I use this tiny blowtorch:

[image: IMG_20210705_105737372.jpg]

Plastic has a high specific heat capacity, so if you run it over the part
quickly it doesn't do any damage but the tiny hairs have so little mass
they instantly vaporise.

On Mon, 5 Jul 2021 at 09:59, Michael Marx michael@marx.id.au wrote:

I don't think it is just moisture in your case. To test that, simply
unwind enough filament from the spool, place in your oven for an hour or
so at 50deg C, then print with that length asap. I've mentioned before
about the cura extensions - there are retract tests in there. You need
to set up the printer for your filament. tolerances between filament
blends, nozzle size, feed mechanism, thermistors, etc, can not
necessarily cancel each other out, and then there is the hot end cooling
fan on the ender,which also cools the part. You need to do the tests -
they wouldn't be available if they were not needed. If you are getting
an allmetal/direct drive hotend, you will have to start all over again
wrt the settings. If you are getting jams now, with a bowden tube setup,
and you use the same 'gung-ho' approach to settings, you will be forever
trying unsuccessfully to unblock the nozzle (been there, done that- not
the gung-ho, but the unblocking..). But properly set up, it is easy to
unblock the hot end, when you forget, and turn off the printer after the
print has finished, but before the hot end has fully cooled. And those
little 'cob-webs' - they will jam the fans. If humidity is the problem,
then move to Arizona, or just print with HIPS, but you will love that!.

On 05/07/2021 09:44, Gene Heskett wrote:

I feel like Gene is having a remarkable amount of trouble getting
successful prints.  I print PETG all the time with my Prusa with the
default settings in PruseSlicer (aka slic3er) and it just works.  The only
way my prints ever fail is through failed bed adhesion.  PETG is not
particularly sensitive to moisture and does not have to be printed from a
drybox like nylon, for example.  I do store all of my filaments in air
tight boxes with bags of desiccant, but I just print them in the open air
and have never had trouble.

On Mon, Jul 5, 2021 at 6:57 AM Ray West raywest@raywest.com wrote:

I agree that I get perfect PETG prints from my Prusa MK3S essentially
all of the time.  I use hairspray to help the prints adhere to the build
plate, and I did need to dry a reel of PETG that had been out in the
humidity for a while, but other than that, it is simple and reliable for me.

On 7/5/2021 8:39 AM, Adrian Mariano wrote:

On 7/5/21 4:17 AM, nop head wrote:

+1 on dry PET filament.

I use my Nesco American Harvest food dehydrator for that. It is a round
one with a thermostat (model FD-61). They sell extra trays to expand it.
With the inner grid cut out, the trays become spacers. One regular tray
plus two spacers holds one spool of filament. With that setup I can dry
up to 4 spools at the same time and when set to 60°C over night, they do
get super dry.

When I am not printing it still works perfectly fine to make jerky,
dried tomatoes and all the other things it was meant for.

Regards, Jan

--
Jan Wieck

On 7/5/21 6:57 AM, Ray West wrote:

The success of that method depends on the oven. My gas oven produces too
much moisture by itself and I can't dial it low enough, so that method
has the risk of deforming the filament here.

Regards, Jan

--
Jan Wieck

Probably a bit OTT but I make my own drying boxes that are twin walled with
insulation in between, so very much like an oven.
https://hydraraptor.blogspot.com/2020/07/over-cooked-it.html

On Mon, 5 Jul 2021 at 15:33, Jan Wieck jan@wi3ck.info wrote:

I have about a kilo of desiccant in small bags, because each spool of
filament came with a bag.  You should be able to heat the desiccant in
the oven to drive the moisture out and then use the desiccant on the
filament.  You can also get desiccant at crafts stores like Michael's
(in the States)

On 7/5/2021 10:27 AM, Jan Wieck wrote:

On Monday 05 July 2021 04:58:40 Michael Marx wrote:

Don't tempt me Michael, I have reached that age, 86, where life in prison
has become a very small deterrent. ;o) I'm using my gas cookstove to
clean plugged nozzles and heat breaks already.

Cheers, Gene Heskett

"There are four boxes to be used in defense of liberty:
soap, ballot, jury, and ammo. Please use in that order."
-Ed Howdershelt (Author)
If we desire respect for the law, we must first make the law respectable.

• Louis D. Brandeis
  Genes Web page http://geneslinuxbox.net:6309/gene

Humidity may, or may not be a problem. It depends where you are in the
world. Epson ink jet printers, for example, if using pigment ink, don't
like it in a dry atmosphere, most plastic fdm filaments don't like a
damp atmosphere. In many locations the little bag of silica gel is
useless, and at least one filament manufacturer is not providing them in
the vac sealed bag. Wrt petg, it'll stick to most things when hot, in
that case the hair spray is used as a release film, and is easier to
apply (if more messy) compared to a glue stick. Just because something
works for me or you, in the case of 3d printing, does not mean the same
will work for others, there are too many variables in play. The best
that can be done is to thoroughly test your own system, with your own
filament, although other folk's settings may be used as a starting point.

And then, of course, there is the thing that Gene is trying to print. If
it was easy, then the drive manufacturers would be doing it, but afaik,
they are not able to do so, at least with the cheap/diy/common type
filaments/printers.

On 05/07/2021 14:17, jon wrote: