Tagged “slicer-settings”

Guide·Troubleshooting·September 21, 2026

Are 3D prints waterproof? How to make a print watertight

Prints leak by default. Prusa Research's fix: 4 to 6 perimeters, 105 to 110 percent flow, 0.15 mm layers, one vase-mode wall, and epoxy for parts that must stay sealed.

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Answer·Hardware·November 7, 2026

How do you block supports in a specific area?

Put a support blocker on the overhang: Cura's Support Blocker tool (E), or right-click, Add support blocker in PrusaSlicer, Bambu Studio and OrcaSlicer, or paint it (L).

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Answer·Hardware·November 7, 2026

How do you add tree supports?

OrcaSlicer: Support tab, tick Enable support, Type Tree (auto). Bambu Studio: tree(auto). PrusaSlicer: Style Organic (since 2.6). Cura: Support Structure Tree.

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Answer·Hardware·November 7, 2026

What overhang angle needs support?

Past 45° from vertical, by the 45° rule. Bambu Studio's 30° and PrusaSlicer's 35° count from horizontal (60°, 55° from vertical); Cura's 50° counts from vertical.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·November 7, 2026

Why is my print rough under the supports?

The underside is printed across a gap onto support interface lines and sags between them. Denser interface layers and a gap under the shipped 0.2 mm smooth it.

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Answer·Hardware·November 7, 2026

How do you reduce support material?

Lay the part on its largest flat face, then switch to tree supports: 1.87 g against 3.9 g for normal supports in one published Bambu Studio slice.

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Answer·Hardware·November 7, 2026

What does support on build plate only mean?

Supports may start only on the build plate, never on the model, so an overhang above another part of the print gets none. Every major slicer ships it off.

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Answer·Hardware·November 7, 2026

What should support Z distance be?

0.2 mm top and bottom at 0.2 mm layers, as Bambu Studio, OrcaSlicer and PrusaSlicer ship it; finer profiles go lower. Use 0 only with soluble or support filament.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·November 7, 2026

Why do my supports keep falling over?

Tall, thin supports on a small foot get knocked loose. Widen the first layer (OrcaSlicer 2 mm, PrusaSlicer 3 mm by default), thicken branches, turn on Z hop.

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Answer·Hardware·November 7, 2026

What is the difference between tree and normal supports?

Normal supports fill the space under an overhang with straight columns; tree supports branch from a trunk and touch it at 0.8 mm tips, using less filament.

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Answer·Hardware·November 7, 2026

What is support interface in 3D printing?

The dense layers between a support and the part. Bambu Studio ships 2 top and 2 bottom interface layers, PrusaSlicer 3 top; Cura's base profile leaves it off.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·November 7, 2026

Why are my supports so hard to remove?

The support's top is too close to the part or too solid. Profiles ship a 0.2 mm Top Z distance; Bambu Lab says 0 makes same-filament supports really hard to remove.

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Answer·Materials·October 30, 2026

What retraction settings should you use for ABS and ASA?

Your printer's own: shipped ABS and ASA profiles use 0.7 to 0.8 mm on direct-drive Prusa and Bambu printers (0.4 mm for Bambu ABS) and 2.5 to 6.5 mm on Bowden.

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Answer·Hardware·October 30, 2026

How do you calibrate retraction distance?

Print a retraction tower (OrcaSlicer tests 0 to 2 mm in 0.1 mm steps, a new length every 1 mm of height) and keep the shortest length whose band prints clean.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 30, 2026

Can Z hop cause stringing?

Yes. Prusa says a lower Lift Z improves stringing. Keep the hop low (Bambu Studio ships 0.4 mm) and lift on a slope, spiral or ramp instead of straight up.

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Answer·Hardware·October 30, 2026

What retraction settings should you use on an Ender 3?

