Has anyone tried 3DXTech PLA with Printrbot? I’ve been getting clogs when trying to print with it- Hatchbox and eSun PLA do print fine though.
Comparison between clogs and pull on 3DXTech blue in image. Pull is the bottom one.
Is that fibers or something in it? Try a push test. Set the hotend temp and turn it on, release the idler pulley and push the filament through. It should be easy to push. If it doesn’t go easily try upping the temp 5 degrees and do it again.
I’ve gotten it to print and extrude fine, but typically around 30 minutes after I load it and start printing, it will stop going through the extruder. On the initial load, pushing and manually extruding from software works fine.
What temp are you printing, which extruder, and which hotend? It looks like you’re not printing hot enough. If you post a link I’ll try the filament out, I’ve been meaning to buy a new roll of grey/silver.
When it fails, can you push it at all?
It is possible it is too hot, or heat is creeping up the hotend, making the plug too big. You can try the reverse, lower the temp by 5 degrees and try to push it through. Once it gets difficult to push, raise the temp 5 degrees and print at that.
Also check for debris in the filament.
Nope, can’t push at all when it fails. I’ve tried from 190 all the way up to 210 at 5 degree intervals so far.
Printing with an Alu Extruder v2 and the all metal Ubis, both Printrbot. http://www.3dxtech.com/pla-filament/
Printrbot, Hatchbox, eSun and MeltInk print without any problems, so there’s definitely nothing wrong with the Printer.
@1111158 I have the same setup and pretty much the same PLA material experience. I checked out the website for the filament.What made you choose this over the other brands? This is much more expensive.
My main reason is that they’re located on the same side of the state as I am, so I’d be able to support the local printing industry. The local consumer distributor is also a small print shop, and it’s located pretty close to school (so I can get there using my free bus pass), and the owner there is a pretty cool guy, so I’d like to throw some help his way as well. I’ve seen it print pretty easily on Ultimaker 2’s, Robo3D, and Wanhao, but haven’t had any luck on my printrbot.
That’s very noble of you. Unfortunately as a student cost is what’s most important to me. I’ll throw in a an extra couple bucks and get a roll of PLA though. Triple check to make sure you have the right filament diameter because that could also be causing clogs.
The fibrous-looking things are normal. It’s just simply stretched out into a film like raffia string. I get that with any PLA when I cold-pull at the wrong temperature.
Those were retracted over software at hot temperature, and then taken out. The bottom one is a pull.
Make sure that the fan for the ‘cold’ end is always on to keep the inlet cool.
The bottom one looks like that your hot end gets too hot above where it should stay cold. I would check that the cooling still works fine and also see if the tubing in your hot end is ok (maybe it was pushed up and now the plastic is in between - this needs to be cleaned up).
@Hakan_Evirgen For the third time in this thread, the bottom one is a cold pull. I can confirm that it looks normal, I have the exact same setup.
Have you contacted 3DXTech?
When we have a jam on the Ubis 13, it’s always moisture in the filament. We have a huge swamp cooler and the shop is very humid. Plastic absorbs moisture like a sponge. Try baking your bad filament and then printing. It makes a huge difference. Some companies may deliver with moisture already absorbed in the filament. Worth a try!
@Brook_Drumm Any recommendations for baking? I usually have my filaments sitting a box with silica gel, but not sure how effective that is.
@Tim_Elmore I have, but haven’t gotten a reply yet.
Get some loose coils out on aluminium foil and bake at the lowest setting (labelled 100°C on my toaster oven, but I suspect it’s not really 100°C) for 30 minutes or so. It comes out a bit limp, but let it harden in normal air, and it will be printable.
I do 150F for 2 hours 
I think I’ll try somewhere in the median? 150F for 30, before putting in two hours.