the pri
57. int head from traveling over holes in the X Y plane when printing This will slightly increase print time but will prevent strings from getting caught on the holes during travel moves We recommend keeping this setting on 43 Cura Minimal Extrusion Before Retracting This will control the distance at which retraction occurs if the printing movement exceeds the minimum extrusion amount This will prevent a retraction move if your extruder has not put out Xmm of filament since its last retraction Z Hop When Retracting This will raise your print head Xmm while retracting This setting helps prevent ooze and strings from being deposited on your print 2 13 Skirt Skirt creates a line around the outside of your object Most commonly used to prime the extruder in order to prevent missed filament at the beginning of a print Leave this setting on Line Count This will define the number of loops the Skirt creates around the outside of your object Smaller models will require more loops to properly prime the extruder Start Distance This will define the distance away from your model that the skirt will be created If using as an envelope to prevent drafts it is recommended to be closer to your object Minimal Length This will define the minimum extruded line length for the skirt This will over ride your line count producing as many lines as required to reach the minimal length 44 2 14 COOL 2 14 Cool This sect
58. int support structure Scale X Scale Y Scale Z SEAN 73 28 SARA DN 73 98 SAA DN 23 47 Uniform scale a Print brim Figure 2 4 Scaling your Model 2 3 View Options This mode allows you to view your model in a variety of different ways This can be helpful for spotting issues before the print even starts Normal This is the standard view and shows the solid outer surfaces of the model Fig 2 5 page 26 25 Material ease of use Cura File Tools Machine Expert Help Material e Standard High speed High detail Other options C Print brim Beginner z HIPS eSUN hA Material Information Select a quickprint profile C Print support structure Figure 2 5 View in Normal Mode Overhang Overhang mode shows where your model may need support material In Fig 2 6 page 26 the red highlighted areas show overhangs and more severe angles and areas where support material is recommended Material ease of use File Tools Machine Expert Help Beginner Material il Mimies 0 29 meter 8 gram HIPS eSUN Material information Standard High speed High detail Other options C Print brim Select a quickprint profile C Print support structure Figure 2 6 View in Overhang 26 2 3 VIEW OPTIONS Ghost Ghost view mode makes the model translucent to allow you to see what is
59. ion will define how your extruder cooling fan will operate during the print Your fan will not start until it has reached 25 or higher for speed settings If your print speeds are slowed down due to minimal layer time the fan will run between minimum and maximum speed based upon how much the layer is slowed down Fan on at Full Height This is your Z height where your fan will be turned on to its minimum percentage setting Especially helpful with high temperature retaining filaments such as PLA This will be scaled between 0 and your minimum fan speed based upon layer height with it being disabled for the first layer Fan Speed Min This will be the speed your fan runs when enabled at full height Once the Z height is reached for Fan on at Full Height this will be the speed your fan runs at Fan Speed Max This is the fastest speed at which your fan will ever run When your print speed is slowed down due to minimal layer time your fan will run between minimum and maximum speed The maximum fan speed is reached when your printer must be slowed by 50 or greater 2 15 Support You define how your support material is generated here You must have some form of support turned on in the basic settings in order for these settings to have an effect Structure Type You can choose between a Grid or a Line pattern for your support material The grid will be a checkerboard pattern in the X and Y direction The 45 Cura line option
60. ite http blender org The most widely used free libre 3D modeling software Blender is well documented with tutorials available on the Blender org website as well as found online Shapesmith Website http shapesmith net Shapesmith is a web based 3D modeling software This means there is no required software to get started designing models Shapesmith is also a great choice for anyone starting out in CAD 3D modeling 16 1 5 ALTERNATIVE PRINTER HOST SOFTWARE 1 5 Alternative Printer Host Software OctoPrint Website http octoprint org Octoprint is a printer host that uses a web based interface to access and control the 3D printer Added web cam functionality allows for time lapse videos and a live stream Octoprint will run on Windows Apple and Linux based computers and can even run well on a Beagle Bone Black or a RaspberryPi inexpensive business card sized computers BotQueue Website https www botqueue com Botqueue works well for those users wanting to have a web based multiple 3D printer operation running off a queuing system MatterControl Website http www mattercontrol com MatterControl is another printer host that currently runs on Windows and Apple computers It features 2D and 3D model viewing a print queue and print file organization and searching 17 Cura Cura 2 1 Cura Setup Cura Cura is available for download on our website at https www LulzBot com cura When i
61. l force the nozzle to follow perimeters as much as possible to minimise the number of times it must cross them when moving around and between islands This has a negative impact on both G code generation and print times Randomize starting points Layers and perimeters Vertical shells As the extruder moves up to the start of the next layer any ooze can result in blobs If the same start point is used for every layer then a seam can form the length of the object This setting will move the start point to a different location for each layer See also subsection Sequential Printing on page 112 for another technique which can minimise strings forming between objects Skirt The Skirt setting adds an extrusion a short distance away from the perimiter of the object This can ensure that the material is flowing smoothly from the extruder before it starts on the model proper Skirt Loops 2 3 Distance from object 6 mm Skirt height 1 layers Minimum extrusion length 0 mm Figure 3 34 Skirt settings Loops How many circuits should be completed before starting on the model One loop is usually sufficient 91 Slic3r e Distance from object The millimeters between the object and the skirt The default of 6mm is usually sufficient e Skirt height The number of layers to lay down a skirt for For ensuring the material is flowing smoothly one layer is sufficient however the skirt function can also be used to build wa
62. l message in the bottom left corner will indicate if the model appears to have problems http sourceforge net projects free cad 111 Slic3r e From the menu choose Meshes gt Analyze gt Evaluate amp Repair mesh to bring up the repair options dialog e From the options dialog choose the loaded mesh then perform each analysis be clicking the Analyze button by each problem type or select Repetitive Repair at the bottom to perform all checks If a corresponding problem is detected the Repair button becomes enabled e For each desired repair hit the Repair button e It is important to review the effect the repair script has made to the model It may be the case that the script damages the file rather than repair for example by removing important triangles e Export the repaired model via the Export menu option or context menu 3 8 Advanced Topics Sequential Printing When printing several objects at once it can be useful to print each one separately as this will minimise oozing and strings running between the prints It will also decrease the risk of a problem ruining the entire print if one part detaches or fails in some way it will not be dragged into other parts of the print during each layer Sequential printing Complete individual objects T Extruder clearance mm Radius 20 Height 20 Figure 3 59 Sequential printing options Care has to be taken that the nozzle and extruder does not interfere with alre
