Bed levelling (and also print surface discussion).
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I have three printers, each one using a different surface:
My delta uses PEI heated to 70C indicated (in reality more like 55-60C in top of the PEI). I wipe the PEI with isopropanol between prints. Getting the print to release is often a problem, usually resolved either with a small hammer or by putting the bed+print in the freezer.
My Cartesian printer uses plain glass, heated to 65C indicated (in reality more like 60C on top of the glass). I don't use a coating, I just moisten it with vinegar using a kitchen towel before each print, and the brands of PLA that I use stick to it well. The print pops off when the bed cools.
My SCARA printer doesn't have a bed, so I just put blue tape on the desk in front of it and print on that. I use Rigidink PLA+ in that machine (I haven't tried regular PLA in it yet) and it sticks really well. On glass and PEI I find PLA+ sticks much too well and the print won't come off.
For Z probing, I use the smart effector in the delta and the IR sensor in the other two. The IR sensor works well with uncoated glass if you use a matt black backing behind the glass, and works very well with the blue tape.
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I have three printers, each one using a different surface:
My SCARA printer doesn't have a bed, so I just put blue tape on the desk in front of it and print on that. I use Rigidink PLA+ in that machine (I haven't tried regular PLA in it yet) and it sticks really well. On glass and PEI I find PLA+ sticks much too well and the print won't come off.
I have had pretty good luck with PLA+ on my PEI at 60C as long as I let it cool. Interesting how these things vary.
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As the OP of this thread, having tried all sorts of surfaces, I've settled on just using plain glass heated to around 50 degC with a quick squirt of 3DLac. I haven't yet found a filament that it doesn't work with. That's PLA, PLA/PAH, PET-G (various), Taulman T Glass, and E3D Edge. Bed temperature doesn't seem to matter much - anything from 50 to 60 works and it's also very forgiving of first layer height. In fact, it works best if after homing the nozzle is 0.05mm or so above the bed, rather than just touching. Quite the opposite of a lot of surfaces which need the first layer to be squashed. So no "Elephants foot". When the print finishes, I slide out the glass and wait for the "crack" sound whereby the object just falls off. If I'm impatient, I give the object a sharp tap before it has cooled and that works too.
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I have a piece of 0.8mm PEI sheet that I'm about to attach to my glass bed.
Has anyone tried printing on both sides of the glass/pei laminated type print bed? So if your printing PETG you can print on the PEI side, but if your going to print PLA just flip the glass bed over and print on the glass side?
My print bed is a silicone heater underneath a 6mm thick aluminum spreader. On top of this is a thin (maybe 1-2mm) layer of a rubbery Thermal Transfer material used for gaskets we had at work. Then a glass bed and now a PEI sheet.
My other printer has a GeckoTek print bed. Its coated spring steel plates mounted to a magnetic base. Works amazing in that the spring steel plates can be bent to pop off any print even when warm. The downside is petg doesnt stick the greatest, and the magnets dont hold the plate perfectly flat across its surface.
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Well, I feel I must chip in with a rather surprising and novel surface which no one has mentioned that is great for plain PLA on an unheated bed, particularly if your bed isn't 100% flat. You tend to get great first layers with this, even with an uneven bed due to the nap of the fibres…. what, I hear you cry?!
d-c-fix
Sticky Back Plastic (self adhesive vinyl film) Black Velour is amazingly effective, lasts a reasonable length of time, gives a lovely soft 'furry' texture on the base the first few prints (excellent for vases, boxes, etc) and best of all, it's as cheap as chips for any size. Just spray your bed with water, stick it on, smooth out the bubbles with a hard edge. That's it, seriously, put your prejudices aside and try it! At that price, there's no risk, right? Particularly good for printing black PLA, for obvious reasons! 
I only wish they did it in other colours.As I say, it's particularly good for unheated print beds that use removable glass (better than buildtak, IMO). Don't have a heated bed on the printer I use it on, but it continues to work OK even after the first furriness has worn off. It's so cheap, if you want to change it you can and you don't feel guilty.
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Interesting! I expect it will work well with the IR sensor too. I have ordered some to test.
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That would be a great surface choice for printing on tables/floor/whatever with the Scara or hangprinter at a show.
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That would be a great surface choice for printing on tables/floor/whatever with the Scara or hangprinter at a show.
Quite so! I'll try it with our SCARA printer as an alternative to blue tape.
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notice they do just plain Black as well which is half the cost I also wonder if I can get it in somewhere like Dunelm mill (we have a few of them round here and they sell that sort of stuff off the roll)
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It has to be the velour. The other stuff just melted against the hot end / hot filament. Shame, as I quite fancied some of the textured leather! Mind, I wonder what real leather would be like… I think there are many other possibilities for exploring textured beds.
