<p>This is a severe under extrusion problem.</p>
<p>What slicer are you using? It could be a filament diameter setting issue.</p>
<p>Are you using Cura? I don't know about the most recent version but older versions defaulted to 2.85 mm filament diameter which is the diameter the Ultimaker printers use (as Cura is developed by Ultimaker) but the Ender 3 uses 1.75 mm diameter filament.</p>
<p>Have a look at <a href="https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/questions/8439/ender-3-severe-under-extrusion">this question </a> where a similar issue is discussed.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-17T21:49:46.620Z
Questions don't belong in answers, please comment on the question if you have questions, you have sufficient reputation to do so. The print looks as if it starts okay (but it is hard to tell from this angle), but gets worse over height, this hints more to heat creep than wrong filament diameter.
0scar
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-17T23:41:29.010Z
i don't see selection for filament diameter.  There is nozzle setting which is 0.4mm (which i think is correct for Ender 3)
MK.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-17T23:42:18.997Z
Yes, the temperature might have changed on its own while printing from 220 to 200, I've seen it happen before. Why does it happen?
MK.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-17T06:30:41.643Z
2023-05-17T21:50:40.077Z
2023-05-17T21:50:40.077Z
Rik
<p>You've probably checked this already but offering a basic issue I've had before on my Ender 3 with the filament not unraveling cleanly from the spool hanger (gets caught on the post or bound up on itself).</p>
<p>When this happens it would produce a similar result to your picture...started fine and then turned into wispy/burnt layers before ending entirely.</p>
<p>When this has happened I just need to untangle the filament, clean the nozzle, cut a clean starting point on the filament, and empty the Bowden tube of the old filament.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-17T20:47:09.347Z
2023-05-17T21:40:10.027Z
2023-05-17T21:40:10.027Z
Danny
<p>Sorry this is kind to embarrassing to post compared to other images but this is our first attempts.  It starts out roughly acceptable then does this waffle thing.  I tightened the belts and leveled the plate.</p>
<p>I have a Creality Ender 3 which I use together with UltiMaker Cura slicer. I print in PLA at 220 °C. The print bed is set to 70 °C. I use a print cooling fan at 60 %. The layer height I set to 0.[?] mm, the line width [line width/extrusion width] from the 0.4 mm nozzle. The Printing Speed is set to ? mm/s for walls and [?] mm/s for infill]. My retraction is [?] mm/off at [?] mm/s.</p>
<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/LH06F.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/LH06F.jpg" alt="enter image description here" /></a></p>
<p>Problem seems to be solved, thanks everyone.  I dropped the temperature to 200 and fan speed to 100% and print looks much better.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-17T13:19:19.377Z
Hello MK. Your question is lacking detail and as such is hard to answer without knowing a couple of things about your printer setup. Please [edit] and fill in the [placeholders] in the template I added and then remove the leading `<!--` and trailing `-->` afterward. This will turn it visible and help us help you find the actual problem.
agarza
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-17T16:52:24.190Z
agarza is correct in saying that we need more details. As stated in the answer, what slicer are you using? Please [edit] and add that detail, at the very minimum (along with others mentioned in the above comment, if possible). Thanks.
Greenonline
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-17T19:55:59.507Z
not so fast, young grasshoppers. Not everyone works from home.  I'll get the details when I can!
MK.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-18T00:24:22.163Z
still trying to figure out some of these settings. Are they all in slicer somewhere? Is there a page describing how to fill out this template?