63. layer high edge around the outside of the part helping first layer adhesion and minimizing warping Load Model File Select the model you would like to print Either use the Load Model button or select File gt Load Model Once the file has been loaded you will see a 3D rendering of your object on the build platform Select the model to see the various options 22 2 2 QUICK PRINT SETTINGS Model Orientation Move your model to change where it is printed on the build plate Do this by left clicking on the model and dragging it to the desired location The black outlined corner represents the lower left hand corner of the build plate on your printer You can also Right Click and hold in the build screen to view your model from different angles File Tools Machine Expert Help Material ease of use Beginner Material HIPS eSUN Material Information Select a quickprint profile e Standard D High speed High detail Other options O Print support structure C Print brim Figure 2 2 Options after selecting model Rotate The Rotate button will give you the ability to orient your model in all three axes Once you click the rotate button three circles will surround your model The red circle will allow you to rotate around the Z axis The Yellow circle will rotate around the Y axis The Green circle will rotate around the X axis 23 Cura File Tools Machine Expert Help Material
64. lls around the object in case it should be protected from drafts e Minimum extrusion length Dictates a minimum number of mil limeters that the skirt should be should the loop around the object not be enough Cooling Temperature plays a key part in determining print quality Too hot and the material deforms too cool and layer adhesion may be problematic Applying cooling will allow the freshly deposited material to solidify enough to provide a good base for the next layer helping with overhangs small details and bridges There are two main techniques for cooling adding a fan and slowing down the print speed Slic3r may choose to use both techniques using a fan first and then slowing down the print if the layer time is too fast 92 3 5 EXPERT MODE 1 threshold 2 threshold THEN SLOWDOWN FIRST ENABLE THE FAN 0 print speed 100 min print speed min fan speed estimated layer time Figure 3 35 Cooling strategy Figure 3 35 shows the strategy adopted by Slic3r Reading from right to left when the minimum fan threshold 2 is reached the fan is turned on This increases in intensity as the layer time decreases The print speed remains constant until the estimated print time drops below a certain threshold 1 this is when the print speed is reduced until it reaches it s minimum value Fans Most electronics and firmware allow the addition of a fan via a spare connector These can th
65. mm Quality Initial layer thickness mm 0 425 Initial layer line width 125 Cut off object bottom mm 0 0 Dual extrusion overlap mm 0 15 Travel speed mm s 175 Bottom layer speed mm s 15 Infill speed mm s Top bottom speed mm s Outer shell speed mm s Inner shell speed mm s Cool Minimal layer time sec Enable cooling fan Figure 2 17 View of Advanced Tab 37 Cura Nozzle Size mm This defines your nozzle size The slicing engine uses this value combined with your other settings to determine how quickly to feed filament into your hot end The Mini ships with a 0 5mm nozzle Retraction Speed mm s Retraction Speed determines the speed at which your filament is reversed out of the hot end for travel moves and when changing direction during printing We recommend keeping this set to 25mm s Retraction Distance Retraction Distance determines how much filament is pulled out of your hot end on travel moves and when changing direction You will want to adjust this depending on temperature settings and filament type Higher thermal retaining filaments such as PLA behave better with a longer retraction distance We have found anywhere from 1mm to 3mm is a good starting range Initial Layer Thickness This will control how thick your first printed layer height is printed onto the heated bed Having a larger initial layer height will help prevent your part from popping off the plate Your LulzBo
66. more speed but more memory usage Resolution 0 mm Figure 3 48 Extrusion widths options One reason for modifying the extrusion width has already been discussed increasing first layer extrusion width in order to improve bed adhesion see p 65 There are some further cases where it may be beneficial to modify extrusion widths e Perimeter A lower value will produce thinner extrusions which in turn will produce more accurate surfaces e Infill and Solid Infill A thicker extrusion for infill will produce faster prints and stronger parts e Top infill A thinner extrusion will improve surface finish and ensure corners are tightly filled e Support material As with the infill options a thicker extrusion will speed up print time 103 Slic3r It is important to remember that if the extrusion width is expressed as a percentage then this is computed from the Layer height property and not the Default extrusion width setting Variable Layer Height Slic3r gives the ability to adjust the layer height between arbitrary positions along the Z axis That is parts of the model could be printed with a coarse layer height for example vertical subsections and other parts could be printed with a finer layer height for example sloping gradients where layering appears more pronounced The model in fig 3 49 gives a rudimentary example of where variable layer heights could be used to improve print quality The walls of the structure
67. mpiling and running from source can be found on the Slic3r wiki 3 3 First Print Calibration Before even attempting the first print it is vital that the printer is correctly calibrated Skipping or rushing this step will result in frustration and 54 3 3 FIRST PRINT failed prints later so it is important to take the time to make sure the machine is correctly set up Your LulzBot Mini 3D printer has already been calibrated prior to leaving the factory Be sure to complete the Setup and First Print section of this manual before moving forward with Slic3r If you are just beginning with 3D printing or Slic3r LulzBot recom mends starting with our pre set Slic3r profiles You can find the Mini Slic3r profiles at https www lulzbot com support downloads For information on loading and export Slic3r profiles please see page 109 Note that the pre set profiles will only work correctly when Slic3r is in Expert mode The pre set profiles will give you Slic3r settings that will work great on most designs The Slic3r manual can be used as a reference in building knowledge of Slic3r settings while using the pre set profiles Once you have a number of prints completed you can use the Slic3r manual as a reference to make small adjustments to the pre set profiles or begin creating your own profiles 59 Slic3r Configuration Wizard Slic3r has two features to aid newcomers the configuration wizard and simple mode Sometimes it is nice
68. nance 126 Marlin 134 Material Selection 21 MatterControl 17 Menu Combine multi material STL files 102 Minimal Layer Time 40 Minimum Travel 43 Minmal Length 44 models 66 finding 66 N novelties 134 nozzle 128 130 Nozzle Size 38 nozzle wipe 128 O OBJ 66 OctoPrint 17 ooze 89 Open Faces 49 OpenSCAD 16 operating system 15 Orientation 23 141 Outer Shell Speed 40 Overhang 26 Overhang Angle 46 P Pause at Z Height 42 PEI 130 PEI surface 126 Plater 67 100 Plugins 41 post processing 119 power supply x Print Settings 71 Brim 76 Brim width 76 Infill 74 Fill angle 88 Fill density 74 84 Fill pattern 74 84 Fill Top bottom fill pattern 84 Infill before perimeters 88 Infill every n layers 88 Only infill where needed 88 Only retract when crossing perimeters 88 90 Solid infill every n layers 88 Solid infill threshold area 88 Layer height 72 Multiple Extruders 100 Output options Post processing scripts 119 Perimeters 73 Sequential printing Extruder clearance 112 Skirt and brim Skirt 91 Solid layers 73 Speed 75 81 Acceleration control 82 Bridges 81 External perimeters 81 First layer speed 81 Gap fill 81 Infill 75 81 Perimeters 75 81 Small perimeters 81 Solid infill 81 Support material 81 Top solid 81 Travel 75 81 Support material 75 Enforce support 96 Generate support material 75 96 Overhang threshold 96 Pattern 96
69. nd troubleshooting 3 4 Simple Mode Simple Mode Slic3r has two modes of operation Simple and Expert These may be chosen from the Preferences window found under the File menu General Mode Expert Ir x Cancel Y OK Figure 3 13 Preferences Simple mode offers a reduced set of options enough for the beginner to get started with Expert mode gives more control over how Slic3r produces the G code and will be looked at later Print Settings The Print Settings tab provides the opportunity to change settings related to the actual print Whereas the other tabs are changed rarely the settings on this tab will be modified regularly possibly for each model printed https github com kliment Printrun http www repetier com https github com timschmidt repsnapper 71 Slic3r File Plater Window Help tti gs Filament Settings Printer Settings General Layer height 0 3 mm Perimeters minimum 2 z Solid layers Top 3 Bottom 3 Infill Fill density 0 3 Fill pattern rectilinear v Support material Generate support material Pattern spacing 2 5 mm Raft layers 0 gt layers Speed Perimeters 30 mm s Infill 60 mm s Travel 130 mm s Brim Brim width 0 mm Sequential printing Complete individual objects Extruder clearance mm Radius 20 Height 20 Want more options Switch to the Expert Mode Figure 3 14 Simple Mode Print Settings General Layer height is the
