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Sometimes we have so much fun with our 3D printers that we get carried away. We forget that our precious printers need some TLC every now and then. This video will give you all the information that you need in order to maintain and service your 3D printer. While this video focuses specifically on a Prusa i3 MK3, the process is the same regardless of your brand of 3D printer. Although, I still HIGHLY recommend reading the service/user manual for whichever 3D printer you own. 3D Printer maintenance is an essentially part of the hobby, if you want to extend the lifespan of your 3D printer I recommend servicing every 100-200 hours of printing.
#prusa #prusai3MK3 #3dprinter
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Prusa recently stated in their assembly manual that you should not lubricate the Z-screw rods. While I have done this with lithium grease for 2 years with no issues whatsoever, you'd be silly not to follow the manufacturers advice. Here's a link to read more: help.prusa3d.com/cs/guide/printer-maintenance-tips_23201
Wow, wish I'd seen this regarding the z-screw rods before applying the lithium grease.
Lubricating threaded rods attracts dirt and debris that can be hard to remove and could cause premature wear which could theoretically lead to backlash. It could also clog the threaded nut and cause jerking and imperfections in your print that may not be very noticeable.
@@gerhardschwebler1442 you can clean them off with alcohol. You can probably safely use a dry lube like wd40 specialist with ptfe but I think those are delran nuts anyway & those are considered self-lubricating anyhow.
If they used higher quality parts, lithium grease would be standard. I service semiconductor equipment- every tool manufacturer with linear rods and screw drives use grease like isoflex nbu15….
Thank you for this. Even as a proffessional maintenance technician I always like to double check my thought processes before starting something new. And I get nervous messing with my personal things, especially when they cost a lot of money, this was an excellent sanity check!
Dude, this is a video which I always come back to after not using my Prusa for a while. Awesome guide, I have been using this method for a few years now (excluding the Z rod lubrication, as you mentioned in the pinned comment ) and my MK3 has been delivering constant quality prints since day 1. I would like to thank you very much for putting this guide together! Best wishes, brother!
Thanks so much for this video. Did my first maintenance since I got the printer in June. Immediately there is a difference in the way the printer performs now. Am a subscriber!
Great to hear! happy printing :)
Great video. Thanks for taking the time to put this together, it's a great help for the 3D printing community. Thanks for the link on Reddit.
Thanks Barry. I'm glad you found it useful!
10:30 remember that there is a belt tension readout in the menu. Check this number and ensure that it is between the high/low limits.
Thanks for putting so much work into these videos. Extremely helpful and well done! Thank you!!!
You're very welcome!
Very well done videos. You sound well spoken and knowledgeable about this matter. I look forward to additional videos from you on 3d printing. 73
Excellent video, thank you so much for making it!
I also find a lot of dust in both hotend fans and especially the lower fan duct which affects parts cooling aiflow. Blowing out the fans with compressed air clears the blades but the buildup in the lower duct requires disassembly to do a proper job.
great! will do that, just have a couple of weeks with my prusa but the thing have barely stoped, will do that service at least once a month with heavy use
You can also make your own gcode with pauses for your cleaning routine to move the Y and X axes and especially the Z, for the cleaning and for the lubrication ..
WOuld be great to see what you have done here. Can you share the gcode?
Very clear and useful! Thank you for this!
Nice Displate in the background, it's the exact one I have hanging over my Lack enclosure. Love watching those dual landings.
Thanks I’m about to service my printer so this is useful. I’d have like to see you retention your belts or use the Calibration - Belt test in the menu. I found this the hardest to positively know I’d set the tension right and from a google search many others ask too.
Awesome content Thanks for posting !
Thanks buddy, this helped me!
Have you ever used the teflon dry-film lubricant on the smooth rods or z-screws? It goes on liquid but dries very quickly, leaving a very thin lubricant coating that doesn't attract dust.
Using the metal brush to clean the nozzle and the heater block is a great tip! Never saw it before!
this is by far the worst advice you are grinding away the metal of the nozzle
excellent video, thank you.
A big THANK YOU to you ... I'm actually making my first printings, but I was wondring a lot about thoses informations and particularly the right way to grease the axe (I think I have to do it on Y axe) .. the info is also present in the book but it is much better to see it. Your video is very clear about that. Thank you, a thumb and a suscribe from me ;)
Great video, was just what I was looking for! Liked and subscribed. Quick question do you oil or grease the X-axis idler pulley? (Bearing housing 623h) mines started squeaking 🙈 thanks again.
excellent video, thank you
Great video, thank You very much!
Thanks for watching!
Great video!
tk man! exelent!
I'm thinking of buying a MK4 kit+enclosure as my first 3D printer. Any advice?