MK.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-18T00:24:38.717Z
(for now trying to print with 100 % fan speed and lower temperature)
MK.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-18T03:06:27.533Z
Yes, these should all be in your slicer. On the top right side, there should be a drop-down menu that will have additional settings. If you can readily see the setting, use the **Search settings** feature within that drop-down to find what you are looking for, i.e. layer height, infill, retraction, etc.
agarza
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-18T07:07:18.433Z
We've closed the question for you to fix. At the moment it is very unclear. The template has not be filled out properly. It is also best to add more and better photos, it is very difficult to see if the print starts out fine. If so, this is not a filament diameter problem but filament entanglement or heat creep (220 is possible but is on the high side for PLA).
0scar
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-18T12:34:15.770Z
I am really not a fan of these strict closing rules enforced by some folks on StackExchange.  Clearly the question is by a newbie (that'd be me) who is struggling to ask the question properly.  Closing it while I'm trying to figure out how to fill out the template is quite discouraging.   Anyways, the question was clearly asked well enough since I got help I needed.  I dropped the temperature to 200 and prints look much better.
MK.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-18T13:25:43.667Z
As someone who has been on SE for over 14 yrs, you know how the site functions. You should also be aware that just because a question is closed doesn't mean that you are unable to edit your question; closure if so no more answers can be posted.
agarza
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-18T17:59:16.960Z
@agarza oh believe me i know how it works.  I have been respectfully disagreeing with closures of this type for about 12 out of these 14 years :)
MK.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-18T19:41:38.463Z
200C is still _really_ hot for PLA, i get best results with white PLA at 112C. RTFM.
dandavis
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-18T23:17:20.810Z
Hmm, we all seem to have worked ourselves into a bit of a pickle with this question... However, I'm sure we can sort this out (as we seem to be on the home straight) :-) 1st, thanks for adding the slicer info. 2nd, 0scar hinted at a possible solution in his comment on the filament answer (which *seems* to have helped you). 3rd, Maybe you could tidy and add the missing/unknown data (marked with "?") to your question. 4th, it gets reopened, 5th, you move your solution to an actual answer and then accept it. 6th, And/Or 0scar posts his comment as a fully fleshed out answer. Something like that..?
Greenonline
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-19T20:05:01.470Z
I'd be happy to update but I couldn't find these settings in Cura; if these are configured on printer , they are all at defaults..
MK.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-20T10:44:15.473Z
FYI, as you sliced this in Cura you must have used a profile. The slicer is probably in simple mode (aka [recommended mode](https://support.makerbot.com/s/article/1667411014086)), you need to set it in "advanced/custom mode" to see all options. You can use the search box to find the options, you can make these visible when hidden. But, I think we now know that this is heat creep. If you can, post a better image from the side of the Benchy. If you permit, we can clean up the question for you!
0scar
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-20T20:02:29.370Z
the poorly printed benchy got destroyed. I'll take a look at advanced mode settings.  But almost 100% sure it was heat creep.  Seems to be printing much better (though benchy still has some weirdness, might have to drop temp a bit more).
MK.
<creality-ender-3>
terrible quality on Ender 3
MK.
# terrible quality on Ender 3