70. ned to the first extruder etc Generating multi material AMF files Slic3r has the feature to combine multiple STL files into a multi material AMF file e Split the original design into the separate parts within the CAD program and export each part as STL e Within Slic3r choose Combine multi material STL files from the File menu e When prompted with a file dialog choose the first STL which will be assigned the first material and hence the first extruder Click Open to be prompted for the next STL and so on until each STL is assigned a material To signal there are no more STL files choose Cancel e The following file dialog prompts for the location and name of the AMF file Once generated the file can be loaded and printed as described above 102 3 5 EXPERT MODE Extrusion Width File Plater Window Help Plater Print Settings Filament Settings Printer Settings config 200s ini modit Extrusion width E Layers and perimeters Default extrusion width 315 mm or leave 0 for auto infill First layer 315 mm or leave 0 for default Speed Perimeters 0 mm or leave 0 for default A Skirt and brim Infill 35 mm or leave 0 for default ial Support material Solid infill 0 mm or leave O for default A options Top solid infill 3 mm or leave 0 for default F Multiple Extruders Support material 0 mm or leave 0 for default Advanced Flow Bridge flow ratio 1 Other Threads 2
71. need not be rendered in high definition for acceptable quality however the sloping roof shows layer artifacts as the layer height of 0 4mm is too coarse particularly for the very top which is flattened This is shown in the G Code rendering in fig 3 50 Figure 3 49 Example model highlighting use case for variable layer heights 104 3 5 EXPERT MODE Figure 3 50 Example with normal layer height The variable layer height options are available by double clicking on a part name in the Plater window This will cause a pop up window to be displayed which contains two tabs The first gives some information about the model as shown in fig 3 51 105 Slic3r Info Layers Name Twisted_Vase_Basic stl Size 100 00 x 99 97 x 200 00 Facets 124 Vertices 64 Materials 1 Shells 1 Volume 1227788 00 Degenerate facets 0 Edges fixed 0 Facets removed 0 Facets added 0 Facets reversed 0 Backwards edges 0 ok Figure 3 51 Variable layer height options Info It is worth noting the height of the model as this will be useful when calculating the maximum Z height The second tab fig 3 52 presents a table where each row defines a layer height for a particular range along the Z axis given in millimeters In this example the walls of the model are printed at 0 4mm the steeper parts of the roof are printed at 0 2mm and the less steep at 0 15mm Note that each range divides exactly by the given layer height so there ar
72. nfiguration Wizard Configuration Wizard Configuration Wizard Welcome Screen Firmware Type Bed Size Nozzle Diameter Filament Diamter Extrusion Temperature Bed Temperature End Shapesmith online CAD tool Plater Minimug model STL file loaded Preferences vi 21 23 24 25 26 26 27 27 28 28 29 30 32 33 34 36 37 39 41 43 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 67 68 69 69 ral 3 14 3 15 3 16 3 17 3 18 3 19 3 20 3 21 3 22 3 23 3 24 3 25 3 26 3 27 3 28 3 29 3 30 3 31 3 32 3 33 3 34 3 35 3 36 3 37 3 38 3 39 3 40 3 41 3 42 3 43 3 44 3 45 3 46 List of Figures Simple Mode Print Settings An example of insufficient top layers Creating a vase from a solid model An example of an object Rented with usenet material An example of brim at ee a Simple Mode Filament hue Simple Mode Printer Settings Expert mode speed options Infill pattern settings Infill pattern Line 344 51mm 15 5m 208 Infill pattern Rectilinear 350 57mm 5m 23s Infill pattern Concentric 351 80mm 5m 30s Infill pattern Honeycomb 362 73mm 5m 39s Infill pattern Hilbert Curve 332 82mm 5m 28s Infill pattern Archimedean Chords 333 66mm 5m 27s Infill pattern Octagram Spiral 318 63mm 5m 15s Infill pattern comparison in a complex eave Left to oe honeycomb line oe tee Infill patterns at varying densities Left to Right 20 40 60 80 Top to Bottom Honeyc
73. ng belts pulleys or gears Tie back long hair or clothing that can get caught in the moving parts of the printer HAZARDS AND WARNINGS Static Charge Make sure to ground yourself before touching the printer especially its electronics Electrostatic discharge can damage electronic components Ground yourself by touching a grounded source like the metal housing or your computer case Age Warning For users under the age of 18 adult supervision is recommended Beware of choking hazards around small children Modifications and Repairs Warning TM At Aleph Objects Inc we respect your freedom to modify your LulzBot desktop 3D printer However any modifications or attempted repairs that cause damage are not covered under the Warranty Questions Contact Technical Support by emailing supportQlulzbot com or by calling 1 970 377 1111 Federal Communications Commission Statement This device complies with part 15 class B of the FCC Rules Operation is subject to the following two conditions 1 This device may not cause harmful interference and 2 This device must accept any interference received including interfer ence that may cause undesired operation FCC Warning Changes or modifications not approved by the party responsible for compliance could void the users authority to operate the equipment NOTE This unit was tested with a USB cable with ferrite chokes on the peripheral devices A USB cable with ferrite chokes mu
74. nstalling it is recommended to uninstall any previous versions of Cura you may have been using When first opening Cura you will be prompted to go through the First Run Wizard This will consist of selecting your printer It is important to select the correct printer as Cura uses custom profiles and machines settings based upon which printer you are running e Download the appropriate installer for your computer operating system Instructions on installation for each operating system is available at http LulzBot com cura e Install Cura by double clicking on the installer e Select LulzBot Mini e Once the proper printer is selected select Next e Select which toolhead you have installed and select Next e Select Finish Once the installation wizard finishes you can move forward with your first print 20 2 2 QUICK PRINT SETTINGS 2 2 Quick Print Settings o mODEL CONTROL eS MNS HIPS eSUN 0 80 meter 6 gram Material Information Select a quickprint profile Standard High speed High detail Other options Print support structure Print brim Figure 2 1 Quick Print Settings After setting up Cura for the first time you will be shown the main interface screen Fig 2 1 page 21 Material Selection We have the LulzBot Mini set up for 19 different types of filament straight out of the box It is important to select the proper filament as different filaments require different settings We
75. nt parts allowing each one to be arranged individually The buttons along the bottom of the file list allow you to add remove auto arrange or export the models e Add Opens a file dialog to add a model to the plater as an alternative to dropping a file directly e Delete Delete All Remove one or all models from the plater e Autoarrange Attempt to arrange the models to give the optimal layout e Export G code Starts slicing the model and produces a G Code file e Export STL Save the current set of models as a single STL file Cleaning STLs If the 3D mesh described in the model contains holes or edges are misaligned known as being non manifold then Slic3r may have problems working on it Slic3r will attempt to fix any problems it can but some problems are out of its reach If the application complains that a model cannot be sliced correctly then there are several options available see the chapter about Repairing Models 70 3 4 SIMPLE MODE Printing At this stage Slic3r has been configured and a model has been acquired sliced and made ready for print Now would be the time to fire up the printer and try it out A variety of host software is available to send the G code to the printer Amongst the open source solutions are Printrun Repetier and Repsnapper The following subsections will cover the options available in expert mode and look at advanced printing techniques including special cases a
