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USING OCTOPI TO FLASH FIRMWARE

This guide will be specific to the setup for my CR10 S5 with the SKR 1.4 Turbo board

Once I build the firmware in VSCode, I needed an easy way to upload it to the device.

To do so, I logged into Octopi

Clicked on the Wrench icon

Clicked on Plugin Manager

Searched for Firmware Updater

And installed the application

Now I have to log into my Raspberry Pi with Octoprint on it

So I open Putty

Input the IP Address for the PI and login

The I enter the following commands

sudo apt-get install usbmount
sudo nano /etc/usbmount/usbmount.conf
Find FS_MOUNTOPTIONS and change it to:
FS_MOUNTOPTIONS=”-fstype=vfat,gid=pi,uid=pi,dmask=0022,fmask=0111″
sudo systemctl edit systemd-udevd
Add these lines

[Service]
PrivateMounts=no
MountFlags=shared

Save and Close the file

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo service systemd-udevd –full-restart

reboot

Log back into the PI

cd /media
ls -la
Verify full permissions on /media/usb
For mine, /media/usb pointed to usb0 so I had to run
chmod 777 usb0

Now log into Octopi through the browser

Click back onto the Wrench

Navigate down to Firmware Updater

Click the Wrench in Firmware Updater

Set the Flash Method

For my flash method, using the LPC1769 board, I had to select LPC1768

For the Path to firmware folder, I put in /media/usb

Click test to make sure the path is valid

Save

Back in Firmware Updater main screen

Click Browse

Find the firmware.bin file that you created with VSCode

and Click Flash from file

Now the board is flashing and when it completes you will get the message Flash Successful

Thats it!



Thanks for reading

Hardware that I use:
Raspberry Pi 4 (4gb)
https://amzn.to/3q551IO

SanDisk 32GB Ultra microSDHC UHS-I Memory Card with Adapter
https://amzn.to/2Vfvo0y

CanaKit 3.5A Raspberry Pi 4 Power Supply (USB-C)
https://amzn.to/3fNTYPu

CanaKit Raspberry Pi 4 Micro HDMI Cable – 6 Feet
https://amzn.to/33u5hr9

Western Digital 500GB WD_Black SN750 NVMe
https://amzn.to/3nZ5pH4

Plugable USB C to M.2 NVMe Tool-free Enclosure
https://amzn.to/3lflV3L

HOW TO CHECK MARLIN FIRMWARE VERSION USING PRONTERFACE

This is a quick one

Open Pronterface

Connect the motherboard to the computer using USB cable

Make sure any jumpers for USB are enabled on the motherboard (instead of power supply)

In Pronterface, click Connect

You will see the following message

Connecting…
Printer is now online.

Next type in M115 and press Send

Your firmware will now be listed…

SENDING:M115
FIRMWARE_NAME:Marlin 2.0.5.3 (GitHub) SOURCE_CODE_URL:https://github.com/MarlinFirmware/Marlin PROTOCOL_VERSION:1.0

USING PRONTERFACE WITH THE BIGTREETECH SKR 1.4 TURBO

Ok, so I have the SKR 1.4 TURBO which I will be installing into the Creality CR-10 S5, and to make it work properly, I had to create my own firmware and burn it to the board. Once it is on the board I want to ensure it works properly before I spend the time, rewiring the board and placing it into the control box. How would I verify the board works properly?

Pronterface

This little app allows me to test the board after the firmware has been installed to make sure it works. Also if I am having problems with CR10S5, because the EXP1 and EXP2 ports are not working with my SKR 1.4 Turbo…this little app will let me understand why.

To use pronterface, download it from:

Extract the files to the desktop

On your SKR 1.4 turbo, make sure you set the jumper on the 5v pair instead of the 12-24v pair

Plug the board into the USB drive on your computer and let it boot up

Now open the \Printrun-win-18Nov2017 folder

Launch the app named pronterface.exe

and click Connect within the app

If all went well, this will connect to your board and give you the following message in the dialog box all the way to the right
Connecting…
Printer is now online.

So your board works!

You can send the M503 code to it and check out all the nitty gritty, or you can simply power your board down and install it in the printer

PETG – JAMMING HOTEND, BRITTLE LAYERS AND BREAKS EASILY [SOLVED]


Let’s start here…some PETG prints were amazing…clips, guides, knobs, just about anything without a long flat layer that had infill.

Then began my struggle (see the image below)


After meticulously dialing in my system, running retraction tests, heat towers, extrusion stepper modifications, extrusion multipliers, drying out filament and many many other steps to prep my system for a successful run with PETG prints…. My hotend kept jamming or under extruding, the extruder would click and click, and my prints were terrible.

After it would finish printing, it would break apart by simply touching it….

The solution to this…..