(Asked by: username_0 on 2023-05-17)

Sorry this is kind to embarrassing to post compared to other images but this is our first attempts. It starts out roughly acceptable then does this waffle thing. I tightened the belts and leveled the plate.

I have a Creality Ender 3 which I use together with UltiMaker Cura slicer. I print in PLA at 220 °C. The print bed is set to 70 °C. I use a print cooling fan at 60 %. The layer height I set to 0.[?] mm, the line width [line width/extrusion width] from the 0.4 mm nozzle. The Printing Speed is set to ? mm/s for walls and [?] mm/s for infill]. My retraction is [?] mm/off at [?] mm/s.

[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/LH06F.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/LH06F.jpg)

Problem seems to be solved, thanks everyone. I dropped the temperature to 200 and fan speed to 100% and print looks much better.

**Tags:** creality-ender-3

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Hello MK. Your question is lacking detail and as such is hard to answer without knowing a couple of things about your printer setup. Please [edit] and fill in the [placeholders] in the template I added and then remove the leading `<!--` and trailing `-->` afterward. This will turn it visible and help us help you find the actual problem.  
> **username_2**: username_1 is correct in saying that we need more details. As stated in the answer, what slicer are you using? Please [edit] and add that detail, at the very minimum (along with others mentioned in the above comment, if possible). Thanks.  
> **username_0**: not so fast, young grasshoppers. Not everyone works from home.  I'll get the details when I can!  
> **username_0**: still trying to figure out some of these settings. Are they all in slicer somewhere? Is there a page describing how to fill out this template?  
> **username_0**: (for now trying to print with 100 % fan speed and lower temperature)  
> **username_1**: Yes, these should all be in your slicer. On the top right side, there should be a drop-down menu that will have additional settings. If you can readily see the setting, use the **Search settings** feature within that drop-down to find what you are looking for, i.e. layer height, infill, retraction, etc.  
> **username_3**: We've closed the question for you to fix. At the moment it is very unclear. The template has not be filled out properly. It is also best to add more and better photos, it is very difficult to see if the print starts out fine. If so, this is not a filament diameter problem but filament entanglement or heat creep (220 is possible but is on the high side for PLA).  
> **username_0**: I am really not a fan of these strict closing rules enforced by some folks on StackExchange.  Clearly the question is by a newbie (that'd be me) who is struggling to ask the question properly.  Closing it while I'm trying to figure out how to fill out the template is quite discouraging.   Anyways, the question was clearly asked well enough since I got help I needed.  I dropped the temperature to 200 and prints look much better.  
> **username_1**: As someone who has been on SE for over 14 yrs, you know how the site functions. You should also be aware that just because a question is closed doesn't mean that you are unable to edit your question; closure if so no more answers can be posted.  
> **username_0**: @username_1 oh believe me i know how it works.  I have been respectfully disagreeing with closures of this type for about 12 out of these 14 years :)  
> **username_4**: 200C is still _really_ hot for PLA, i get best results with white PLA at 112C. RTFM.  
> **username_2**: Hmm, we all seem to have worked ourselves into a bit of a pickle with this question... However, I'm sure we can sort this out (as we seem to be on the home straight) :-) 1st, thanks for adding the slicer info. 2nd, username_3 hinted at a possible solution in his comment on the filament answer (which *seems* to have helped you). 3rd, Maybe you could tidy and add the missing/unknown data (marked with "?") to your question. 4th, it gets reopened, 5th, you move your solution to an actual answer and then accept it. 6th, And/Or username_3 posts his comment as a fully fleshed out answer. Something like that..?  
> **username_0**: I'd be happy to update but I couldn't find these settings in Cura; if these are configured on printer , they are all at defaults..  
> **username_3**: FYI, as you sliced this in Cura you must have used a profile. The slicer is probably in simple mode (aka [recommended mode](https://support.makerbot.com/s/article/1667411014086)), you need to set it in "advanced/custom mode" to see all options. You can use the search box to find the options, you can make these visible when hidden. But, I think we now know that this is heat creep. If you can, post a better image from the side of the Benchy. If you permit, we can clean up the question for you!  
> **username_0**: the poorly printed benchy got destroyed. I'll take a look at advanced mode settings.  But almost 100% sure it was heat creep.  Seems to be printing much better (though benchy still has some weirdness, might have to drop temp a bit more).  

---

## 2 answers

### Answer by username_5 on 2023-05-17. Score: 2

This is a severe under extrusion problem.

What slicer are you using? It could be a filament diameter setting issue.

Are you using Cura? I don't know about the most recent version but older versions defaulted to 2.85 mm filament diameter which is the diameter the Ultimaker printers use (as Cura is developed by Ultimaker) but the Ender 3 uses 1.75 mm diameter filament.

Have a look at [this question](https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/questions/8439/ender-3-severe-under-extrusion)  where a similar issue is discussed.

> **Comments:**
> **username_3**: Questions don't belong in answers, please comment on the question if you have questions, you have sufficient reputation to do so. The print looks as if it starts okay (but it is hard to tell from this angle), but gets worse over height, this hints more to heat creep than wrong filament diameter.  
> **username_0**: i don't see selection for filament diameter.  There is nozzle setting which is 0.4mm (which i think is correct for Ender 3)  
> **username_0**: Yes, the temperature might have changed on its own while printing from 220 to 200, I've seen it happen before. Why does it happen?  

---

### Answer by username_6 on 2023-05-17. Score: 1

You've probably checked this already but offering a basic issue I've had before on my Ender 3 with the filament not unraveling cleanly from the spool hanger (gets caught on the post or bound up on itself).

When this happens it would produce a similar result to your picture...started fine and then turned into wispy/burnt layers before ending entirely.

When this has happened I just need to untangle the filament, clean the nozzle, cut a clean starting point on the filament, and empty the Bowden tube of the old filament.


---

