New machine won't print

[mrjayd]

Just set up new Mars Pro and when I try to do my first test print of the rooks, the plate goes down in the vat and just buzzes and no movement at all. Do I have a bad machine?

[mrjayd]

Anybody out there that has had this problem?

[earthball]

Can't say I have heard that one yet. Are you able to manually command the platform using the tools? If it will not move up when commanded, you may have a failled motor or gear.

Did you run the build plate leveling and adjust the screws on the plate? If the plate is out of position, it is possible the motor stop wasn't reached before the plate contacted the LCD and caused a jam or failure.

If it can't be reset and moved up manually or it just won't run a print but all the other functions operate normally (motors, LCD, etc) then you may have a deeper issue that Elegoo might need to help with.

[mrjayd]

Can't say I have heard that one yet.  Are you able to manually command the platform using the tools? If it will not move up when commanded, you may have a failled motor or gear.

Did you run the build plate leveling and adjust the screws on the plate? If the plate is out of position, it is possible the motor stop wasn't reached before the plate contacted the LCD and caused a jam or failure.

If it can't be reset and moved up manually or it just won't run a print but all the other functions operate normally (motors, LCD, etc) then you may have a deeper issue that Elegoo might need to help with.

everything moves as it should. I have had other brands in the past so I somewhat know what I am doing when it comes to leveling. So with that said, I have leveled it, brought it back up, put in the vat of resin, selected the print, the platform moved down as it should but just goes all the way down until it stops and just sits there and humms. No layers start to print. Sucks cuz I got this from MMF and not amazon where I could just send it back real easy and get another one in 2 days. Contacted MMFyesterday and still haven't heard anything back from them.

[cliffyk]

Redo the alignment, but use two layers of paper as your gauge. Elegoo's vague specification of using a "sheet of paper" is as imprecise as anything could be, as there is no universal standard defining the the thickness of a "sheet of paper". If one assumes they mean the somewhat ubiquitous sheet of commonly used 20 lb. per ream (500 sheets) photocopy/printer paper then it specifies a gauge thickness of 0.09 to 0.10 mm (90 to 100 microns) as a gauge. (for clarity I will use microns [μm] in any further discussion). As the standard FEP is 150 μm this means the single sheet of paper gauge is 50 to 60 microns too thin resulting in an effective "negative clearance" of -50 to -60 μm.

I.e. adjusting the platen position so that a single "sheet of paper" fits snugly means that the FEP will need to be compressed by 50 to 60 μm when the resin vat is installed and the platen lowered¹. Using two thicknesses of "paper" increases the gauge thickness to  .18 to .20 μm--I.e. it leaves 30 to 50 μm clearance and no flexing of the Z-axis is required. This will produce a slightly thicker bottom layer, by 30 to 50 μm, generally a good thing as it aids adhesion to the platen and stabilizes the initial layers of the model.

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¹ - In practice the FEP cannot compress to that extent; so what happens is the Z-axis assembly flexes to accommodate the FEP's thickness--if there is not enough flexure in the Z-axis to accommodate that, the stepper motor growls and stalls out.

After I installed the Jackson Products Z-Axis upgrade on my Mars it's far superior rigidity served to highlight this issue as the improved Z-axis assembly could no longer flex sufficiently to accommodate the negative clearance "too tight" adjustme

[mrjayd]

Redo the alignment, but use two layers of paper as your gauge. Elegoo's vague specification of using a "sheet of paper" is as imprecise as anything could be, as there is no universal standard defining the the thickness of a "sheet of paper". If one assumes they mean the somewhat ubiquitous sheet of commonly used 20 lb. per ream (500 sheets) photocopy/printer paper then it specifies a gauge thickness of 0.09 to 0.10 mm (90 to 100 microns) as a gauge. (for clarity I will use microns [μm] in any further discussion). As the standard FEP is 150 μm this means the single sheet of paper gauge is 50 to 60 microns too thin resulting in an effective "negative clearance" of -50 to -60 μm.

I.e. adjusting the platen position so that a single "sheet of paper" fits snugly means that the FEP will need to be compressed by 50 to 60 μm when the resin vat is installed and the platen lowered¹. Using two thicknesses of "paper" increases the gauge thickness to  .18 to .20 μm--I.e. it leaves 30 to 50 μm clearance and no flexing of the Z-axis is required. This will produce a slightly thicker bottom layer, by 30 to 50 μm, generally a good thing as it aids adhesion to the platen and stabilizes the initial layers of the model.

