<p>This is best described as &quot;filament entanglement on spool&quot;. In effect it is causing underextrusion or no extrusion at all, sometimes, with strong extruders it can also destroy parts of the spool holder or the printer itself in worse cases. Eventually it will grind the filament up to the point it has no grip on the filament anymore.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-12-15T14:24:20.067Z
I was more thinking wondering if there was an over arching term for when spook entanglement causes under extrusion, as spool entanglement can happen with cause it as well, such as when the filament snaps and the runout detector stops the print.
Aaargh Zombies
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-12-15T12:35:35.707Z
2024-12-15T12:35:35.707Z
0scar
<p>If you want a very overarching error, like to tell your boss why you need to fix the machine and not go into specifics of what is broken, I would classify it as a &quot;feed error&quot;, as the spool and path to the extruder are part of what is conventionally the feeding system of the machine. However, that is a really nondescript word, as it also includes things like running out of filament, filament snapping on the path, being blocked at some point and getting ground away, a blob on the filament preventing it from being pulled in and many other errors that result in a failure to feed new filament into the extruder.</p>
<p>As <a href="https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/a/23818/8884">0scar</a> pointed out, &quot;filament entanglement on spool&quot; would be the most specific description, but could be shortened to &quot;tangled spool&quot; as a sub-class of a feed error. Most people will understand what you mean by that. If that sounds too casual, &quot;miswound spool&quot; could stand as a substitute, though it is unclear if that is for not neatly wound or layer-interwound which results in the tangle. Maybe &quot;Entwined filament&quot; or &quot;knotted filament&quot; also might work as substitutes.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-12-16T13:54:51.490Z
2024-12-16T13:54:51.490Z
Trish
<p>Is there a specific name for the situation created when filament gets tangled or knotted on the spool, and cannot be fed, but the printer does not detect it as a run-out and continues to print with an ever decreasing amount of filament, until it's just printing nothing?</p>
<p>Ideally I'm looking for a technical term for the cause, rather than the effect.</p>
<p>For example, not under extrusion (caused by the filament not being fed into the hot end), but rather the problem that occurs, resulting in under extrusion.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-12-20T19:16:59.277Z
I call it _strangulation_, but I don't know how official that is...
dandavis
<terminology>
Is there a name for what happens when filament gets tangled on the spool, but the printer keeps printing?
Aaargh Zombies
# Is there a name for what happens when filament gets tangled on the spool, but the printer keeps printing?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2024-12-15)

Is there a specific name for the situation created when filament gets tangled or knotted on the spool, and cannot be fed, but the printer does not detect it as a run-out and continues to print with an ever decreasing amount of filament, until it's just printing nothing?

Ideally I'm looking for a technical term for the cause, rather than the effect.

For example, not under extrusion (caused by the filament not being fed into the hot end), but rather the problem that occurs, resulting in under extrusion.

**Tags:** terminology

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: I call it _strangulation_, but I don't know how official that is...  

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## 2 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2024-12-15. Score: 0

This is best described as "filament entanglement on spool". In effect it is causing underextrusion or no extrusion at all, sometimes, with strong extruders it can also destroy parts of the spool holder or the printer itself in worse cases. Eventually it will grind the filament up to the point it has no grip on the filament anymore.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: I was more thinking wondering if there was an over arching term for when spook entanglement causes under extrusion, as spool entanglement can happen with cause it as well, such as when the filament snaps and the runout detector stops the print.  

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### Answer by username_3 on 2024-12-16. Score: 0

If you want a very overarching error, like to tell your boss why you need to fix the machine and not go into specifics of what is broken, I would classify it as a "feed error", as the spool and path to the extruder are part of what is conventionally the feeding system of the machine. However, that is a really nondescript word, as it also includes things like running out of filament, filament snapping on the path, being blocked at some point and getting ground away, a blob on the filament preventing it from being pulled in and many other errors that result in a failure to feed new filament into the extruder.

As [username_2](https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/a/23818/8884) pointed out, "filament entanglement on spool" would be the most specific description, but could be shortened to "tangled spool" as a sub-class of a feed error. Most people will understand what you mean by that. If that sounds too casual, "miswound spool" could stand as a substitute, though it is unclear if that is for not neatly wound or layer-interwound which results in the tangle. Maybe "Entwined filament" or "knotted filament" also might work as substitutes.


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