Frequently Asked Questions

The first thing you should check is the spool of plastic that is
feeding into your printer. You need to make sure that this spool is
able to rotate freely and that the plastic is easily being unwound
from the spool. If the filament becomes tangled, or the spool has
too much resistance to spin freely, it will impact how evenly the
evenly the filament is extruded through the nozzle. If your printer
includes a Bowden tube (a small hollow tube that the filament is
routed through), you should also check to make sure that the
filament can easily move through this tube without too much
resistance. If there is too much resistance in the tube, you may
want to try cleaning the tube or applying some lubrication inside
the tube.
(2) Clogged extruder
If the filament is not tangled and can easily be pulled into the
extruder, then the next thing to check is the nozzle itself. It is
possible that there is some small debris or foreign plastic inside the
nozzle that is preventing proper extrusion. An easy way to check
this is to use Simplify3D’s machine control panel to manually
extrude some plastic from the nozzle. Watch to make sure that the
plastic is extruding evenly and consistently. If you notice problems,
you may need to clean the nozzle. Please consult your
manufacturer for instructions on how to properly clean the inside
of the nozzle.
(3) Very low layer height
If the filament is spinning freely and the extruder is not
clogged, it may be useful to check a few settings within
Simplify3D. For example, if you are trying to print at an extremely