CORE XY 3D Printer - Bed Leveling

Bed Leveling

The single most important thing to have a good reliable print quality is to have a level bed.  It is worth to spend 1hr leveling the bed a good as possible.

Please remember a level bed doesn't mean its level.. It means it is the same distance away from the print head at all points on the printer.

 

Leveling Procedure:

Make sure if your using a printer glass it is installed and clamped to the HeatBed. (this is easily forgotten)

Using a spirit level, ensure the HeatBed+glass is as level as possible.  this can be achieved by:

  • Manually turning the M8 lead screw on one side to adjust the level of the 2 stepper motors.
  • Adjusting the bed level using the springs and tightening screws.

 

First ensure the steppers are roughly level and then start with the spring screws.

 

  1. Now set the Z axis homing distance, so that the printer nozzle homes close to the print bed but above it.
  2. home the Z axis.  Repeat it a few times to ensure the process is repeatable.
  3. Jog the Printer Head to the 4 corners of the HeatBed and each time home the Z Axis.
  4. Adjust the bed with the screws so its close to the printer nozzle.
  5. Keep repeating this process so you have a repeatable process at all 4 corners of the HeatBed.  To test the distance put a piece of paper between the printer nozzle and the glass.  The nozzle should just pinch the paper but still allow it to be pulled out.

 

Now we can assume the print bed is fairly level to the printer nozzle.  We can still expect to make some small adjustments when we print.

 

  1. Load GCode into the printer of something fairly large.  150mmx150mm. 
  2. Set the printer job going (Bed Temp 60°C / Nozzle 220°C)
  3. Visually monitor the filament as its laid onto the bed.

 

  • If the filament is not slightly pressed into the bed and can be easily removed with a finger nail you need to make the gap smaller.
  • If it seems like there is no filament coming out or the extruder is struggling then increase the gap slightly.
  • This process is particularly noticeable on circles (e.g. where a screw hole is in your print).  If the circle is produced well then its a good sign the bed is well adjusted.  If the circle is not round, or has flat edges then most probably the gap is too large.
  • In the first layer, there should be no gap between the lines.  Each line should be nicely squished against the previous line.  If there are noticeable gaps the gap needs to be reduced between bed and nozzle.

 

I really like this 3D printing guide from Simplify3D

Other Problems to investigate:

 

Getting the printer setup correctly and producing quality prints will take time. If you still cant get a good print consider the following.

 

  • Is the MK8 extruder working well. Does the tension need some adjustment to hold the filament better.  Is it maybe too tight...?
  • does the PTFE tube from the MK8 extruder make sudden sharp bends which prevents the filament from extruding?
  • Is the filament correctly guided through the HotEnd and into the nozzle. Sometime the filament can get stuck between the heatbreak and the HotEnd?
  • Are my print settings in CURA set to 1.75mm Filament and 0.4mm nozzle.  Sometimes in the printer settings another filament diameter is set which will cause over or under extrusion....