I like that you actually showed what using the paper should look/feel like. You never see people actually use the paper "on camera" and if they do they often do it quickly and then talk about doing it afterwards, and it's literally one of the most important parts of 3d printing.
One of the main reasons I wanted to do this kind of channel was to be helpful. I'd rather see tons of viewers learn than just get more frustrated with the hobby.
You said something very helpful. "Zero out the Z after every print". I have been struggling with my Neptune 4 Pro dragging the bottom raft layer, but I didn't think about bringing Z back to true zero before automatic calibration, and THEN using the paper to adjust after the fact. I'll give that a shot tonight. Thanks!
I know someone already said this, but thank you for posting a video where you show how it should look to use the piece of A4 paper. I was having issues leveling our printer, and this bit of information really made the difference!
It's such a great hobby! The added benefit of learning, problem-solving and interactions with other hobbies is neverending. A plus for a mental health therapy.
I really appreciate this info, I've been having iffy prints either not adhering to the plate, or the tip dragging against the print at times with my Neptune 3 Max, and this really helps remind me of a step by step on leveling, including the info on how much of a drag I need to look for when doing all of this.
Good video helped a lot. I got a nice first layer but it got to about 84% then it lost adhesion and started to move on the plate. It’s a Neptune 4 pro. I leveled the bed manually and then automatically using your method please any help would be appreciated
I have a big problem with my Leveling. When i select 'Leveling' and then select continue, the Z Axis is way too deep and the Nozzle gets pushed into the Heating bed. Any Help? (Elegoo Neptune 4) Thank you
I'm in the USA! We don't use A4 paper. I use 8.5 x 11" paper. Is there a difference in thickness? Elegoo says to adjust Z untill you can pull but not push. Not an even drag on my Neptune 4 Pro
Standard letter paper is what I use, closest thing to A4. Funny how the world uses A4 paper size, but here in the US we use a different measurement. Just like Fahrenheit, inches, etc 😂
@@HelpfulHobbies Yea sure is wierd. ºc ºf A4 vs 8.5x11 Liters vs gallons. Then therer's metric Gal US Tons Metric tons. the world will neverget together 🤣
That confirm at the end is to explain that you may need to do a live z adjustment during first layer to make sure the layer is set correctly and shows you what the layer should look like, not to tell you to adjust z again right now.. By adjusting it after it has done its auto level, you have altered all of the distance measurements it just completed, invalidating the autolevel. Sequence of events should be, hit level, adjust z offset, auxiliary level and manually level all the points (this will take multiple checks, each time you adjust one point it slightly alters the rest), then autolevel. Confirm that you understand that you might have to live adjust z based on how the filament is being laid out, click the back arrow, confirm save and reset. This is exactly how it is spelled out in the manual. I have had zero issues with first layer prints following their instructions. I have had zero issues with my Neptune 4 Max. The first thing out of the box though is you MUST update the firmware to ensure you dont have the original firmware that wasnt saving the autolevel table information. That being said, I'm waiting for my 32g mks emmc to arrive before switching to firmware over to OpenNept4une firmware so that I can do updates from upstream and restore klipper functionality.
I did this and my prints still all fail. The neptune 4 pro lineup has been plagued with manufacturer defects (nozzles/hotend distance sensor misalignment) and firmware errors (not using the bed level mesh by default). YOU got lucky enough that yours worked the way its supposed to out of the box, but many people got dud printers that require more effort to get running properly.
Thank you for showing the z offset. “Lightly scratching” as the manual describes is subjective. Also, have you had any issues with clogs? This is my first printer and I’m still learning the ropes.
I actually did have one big clog but I think it was because of using the old nozzle. It was a used machine that I got from Elegoo, and I should have checked a little bit better the very first time. I had to heat up the entire block and shove a needle up inside. I think somebody tried to use nylon in it before.
Excellent question. You think that they would set you up for success and not failure after failure with a 3D printer. But take this into account, first of all they're shipping you a machine whether you're buying it on Amazon, or from the manufacturer or wherever it's going to be jostled around inside of a box which is inside of a truck or a train or a boat etc. Then you have to also think about after you've set it up that machine depending on where it is might be susceptible to the changes in climate. As you see from my videos I'm in a garage it's an insulated area but it doesn't have heat or cooling during the winter it's about anywhere between 50 to 60° in here Fahrenheit, but sometimes in the summer it could reach up to about a hundred. That bed itself will flex up and down and not always in a uniform manner. Maybe only one of the corners stays at the optimal leveling whereas the other three corners start to warp because of expansion or contraction from heat and cold respectively. Plus your nozzle on your extruder, after a while nozzles wear down especially if you don't have it offset and leveled correctly and you're scraping across the bed like I used to do with my old machine lol. Would that being said your nozzle height might not always be the same, especially across the broad spectrum of manufacturers that are out there for the different machines. Even changing from a brass to a hardened steel or stainless steel nozzle means that you need to zero out and relevel everything on your machine. As I said in the video I re-level every damn time I'm down here putting an SD card into that machine. It's the safest way to go
The common gsm for A4 paper is 80, if I recall from my cubicle farm days. That being said, that's usually a thickness of .10 mm, depending on manufacturer, etc. Elegoo doesn't specify, so I'm guessing common printer paper that would be used by consumers.