Thumbs up for poster and model.
If lubricating with oil do you still pack your bearing with something like superlube? Or is this a bad idea when using oil on the rods? If so do you also repack them after time?
Very good video thank you
Which part cooling duct is that? I'd like to replace the stock one as it's very weak and just doesn't seem to be designed properly.
What is your x axis bearing on the other side of the motor is making noise? Am I able to lubricate it or no because the belt is on the gear? Would love to know.
So I’m the first person in my family to ever own 3-D printer and I got the Pursa MK3 and for some reason it will print the first few layers fine and then after a while it will start clumping at the nozzle and makes a huge mess. Do you know what I might be doing wrong?
Can you make a review any of the SLA Printers with the curing machine that comes with it?
where can i find the link for the print on the piece that you have under the nozzle that says hot
Thank you so much for the printer service, I am newbie. just got prusa mini, print with it for 30 hr and try to service the printer. No one does it to prusa mini(if have they not show actual process as you did) can you make video how to service mini? I am afraid of ruin my printer with wrong procedure. Thanks again 😄
when calibration the I3 ask if the nozzle is clean. can you brush it to clean it?
trumpet valve oil good for smooth rods?
For cleanimg the nozzle. Heat it up enough for the PLA to melt. Then use plastic cotton sticks to clean. This wont scratch your nozzle and basically removes the danger of shortening it. The plastic will gently soak into the cotton. For example. I had a tiny blob buildup once. Using a couple of cotton sticks it went from being totally covered in PLA to be completely clean and shiny. Looking just like new. Using brass or metal brushes just sounds insane to me. Not only does it have the high risk of shortening. Damaging more components. But you scratch up the metal.
I like your idea, I'll try that! I still use the wire brush method to this day and never had any issues. Never even had to change the nozzle on the Prusa MK3, had it nearly 4 years!
Gr8 tutorial.
Prusa's research says that "absolutely do not lubricate the z axis ..." I think it lubricates because it has self-lubricating bushings, and the wd-40 lubricant would defeat this quality ...
Are you saying that we shouldn't lubricate the rods, the screws, or both?
grude1 don’t lubricate the z screw ... the rods with bearing it’s ok to lubricate ... but the screw it lubricate itself.... all rods lubricate with singer oil it’s ok , but absolutey don’t lubricate the z screw
Exactly, do not lubricant leadscrews. Maybe author should edit the video, as this goes directly against official Prusa user guide: help.prusa3d.com/cs/guide/printer-maintenance-tips_23201
WD40 is not a lubricant. It is closer to a solvent and rust dissolver.
I remove the bed when I start maintenance for cleaning and leave it off until the end so there is no chance of damage or contaminating it with oil that could drip off the rods during lubrication.
Thanks for this. When using a brush to clean the nozzle I would wonder if the brush material could be harder or at least as hard as the nozzle and possible affect the tiny hole.
Yes you have to be careful with that. I would recommend a hardened steel nozzle personally. Not only will it last longer but you'll also be able to experiment with exotic filaments too.
For tighten the Y belt Must i remove the heatbed? Anybody knows?
need to make my prusa mk2s more quiet how to change mother board for smoth motherboard? thx
It's ok vert it acetone to the heatbed?
Like the way you talking. Very chilled Videos without this stressed Teen-Style-KZhead-Edit-Skilzzz :-) You get an Abo for this great Work and Content. Greetings from Austria
Can you make a video on how to tighten the axis?
Prusa site says specifically do not lubricate the lead screws. I think those are Delran anyway & that is considered self-lubricating.
Thank you. I was having the problem. I thought it was worse than it was. The sewing oil solution was easier for I have no idea where my deceased husband put the prusa oil.
your USA link for machine oil is not the same oil you used in your video
i'd use something to apply the grease to the extruder, like a solid grease. you don't want grease where it touches and grips the filament
I’ve never had any problems with it personally... but it wouldn’t hurt! Do whichever method you feel most comfortable with :)
I wondered about that too. How can it not get on the filament spraying grease in there like that? Maybe it doesn’t effect the print tho..
why do you grease the motors with pulleys ??
no 7x7 mesh bed leveling?? ;-)
What about cleaning your nozzle from inside, its good to make cold pull sometime
True, I didn't include this in the video because it's a little more "risky". I tend to only do a cold pull if extruder is clogged up!
