Simplify3D User Forum

I don't know how else to say it, it prints the skirt fine, then moves to the perimeter and prints that fine. When it's time to print the infill the e-motor just stops. Not like clicking stops, or clog stops, something is telling it to just stop pushing anymore filament. I included the gcode as well as a picture of the 1st layer.

All I did was removed the stl I just printed off the build plate and added this stl. I'm pretty sure I didn't change any settings and went from perfect print to this. I have closed and reopened a bunch of times. When I closed and reopened my old print came back, so I added the new .stl the 1st layer on both of them was fine, but when I removed the old .stl and just kept this one it went back to not printing the infill. I also tried swapping from usb drive to straight cable connected.

I don't get it.

What printer do you have and are you using the S3B via USB to control the printer or something like Octoprint?

Tevo Tarantula and my normal operation is just with a usb stick, but for trouble shooting is tried connecting it with a usb cable.

Over night I gave S3D a different stl to print and it's printing out just fine including the first layer coming out almost perfect( just over extruded a tad).

My feeble mind can't see how, if only the stl has changed, then why is the e-motor not being told to push out plastic for the infill on one .stl vs another.

Can you attach the factory files for both prints? Name each one or identify which one has been working and which one fails.

First off, thank you trying to help.

While in preview mode, you can see on both how one file has a very full 1st layer while the other one looks lacking.

Just checked on both your files and indeed the faulty one clearly shows the weak 1st layer.
No matter what changes in the profile I made (settings/scripts), nothing changed.
Even offsetting the part to Z -0,5 nothing changed.
I then exported the jon.stl closed the software, started it anew and imported it again.
It then sliced just fine with my usual (Prusa I3MK2S) settings.

I would guess, this may be just a "software-hickup" which I think S3D is known for to have sometimes...

Thanks, blackbird2016, appreciate your time looking into it.

As you have set a Z offset, the first layer is slightly shifted under the bed (in preview). Pan the camera and you will see the first layer showing as expected. This is not a bug. The gcode is visualized as expected

I'm still having this problem pop up randomly. The extruder seems like, it is not getting an extrude command during random areas on the infill. But it gets all the retraction commands and does those just fine. When its back to printing the infill, same thing, extruder is just not getting power to move. I placed a flag on the extruder shaft as well as placed my hand on the motor. The motor is not warm at all, quite cool in fact as its pretty cold in here. However with my hand on the motor I can tell it isn't being told to do anything. I don't understand.

As far as the z offset, I don't understand how that would tell the extruder to turn off in random places.

I've looked at both factory files ...and there's only one real difference between them, and that is one has a global-z offset of -0.08mm and the other (the one that allegedly prints wrong) has a global-z offset of -0.12mm.

I'm wondering if the firmware on the Tevo Tarantula has some form of z axis limiting or protection built into it.....where its not allowing normal printing below say -0.1mm by backing off the extruder feed.

This, to me, is a logical explanation as to why you're getting the reported symptoms of the extruder motor not being powered. If the motor was being powered, I would have suggested the print nozzle is too near the bed....thus preventing filament from being pushed out the nozzle.

Of course, the extruder motor could be under powered....and the nozzle being too close to the bed, resulting in the filament being mechanically held back, and there being no signs of physical stress on the motor....ie not getting warm & no mechanical or electrical "slipping".....which would explain how you could "hand feed" just the right amount of filament to give a good fill!!

A possible solution.....stop using the global-z setting to fine tune the bed position and use the bed screws.