Bowden Ender-3, Pro and V2: 4 to 6.5 mm (Cura gives the Ender-3 and V2 5 mm at 45 mm/s). Direct-drive S1, S1 Pro, V3 SE and V3 KE: 0.5 to 1.2 mm.

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Answer·Materials·October 30, 2026

What retraction settings should you use for PETG?

Shipped PETG profiles retract 0.4 to 1 mm at 30 to 45 mm/s on direct-drive printers and 2.5 to 8 mm on Bowden printers, close to each printer's PLA values.

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Answer·Materials·October 30, 2026

What retraction settings should you use for PLA?

Shipped PLA profiles retract 0.4 to 0.8 mm at 30 to 50 mm/s on direct-drive printers and 2.5 to 6.5 mm at 45 to 70 mm/s on Bowden printers.

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Answer·Hardware·October 30, 2026

What should retraction distance be?

Direct drive: 0.7 to 0.8 mm, as Bambu Lab, Prusa and Creality profiles ship. Bowden: 2.5 to 6.5 mm (Prusa MINI 2.5 to 3.2 mm, UltiMaker S5 6.5 mm).

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 30, 2026

What happens if retraction distance is too high?

Soft filament is pulled up into the heatbreak and jams, the gear grinds it, and lines restart with gaps. Bambu Lab and Prusa's MK3S cap it at 2 mm.

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Answer·Hardware·October 30, 2026

What is retraction distance when cut?

How far Bambu Studio and OrcaSlicer pull filament back before the cutter cuts it at a filament change: 18 mm by default, and the field only accepts 10 to 18 mm.

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Answer·Hardware·October 30, 2026

Where are the retraction settings in Bambu Studio?

Printer settings > Extruder > Retraction: Bambu Lab profiles ship 0.8 mm length and 0.4 mm Z hop. Per filament: Filament settings > Setting Overrides, which wins.

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Answer·Hardware·October 30, 2026

Where are the retraction settings in Cura?

Print settings panel, Show Custom, Travel category. Most fields are hidden: search "retract". Cura's base Retraction Distance is 6.5 mm at 25 mm/s.

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Answer·Hardware·October 30, 2026

What should retraction speed be?

Use your profile's value: 30 mm/s on Bambu Lab printers, 35 to 45 mm/s on Prusa's direct-drive printers, 70 mm/s on the Bowden Prusa MINI, 25 mm/s in Cura.

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Answer·Materials·October 30, 2026

What retraction settings should you use for TPU?

Start from your slicer's TPU profile: 0.4 mm on Bambu Lab X1 Carbon, P1S and A1, 2.5 mm on Prusa MK4S and CORE One, off on the MK3S, 3 to 8 mm on Bowden printers.

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Answer·Hardware·October 30, 2026

What is retraction in 3D printing?

Pulling filament back before a travel move so the nozzle stops oozing: 0.8 mm at 30 mm/s in Bambu Studio's X1 Carbon profile, 3.2 mm at 70 mm/s on a Bowden Prusa MINI.

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Answer·Hardware·October 30, 2026

What is Z hop in 3D printing?

Z hop lifts the nozzle after a retraction so travel moves clear the print. Bambu Studio ships it on at 0.4 mm; UltiMaker Cura ships it off, set to 1 mm.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 30, 2026

Why is my 3D print stringing?

Stringing is plastic leaking from the nozzle on travel moves. Check a wet spool first, then heat (UltiMaker: 5 °C lower per print), retraction and long travels.

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Answer·Hardware·October 30, 2026

What should Z hop height be?

0.2 to 0.4 mm on a 0.4 mm nozzle. Bambu Studio and OrcaSlicer ship 0.4 mm, PrusaSlicer 0.4 mm on the Prusa MK3S and 0.2 mm on the MINI, Cura's Creality profiles 0.2 mm.

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Answer·Hardware·October 30, 2026

Which Z hop type should you use?

