𝑔𝑎𝑙𝑎𝑥𝑖

The 2 is a purge line, meant to clear any pressure in the nozzle and wipe it off before a print. It can be edited in your Start G-code on the printer settings tab > custom g-code on prusaslicer.

The 1 is a skirt, meant to get rid of any last few hanging bits of filament and start a clean print (sometimes the purge line doesn’t get everything off the nozzle). It can also be used to gauge any last minute adjustments to your z offset. If the nozzle is too close or too far, you’ll know before the print actually starts. I find that the skirt can be disabled if you’re using a brim, since it’s redundant at that point. Some who have fine tuned printers may opt not to use one at all without much issue. It isn’t meant as any kind of draft shield as another person said - that’s a separate setting. It’s just a failsafe for the cleanest prints possible, avoiding hanging bits of filament, blobs from built up pressure, and incorrect z height. The first layer is the most important so everything that helps the first layer helps the rest.

Not as fast as I’ve been spending 😇

Doubtful. The main reason I could see a 3D printer starting a fire is either thermal runaway, often caused by bad software (on cheap printers) or electrical issues. You can check your wiring and make sure that nothing looks loose and all of your cables are in good condition. You can also make sure that your printer firmware is up to date. It’s a Prusa right? I think you should be safe from software failure in that case, as they’re quality.

If you’re really concerned about it, you can also move your power supply, and even your mainboard, outside of the enclosure by using longer cables. This would keep the majority of the electrical components away from the foam and heated box. From my position I don’t see an issue, but that’s my personal opinion – not legally accountable information. I will say that Stefan on CNC Kitchen uses foam as well, to get rid of ringing in prints. If you decide to go through with it, just use common sense and check to see if anything is hot. You might also get some benefit out of looking into silent stepper motors/drivers and trying to make the printer itself quieter.

I was just thinking about this the other day. It’s weird how Google has become so unusable due to its own practices that it seems to be giving up on being a search engine. I’ve been getting spam pop-ups lately on mobile search asking me to use AI. Of course people will wanna use it, they can’t find their answers normally anymore. You search for something and it’ll show you something completely unrelated because it’s trying to be “helpful” and corral you towards buying shit, and it doesn’t even do a good job at that. Heaven forbid you start to look past the first 3 pages… I don’t have a clue how these websites in the search results are maintained when they’re filled solely with spam and nonsensical gibberish. I’m totally with you. We used to actually see communities around and now it seems like they’ve fallen into the dark web, unfindable except by means of knowing someone who knows someone or, frustratingly, reddit. Paradoxically, it’s like the random AI-generated hash from the dark web is now here clogging up the tubes. I feel like everyone else came along and started dumping trash everywhere because we didn’t put up any signs or make any rules not to litter.

Never heard of this before but it’s fascinating. I think I found my next religion.

I haven’t been yet personally, but I have a lot of friends who go every year. Some of the things that they love about going are the big cultures around consent, the random awesome and unique things that you find everywhere, spending time with friends, a lack of money economy, being your completely human self w/o any judgement, and basically stepping into a world that’s separate from the rest of society. You’ll find a lot of these things at local burns as well. If you are getting curious, I would really encourage the latter. Regional or local burns are like mini burning men with a similar vibe, but a lot more conscientious and tight-knit. The best way to get into one is to find a facebook group for the one closest to you. Sometimes they’ll meet up outside the events, and you can go to ask questions and to coordinate. Since there’s a lack of money economy, everything is done either with trades or with shared responsibility. There’s something at burning man called “radical responsibility” where each person is responsible for their own wellness and contributions. So you can’t go expecting there to be vendors or other people with food or water or what have you – it’s important to figure those things out ahead of time so that way you’re not a burden on others (which allows you to be a contributing member of the community and show up fully). Like I said I haven’t actually been, so I don’t know the full details, but that’s most of what I do know! Most people I’ve met that go are some of the most interesting people I know and really know how to party and what life’s about for themselves, so I recommend finding out more :)

One thing that I’ll add in is that I started with a similar setup, but I’ve heard it isn’t ideal to be turning your pi on and off all the time without a proper shutdown sequence. I have my printer psu and filament dryer both plugged into smart plugs. Klipper is connected to home assistant wirelessly so I can turn them both off when prints finish, at idle, etc. My printer is in an enclosure, and the psu, pi, and mainboard both sit outside to keep them from getting hot. Pi has its own charger. I don’t find it to be a burden to have the pi and psu both plugged into outlets rather than only having one plug. I find it to be a lot more stable for troubleshooting and any power issues that have come up.