That almost sounds like a personal problem 😜 I would actually screw on those knobs a little more and then try hitting the level button first. Machine might bring your nozzle a little closer. If not you can always spin it down from the Prepare settings or manually.
I'm starting to get the bed leveling down ("auto" bed leveling, my ass!) but next I have to tackle layer shift. My N4Pro nearly flies off of the table it's on at default speeds... If I slow it to a crawl it kinda sorta prints straight, rather than at a 45 degree angle.
I've been printing for years and when I first started printing I always used 1 sheet of paper and if I ever ran a first layer calibration from cura it never worked, I always had to raise it and I have 4 different types of printers and it was the same for each one, so if you get 2 pieces of printing paper they equal 0.20 mm and I put my printers on 0.20 layer height profile and when I finish, it's perfect, I can run any print and calibration, even the calibration castle and my printers print everything. It took me a year to figure that out 😂. I don't run any first layer calibrations any more because I did in the past and it's perfect every time with two pieces of regular print paper 0.20mm
You ever notice the simplest way to do things is usually the last thing you think of after tons of trial and error? I usually start thinking of myself as a guru after that 😂
And IF it's a bit too high still you just do a 1/8 of a turn in CCW direction on each if the 4 bed knobs. And that's it. If you need to re-adjust on every print it means the end stop switch or the bumper are flaky.
Absolutely agree. I want to say it's because unlike brass that is softer and gives way over time, the steel is tougher, and I believe dirt and wet filament clog it. I could be totally wrong.
Consider subscribing, would appreciate the support for future videos!❤
I like that you actually showed what using the paper should look/feel like. You never see people actually use the paper "on camera" and if they do they often do it quickly and then talk about doing it afterwards, and it's literally one of the most important parts of 3d printing.
One of the main reasons I wanted to do this kind of channel was to be helpful. I'd rather see tons of viewers learn than just get more frustrated with the hobby.
You said something very helpful. "Zero out the Z after every print". I have been struggling with my Neptune 4 Pro dragging the bottom raft layer, but I didn't think about bringing Z back to true zero before automatic calibration, and THEN using the paper to adjust after the fact. I'll give that a shot tonight. Thanks!
Just glad I'm able to help
How did it turn out? I'm having the same exact issue as you with the same exact printer
I know someone already said this, but thank you for posting a video where you show how it should look to use the piece of A4 paper. I was having issues leveling our printer, and this bit of information really made the difference!
This is all I seen to gain, that someone has learned something from me
You’re a saint! literally watching 10 videos looking for someone using the paper. Ty
Oooooh 3D printing is so fascinating. Loved this!
It's such a great hobby! The added benefit of learning, problem-solving and interactions with other hobbies is neverending. A plus for a mental health therapy.
Found this video super helpful thank u
I really appreciate this info, I've been having iffy prints either not adhering to the plate, or the tip dragging against the print at times with my Neptune 3 Max, and this really helps remind me of a step by step on leveling, including the info on how much of a drag I need to look for when doing all of this.
Sometimes the simplest way is the one we don't think about. Glad this helped!
Good video helped a lot. I got a nice first layer but it got to about 84% then it lost adhesion and started to move on the plate. It’s a Neptune 4 pro. I leveled the bed manually and then automatically using your method please any help would be appreciated
Glad it helped!
I have a big problem with my Leveling. When i select 'Leveling' and then select continue, the Z Axis is way too deep and the Nozzle gets pushed into the Heating bed. Any Help?
(Elegoo Neptune 4)
Thank you
Have you done manual leveling (tramming) with the handwheels?
I'm in the USA! We don't use A4 paper. I use 8.5 x 11" paper. Is there a difference in thickness? Elegoo says to adjust Z untill you can pull but not push. Not an even drag on my Neptune 4 Pro
Standard letter paper is what I use, closest thing to A4. Funny how the world uses A4 paper size, but here in the US we use a different measurement. Just like Fahrenheit, inches, etc 😂
@@HelpfulHobbies Yea sure is wierd. ºc ºf A4 vs 8.5x11 Liters vs gallons. Then therer's metric Gal US Tons Metric tons. the world will neverget together 🤣
That confirm at the end is to explain that you may need to do a live z adjustment during first layer to make sure the layer is set correctly and shows you what the layer should look like, not to tell you to adjust z again right now.. By adjusting it after it has done its auto level, you have altered all of the distance measurements it just completed, invalidating the autolevel. Sequence of events should be, hit level, adjust z offset, auxiliary level and manually level all the points (this will take multiple checks, each time you adjust one point it slightly alters the rest), then autolevel. Confirm that you understand that you might have to live adjust z based on how the filament is being laid out, click the back arrow, confirm save and reset. This is exactly how it is spelled out in the manual. I have had zero issues with first layer prints following their instructions.
