Is the model from thingiverse/something similar or a personal one?

Your printer should be capable of much higher quality than that. I had some prints I thought were pretty good until I upgraded and fine tuned some settings. Unless the SD4 has extruder gear reduction or you've upgraded to it it wouldn't benefit you to upgrade because extrusion steps will be reduced 40% for all layer heights (fell free to correct me if I'm wrong) and the normal 0.4mm nozzle is lacking as it is.

Was that sliced in Kisslicer? Great program. Do you have the newest version? How well do you know it? Some settings can help clean that up some.

Personally, I hate working with ABS because of the shrinkage issues associated with it. Have you used PLA before? Unless you need the higher temp, I would recommend trying it out.

Before I respond let me update on my situation. I received all the GT2 pulleys/and belts from the robotdigg website in 5 days, costed me 40 USD. Changing everything over was pretty painless, the only "troublesome" thing was taking the linear bearings out of the left x carriage to put the bigger pulley on the motor. The backlash in the y axis wasn't as bad as the stock mxl belts, but definitely still there (fixed with software). Oh and you ppl are brave for using fishing line, I'm definitely not there yet.

I'll look into extruder gear reduction. I have been using kisslicer exclusively since I started 3D printing, currently using beta version 2.21. I'd like to think I know it pretty well but I'm always open to advice on tweaking settings. I've used PLA once and didn't like it, maybe I'll give it another shot. Send me a pm and we can compare kisslicer print settings .

Putting me on the spot here.

Yea, I need a new camera haha.

Your printer should be capable of much higher quality than that. I had some prints I thought were pretty good until I upgraded and fine tuned some settings. Unless the SD4 has extruder gear reduction or you've upgraded to it it wouldn't benefit you to upgrade because extrusion steps will be reduced 40% for all layer heights (fell free to correct me if I'm wrong) and the normal 0.4mm nozzle is lacking as it is.

Was that sliced in Kisslicer? Great program. Do you have the newest version? How well do you know it? Some settings can help clean that up some.

Personally, I hate working with ABS because of the shrinkage issues associated with it. Have you used PLA before? Unless you need the higher temp, I would recommend trying it out.

If you have patience, knot skills (minimal knowledge is fine), and the desire to eliminate belt slop, Spectra is a great alternative! Here is a knot tutorial to help
http://www.rapala.com/content/how-to-li … knots.html

Credit to wardjr for my info

Metal chains also have more slop.

+1 as they wear, they get sloppier. They need to be clean and well lubricated (the way they're used on bicycles in the open is outright abuse).

If you compare this to a timing chain on a car, which is oversized for the power required to minimise wear, has a (usually) adjustable or replacable tensioner/guide, and runs in a sealed case constantly sprayed with engine oil - these last nearly as long as the engine will (200,000km +) without replacement!

I don't think the mass is actually that big a deal, the motors have most of the inertia already, but the slight speed variation (due to the finite segments of chain changing angle as they go in and out of the sprocket) can cause vibration.

I guess ideally you want something with:
* zero slip
* zero stretch
* zero slop
* zero mass
Which really means anything will be a compromise in some form. Spectra fishing line (talk to wardjr!) apparently comes pretty close on all four!

I have a random question related to the subject. Wouldn't a metal chain like a bicycle be more accurate and reliable than rubber belts? Why don't 3d printers use these?

Mass reduction. A metal chain has more inertia thsn a composite belt does. You would need larger and higher torque motors to have the same level of control. Plus you would have added vibration ftom the chain gear meshing.

Yea, I need a new camera haha.

I think its best if I just show you a picture of what I'm trying to print.

If you look at the spikes, and also the bottom of the head you'll see what I mean by more detail. And sometimes the nozzle is too big to print the layer of the part directly above a support, if it skips too many layers it will just fail to adhere and fall over. Things like the owl have very big inner profiles so using a 0.3mm nozzle wouldn't matter I agree.

How much success have you had with these so far? I know even with a .3 nozzle and god forbid I get a clog I would have very hard time printing those and getting them to come out looking like the render.

If you look at the spikes, and also the bottom of the head you'll see what I mean by more detail. And sometimes the nozzle is too big to print the layer of the part directly above a support, if it skips too many layers it will just fail to adhere and fall over. Things like the owl have very big inner profiles so using a 0.3mm nozzle wouldn't matter I agree.

IronMan wrote:

I would seriously consider the 0.4...I have clogged a 0.35 using ABS albeit with no filament cleaner.  Since switching to a 0.4 I have had no issues...resolution is still great even at .15 or .2mm layer height.

Well it comes with the 0.4mm nozzle stock, and the stuff I'm printing needs all the detail it can get at 0.1mm layer heights.

The output size of a nozzle will not affect your detail. That dimension will really only affact the number of passes it takes to fill in a given space and how thick your perimeters will be. Smaller nozzles will give you thinner and weaker perimeters.

I use a .4 all thr time and printed that owl you see all the time. I did it at .1 and scaled it to 50mm tall. You can see the bark on the branch the feathers on the chest and the feathers in the wings. You can even see the ridges across the toes.