76. nter controller In this case the temperature can be set to zero Welcome Firmware Type Bed Size Nozzle Diameter Filament Diameter Extrusion Temperature Bed Temperature Finish Figure 3 7 Bed Temperature Enter the bed temperature needed for getting your filament to stick to your heated bed then click Next A rule of thumb is 60 C for PLA and 110 C for ABS Other layers 0 C lt Back Next gt Cancel Configuration Wizard Bed Temperature 62 3 3 FIRST PRINT At this stage the wizard is complete and the basic configuration is defined Congratulations e Welcome You have successfully completed the Slic3r Configuration Firmware Type Assistant Slic3r is now configured for your printer and filament e Beda To close this assistant and apply the newly created configuration e Nozzle Diameter click Finish e Filament Diameter e Extrusion Temperature e Bed Temperature a Finish lt Back Finish Cancel Figure 3 8 Configuration Wizard End 63 Slic3r The Important First Layer Before delving into producing the first print it is worthwhile taking a little detour to talk about the importance of getting the first layer right As many have found through trial and error if the first layer is not the best it can be then it can lead to complete failure parts detaching and warping There are several techniques and recommendations one can heed in order to minimise the chance of this happening
77. oals amp Philosophy Slic3r is an original project started in 2011 by Alessandro Ranellucci aka Sound who used his considerable knowledge of the Perl language to create a fast and easy to use application Readability and maintainability of the code are among the design goals The program is under constant refinement from Alessandro and the other contributors to the project with new features and bug fixes being released on a regular basis Donating Slic3r started as a one man job developed solely by Alessandro in his spare time and as a freelance developer this has a direct cost for him By generously releasing Slic3r to the public as open source software under the GPL license he has enabled many to benefit from his work The opportunity to say thank you via a donation exists More details can be found at http slic3r org donations 92 3 2 GETTING SLIC3R 3 2 Getting Slic3r Slic3r is Free Software and is licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License version 3 Downloading From LulzBot The Slic3r version that has been tested for the Mini 3D printer can be downloaded from the LulzBot com downloads page https www lulzbot com support downloads Pre compiled packages are available for Windows Mac OS X and Linux Windows and Linux users can choose between 32 and 64 bit versions to match their system Slic3r Slic3r can be downloaded directly from http slic3r org download Pre compiled pack
78. of the printed parts in stl gcode and other original source files 3D calibration objects and random novelties Production file for calculating large print runs Design files for all electronics and machined parts LulzBot Hexagon Hot End RAMBo Mini electronics Various spec sheets Bill of materials including every part needed to build the printer LulzBot Mini LulzBot Hexagon Drawings of components Aluminum panels LulzBot Hexagon Bed plate Software binaries and source code for GNU Linux and others Also includes known good configuration files Cura LulzBot Edition Slic3r Printrun Marlin 134 3D Printer Support 3D Printer Support 7 1 LulzBot For common technical support questions for your Mini 3D printer please visit LulzBot com Support Also visit forum LulzBot com for sup port and tips from the LulzBot community If you have further ques tions e mail our support team at Support LulzBot com Please com pletely read this manual before contacting for support questions or help The latest version of this information guide is also available at http download lulzbot com You can also find more information including images videos and updated versions of this manual in the Support section of LulzBot com 7 2 Community Community Support and Resources e LulzBot forum forum lulzbot com e IRC chat rooms on the irc freenode net server reprap
79. ofiles is only available in expert mode Exporting and Importing Configuration The current set of configuration options can be simply exported via the Export Config File menu option This saves all the values into a text file with a ini extension Previously saved files can be loaded with the Load Config menu option This gives a rudimentary means to store different configuration settings for different needs For example a set with slightly faster print speeds or a different infill pattern However this way of organizing things will quickly become frustrating as each minor change to a parameter may have to be duplicated across many configurations For this reason profiles are a more suitable way of managing multiple configurations This method also allows configuration to be transferred between ma chines or stored remotely Profiles After a few prints it will become apparent that it is worth having a set of configuration options to choose from and that some parameters change at different rates as others In expert mode profiles can be created for Print Filament and Printer settings with the expectation that the printer settings change least often filament rarely and the print settings could be changed for each model These different profiles can be mixed and matched as desired and can be selected either in their respective tabs or directly from the plater Creating Profiles Open the desired tab and change the settings as ne
80. ollow with a single wall outer shell The only difference between this and Spiralize is that the Z axis moves regularly That is it prints a layer and then moves up to the next one 2 17 Brim Brim circles the base of the print while making contact helping adhere the print to the heated plate This is only one layer thick and easily removed post print This section defines how the brim is formed when brim is activated in basic settings Brim Line Amount This will determine the distance the brim will cover around the outside of your object The more brim used the better your part will adhere to the plate 2 18 Raft Raft is a platform built underneath your object designed to help adhesion and prevent warping It will lay down support material and then a platform on top of the supports Your model will be built on top of this platform The bottom surface of your printed part will not be as clean or as even when using this option Raft is typically not recommended Extra Margin This determines the distance around the outside of your object that the raft is created Can be helpful for ensuring no warping of the lower layers Line Spacing This will determine the spacing between support lines for the raft A small spacing makes the support structures closer together improving AT Cura strength of the raft but uses more material Base Thickness This defines how thick your raft will be Base Line Width This will
81. omb Concentric Line Rectilinear Hilbert Curve Archimedean Chords Octagram Spiral A RO A y e Infill advanced settings Retraction settings Skirt settings Cooling strategy Cooling advanced settings Support structure options Minimug model tilted 45 Support infill pattern Rectilinear Support infill pattern Rectilinear Grid Support infill pattern Honeycomb Example of pattern angle rotated 45 Multiple extruder options Printer Settings Tab General Note the two extruders defined in the left hand pane i Multiple extruder options Printer Settings Tab Estender Plater with multiple filament options E Multiple extruder options Print Settings Tab vii 72 73 74 75 76 TT 78 81 84 84 84 85 85 85 85 86 86 87 88 89 91 93 94 96 97 97 97 98 98 99 99 100 101 3 47 3 48 3 49 3 90 3 51 3 92 3 99 3 04 3 55 3 56 3 57 3 58 3 59 3 60 3 61 3 62 3 63 List of Figures Multiple extruder options Tool PANGE G code Extrusion widths options Example model highlighting use case for variable layer heights Example with normal layer height Variable layer height options Info Variable layer height options Layers Example with variable layer height Example print with variable layer Hegh Example with skipped aye Saving a profile Deleting a profile FreeCAD part repair Sequential printing options The clearance cylinder around an extruder Po
82. ort Minimum travel mm 15 Structure type Unes v Combing type All Overhang angle for support deg 45 Minimal extrusion before retracting mm 0 005 Fill amount 30 Z hop when retracting mm 0 1 Distance X Y mm 0 7 Skirt Distance Z mm 0 05 Line count 1 Black Magic Start distance rim 3 0 Spiralize the outer contour Only follow mesh surface Minimal length mm 250 Brim Cool Brim line amount 10 Fan full on at height mm 0 5 Fan speed min 40 Part Fan speed max 50 Erra arain tne E Minimum speed mm s 10 e Muyo 3 0 Coallhea it Base thickness mm 0 3 in Base line width mm 10 Solid infill top vi Interface thickness mm 0 27 Solid infill bottom Interface line width mm 0 4 Infill overlap 15 hese First Layer Airgap 0 5 Surface layers 2 Surface layer thickness mm 0 27 Surface layer line width mm 0 4 Fix horrible Combine everything Type A v Combine everything Type B Keep open faces Extensive stitching Ok Figure 2 20 View Expert Settings 2 12 Retraction Retraction pulls filament out of your nozzle when it is not extruding to prevent your print head from dripping on your object This section is where you will control how your extruder retracts its filament Minimum Travel This sets the minimum travel distance of your printhead in order to retract If your print head is not moving this far during travel moves it will not retract Combing This option prevents your pr