I have had zero issues with my Neptune 4 Max. The first thing out of the box though is you MUST update the firmware to ensure you dont have the original firmware that wasnt saving the autolevel table information.
That being said, I'm waiting for my 32g mks emmc to arrive before switching to firmware over to OpenNept4une firmware so that I can do updates from upstream and restore klipper functionality.
I did this and my prints still all fail. The neptune 4 pro lineup has been plagued with manufacturer defects (nozzles/hotend distance sensor misalignment) and firmware errors (not using the bed level mesh by default). YOU got lucky enough that yours worked the way its supposed to out of the box, but many people got dud printers that require more effort to get running properly.
I haven't heard much good about the Neptune 4 series other than klipper. Not very impressed, but I hope Elegoo learns from it.
Just got mine a week ago and I think mine is one of the duds. Were you ever able to get yours working properly?
Thank you for showing the z offset. “Lightly scratching” as the manual describes is subjective.
Also, have you had any issues with clogs? This is my first printer and I’m still learning the ropes.
I actually did have one big clog but I think it was because of using the old nozzle. It was a used machine that I got from Elegoo, and I should have checked a little bit better the very first time. I had to heat up the entire block and shove a needle up inside. I think somebody tried to use nylon in it before.
Greatest tip ever just walk away from that toxic little printer
Why can't the manufacturer just set the z offset to the required thickness automatically, as part of the bed levelling process?
Excellent question. You think that they would set you up for success and not failure after failure with a 3D printer. But take this into account, first of all they're shipping you a machine whether you're buying it on Amazon, or from the manufacturer or wherever it's going to be jostled around inside of a box which is inside of a truck or a train or a boat etc. Then you have to also think about after you've set it up that machine depending on where it is might be susceptible to the changes in climate. As you see from my videos I'm in a garage it's an insulated area but it doesn't have heat or cooling during the winter it's about anywhere between 50 to 60° in here Fahrenheit, but sometimes in the summer it could reach up to about a hundred. That bed itself will flex up and down and not always in a uniform manner. Maybe only one of the corners stays at the optimal leveling whereas the other three corners start to warp because of expansion or contraction from heat and cold respectively. Plus your nozzle on your extruder, after a while nozzles wear down especially if you don't have it offset and leveled correctly and you're scraping across the bed like I used to do with my old machine lol. Would that being said your nozzle height might not always be the same, especially across the broad spectrum of manufacturers that are out there for the different machines. Even changing from a brass to a hardened steel or stainless steel nozzle means that you need to zero out and relevel everything on your machine. As I said in the video I re-level every damn time I'm down here putting an SD card into that machine. It's the safest way to go
A4 is a size not a thickness. Should they be telling us what gram paper weight to use ? The GSM which is more thickness related.
The common gsm for A4 paper is 80, if I recall from my cubicle farm days. That being said, that's usually a thickness of .10 mm, depending on manufacturer, etc.
Elegoo doesn't specify, so I'm guessing common printer paper that would be used by consumers.
my knobs spin off before the nozzle even touches the paper...........knobs
That almost sounds like a personal problem 😜
I would actually screw on those knobs a little more and then try hitting the level button first. Machine might bring your nozzle a little closer. If not you can always spin it down from the Prepare settings or manually.
@@HelpfulHobbies i just threw it away tired of messing with it
I'm starting to get the bed leveling down ("auto" bed leveling, my ass!) but next I have to tackle layer shift. My N4Pro nearly flies off of the table it's on at default speeds... If I slow it to a crawl it kinda sorta prints straight, rather than at a 45 degree angle.
I've heard with the Neptune four series they've had a lot of different little problems here and there.
What do you want to learn about next?
use ai to prompt your next print ! 🧠
@@internetcultured I kinda like that 💡!
I've been printing for years and when I first started printing I always used 1 sheet of paper and if I ever ran a first layer calibration from cura it never worked, I always had to raise it and I have 4 different types of printers and it was the same for each one, so if you get 2 pieces of printing paper they equal 0.20 mm and I put my printers on 0.20 layer height profile and when I finish, it's perfect, I can run any print and calibration, even the calibration castle and my printers print everything. It took me a year to figure that out 😂. I don't run any first layer calibrations any more because I did in the past and it's perfect every time with two pieces of regular print paper 0.20mm
You ever notice the simplest way to do things is usually the last thing you think of after tons of trial and error? I usually start thinking of myself as a guru after that 😂
And IF it's a bit too high still you just do a 1/8 of a turn in CCW direction on each if the 4 bed knobs. And that's it. If you need to re-adjust on every print it means the end stop switch or the bumper are flaky.
Thanks I was raising my neptune 4 max a few cunt hairs after I felt a drag.maybe that's why a get fails not sticking to the plate.
I was right there with you doing the same thing, and then I just did this and it works every time
i noticed that the steel nozzels give me so many problems. the brass ones seem to work with no issues. ANyone else get the same result?
Absolutely agree. I want to say it's because unlike brass that is softer and gives way over time, the steel is tougher, and I believe dirt and wet filament clog it. I could be totally wrong.