My print lines are bumpy and of varying quality

My print lines are bumpy and of varying quality

How can you solve or prevent inconsistent extrusion?

• Ensure a smooth filament feed

  Check that the filament spool can move freely and rotate smoothly without the filament becoming entangled. When there is resistance on the spool that prevents the filament from unwinding easily, this leads to inconsistent filament supply. You can easily check this by extruding a certain amount of filament and observing the above process.

• Prevent a clogged extruder

  A clean nozzle is essential for high-quality print and clean print lines. If your nozzle is clogged, you can suffer from black spots on your filament for a long time. These are charred filament residues that must be removed so that the nozzle can function properly again. Therefore, check whether your nozzle is clogged with the 'cold pull technique' described in our article about clogged nozzles. 

• Increase the height of your print layer

  If there is nothing wrong with the filament supply or the nozzle, the values ​​of your print layers may be too low. If your print layers have an extremely low value of only 0.01mm, then the opening through which the filament can flow may be too small. Increase the layer height to see if this fixes the problem.

• Check the 'extrusion width'

  If you have selected an extrusion width that is significantly smaller than your nozzle diameter, this can lead to inconsistent extrusion. Therefore, make sure that your extrusion width covers 100 to 150% of the nozzle diameter. If you try to print an extrusion width of 0.2mm with a nozzle of 0.4mm, it is almost impossible to produce a consistent straight line. Would you still like to print with a smaller diameter? Then replace your nozzle!

• Provide high-quality filament

  Many extrusion problems can be traced back to the quality of the filament. This is not only about the composition of the filament, but also about the consistency of it’s diameter. In addition, certain filament types attract water from the air, which in the long run deteriorates the quality and drastically shortens the overall life of the filament. Therefore, consider storing your filament in a dry box. 

Check the extruder for mechanical problems

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