<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/k3bRZ.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer" title="Obvious problems on benchy"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/k3bRZ.jpg" alt="Obvious problems on benchy" title="Obvious problems on benchy" /></a></p>
<p>What could be going wrong here? I have never seen this sort of printing problem before or I am just not recognizing it.</p>
<p>It most definately is coming from the filament because I have tried switching the filament and other filament prints fine - everything else staying the same. The filament that is causing this printed fine for about 70% of the spool and then started to print like you can see here in the ships body and a bit on the top.</p>
<p>PS. I had the idea that this might be a feeding problem and investigated the feed mechanism. There is definately a problem as I found a horrible filament dust buildup there. This is probably causing problems with the filament feed which is why sometimes there is just not as much as there should be.</p>
<p>Is this dust buildup a fault of the filament? I just unpacked the spool two days ago (SUNLU). I printed two other spools of SUNLU filament without any problems - but they were from a different shipment. The one causing the problem came with a cardboard spool, not the usual plastic one.</p>
<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/txNST.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer" title="Gears showing filament debris"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/txNST.jpg" alt="Gears showing filament debris" title="Gears showing filament debris" /></a></p>
<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/94uIM.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer" title="Close up of chewed filament"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/94uIM.jpg" alt="Close up of chewed filament" title="Close up of chewed filament" /></a></p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-01-23T19:43:31.247Z
Sure it's the same type of material? If the hot end isn't hot enough to melt, I could see it having a problem trying to push the filament through the hot end.
LarryBud
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-01-25T08:11:07.650Z
It is the same type of filament and also from the same company (SUNLU).
I have been reading up on problems that can cause this kind of dust buildup and have had the similar idea as you: I will try the gray PLA again with 10 or 20°C more.

The strange thing is that it printed fine for about half of the first spool... but if increasing the temperature fixes it that's fine with me.
Manfred Wisniewski
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-01-25T09:24:01.277Z
Ok... so the problem was not the nozzle or the temperature. I tried pushing the grey filament though manually and that worked fine. I changed to the blue filament and the feeding worked fine without me pushing, at normal temperature and the same nozzle.
When I changed back to gray the feeding mechanism just couldn't grip it again. (clicking sound, nothing coming out when extruding)
This time I cleaned the feeding mechanism with acetone also and straightened the end of the filament a bit.
Now it is printing fine at normal PLA temperature. I still have 2 full spools of the gray... lets see.
Manfred Wisniewski
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-01-30T21:45:09.877Z
Cheap filament will clog your printer. Nothing new. Keep cleaning it, or buy something proper.
AzulShiva
<pla><extruder><filament>
Filament Problem: Benchy example
Manfred Wisniewski
# Filament Problem: Benchy example

(Asked by: username_0 on 2023-01-22)

[![Obvious problems on benchy](https://i.sstatic.net/k3bRZ.jpg "Obvious problems on benchy")](https://i.sstatic.net/k3bRZ.jpg "Obvious problems on benchy")

What could be going wrong here? I have never seen this sort of printing problem before or I am just not recognizing it.

It most definately is coming from the filament because I have tried switching the filament and other filament prints fine - everything else staying the same. The filament that is causing this printed fine for about 70% of the spool and then started to print like you can see here in the ships body and a bit on the top.

PS. I had the idea that this might be a feeding problem and investigated the feed mechanism. There is definately a problem as I found a horrible filament dust buildup there. This is probably causing problems with the filament feed which is why sometimes there is just not as much as there should be.

Is this dust buildup a fault of the filament? I just unpacked the spool two days ago (SUNLU). I printed two other spools of SUNLU filament without any problems - but they were from a different shipment. The one causing the problem came with a cardboard spool, not the usual plastic one.

[![Gears showing filament debris](https://i.sstatic.net/txNST.jpg "Gears showing filament debris")](https://i.sstatic.net/txNST.jpg "Gears showing filament debris")

[![Close up of chewed filament](https://i.sstatic.net/94uIM.jpg "Close up of chewed filament")](https://i.sstatic.net/94uIM.jpg "Close up of chewed filament")

**Tags:** pla, extruder, filament

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Sure it's the same type of material? If the hot end isn't hot enough to melt, I could see it having a problem trying to push the filament through the hot end.  
> **username_0**: It is the same type of filament and also from the same company (SUNLU). I have been reading up on problems that can cause this kind of dust buildup and have had the similar idea as you: I will try the gray PLA again with 10 or 20°C more.  The strange thing is that it printed fine for about half of the first spool... but if increasing the temperature fixes it that's fine with me.  
> **username_0**: Ok... so the problem was not the nozzle or the temperature. I tried pushing the grey filament though manually and that worked fine. I changed to the blue filament and the feeding worked fine without me pushing, at normal temperature and the same nozzle. When I changed back to gray the feeding mechanism just couldn't grip it again. (clicking sound, nothing coming out when extruding) This time I cleaned the feeding mechanism with acetone also and straightened the end of the filament a bit. Now it is printing fine at normal PLA temperature. I still have 2 full spools of the gray... lets see.  
> **username_2**: Cheap filament will clog your printer. Nothing new. Keep cleaning it, or buy something proper.  

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## 0 answers