83. own the print if the layer will be completed within the given number of seconds e Min print speed A lower limit on how slowly a layer can be printed Support Material Generally most 3D models will print with overhanging parts by up to a certain degree The angle is determined by several factors most notably layer height and extrusion width and is usually around 45 For models with larger overhangs a support structure may have to be printed below it This incurs the use of more material longer print times and post printing clean up 95 Slic3r File Plater Window Help Plater Print Settings Filament Settings Printer Settings config 200s ini modit Support material Generate support material ll Layers and perimeters Infill Overhang threshold 45 aah Speed Enforce support for the first 0 gt layers G Skirt and brim il Support material Raft lu Notes Raft layers 0 gt layers y Output options y Multiple Extruders Options for support material and raft amp Advanced Pattern rectilinear X Pattern spacing 25 mm Pattern angle 0 ee Interface layers 0 gt layers Interface pattern spacing 0 mm Figure 3 37 Support structure options The first thing to do is activate the support material option by checking the Generate support material box Providing a value of zero to the Overhang threshold parameter tells Slic3r to detect places to provide support automatically otherwise the degrees given will be us
84. ows 15 17 wiping pad 128 wires x wrench 130 X Xray 27 143 Glossary gcode The file extension for G Code files 3D Printer Also referred to as additive manufacturing is the process of fabricating objects from 3D model data through the deposition of a material in accumulative layers Acetone A colorless volatile flammable liquid ketone CH3 2CO used as a solvent for ABS Acetone is not included or required with the Mini 3D printer CAD Computer Aided Design free libre Free Libre hardware and software can be thought of as free as in free speech not just free as in free beer although most free libre software is available for no cost Libre hardware designs can be copied modified and are usually available for download Free Libre software can be used in a similar fashion GCODE The common name for the most widely used CNC programming language Heater block Machined from aluminum the heater block generates heat with a heater resistor and uses a thermistor to measure the temperature Heater resistor A special type of resistor that is used to apply heat in a small area Hot end The hot end is the whole part where the plastic melts including the nozzle heater block thermistor and heat sink The Budaschnozzle is LulzBot s hot end Layer height The thickness of each individual deposited layer of the three dimensional model when cut with a slicing program 145 GLOSSARY Nozzle The metal tip at the
85. perature control commands are specified M104 and M190 then these will replace the temperature G codes introduced by the Filament settings Some common G codes to use before the print starts are G28 Homes all the axes Some common G codes to use after the print ends are e M104 SO Sets the extruder temperature to zero e M140 SO Sets the heated bed temperature to zero G28 X0 Home the X axis e M84 Disables the motors 3 5 Expert Mode Speed Once the printer is reliably producing good quality prints it may be desirable to increase the speed Doing this provides several benefits the most obvious of which is that the results are produced quicker but also faster print times can be utilised in producing more layers i e lower layer height thus improving perceived print quality An additional benefit is that a faster travel movement between extrusions can reduce the effects of oozing The best approach is to increment the various speed parameters in small steps and observe the effect each change has on print quality Travel speed is a safe starting point and it is not unrealistic to attain speeds of up to 250mm s if your printer can handle it Adjusting the speed of perimeters infill is available in simple mode and the general rule is to have the perimeter go a little slower than the infill in order to reduce possible blemishes on the surface infill can be faster because slight gaps will not matter as much Expe
86. ple Mode Filament Settings Filament The Diameter setting will already have been filled from the value given during the wizard see p 60 but can be updated here The Extrusion multiplier setting allows the fine tuning of the extrusion flow rate and is is given as a factor e g 1 means 100 1 5 would mean 150 Whilst the value should ideally be set in the firmware it can be useful to test slight changes to the rate by altering this value It varies the amount of plastic proportionally and should be changed in very small steps e g 0 05 as the effects are very visible Temperature These values are also filled from the wizard but here the opportunity exists to set the temperature for the first layer see p 64 Printer Settings The Printer Settings will be updated the least unless Slic3r is going to be used for many printers for example in a 3D printer farm TT Slic3r File Plater Window Help Plater Print Settings Filament Settings Printer Settings Size and coordinates Bed size x 298 y 280 mm Print center x 149 y 140 mm Z offset 0 mm Firmware G code flavor RepRap Marlin Sprinter Extruder Nozzle diameter 0 35 mm Retraction Length 1 6 mm zero to disable Lift Z 0 mm Start G code G28 home all axes End G code M400 M104 SO turn off nozzle temperature M140 SO turn off bed temperature G1 Y280 G28 XO home X axis M84 disable motors Want more options Switch to t
87. r mm or default 0 35 infill every layers Infill every N layers default 1 solid infill every layers Print options perimeters top solid layers Force a solid layer every N layers default 0 Number of perimeters horizontal skins range 0 default 3 Number of solid layers to do for top surfaces range 0 default 3 bottom solid layers Number of solid layers to do for bottom surfaces range 0 default 3 solid layers fill density fill angle fill pattern Shortcut for setting the two options above at once Infill density range 0 1 default 0 4 Infill angle in degrees range 0 90 default 45 Pattern to use to fill non solid layers default honeycomb solid fill pattern Pattern to use to fill solid layers default rectilinear start gcode end gcode layer gcode toolchange gcode extra perimeters randomize start Load initial G code from the supplied file This will overwrite the default command home all axes G28 Load final G code from the supplied file This will overwrite the default commands turn off temperature M104 SO home X axis G28 X disable motors M84 Load layer change G code from the supplied file default nothing Load tool change G code from the supplied file default nothing Add more perimeters when needed default yes Randomize starting point across layers default yes avoid crossing perimeters Optimize travel moves so
88. rary scripts as part of the final steps in the slicing process In the Output options subsection of the Print Settings tab lies the Post processing scripts option The absolute path to each script can be added separated by semicolons Each scripts should be recognised by the host system and be executable Output options Output filename format input_filename_base gcode Y Multiple Extruders Advanced Post processing scripts CA Tools Slic3r utils post processing filament weight pl Figure 3 61 Post processing script option Each script will be passed the absolute path of the G Code file that Slic3r generates All Slic3r configuration options are made available to the scripts by way of environment variables These all begin with SLIC3R_ The following script would write out all Slic3r options to standard output bin sh echo Post processing G code file x env grep SLIC3R Figure 3 62 Example post processing script to display Slic3r environment variables Example scripts can be found in the GitHub repository Perl s in place mode perl i makes it easy to modify the contents of the G Code file without having to copy edit then replace the original The following example will simply output the contents to standard output IShttps github com alexrj Slic3r wiki Writing post processing scripts https github com alexrj Slic3r tree master utils post processing 119 Slic3r usr bin perl i u