Run through some cleaning filament instead
What was the reason for using A4 paper during the calibration? About to get my first Prusa
It’s just to ensure that the nozzle isn’t touching/damaging the steel sheet! During this calibration you can easily feel if the nozzle snags the paper, at which point you must turn the printer off immediately. Good luck with the printer man, any more questions just let me know!
nicest cleaning video around! thumbs up!! please please please do the nylock mod and drastically improved my quality! i've done it on my mk3s and gone from 0.586 to 0.086 (best i've seen is 0.020) bed tolerance and you can add the check on the ubolts! :) ps tightening the bed bolts (9:50 ish) DO mod the warping on the bed itself (check octopi and bed leveling wizard)
fyi: NYLOCK MOD TUTORIAL github.com/PrusaOwners/prusaowners/wiki/Bed_Leveling_without_Wave_Springs and then do THIS: BED LEVELING CALIBRATION DONE EASY and WAYYYY BETTER: forum.prusaprinters.org/forum/original-prusa-i3-mk3s-mk3-assembly-and-first-prints-troubleshooting/life-adjust-z-my-way/
Mine doesn't have the orange guard/horeshoe piece around the nozzle. Is that new? We paid for the fully assembled mks3+ from Prusa about 3 years ago and it doesn't have that. Lots of gunk/old filament has gotten impacted up in the nozzle area. It's not clogged but all the space around the nozzle now has hardened filament from failed prints that didn't stick to the bed. How do I get all this off now?
Hello, I believe they've changed this to a black polycarbonate piece now. I wouldn't panic if you don't have it, plus of course you can always print the part yourself
I just noticed mine doesn't have it either and has a ton of gunk like you're describing. Did you get yours all cleaned up? If so, how?
@@quentingauthier430 Okay, so here's what we did to clean it. Go to the settings and set the Z to something high so the nozzle is at least 5 or 6 inches above your plate. Then preheat the nozzle up to the highest temp setting. Then let it sit ON for at least 30 minutes. Most of it will melt off onto your plate. Turn it off and let it cool a bit, but not all the way. You should be able to pull off the rest while it's still malleable.
@@con-rob amazing! thanks!
I learned a lot! But how do I know when to use the Machine Oil or the WD40 grease? Whats the difference??
They are very similar. But basically grease is oil mixed with some kind of thickener. WD40 grease looks more like a white paste, which just helps it last longer! Standard machine oil is cleaner/easier to manage but it dries up quicker. Personally I would never put Grease on the printer rails just because it would make such a mess. Machine Oil is also known to be much better for lubricating bearings.
thehardwareguy there is a wD 40 dry ptfe lib for metal to metal contact
@@thehardwareguy WD40 will dry quicker then oil, it will dissolve some dirt, penetrate all small places and after some time evaporate mostly. I'd say that for small gears in extruder oil or grease would work better than wd40.
@@adamd6469 It's just WD40 brand, it's white lithium grease not the OG WD-40 formulation. Totally different product
My printer over the last almost 3 months now, have been doing its job like a good boy for about 44*24=1056 hours now. I have had a suspicion there may be about time to do some poky poking on it. My suspicion has been A: I at least need to shorten the ---- belt by 1 or maybe even 2 teeth. >.> Mainly due to seeing less than a layers with of shift/error in my prints. I also suspect that various treatment of the nozzle probably makes it a good idea to change it. Oh and I have noticed that when changing the filament, it started getting a bit stuck in there at some point. :/ That probably would be the biggest annoyance to fix.
Quick Q. Don't the bearings have a seal around the edges and won't that seal prevent the oil getting inside the bearing casing and onto the bearings themselves?
In theory yeah, but if you’ve ever changed the bearings the first thing you’ll realise is just how much dirt & dust gets in there. Oil can get in there
@@thehardwareguy thanks. Just built my mk3s a week ago. Do you find the modified nozzle fan shroud you have printed makes a difference?
nice
i don't know about oiling stepper motors
Will normal WD40 work? The type mentioned in the video is indefinitely out of stock in the USA
I don't recommend that, because regular WD-40 damages plastic and it's not exactly designed to be a lubricant. It's main function is cleaning and water displacement for rusty parts I believe.
I lubricate BOTH ends of each motor. The rear end sees almost as much force and wear as the front end.
1) it does not. The bearing closer to the pulley and belt tension is significantly under higher load then the rear bearing. 2) The bearings are sealed, for proper lubrication, you need to disassemble the motor (4 screw at the rear), and pull the assembly carefully. Note the location of the spring washer, as its normally at the rear and pressing the motor assembly forward (Toward the output shaft). Clean all surfaces, alcohol works fine. And you can then lube the bearings from the inside, you may need to pry off the dust cap seal 1st. Give you a chance to actually inspect the bearings as well and check for any excessive wear. But frankly, it's just as cheap to replace the motor vs. going through the steps to replace 2 bearings. Spraying white grease from the outside, doesn't do anything.
