Hi everyone,
I have been doing some experimenting with color swaps mid print using the K1 series printers and I have been having lots of questions about how to do this from customers. So I decided I would make a post here to show everyone the process I do this with.
For the purposes of this tutorial I will stick with using Creality Print, but this process can also be done using basically any other slicer. If anyone would like details regarding how to do it with a certain slicer please let me know.
OK, now on to the fun part! What you will need for this is:
- The printer
- The slicer
- At least 2 spools of filament, however you can use as many as you would like
- A text editor, I like to use Notepad++ as I find it easier to navigate, however most any text editor will work just fine
- This tutorial (Nice, that was an easy one!)
Step one:
Slice the file, I suggest you use this file here as the QR code is both a great and quick test of the printers precision when doing these multicolor prints, but it is also fun to show off to other people. I scaled mine up to around 150% size in the slicer to allow for an easier time scanning.
Step two:
After slicing we will be met with the gcode preview, we can export this gcode to wherever you usually keep it stored, but do not close the slicer yet! We will want to move the bar to the right of the model down, this will show what is being printed on each layer of the file. We will want to move it down until we find the layer which we need the color change to be made on, in my case at 150% scale it was at layer 15 as you can see in the picture. The way I was able to determine this is that at 15 the printer begins to print the black part of the QR code, so we will need to swap the material right at this point. Repeat this step for however many of the layers you would like to swap.
Step Three:
Once we have our gcode file saved and our swap layer(s) determined we can move on to adjusting the gcode file to allow for these swaps. Please note that this can damage the printer if things are added or removed which should not be added or removed, please be careful with what you add and follow my steps exactly. I will not take any responsibility for damage caused to your machine. Ok disclaimer aside this step is actually very simple and sounds a lot scarier than it really is. First we will want to right click the gcode file and open it using our text editor, the we will want to use the search function (Ctrl+F) and search for this code ;LAYER:15, please note that the number you will enter corresponds to what layer the filament needs to be changed at, since we are changing at layer if we will enter this code. Then press enter and you should go to that layer in the gcode.
Step Four:
Once we have found the layer we would like to change the filament at we can create a new line right underneath the line we just searched for. On this line you will write PAUSE, and make sure it is in all capitals. This refers to the macro built into the firmware for the machine which pauses the print, it is the exact same thing as hitting the pause button on the touchscreen except you are automating exactly when this will happen. Please once again make sure you do not delete any lines of gcode or adjust any already existing lines.
Step Five:
Once the above step has been completed you can save the file using (Ctrl+S) or (File> Save), and then put it onto your usb drive and upload it to your printer. You will want to make sure that you have the first color that you want to print loaded in. Once this is done you can start the print.
Step Six:
Once the print reaches layer 15 it will pause the print and move the toolhead over to the side, it will then start to cool it down to 140C for PLA, put this temperature back up to what you normally print at using the printer screen and then pull the first filament out of the extruder. Once this is out you can insert the second color you would like to print with. Generally I keep the extruder unlocked and manually push the filament through until the color changes to the new color. Make sure to remove any purge which is left over and ensure the nozzle is clean, once this is done you can resume the print using the screen on the printer.
Step Seven:
I like to watch the first little bit of the new color go down to ensure that there are no problems with the swap, but as long as everything looks ok you should be good to go! You can now repeat this step as many times as you would like throughout the part. Once the print is done take the QR code off of the build plate and give it a scan to make sure everything is working properly! And tadaa, your first multicolor print, look at you go!
Hopefully this all made sense for everyone, if you have any further questions or would like any clarification on any of the steps please don’t hesitate to leave a comment here or reach out to me directly. Please leave some pictures of the multicolor parts that you make, I would love to see them all!
Thanks, and happy printing!
Matthew