89. recommend printing on bare glass as it can lead to glass bed damage or failure 126 4 5 HOBBED BOLT 4 5 Hobbed Bolt The plastic filament is pulled through the extruder by a hobbed bolt After repeated use the teeth of the hobbed bolt can become filled with plastic Using the brush or pick from the printer kit clean out the hobbed bolt teeth If an extruder jam ever occurs remove the plastic filament from the extruder and clean out the hobbed bolt 4 6 Software LulzBot will release a new stable version of the software typically every quarter It is best to update the software every time a new version is released The software is as important as the hardware in printing quality parts Each quarterly software update can bring advances in print quality The files are available at http download lulzbot com Mini You can also find updated software versions at LulzBot com downloads 4 7 Belts Over long periods or after extensive relocating of the printer you may need to re tighten the belts on the Mini 3D printer For the X axis using the 2 5mm hex driver loosen one of the belt clamps The belts clamps are located on the X axis carriage To loosen the belt clamp loosen the M3 screws on the clamp Using the needle nose pliers pull the belt tight While holding the belt tight tighten down the M3 screw The Y axis belt can be tightened using the same steps as the X axis using the belt clamps found on the bottom of the Y axis pla
90. rt mode offers more parameters to fine tune printer speeds Dif ferentiation between external small and other perimeters infill locations 80 3 5 EXPERT MODE and bridges and gaps are available as well as the ability to slow down for the first layer Speed for print moves Perimeters 90 mm s Small perimeters 40 mm s or External perimeters 70 mm s or infill 100 mm s Solid infill 100 mm sor Top solid infill 50 mm s or Support material 60 mm s Bridges 60 g mm s Gap fill 40 mm s Speed for non print moves Travel 150 mm s Modifiers First layer speed 50 mm s or Acceleration control advanced Perimeters 0 mm s Infill o a mm s Bridge 0 mm s Default o mm s Figure 3 21 Expert mode speed options Where indicated a value can be given in percentage This is in relation to the preceding value e g 50 solid infill would be half of the value defined for infill A few general guidelines for each option e Perimeters In expert mode this parameter can be increased slightly as the External perimeters option can be used to ensure blemish free external faces 81 Slic3r e Small perimeters Meant for holes islands and fine details a slower speed here is recommended e External perimeters A slightly slower value may ensure cleaner surfaces e Infill As fast as you can without compromising the integrity of the fill structure Faster extrusions can break and result in weak spots
91. s a wall containing the infill Fighting Ooze Unless the material being extruded has a very high viscosity it will ooze from the nozzle in between extrusions There are several settings in Slic3r to which can help to remedy this The retraction settings found in the Printer tab tell the printer to pull back the filament between extrusion moves This can alleviate the pressure in the nozzle thus reducing ooze After the subsequent travel move the retraction is reversed to prepare the extruder for the next extrusion Retraction Length 1 6 mm zero to disable Lift Z 0 mm Speed 40 t mm s Extra length on restart 0 mm Minimum travel after 2 mm retraction Retract on layer change Y Figure 3 33 Retraction settings 89 Slic3r e Length The number of millimeters to retract Note that the measurement is taken from the raw filament entering the extruder A value of between 1 and 2mm is usually recommended Bowden extruders may need up to 4 or 5mm due to the hysteresis introduced by the tube e Lift Z Raises the entire extruder on the Z axis by that many millimeters during each travel This can be useful to ensure the nozzle will not catch on any already laid filament however it is usually not necessary and will slow the print speed A value of 0 1mm is usually sufficient e Speed The speed at which the extruder motor will pull back the filament The value should be set to as quick as the extruder can handle without
92. se strict use warnings while lt gt modify _ here before printing print Figure 3 63 Example post processing script to print each line to output 120 3 9 TROUBLESHOOTING 3 9 Troubleshooting Z Wobble Undulations in the walls of a print may be due to wobble in the Z axis A thorough analysis of the potential causes is given by whosawhatsis in his article Taxonomy of Z axis artifacts in extrusion based 3d printing however one point of particular interest for users of Slic3r is the wobble caused by motor steps not matching the pitch of the Z rods thread This can be addressed by ensuring the Layer Height setting is a multiple of the full step length The relevant part of the above paper is quoted here To avoid Z ribbing you should always choose a layer height that is a multiple of your full step length To calculate the full step length for the screws you re using take the pitch of your screws I recommend M6 with a pitch of Imm and divide by the number of full steps per rotation on your motors usually 200 Microsteps are not reliably accurate enough so ignore them for this calculation though using microstepping will still make them smoother and quieter For my recommended M6 screws this comes out to 5 microns It s 4 microns for the M5 screws used by the i3 and 6 25 microns for the M8 screws used by most other repraps A layer height of 200 microns 2mm for example will work with any o
93. se where infill is required in order to support internal ceilings and overhangs Useful for reducing time and materials e Solid infill every n layers Forces a solid fill pattern on the specified layers Zero will disable this option e Fill angle By default the infill pattern runs at 45 to the model to provide the best adhesion to wall structures Infill extrusions that run adjacent to perimeters are liable to de laminate under stress Some models may benefit from rotating the fill angle to ensure the optimal direction of the extrusion e Solid infill threshold area Small areas within the model are usually best off being filled completely to provide structural integrity This will however take more time and material and can result in 88 3 5 EXPERT MODE parts being unnecessarily solid Adjust this option to balance these needs e Only retract when crossing perimeters Retracting to prevent ooze is unnecessary if the extruder remains within the boundaries of the model Care should be taken if the print material oozes excessively as not retracting may result in enough material loss to affect the quality of the subsequent extrusion However most modern printers and materials rarely suffer from such extreme ooze problems e Infill before perimeters Reverses the order in which the layer is printed Usually the perimeter is laid down initially followed by the infill and this is usually the preferable as the perimeter acts a
94. sh mach3 no extrusion default reprap use relative e distances Enable this to get relative E values gcode arcs Use G2 G3 commands for native arcs experimental not supported by all firmwares g0 Use GO commands for retraction experimental not supported by all firmwares gcode comments Make G code verbose by adding comments default no vibration limit Limit the frequency of moves on X and Y axes Hz set zero to disable default 0 Filament options filament diameter Diameter in mm of your raw filament default 3 extrusion multiplier Change this to alter the amount of plastic extruded There should be very little need to change this value which is only useful to compensate for filament packing default 1 temperature Extrusion temperature in degree Celsius set 0 to disable default 200 first layer temperature Extrusion temperature for the first layer in degree Celsius set 0 to disable default same as temperature bed temperature Heated bed temperature in degree Celsius set 0 to disable default 0 first layer bed temperature Heated bed temperature for the first layer in degree Celsius set 0 to disable default same as bed temperature Speed options travel speed Speed of non print moves in mm s default 130 perimeter speed Speed of print moves for perimeters in mm s default 30 small perimeter speed Speed of print moves for small perimeters in mm s or over perimeter speed default