I am not sure if you should Grease up the filament feed wheel, u don’t want it to slip
I’ve never had this problem! If it slips it’s too slack!
Internet says, that lubrication of stepper motors is not necessary, the bearings are "lubricated for life"...
this is correct, these motors are sealed and does not need lubrication, and as an elevator technichian i can tell you that many newer motors are sealed and cant be lubricated, they get replaced in 20-30 years and no need to lubricate and no way to lubricate befoure that.
WD40 will wash out grease from the bearings. Would never do this.
Matze W it’s not WD40 oil.... it’s WD40 Lithium Grease.
i would replace the metal bearings with igus bearings, they are quiet and you dont need to oil them
Add cold pull to the nozzle routine and you're all set
Is there something unique in this that doesn't apply to any FDM printer and only to Prusa i3 MK3 printers? Prusa owners are like apple owners they have to mention its a "Original Prusa Mkxx" even if its irrelevant. Sent from my Apple iPhone XR with tapabrag.
You’re welcome for the video.
When using acetone it is recommended ot wear protective (nitrile) gloves as acetone can penetrate the skin and lead to health problems.
If you are prone to skin problems then I would agree, wear gloves.
Don’t people dip their whole fingers in acetone to remove fake nails? Or do they not do that anymore lol.
@@itllBuffGaming exactly what I thought, nail polish remover is literally acetone
This is a well done tutorial, but unfortunately it contains some errors. The first one you corrected yourself with the pinned comment. The second one: WD45 isn’t a grease. I would definitely not use it for this purpose. I don’t thnk, you have to lubricate the extruder. But you definitely should clean them from filament. I use a tooth-stick for that.
Good video. But I would suggest buying a silicone nozzle sock.
I've heard those have become very popular lately!
I basically do the same steps but only 2x a year, you think every 3 months would be worth it? I do print a good bit (IMO). But I don't notice issues.
Any service is better than no service!But generally the more often the better, without overdoing it of course!
@@thehardwareguy Came back to say, I did complete maintenance before printing a massive 3 day job and some prototypes. Everything turned out great but I think it's time for another maintenance. LOL
what i find a little annoying is that it says in the manual to regrease the linear bearings every few hundred print hours - but there is no proper step by step manual giving you an idea on how to get to those bearings... i had one bearing block up on me on the x axis and had to dissassemble the entire printhead and remove the x-axis in a very dodgy way over the top... printer still works fine but damn that was dodgy... also - service every 100 or 200 hours is a really narrow service interval, i wonder how they do it in their printfarms
thank you, very well explained... i only got one suggestion: WD40 is a rust REMOVAL aid. it is not meant to be used as grease (it's says so on the spray) since its main component (about 75%) is washing benzine (a kind of kerosene).
This is not the common WD40 type. It's the silicon lubricante of the same company
Hi. There is some alternative to WD40 ?
A lubricant would better. WD40 is NOT a lubricant.
@@Traitorman.14.3 maybe graphite grease?
@@martincaneva4247 Lithium grease with PTFE is my choice. I use it inside the roller bearings.
With a long list of items such as you have for maintaining the printer, have you considered creating a list then make that list public? Then one link would take everyone to everything they need. Those items would still be affiliate links, so you would not lose anything there, and you could edit the list whenever you needed to and not have to come back and edit the list embedded in your video description.
if you use silicone sock on your hotend it wont require any cleaning at all...
I’ve used them on Creality printers... they’re okay, but I found that filament can still get trapped inside them and then dip down onto prints unexpectedly! A few of my white PLA prints had black PETG smears on them. Since then I removed the nozzle sock and never had the problem again!
@@thehardwareguy creality socks are a bit rubbish, ive got e3d pro sock on my mk3s (the one that covers everything completely) only the tip of the nozzle pokes out, theres no chance of filament getting in there.
Audio??????
Bro u used a machine oil for Threaded + Plain Rods. Some1 told me to use Synthetic oil with PTFE instead. (which is of course not locally available) So is it safe to use a machine oil for both plain and threaded rod?
I used machine oil for smooth rods, and lithium grease for threaded rods.
@@thehardwareguy ok thanx for that👍
Buy a bottle of triflow and use that as the oil instead. Bicycle shops will often carry it or an equivalent if you can't find it in your area.
Graphite would work better. Oil is dirt magnetic
low risk ... of short .. happened to me ... not blew the board though ALWAYS shut down the printer when working on the nozzle best way to clean your nozzle : get the hot end OUT and use a HOT AIR GUN ( 250-300c ) use pliers and a brush to clean the hot end if you have a ruby nozzle you do not want to run that over the nozzle