Extreme layer shifting!

It does sound like you may be having issues with slic3r if the settings you use aren't changing the print. Here are some things that may help.

• Check that you have the latest slic3r settings from the downloads page (http://gcreate.com/downloads/slic3r-1-1-7-config-file/)
• I suggest taking a look at the gCreate youtube videos for slic3r (https://www.youtube.com/user/gCreate3D). In particular slic3r tutorial part 1 and part 2.
• Check that you have the latest firmware from the downloads page (for the original or the 1.5 gMax, whichever you have)
• For the stepper motor settings I posted in this topic: viewtopic.php?f=12&t=324, but you should probably check the above before looking into the motor drivers unless you can hear it missing steps.
• 200ºC should be fine for PLA.

I would start with printing this model: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:359843 It's a simple 1" cube. It's much easier to see what axis might be off with this. You mention you've tweaked the axis motors but what about the extruder? Make a few degree change in either direction for the extruder and print. Rinse and repeat making minor adjustments, one at a time only, until you can notice a change and work from there. Feel free to post the cubes as you go along as that should provide hints to us.

Also make sure the print speed says 100% on the LCD Panel. I've managed to change mine a few times to 150% by accident while adjusting the motor positions.

I heat my PLA to 220 when I run it in my gmax. I've done with for 3 differently manufacturers and haven't had issues.

Also, I remember an issue Gordon brought up about not loading the slicer files through the UI but instead copying them into the slicer folder itself, but that may have only applied to a particular version.

Rene, what brand of PLA are you using? And what do you have your layer height set to?

In version 1.1.7, Slic3r supports loading config bundles. Prior to that, the configs had to manually be copied over (as far as I know). The current Slic3r can import the current gMax Slic3r configs by using the File->Load Config Bundle menu option.

Hi again guys!

Thanks a lot for the answers, Ive been playing with it for a few days and I realized I was uploading the wrong file to the printer and I ended up uploading the config bundle as mwu suggested(thanks!)
All in all Ive made a number of tests: I printed the cube that grumble suggested (thanks!) and it helped me see the what was wrong. Apparently the X axis was getting either too much or too little power.

Crussel, I started with the filament that came with the printer, but then I changed to some generic PLA filament I bought online (maybe not the best idea I believe) . After the 5th test I wanted to change back but now I believe the extruder overheats and is somehow blocked!

Here are my results with the cube (refer to first picture):

1: First test, extreme error on the Y axis - Corrected potentiometer value
2: Weird error on all axis and probably extruder as well - Played a bit with the values
3: Much better shape on Y axis, but now X was still totally weird - Lowered the X value
4: It works! … but I noticed the bottom was not "thick" enough, so I raised the extruder motor power to have plastic "evenly"
5: Sadness again … very little plastic coming out at all!

Now the problem that I have is I wanted to change back to the blue colorfabb filament that came with my printer (because for 5th test I noticed the extruder gear was "carving" on the filament, probably because of too much power on it) … and now it seems the extruder is blocked or something because no plastic comes out of it! It is definitely hot, and the fan nozzle is even melting and I cannot make the fan to turn on. I wanted to see if you could help me out, because my extruder controller does not have a heatsink like on the manual (see picture attached) Is this normal? Did I just burn my hotend??? Which one of the 5 potentiometers controls the power of the hotend and of the fan? I do not have a voltimeter so I cannot measure how much power is going through each potentiometer, I just go by X/Y degrees of turns.

Thanks a lot for your help guys!

Sounds like you've mangaged to jam your extruder. Good write up here on how to clear it:
https://www.matterhackers.com/articles/ ... event-jams

Hi Chris,

It looks exactly like that! I will go on and give it a try and let you guys know what happens.

Is there a chance different brands of filaments "melt" at different temperature points? Because I can "force" the orange filament (from China) into the hotend, but not the blue colorfabb filament anymore…

Thanks!

Definitely, different resins (all of which are still claimed to be PLA) have different Melt Flow Indexes. I've been able to print anywhere from 180 for my filastruded filament (genuine 4043D) up to 260 for a particularly stubborn filament.

So I tried the guitar E string thing and it definitely unblocked quite a lot of plastic, but the hotend still does not let any filament through. Is it safe to disassemble the hotend? Any other ideas before I tear the extruder apart??

Nothing else worked... disassembled the whole extruder, cleaned all the tiny parts (there's a plastic tube inside the hotend that had a tiny scratch that was keeping the filament to slide easily, took it off, "polished" it just a bit and put it back again), reassembled it all, plugged it in… works perfectly! Thanks a lot!