3D Printing (General) help

Cura settings for Klipper: the changes that actually matter

Cura works fine with Klipper once you fix the start gcode, hand the acceleration job back to Klipper, and let pressure advance do the work retraction used to do.

6 min read

How to reset Cura settings to default (and when you actually need to)

Three ways to reset Cura: roll back one profile, reset the visible UI, or wipe the whole config folder for a true factory state. Pick the lightest one that fixes your problem.

6 min read

Why your 3D print is curling up at the corners and edges

Curling on a 3D print is shrinkage pulling the corners up off the bed or away from the layer below. Fix it with the right bed temperature, a clean surface, and less part-cooling fan on materials that hate it.

7 min read

First layer adhesion: why prints lift and how to test the bed

First layer problems almost always come down to bed temperature, nozzle height or a dirty plate. Here is how we test for each one before blaming the slicer.

7 min read

Why your 3D printer is not printing anything (and how to fix it)

When a 3D printer goes through the motions but lays down nothing, the cause is usually a clog, a stripped extruder gear, a damaged PTFE tube, or a first layer set too close to the bed.

7 min read

Best 3D printer in the UK under £500: an honest view from a repair shop

If you have £500 to spend on a 3D printer in the UK, the honest workshop answer is a Bambu A1, a Prusa MINI+, or a current Creality K1 — but the right one depends on whether you want to print, tinker, or both.

7 min read

Orca Slicer settings for the Elegoo Centauri Carbon: a starting point

Orca Slicer does not ship with a Centauri Carbon profile, so you have to set one up by hand. Here is the starting point we use on the bench and what to calibrate before you print anything serious.

6 min read

Best Cura settings for PETG: what we actually use in the workshop

A practical Cura profile for PETG based on what works on our bench: temperature, speed, retraction, cooling, and bed prep, plus the common faults and how we fix them.

6 min read

ABS print settings that actually work: temps, bed, enclosure

A workshop guide to ABS print settings that hold together: nozzle 240-250 deg C, bed 100-110 deg C, an enclosure, slow cooling, and slicer tweaks to stop warping, cracking and layer splits.

6 min read

Best 3D print settings for strength: walls, infill and temperature

Strong 3D prints come from more walls, hotter extrusion and the right material. Infill matters less than people think. Here is what we change first.

7 min read

Best 3D print settings for miniatures: dialling in clean detail

A working tech's settings guide for printing tabletop miniatures: layer heights, speeds, supports, exposure and the small slicer tweaks that decide whether a face looks like a face.

6 min read

Why your 3D prints keep warping at the corners and how to fix it

Warping is the bottom of your print cooling and contracting faster than the top, pulling the corners off the bed. Most cases come down to bed temperature, a dirty or worn surface, first layer height, or a draught in the room.

7 min read

What is bed mesh levelling and when do you actually need it?

Bed mesh levelling probes the build plate at multiple points, maps where it dips and bulges, and nudges the Z axis to compensate as the nozzle moves so your first layer stays consistent edge to edge.

7 min read

Who can fix a 3D printer? Finding repair help in the UK

Local 3D printer repair shops are rare in the UK, so most owners send their machine to a specialist workshop by post — here is how to decide if you need help and what to expect when you do.

7 min read

Where to get your 3D printer fixed in the UK (mail-in repair guide)

If you cannot find a local 3D printer repair shop, mailing your printer to a UK workshop is usually faster and cheaper than buying a new machine — here is how it works and what to expect.

7 min read

3D printer stringing: what causes those wispy threads and how to fix it

Stringing is filament oozing from the nozzle during travel moves. Most of the time it is wet filament, too-hot a nozzle, or weak retraction. Here is how to tell which.

7 min read

Multi-colour 3D printing: how it actually works on a home printer

Most consumer 3D printers can produce multi-colour prints, but the method matters. Manual swaps are free and slow, automatic units like the Bambu AMS or Prusa MMU3 are fast but waste filament on purges.

7 min read

Getting something 3D printed in the UK: local shops vs mail-in

If you need a one-off part printed in the UK, your three options are a local print shop, a big online service, or a mail-in workshop like ours, and each suits a different kind of job, deadline and budget.

7 min read

3D printer not printing properly: how to work out what is wrong

Most 3D printer problems trace back to one of four things: the bed, the nozzle, the filament, or the slicer settings. Work through them in that order and you will usually find the fault in under an hour.

6 min read

Stringing on 3D prints: what causes it and how to stop it

Stringing is filament oozing during travel moves. Fix it by tuning retraction, dropping the nozzle temperature a few degrees, drying the filament, and speeding up travel.

6 min read

3D printer not printing: diagnosing and fixing common faults

When your 3D printer won't extrude, fails to stick the first layer, stops mid-print, or produces poor results, the fault is usually one of a handful of well-known culprits that can be diagnosed without special tools.

7 min read

3D print warping: causes, fixes, and how to stop it happening

Warping happens because plastic shrinks as it cools and pulls the base of your print off the bed — fixing it usually comes down to bed prep, material temperature, and keeping cold air away from the print.

7 min read

Small FDM print jobs in Basingstoke: Bambu A1 and Creality K2

We run a small Basingstoke workshop offering mail-in FDM 3D printing on a Bambu A1 and a Creality K2 Plus, with small jobs and short runs genuinely welcome — send us an STL or 3MF and we will come back with a quote.

6 min read

Where to buy a 3D printer in the UK: shops, online and what to check

Very few UK high-street shops still stock 3D printers. Most sales now happen online direct from the manufacturer or through specialist resellers. Here is where to actually look, and what to check before you pay.