95. st be used with the unit to ensure compliance Xi 3D Printer Software 3D Printer Software 1 1 Software Overview Aleph Objects Inc the maker of the LulzBot Mini completely supports free libre hardware and software Along with the Mini being a free libre hardware design it has been tested to work with 100 free libre software Our source code and design files are hosted on our development server found at http devel lulzbot com To operate your desktop 3D printer you will need to install a few software packages onto your PC You will need a 3D printer host an STL to gcode generator and optional CAD or 3D modeling software 1 2 Software Types Printer Hosts Printer Host software is used to control the 3D printer The program not only allows you to manually move the printer along all the axes but set temperatures manually send commands and receive feed back error messages from the onboard electronics We recommend that new users start with Cura as it includes a slicing engine as well Common Printer Hosts e Cura e Printrun Pronterface e MatterControl e OctoPrint e Botqueue Slicers These programs take the 3 Dimensional model typically STL OBJ etc and determine the 3D printer toolpath based on the options selected The slicing engine uses the nozzle diameter printing and movement speeds layer height and other variables to determine the coordinates where it needs to move and the rates at which it
96. st processing script option Example post PLES ale to add Slic3r environment variables ER os Example post processing oe to cack each line to output viii 101 103 104 105 106 107 107 108 108 110 110 111 112 113 119 119 120 WARNINGS Safety Information WARNING Read Me First READ THIS MANUAL COMPLETELY BEFORE UNPACKING AND POWERING UP YOUR PRINTER Hazards and Warnings The Mini 3D printer has motorized and heated parts Always be aware of possible hazards when the printer is operational Electric Shock Hazard Never open the electronics case when the printer is powered on Before removing the electronics case cover always power down the printer by completely turning off and unplugging the power cord Allow the power supply to discharge for at least one minute Burn Hazard Never touch the extruder nozzle or heater block without first turning off the hot end and allowing it to completely cool down The hot end can take up to 20 minutes to completely cool Never touch recently extruded plastic The plastic can stick to your skin and cause burns The heated bed can reach high temperatures that are capable of causing burns Fire Hazard Never place flammable materials or liquids on or near the printer when it is powered on or operational Liquid acetone and vapors are extremely flammable Pinch Hazard When the printer is operational take care to never put your fingers in any moving parts includi
97. t Mini auto leveling system could be affected if you change this from the standard profiles Adjust at your own risk Initial Layer Line Width This will control how wide your first extruded filament path is for the initial layer A wider line width will help with bed adhesion We have found 125 to be a good starting place For models with moving printed in place parts a smaller initial layer line width is recommended Your LulzBot Mini auto leveling system could be affected if you change this from the standard profiles Adjust at your own risk 38 2 8 ADVANCED TAB OPTIONS Cut Off Object Bottom mm This setting is used to help print models that were not specifically designed for FFF printing Specifically it is for models that do not have a flat surface to adhere to the plate It will sink your object Xmm into the build plate creating a nice flat surface to begin your print You can also use this option to remove the lower portion of your model File Tools Machine Expert Help Basic Advanced Plugins Start End GCode Machine Nozzle size mm 0 5 Retraction Speed mm s 10 Distance mm pu AE Initial layer thickness mm oa Speed Travel speed mm s 175 Bottom layer speed mm s 15 Infill speed mm s 50 Top bottom speed mm s 30 Outer shell speed mm s 30 Inner shell speed mm s 35 Cool Minimal layer time sec 20 Enable cooling fan v Le
98. t of its reach If the application complains that a model cannot be sliced correctly then there are several options available and the ones described here are all free at the time of writing FreeCAD Freecad is a comprehensive and free CAD program which comes with a mesh module in which repairs to degenerate models can be made The following steps outline how a problem model file can be analysed and repaired a FreeCAD eo File Edit View Tools Macro Meshes Windows Help CEBA 0 gt 0 O Arms Je es Sr UGH BHDV Se KB Combo View ox Evaluate amp Repair Mesh o Project sra Mesh informaton e AO E Unnamed fedges 10 Pinar a Orientation E 17 pedo A Duplicated faces E No duplicated faces anatyze Repair Duplicated point E No duplicated point Analyze Repair Non manifolds pa rr 2 18 non manfolds analyze Repair Degenerated faces 7 1 degenerated faces Analyze Repar Face indices E Noinvakd indices Analyze Repar Self intersections E No selfintersections Analyze Repar Folds on surface E No folds on surface Analyze Repair All above tests together E seme 2 a an Eos L84 x 44 70 mm Figure 3 58 FreeCAD part repair e Start FreeCAD and from the start splash page choose Working with Meshes e Load the model by dragging and dropping it onto the workspace or via the File menu A smal
99. te Make sure not to over tighten the belts as this can cause unneeded stress on the printer 4 8 Hot End The hot end should be kept clean of extruded plastic by removing melted plastic strands with tweezers If melted ABS plastic builds up on the hot end nozzle you can clean it with a paper towel soaked with acetone Make sure the hot end is completely cool before attempting to clean the nozzle with acetone 127 Maintaining Your 3D Printer 4 9 Nozzle Wiping Pad Over time the nozzle wiping pad will become filled with plastic residue The pad can be flipped over once and will need to be replaced when full Replacement nozzle wiping pads are available in our online store at http LulzBot com Do not attempt to use a plastic or polymer based wiping pad as it can melt rather than clean the nozzle If the nozzle is not clean during the bed level calibration process the heated bed assembly or extruder toolhead can be damaged 4 10 Electronics The electronics case holding the RAMBo board may need dust blown out occasionally Do not open the electronics enclosure when powered as there may be high voltage present 128 Advanced Usage Advanced Usage 5 1 Intro After you become familiar with printing using the default settings a few advanced techniques may help in getting better and more consistent prints from the Mini 3D printer Some of these instructions are items and materials not included with the Mini With any of thes
100. ter but still below 60s fan will run at a proportionally decreasing speed between 100 and 35 During the other layers fan will be turned off Fan settings Fan speed Min 35 Max 100 E Bridges fan speed 100 t Disable fan for the first 1 gt layers Keep fan always on Cooling thresholds Enable fan if layer print time is below 60 approximate seconds Slow down if layer print time is below 20 approximate seconds Min print speed 15 gt mm s Figure 3 36 Cooling advanced settings 94 3 5 EXPERT MODE e Fan speed Determines the minimum and maximum speeds useful for fans that run too fast by default e Bridges fan speed As the material stretches over wide gaps it makes sense to try and cool it as much as possible therefore a full fan speed is recommended e Disable fan for first n layers Section 3 3 detailed how important the first layer is and so it makes sense not to apply the fan until sure the print is securely attached to the bed Keeping the fan turned off for the first two or three layers is a good idea e Keep fan always on Overrides any other choices and has the fan run continuously at least at the minimum speed setting This can be useful when printing with PLA but is not recommended for ABS Enable fan if print time is below t seconds Triggers the fan if the layer will be completed within the given number of seconds e Slow down if layer print time is below t seconds Slows d
101. termined in the later sections your printer will automatically default to this speed This speed will be different depending on what type of filament you are using Printing Temperature When using different filament materials you ll need to update the desired hot end and heated bed temperature Any temperatures specified here will be used to automatically set both the hot end and heated bed Your print will not begin until these temperatures are met The Mini 3D printer needs to have the temperature specified in order to run through the automatic bed leveling routine Support Type Some models will require support material in order to print properly This will usually occur when an object has an angle in relation to the build plate between 0 to 45 degrees It is highly recommended to orient your object so that it minimizes or eliminates the need for support Touching Buildplate This causes the support material to build up between the heated bed and the object The red example is Touching Buildplate Everywhere This prints support material between the heated bed and object as well as between the object and itself The green example is Support Everywhere 39 Cura Figure 2 16 Support Types Platform Adhesion Type Some models have a small surface area contacting the plate This can create adhesion issues causing your part to pop off at some point during the print To fix this use either Brim or Raft Raft is better used when
