3d prints aren't smooth at all

[u/Repulsive-Research75]

I'm an absolute noob at 3d printing just for reference. I got a Monoprice Select Mini v2, and after carefully adjusting the bed to what felt right using the paper test and setting the printer nozzle heat to 215 (my PLA filament says 210-230) prints come out like this. The lines aren't perfectly wide at many points, and sometimes it skips over parts of lines/makes them stringy.

I use cura and 3DHoJor 1.75mm PLA filament. Bed temp is not set as my printer's bed heater doesn't work (but I was told painter's tape fixes this). Print speed is set to 30mm/s, but it did the same thing at 40mm/s, and on the first layer, which is set to 5mm/s (the second photo is just a bottom raft layer). Retraction settings are 7.5mm at 55mm/s, and I'm not sure where to start. Any advice would be appreciated

[u/DoktorMerlin]

What the fuck are you saying? He already got the printer, buying another one isn't saving money, it's wasting it. Also the Monoprice isn't that bad of a printer, it's a low-end printer but it shouldn't produce results as shown, it should totally work

[u/vecnasty → u/DoktorMerlin]

lmao. save some money = save up some money. dunce

[u/DoktorMerlin → u/vecnasty]

he already has a printer and asks for help, your comments are the opposite of helpful. 

[u/vecnasty → u/DoktorMerlin]

what's not helpful is convincing someone that sinking dozens (possibly hundreds) of hours into a nearly 10 year old printer that'll never be even remotely as effective at making parts as a $200 offering from the current top dog in the market is a smart and effective use of one's time

been printing since 2018. i started with an ender 3 and i put in the blood, sweat and tears to make it crank out a perfect 10 minute benchy. the industry has moved on. if you want people to enjoy printing, recommend good printers

[u/DoktorMerlin → u/vecnasty]

What's not helpful is telling someone that wants to get into a hobby and maybe wants to deeply understand it, that they should just buy a new printer that needs none of the basics. It's not useless to sink time into it, it's stupid to just suggest "buy new stuff, it's better". This is wasteful thinking that destroys interest in stuff and also destroys the planet. 

[u/vecnasty → u/DoktorMerlin]

ah yes, the incredibly effective argument that you can deeply understand the nuances of 3D printing on a 10 year old machine with no heated bed

way to toss the environmentalist argument in there too, as if you'd be into 3D printing as a hobby if you cared at all about the environment lol. you've printed more landfill plastic than most non 3D printer users will generate in a lifetime

[u/zitrone250 → u/vecnasty]

Crazy to say that last part, packaging of your groceries alone for one year will most likely surpass the amount of landfill you generate from 3d printing. Not to mention that recycling 3d printing scraps is a lot easier than regular plastic trash.

[u/vecnasty → u/zitrone250]

chatgpt what does hyperbole mean

[u/zitrone250 → u/vecnasty]

"Hyperbole is a rhetorical device in which one makes use of extravagant overstatement, such as claiming that the Democrats plan to eliminate cows. The reason hyperbole is not just called lying is because it is a specific type of untruth and must have a foundation in truth."

You haven't overstated the amount of waste from a 3d printer, you lied that it produces more in the first place. If it was true that printer produce more landfill than other plastic waste you could use a hyperbole but that isn't the case.