Keep your profile's type: Bambu Lab printer profiles ship Auto, which picks Slope or Spiral per travel. OrcaSlicer's own default is Slope at a 3° Traveling angle.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 28, 2026

What does watertight mean in 3D printing?

Watertight means a closed mesh: no holes, every edge shared by exactly two faces and every face pointing outward, so the slicer can tell inside from outside.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 24, 2026

Why do corners bulge on my prints?

Pressure left in the nozzle keeps pushing plastic out as the head slows for the corner. Tune pressure advance: Klipper ships it at 0 and Marlin with it disabled.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 24, 2026

Why do overhangs droop in 3D printing?

Each overhang layer rests partly on air; past about 45° from vertical, soft plastic sags before it cools. Fix: full fan, slower overhangs, a cooler nozzle.

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Answer·Materials·October 24, 2026

How much cooling does PETG need?

A moderate fan, about 20 to 60%, not PLA's 100%. Prusa's PETG profile runs 30 to 50%, Bambu's 20 to 40%; both keep it off for 3 layers, more for bridges.

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Answer·Materials·October 24, 2026

What fan speed should you use for PLA?

Run PLA's part cooling fan at 100%, off on the first layer for bed adhesion. Prusament's data sheet says 100%; some printer profiles start at 50 to 85% and ramp up.

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Answer·Hardware·October 24, 2026

Where is pressure advance in Bambu Studio?

Bambu Studio calls it flow dynamics: Calibration tab > Flow Dynamics saves a K value on the printer. The 0.02 field in filament settings is for third-party printers.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 24, 2026

How do you know if pressure advance is too high?

Rounded corners, lines that thin into a corner and gaps between perimeters mean pressure advance is too high: lower it. Over 0.200, Klipper's extruder may skip.

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Answer·Materials·October 24, 2026

What is a good pressure advance value for PLA?

Shipped PLA profiles use 0.02 to 0.05 on direct-drive printers with a 0.4 mm nozzle (0.036 on a Prusa Core One) and 0.2 to 0.27 on a Bowden Prusa MINI.

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Answer·Hardware·October 24, 2026

Can you 3D print without a cooling fan?

Yes for ABS, ASA, PC and nylon: profiles run the part fan off or at 10 to 20% on long layers. PLA needs it for bridges and overhangs. Never turn off the hotend fan.

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Answer·Hardware·October 24, 2026

How do you read a pressure advance test?

Pick the band, line or corner that prints most evenly. On a tower, value = start + height x step: OrcaSlicer's example is 0 + 8 mm x 0.002 = 0.016.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 24, 2026

Why are my small prints melting and blobby?

Small layers print in seconds, so the next lands before the last one cools. Set a minimum layer time (4 to 12 s in stock PLA profiles) and keep the fan at max.

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Answer·Hardware·October 24, 2026

What does the part cooling fan do?

It cools plastic leaving the nozzle so it sets before the next line lands, making bridges, overhangs and fine tips work. Base PLA profiles run it at 100% after layer 1.

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Answer·Hardware·October 24, 2026

What is pressure advance in 3D printing?

A firmware setting that pushes extra filament in as the head speeds up and pulls it back as it slows. Klipper ships it at 0 (off); typical values are 0.050 to 1.000.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 17, 2026

Why is my filament still stringing after drying?

Once the spool is dry, stringing comes from settings: Prusa says lower the nozzle 5 to 10 °C, Bambu Lab adds retraction up to 2 mm and shorter travel.

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Answer·Hardware·October 15, 2026

Is the bed surface as hot as the temperature you set?

Usually not. Prusa puts its steel sheet about 5 to 10 °C below the heatbed sensor, and a thermal camera read 56 °C on a Prusa i3 MK3 bed set to 60 °C.

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Answer·Materials·October 15, 2026

Bed temperature chart: what bed temperature does each filament need?

Bambu Lab sets PLA at 45 to 65 °C on PEI, PETG 60 to 80 °C, ABS and ASA 90 to 100 °C, PC and nylon 100 to 120 °C. Fiber-filled grades match their base plastic.