102. ting 3 10 Slic3r Support Maintaining Your 3D Printer 4 1 Overview NE G 4 2 Smooth Rods 4 3 Lead Screws 4 4 PEI Surface 4 5 Hobbed Bolt 4 6 Software 4 7 Belts 4 8 Hot End 4 9 Nozzle Wiping Pad 4 10 Electronics Advanced Usage 5 1 Intro os 5 2 Changing nozzles 5 3 Using 1 75mm filament Hardware and Software Source Code 3D Printer Support 7 1 LulzBot 7 2 Community Contact Information 8 1 Support lv 47 47 48 ol 92 93 54 71 80 109 111 112 121 122 125 126 126 126 126 127 127 127 127 128 128 129 130 130 131 133 135 136 136 137 138 8 2 Sales 8 3 Websites Index Glossary CONTENTS 138 138 139 145 List of Figures 2 1 2 2 2 3 2 4 2 5 2 6 2 7 2 8 2 9 2 10 2 11 2 12 2 13 2 14 2 15 2 16 2 17 2 18 2 19 2 20 3 1 3 2 3 3 3 4 3 9 3 6 3 7 3 8 3 9 3 10 3 11 3 12 3 13 Quick Print Settings Options after selecting model Rotating your Model Scaling your Model View in Normal Mode View in Overhang View in Ghost View in Xray View in Layers Viewing Specific Layers Viewing Individual Layer Control Screen Transferring a Profile View in Full Settings Differences in Layer Hepie Support Types View of Advanced Tab Cutoff Example View of Plugins View Expert Settings Configuration Wizard Configuration Wizard Configuration Wizard Configuration Wizard Configuration Wizard Co
103. to raise the first layer height to match the diameter of the nozzle e g a first layer height of 0 35mm for a 0 35mm nozzle Note The first layer height is set this way automatically in simple mode 64 3 3 FIRST PRINT Fatter extrusion width The more material touching the bed the better the object will adhere to it and this can be achieved by increasing the extrusion width of the first layer either by a percentage or a fixed amount Any spaces between the extrusions are adjusted accordingly A value of approximately 200 is usually recommended but note that the value is calculated from the layer height and so the value should only be set if the layer height is the highest possible For example if the layer height is 0 1mm and the extrusion width is set to 200 then the actual extruded width will only be 0 2mm which is smaller than the nozzle This would cause poor flow and lead to a failed print It is therefore highly recommended to combine the high first layer height technique recommended above with this one Setting the first layer height to 0 35mm and the first extrusion width to 200 would result in a nice fat extrusion 0 65mm wide Bed material Many options exist for the material to use for the bed and preparing the right surface can vastly improve first layer adhesion PLA is more forgiving and works well on PET Kapton or blue painters tape ABS usually needs more cajoling and whilst it can print well on PET and Kapton
104. ur print at a specified height You can also specify where to move the print head and how much filament to retract This will prevent blobs from accumulating on your print while paused This setting is most commonly used when switching colors of filaments in the middle of a print 2 10 Start and End Gcode Settings Custom Gcode allows for complex automatic printer movements and operations By adding custom Gcode into the start or end of your file you can alter how it prints A comprehensive list of Gcode commands can be found here http reprap org wiki G code We recommend new users to leave this as provided in the profiles at https www lulzbot com support downloads Mini Specific Considerations Please be cautious when changing any of these start and end gcode settings This is where your Auto Bed Leveling commands are stored If improperly altered your printer will no longer automatically compensate for the heated bed position and can even potentially damage components on the printer If you are uncertain of the change you are trying to make please contact us at Support LulzBot com before hand 2 11 Expert Settings Expert settings will give you more specific options for your retraction skirt active cooling infill support brim raft and special settings To gain access to this section you go to Expert gt Open Full Settings or on your keyboard press Control E 42 2 12 RETRACTION Expert config Retraction Supp
105. wever there are additional settings which must be set which are particular to multi extruder setups Position for multi extruder printers Extruder offset x 0 y 0 mm Retraction when tool is disabled advanced settings for multi extruder setups Length 10 mm zero to disable Extra length on restart 0 mm Figure 3 44 Multiple extruder options Printer Settings Tab Extruder 99 Slic3r The Extruder offset is to be used should the firmware not handle the displacement of each additional nozzle Your firmware documentation should tell you if this is the case Each additional extruder is given an offset in relation to the first one If the firmware does handle this then all offsets can remain at 0 0 Because the secondary extruder will be dormant whilst the first is working and vice versa it is important that the material is sufficiently retracted to stop oozing As with the regular retraction settings see p 89 the Length options is measured from the raw filament entering the extruder Assigning Filaments When a printer profile with multiple extruders has been selected the Plater tab allows the selection of a different filament for each extruder File Plater Window Help Plater Print Settings Filament Settings Printer Settings 9 9 ee Ml Name Copies Scale Drag your objects here Add Aute nge Print settings default Filament Printer default modified default Figure 3 45 Plat
106. will do so This information is exported out of the program as a gcode file The gcode file is a plain text file with a series of text based codes and a list of the complete X Y and Z axis 14 1 3 INSTALLING DRIVERS coordinates used for printing the 3D model We recommend that new users start with Cura as it includes the printer host as well Recommended Slicers e Cura e Slic3r All of the following free libre software packages are available for GNU Linux Windows and Apple OS X However we highly recommend using these programs on GNU Linux The required software can be found in the Support Downloads section at LulzBot com support downloads You will also find instructions there for installing each program onto your PC You can also find downloads specific to the LulzBot Mini 3D printer on the LulzBot Mini product page 1 3 Installing Drivers Linux and Mac OSX users will not need to install a driver to communicate with the Mini 3D printer Windows users will need to install the drivers Using Cura as your printer host and slicing software is recommended as the drivers will automatically be installed The drivers can also be downloaded from LulzBot com support downloads A visual guide showing the driver installation process can be found in our download section as well 1 4 CAD and 3D Modeling Software LulzBot is not distributing a CAD or 3D modeling software package How ever multiple free libre software packages
107. will produce lines in along the y axis for support The grid will provide stronger support than the line option but will be harder to remove Overhang Angle for Support This will determine where support material is generated In general you will be able to print a model with 45 to 90 degree angles in relation to the bed without support We recommend leaving this setting at 45 Fill Amount This will determine how dense your support material is printed similar to Infill Percentage The higher percentage the better support but it will be harder to remove the support material and will use more material Distance X Y This will determine how far away from your object in the X Y plane that the support material is being placed Distance Z This will determine how far away your support material is from your object in the vertical direction A smaller number here makes for better support but makes it harder to remove 2 16 Black Magic This section allows you to transform your model into a hollow shell a single layer thick Spiralize the Outer Contour This causes your Z axis to be constantly moving upward as printing your single outer wall shell The results are no layer change lines giving a much smoother surface This setting is typically only used for artistic objects as they will be fragile 46 2 17 BRIM Only Follow Mesh Surface This will cause your print to follow the outside of your model building it completely h

LulzBot™Mini 3D printer User Manual

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LulzBot&trade;Mini 3D printer User Manual

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LulzBot™Mini 3D printer User Manual