---------------------------------------------------
¹ - In practice the FEP cannot compress to that extent; so what happens is the Z-axis assembly flexes to accommodate the FEP's thickness--if there is not enough flexure in the Z-axis to accommodate that, the stepper motor growls and stalls out.

After I installed the Jackson Products Z-Axis upgrade on my Mars it's far superior rigidity served to highlight this issue as the improved Z-axis assembly could no longer flex sufficiently to accommodate the negative clearance "too tight" adjustme

Thanks Cliff but I did dig up your old thread on this last night so when I got home from work today I did start from scratch and folded my printer paper over to get the double thickness but it still does the same thing. And I am just upset the MMF support has not replied to my  email. Shouldn't be this difficult.

[cliffyk]

I assume then that when pressing the "Home" button, with the lock screws loosened, the trolley drops to a point and stops. If it does then the only possible problem is maladjustment of the platen. Try it again and press just very lightly on the platen when tightening the lock screws (front one first). Do not over-tighten the lock screws as that will cause the platen to shift position.

After manual alignment raise the platen by 0.1 mm and press the "Z=0" button. This sets a "logical" zero position at the current height when you press the button. G-Code printing commands for the platen to move to position "0" will move to this logical manually set "Z=0" position. The "Home" button will always move the platen to the hardware optical sensor controlled limit regardless of how the "Z=0" function is set.

A thought--what happens if you perform the alignment procedure, leave the paper (2 layers) in place, then raise the platen 25 to 50 mm or so, and press the "Home" button once more? The platen should fall to where the paper is snug again, with no incident. If not I would begin to suspect an inconsistent or fouled optical sensor, or that the sensor "flag" on the bottom of the trolley is loose or fouled. Or that the trolley is set too tight on the rails and binding--when I disassembled my Mars to install the new mast i found it took 4.5 to 5.0 lbf to move the trolley--far too much I was able to adjust it to just 3 to 4 ounces. The Jackson mast requires zero force to move the trolley.

Z-axis sensor flag:

[mrjayd]

I assume then that when pressing the "Home" button, with the lock screws loosened, the trolley drops to a point and stops. If it does then the only possible problem is maladjustment of the platen. Try it again and press just very lightly on the platen when tightening the lock screws (front one first). Do not over-tighten the lock screws as that will cause the platen to shift position.

After manual alignment raise the platen by 0.1 mm and press the "Z=0" button. This sets a "logical" zero position at the current height when you press the button. G-Code printing commands for the platen to move to position "0" will move to this logical manually set "Z=0" position. The "Home" button will always move the platen to the hardware optical sensor controlled limit regardless of how the "Z=0" function is set.

A thought--what happens if you perform the alignment procedure, leave the paper (2 layers) in place, then  raise the platen 25 to 50 mm or so, and press the "Home" button once more? The platen should fall to where the paper is snug again, with no incident. If not I would begin to suspect an inconsistent or fouled optical sensor, or that the sensor "flag" on the bottom of the trolley is loose or fouled. Or that the trolley is set too tight on the rails and binding--when I disassembled my Mars to install the new mast i found it took 4.5 to 5.0 lbf to move the trolley--far too much I was able to adjust it to just 3 to 4 ounces. The Jackson mast requires zero force to move the trolley.

Z-axis sensor flag:

I will try 1 more time per your instructions here. If it doesn’t work MMF better send me a new one or refund my money. Shouldn’t have to do all this for a new device right out of the box.

[cliffyk]

Curious, what is MMF? Does not ring a bell with me...

[mrjayd]

Curious, what is MMF? Does not ring a bell with me...

oh sorry that's MyMiniFactory. Thats where I got their Green version of the Elegoo Mars Pro for $199. Thinking I should have just got the normal red one from Amazon and I could have gotten a new one by now. Still heard nothing back from MMF support.

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OK so I give up. I have tried your method and everyone else's with now luck. I even use a sheet of paper from the instruction booklet that I saw someone use online and no luck. First time trying an Elegoo product and it's not making a good impression. I think I just have a bad unit but it sucks that I can't even contact the seller.