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Answer·Hardware·October 15, 2026

How do you change the bed temperature in Bambu Studio?

Bed temperature sits in the filament preset, one row per plate type. Bambu Studio's PLA Basic profile runs 55 °C on Textured PEI on X1 and P1S, 65 °C on the A1.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 15, 2026

Why does my extruder click but nothing comes out?

A blockage makes the motor skip steps. Check for a nozzle clog, then first layer height, heat creep, speed (8 to 12 mm³/s on an all-metal hotend) and the gears.

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Answer·Materials·October 15, 2026

How do you find the right bed temperature for a filament?

Take the bed range from the data sheet's recommended print settings, for your plate (Prusament PLA: 40 to 60 °C). Raise 5 to 10 °C if the first layer won't stick.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 15, 2026

Should the first layer bed temperature be different from the rest?

Most slicer defaults use one bed temperature for all layers. PrusaSlicer starts PETG at 85 °C then 90 °C; OrcaSlicer starts ABS at 105 °C then 100 °C.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 15, 2026

How do you fix heat creep?

Clear the jam at 250 °C, cold pull from 220 to 100 °C, then cut the heat: hotend fan always on, door open for PLA on a 45 °C+ bed, retraction 2 mm or less.

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Answer·Hardware·October 15, 2026

Do hardened steel nozzles clog more than brass?

Not by itself. Hardened steel conducts heat about a fifth as well as brass, so Prusa adds about 5 °C and Slice Engineering 5 to 10 °C to keep the melt hot enough.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 15, 2026

Why does my 3D printer nozzle keep clogging?

Repeat clogs are usually heat creep: Prusa flags rooms above 35 °C and enclosed PLA. Wet or dirty filament, printing too cold and long retractions cause the rest.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 15, 2026

Why does the nozzle clog after switching from PETG to PLA?

PETG residue stays in the hotend when PLA goes in at 190 to 230 °C. Load the PLA at the PETG temperature, 230 to 260 °C, so it pushes the old plastic out.

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Answer·Materials·October 15, 2026

What bed temperature should you use for PLA?

Use 55 to 60 °C on smooth or textured PEI and 35 °C on a Bambu Cool Plate. Maker guidance spans 25 to 65 °C across Basic, Matte, Silk, PLA+ and PLA-CF.

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Answer·Materials·October 15, 2026

What does bed temperature do in 3D printing?

It keeps the first layers stuck and stops them shrinking off the plate. Polymaker sets it just under the glass transition: PLA at 25 to 60 °C against a 61 °C Tg.

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Answer·Hardware·October 13, 2026

Can you 3D print replacement LEGO pieces?

Yes, for personal use. The brick patent expired in 1978, but LEGO molds to 1/200 mm and Prusa quotes 0.3 mm XY, so tune XY compensation on a test brick first.

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Answer·Hardware·October 13, 2026

How to 3D print a replacement part

Seven steps from broken part to fitted print: check it is legal, find a model, measure to 0.01 mm, add 0.15 to 0.40 mm clearance, pick a filament, orient it, test-fit.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·October 10, 2026

Why does my 3D printed vase leak?

A vase-mode wall is one line thick, so any gap leaks. Fix: 105 to 110 percent flow, a 0.6 mm outer wall, 5+ bottom layers, or coat the inside or add a liner.

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Answer·Materials·September 23, 2026

What nozzle temperature does nylon actually need?

Nylon data sheets put the nozzle at 250 to 300 °C: copolymers start lowest, PA6, PA12 and fiber-filled grades run 260 to 290 °C. Ranges, beds and drying by type.

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Answer·Troubleshooting·September 15, 2026

How many walls make a 3D print watertight?

Four perimeters held water in PLA and PETG in Prusa's tests, two in ABS and PP, and one vase-mode wall in every material. Flow and layer height matter too.

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