Open Simplify3D

Modify the FFF process

Go to the cooling tab

Set cooling on Layer 1 to 0

Remove all other setpoints

Uncheck the box that says Increase fan speed for layers below

Save, reslice and reprint

The result…

A solid print in PETG

PETG loves heat….and is ruined with cooling

Now It’s time for me to go back around and reconfigure my system with the extrusion multiplier, speed tests, heat towers, retraction tests….everything

ENDER 3 PRO – SIMPLIFY3D – CONFIGURING THE EXTRUSION MULTIPLIER

To figure this out, you can download Teaching Tech’s files on Thingiverse
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3071464

Unpack the files

Open up Simplify3d

Import the file called cube

Go to your processes and change the following settings:
On the Extruder tab
Set extrusion width to 0.48
Set extrusion multiplier to 1.00
Drag the Infill slider to Zero
On the Layer tab
Set Top Solid Layers to 0
Set Bottom Solid Layers to 0
Set Outline/Perimeter Shells to 1

Click Prepare to Print for the cube

You should see that the cube is 1 layer wide

Measure the wall thickness of this cube after it prints. My wall thickness measured in at 0.58

Now, to find out if the extrusion multiplier is accurate, run the following formula:
Desired Wall Thickness / Measured Wall Thickness * Extrusion multiplier = New Extrusion Multiplier
(Ex. 0.48 / 0.58 * 1.00 = 0.8275)

I will round the 0.8275 up to 0.83 and set this as my Extrusion Multiplier setting

Now to reprint the cube to ensure accuracy

PETG – TEMP TOWER – Simplify3D

In working with PETG, one of the first things you MUST do is print a temp tower, or heat tower, or temperature tower, or whatever you personally call it. This is essential, for understanding what temperatures work best with your filament, manufacturer, and color.

To print this temp tower, first, I had downloaded this model from thingiverse:
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3535163

Next you will want to unpack and import the model into Simplify3D

Then you will open up your Process settings

Navigate to the Temperature tab

Click on Primary Extruder

and Modify Layer 1

Layer 1 should be set to 260C

Now you will click Add Setpoint and continue to add setpoints until you have the following displayed in the Pre-Layer Temperature Setpoints box

Layer 1 – 260
Layer 41 – 255
Layer 81 – 250
Layer 121 – 245
Layer 161 – 240
Layer 201 – 235
Layer 241 – 230
Layer 281 – 225
Layer 321 – 220

Save the settings, Slice the tower, and print it

You will want to note which temperature produces the most efficient results without stringing, sagging, or any other issues.

And that will be the temperature in-which you print the rest of your objects with.

If you change Manufacturer, Color, Density, etc, you will want to reprint the tower to note the new settings.

ENDER 3 PRO – UNDER EXTRUSION ISSUE [SOLVED]

To fine tune your Ender 3 Pro you will need to measure the amount of filament that is passing through the machine using the following test, to ensure your settings are correct

First you going to want to disconnect your hotend from the extruder, and place these in an area where you can heat them up and they will not damage themselves or anything around them.

Next you’re going to want to go into the settings of your Ender 3 and click on preheat PLA. This will warm up the hot end and allow you to extrude for our test

Measure out 120mm from entry point on extruder to the spool, and mark it on the filament using a notch or a marker (I prefer a slight notch)

Open Octopi
Go to Terminal Tab
Enter in the following code
G1 E100 F100
Press Send
This will extrude 100mm of filament

Now measure the difference of what went in, verses what is left.
I extruded 90.5mm instead of 100mm, and have 29.5mm left before my notch

Back in Octopi
Terminal Tab
Enter in the following code
M503
Press Send

Search for M92 line and verify it says E93
This is what you will edit

To figure out the new value for E93 do the following
100/90.5*93=102.76
E93 should be E102.76

The values above translate to this
100 – Distance that should have been extruded
/ – divided by
90.5 – is the distance that was extruded
* – Multiplied by
93 – This is the E93 value we saw earlier

Back to Octopi Terminal Tab
Enter in the following
M92 E102.76
Press Send

Enter in the following
M500
Press Send

Your new settings are saved, and your extrusion will be accurate. Feel free to repeat the above steps to ensure your settings are correct and the extrusion works as expected

Dimensional Accuracy with PETG on the Ender 3 Pro aka Elephants Foot [SOLVED]

In printing PETG On the ender three pro I found a variety of settings and examples and temperatures all of which are great suggestions and will leave me in the direction that I need to go however none of them are exact to what I need.

So I started with printing the calibration cube and found the X and Y axis are fine, however the Z axis seems to have some extra squish to it meaning that it’s about 0.3 mm too short, and those first few layers seem to bow outwards

Down my settings are as follows

PETG – AmazonBasics PETG Black

Nozzle – 250C

Bed – 80C

Printer – Ender 3 Pro

after a bit of measuring and fine-tuning I found that my bed temperature was too high so the solution was very simple.

Change the bed temperature to 60C and re-print

Problem solved and my next cube had the perfect dimensions

Ended 3 Pro – Massive Layer Shift in Mid Print [SOLVED]

OK so I was in the middle of printing the gauntlet from the predator costume and about halfway through the print a massive layer shift occurred. Continuing on with the print thinking that I can just cut that Layer and reattach it properly another massive layer shift happened.

Layer shift generally happens very early on in the print out is because a base layer essentially had issues. With this being so far and you can tell that’s not the case at all …. so what was causing all this

After re-slicing and re-printing check in the environmental factors and 100 other things the final verdict on it was……

Heat!

This was printed in an enclosure in the ambient temperature was above 90°F. This temperature in the enclosure caused the later shift because one of the Axis motors temporarily overheated and shut down, all while the other two motors kept on printing. When the motor restarted it was in the wrong position causing the later shift.