Just so you know, I also started off with the teaching tech all in one electronics box. I spent a ton of hours modifying it for my particular sbc and printer. I guess I ran into issues when I would have to take out one of the boards to work on it, lol. The tolerances were really tight and it was just a pain to get it out from behind. I still have the pi+mainboard both in a box, but it’s a new one I designed later on that just sits on a shelf below the printer (wires come through a hole). I find it to be really useful for printing ABS and other hot filaments and keeping a clean and tidy enclosure.

Man, we really need better labor laws.

That reminds me of an interview I did. It was a partial graphic design/videographer sort of job (my focus is in design). I was looking to break into the field, it was entry level. But the guy interviewing didn’t want to fund or provide any kind of equipment like cameras. He suggested to me that I could crowdfund to get equipment so I could work for him. Seriously, lol. It was entry level pay too. Anyway, I was pretty quick to tell him I wasn’t at all okay with my social circles and family funding things necessary for a new job.

I for one appreciate the different angle. I like the thought that the beauty is so accessible to town.

I’m sure there are some people on here that might have read it, but I haven’t met many, so my pick is the Ender’s Game saga. There are currently 19 books and I’ve read at least 10 of them. It’s a really easy read, as someone who struggles to get into more complicated writing styles. Some people might be so-so about it due to some of the author’s personal beliefs, but I really adore the lore itself. It offers a ton of different flavors to future visions, alien relations, psychology, and humanity.

To add on to the other response you got, what you’re experiencing is called warping (corners lifting up). Slow down your first layer, I usually do mine around 20mm/s. And yeah, clean your build plate if you are getting curling and you might’ve touched the plate. Hand oils transfer easily. You can take off the removable metal sheet and wash it with soapy water. You can also spray or drip rubbing alcohol and wipe with a paper towel between prints. Use a brim and make sure your first layer height is perfect (too far can cause it to not stick well enough, and too close can cause a clog or messy layers). The first layer is the most important for a perfect print.

When you get a new filament, do be sure to check the temperature recommendation on the side of the spool. Sometimes different brands print at different temps. Different types, like PLA and PETG, print at different temps too.

If you got clippers with your printer, they can be used for a lot of things. You can cut stuff off of your prints. Typically what I use mine for is cutting the end of the filament into a point before I insert it into the printer so that it goes in more easily. If you pull used filament out, it will typically be melted and blobby on the end and harder to reinsert.

People will probably give me flak for this but I use the metal wire brush that came with my printer and brush it on the nozzle while it’s hot. You can buy extras online. It does wear the nozzle down ‘sooner’ since it’s abrasive, and it makes a bit of a mess, but it’s way more effective than trying to wipe it off imo. Cleaning the nozzle isn’t super necessary, but it will keep bits of charred filament from getting into your print and will help the nozzle last longer until you change it.

As for the question about putting your printer away, you don’t have to do that. I would be more worried about the people sticking their fingers in or near the printer than about the printer itself, lol. 3D printers have really strong frames and motors. They are really easy to take apart and replace things as needed, unlike something like a computer which is a bit more delicate with more electronics. I typically pick mine up by the top bar if I need to carry it anywhere. Just make sure that the printer is somewhere where it won’t hit anything if the bed is sliding out, and that as it’s homing or moving, the head and the bed aren’t going to catch on any wires. Do be careful with the motors if you’re ever interacting with the printing while it’s moving, they don’t care if there’s something in the way. :p

Like I said on your last post, I’m happy to help if you have any other questions 👍 I’m happy you’ve been enjoying your experience so much! 3D printing is the best hobby!

Siiiick 🤘

Would you mind sharing what you shot this with? I love it! It’s so unique :D