Some beginner help please

[liquidmonkey]

Hello,
My E2 just arrived today, am super excited to start printing!!
I'm starting out very basic with a simple sign with a word cut out of the middle, and am wondering a few things,

1) do i need a raft for this print? why? is it to prevent warping?
2) after i do a slicer preview my model looks different. Maybe this is common but seems to be an extra layer on top, maybe 1mm which surrounds the text. Why is that?
3) is 4hr 40min normal for a print this size? 10% infill is used. The sign is 5mm thick, 150mm wide and 190mm long INCLUDING THE LITTLE STICK THING.
4) if i wanted the stick thingy to be a different color, how do you point one extruder at only that part?

so many questions being a complete beginner but thanks for getting me started here, much appreciated!!

[zemlin]

1) You do not need a raft. A raft helps compensate for build surface irregularities and some folks prefer the appearance of the build on a raft. The bed clearance to the nozzle is not as critical either. It adds to the build time though and many folks do not use them. I do not.

2) That is perimeters around the letters. Just as you have so many shells around the outside, you have them around the letters as well. It is not an extra layer - it will be at the same height as the solid infill surrounding the letters.

3) the build time does not seem unreasonable, but we'd have to know your speed, nozzle size, layer thickness and all that as well - all those factors come into play. You can reduce build time by increasing speed, which usually results in some additional artifacts in the print due to the speed. You can use a larger diameter nozzle and thicker layers to reduce the build time.

If you want the stake to be a different color:
- Paint it
- Add features so you can build them in two pieces and glue them together
- make them separate models and print with two materials using dual extruders

While the last option might seem like the best option, printing with dual extruders open up a whole host of challenges and generally results in substantially increased build times because there are additional things that need to be built - like a prime tower - ooze shield - and there may be delays in the tool change depending on how tool temperatures are handled. Hold off on dual extruders until you've grown bored with the ho-hum of single extruder prints.

[DrewPetitclerc]

The e, a and o, will lose the centers, they are not connected to the rest of the part, common mistake people make with lettering and full machine through.

[liquidmonkey]

Thank you very much for the reply, much appreciated!!
Will give this a try then and worry about multi-color until a bit later, thanks!

my nozzle size is 0.4 and the am using the 'standard' profile, which has a layer of 0.2mm.
A faster profile probably wouldn't matter for this type of print, its just a garden sign so i'll try a few different ones a go from there.

1) You do not need a raft. A raft helps compensate for build surface irregularities and some folks prefer the appearance of the build on a raft. The bed clearance to the nozzle is not as critical either. It adds to the build time though and many folks do not use them. I do not.

2) That is perimeters around the letters. Just as you have so many shells around the outside, you have them around the letters as well. It is not an extra layer - it will be at the same height as the solid infill surrounding the letters.

3) the build time does not seem unreasonable, but we'd have to know your speed, nozzle size, layer thickness and all that as well - all those factors come into play. You can reduce build time by increasing speed, which usually results in some additional artifacts in the print due to the speed. You can use a larger diameter nozzle and thicker layers to reduce the build time.

If you want the stake to be a different color:
- Paint it
- Add features so you can build them in two pieces and glue them together
- make them separate models and print with two materials using dual extruders

While the last option might seem like the best option, printing with dual extruders open up a whole host of challenges and generally results in substantially increased build times because there are additional things that need to be built - like a prime tower - ooze shield - and there may be delays in the tool change depending on how tool temperatures are handled. Hold off on dual extruders until you've grown bored with the ho-hum of single extruder prints.

[liquidmonkey]

The e, a and o, will lose the centers, they are not connected to the rest of the part, common mistake people make with lettering and full machine through.

very true and thanks for pointing that out. i'm looking at a different font and will take out the 'middles' before the final slicing.
might even reduce print time a bit.

[Michael_3D]

I am learning IdeaMaker (at least trying to) and I also get the preview showing the raft. However, my beginning prints do not need a raft - what is the procedure in removing the raft so that the Gcode will not be produced telling the printer that it is part of the print project?
The "help" component of IdeaMaker doesn't even have the word Raft in the search results.

Thanks in Advance -

Michael

[Vicky@Raise3D]

You can enable or disable Raft in the following two pages when slicing.
https://support.raise3d.com/ideaMaker/3 ... 5-833.html
https://support.raise3d.com/ideaMaker/5 ... 5-440.html

[Michael_3D]

Thank you Vicky. I appreciate your assistance.
Is there a manual for the E2 in PDF that I can download ?
I changed my order from the Pro2 to the E2 - as I am not one for taking machines apart when they need repair and the E2 was advised to me.

Michael

[Vicky@Raise3D]

You will receive a quick starter guide in printer box during unboxing. It will show you the steps to unbox, setup and slice and start your first printer on your E2.
All the other manuals we have created for E2 are in our Support Center.

[Michael_3D]

Thank you Vicky