7 min read

Where to find a library with a 3D printer near you in the UK

Library 3D printer access in the UK is patchy and council-by-council, but real - here is how to find a printer near you, what to expect on cost and turnaround, and the materials and sizes libraries usually cannot handle.

7 min read

Where to buy a 3D printer in the UK: retailers, used kit, what to check

There is no high-street 3D printer shop in most of the UK, so almost everyone buys online. Here is where to look — manufacturer direct, UK retailers, and the used market — and what to check before you pay.

7 min read

How much do 3D printers cost in the UK? A workshop breakdown

Entry-level FDM printers start around £150 if you are happy to tinker. Mid-range £300-£700 buys reliability. Higher-end £700-£1500 adds speed, materials, and repeatability. Resin printers need £200-£300 in extra kit on top. Here is what each tier actually delivers.

6 min read

Finding a 3D printer when you need one now: your real options

If you searched '3D printer near me open now', you probably need a part printed urgently. Here is what local options actually exist in the UK, when mail-in is faster than it sounds, and how to decide which route makes sense for your job.

7 min read

Bed mesh in Klipper: how to set it up and the settings that work

A practical walkthrough of bed mesh in Klipper: the minimum printer.cfg block, how to run BED_MESH_CALIBRATE properly, when to use adaptive meshing, and how to tell a probe problem from a bed problem.

7 min read

Bed mesh calibration explained: what it does and how to run it

Bed mesh calibration probes a grid of points across your build plate so the firmware can compensate for surface variation in real time, improving first-layer adhesion across the whole bed.

8 min read

How to clean stringing off a 3D print without damaging the surface

Stringing is the wispy plastic between parts of a print. Most of it can be cleaned with a heat gun on low, a sharp deburring tool or a soft brush, but persistent stringing is a print-settings problem and is worth fixing at the slicer.

7 min read

Best PLA print settings for the Ender 3 and Ender 3 V2

A practical, honest baseline of PLA print settings for the Ender 3 and Ender 3 V2, with the calibration steps that matter more than any single number you copy from a forum.

6 min read

Orca Slicer settings that actually work on the Ender 3 V2 and V3 SE

Orca Slicer ships with usable profiles for the Ender 3 V2 and V3 SE — this covers the settings worth tweaking, the Bowden vs direct-drive differences, and the calibration tests that quietly fix most failed prints.

6 min read

What is bed mesh levelling? A plain guide for 3D printer owners

Bed mesh levelling builds a height map of your printer's build surface so the nozzle compensates for warps and bumps during the first layer, giving consistent prints without making the bed perfectly flat.

7 min read

Finding a local 3D printer workshop: what to look for first

Most results for 'how to find a 3d printer near me' point to hobbyists or cafes rather than professional workshops. You need to check their tools and processes before handing over expensive hardware.

8 min read

Safe methods to clean a blocked 3D printer nozzle without damage

A clogged nozzle ruins prints and can damage your extruder if you force it. We walk through safe cleaning methods like cold pulls and needle clearing that work for most common blockages.

9 min read

Practical steps to configure Klipper firmware on your 3D printer

Getting Klipper to talk to your printer requires careful pin mapping and a few configuration tweaks, but we will walk you through the exact steps.

6 min read

Printing flexible TPU filament: settings, pitfalls, and fixes

TPU rewards patience; slow speeds and direct drives solve most problems, while bowden setups need careful retraction tuning to avoid jams.

8 min read

What is a good bed mesh range? Understanding tolerances for prints.

Bed mesh range shows the height difference across your build plate; a smaller number means a flatter surface and better first layers for most materials.

6 min read

What is insert moulding and when should you use it in repair

Insert moulding locks solid objects inside molten plastic to create permanent joints, but requires careful heat management and material selection to avoid damaging components or voiding warranties.

7 min read

3D printer warping explained: common causes and how to fix it

Warping happens when cooling plastic contracts unevenly and lifts off the build plate — fixing it means controlling that contraction through bed temperature, surface prep, brim settings, and enclosures.

7 min read

Smoothing TPU 3D prints: which post-processing methods actually work

TPU's flexibility makes it resist most smoothing methods that work on rigid filaments, so the best results combine careful slicer settings with selective use of wet sanding, controlled heat, or flexible coatings.

8 min read

Input shaper for 3D printers: what it is and how to calibrate it

Input shaper is a Klipper feature that measures your printer's resonant frequencies and applies a digital filter to cancel the ringing and ghosting artifacts that appear on printed surfaces after sharp corners.

8 min read

3D printer warping: what it is, why it happens and how to fix it

Warping is caused by differential thermal contraction as plastic cools unevenly; fixing it involves matching bed temperature to material, ensuring clean adhesion, adjusting slicer settings, and sometimes adding an enclosure.

8 min read

3D printer stringing: what it is, why it happens, and how to fix it

Stringing is thin plastic thread left across open gaps when molten filament oozes from the nozzle during travel moves; it is almost always fixable by adjusting temperature, retraction, and travel settings in your slicer.

8 min read

3D printer not printing: diagnose and fix the most common faults

Works through the most common causes of 3D printing failures — from extruder clicking and nozzle clogs to slicer settings and electrical faults — in the order they are easiest to rule out.

8 min read

3D printer nozzle clog: how to diagnose, clear and prevent it

A clogged nozzle usually clears with a cold pull or a brief needle clean while hot; if neither works, solvent soaking or a cheap replacement nozzle is faster than continued troubleshooting.

8 min read

How to unclog a 3D printer nozzle: cold pulls, needles and more

A blocked 3D printer nozzle can usually be cleared with a cold pull, but if that fails there are three further methods to try before you consider replacing the nozzle.

8 min read

Bed mesh levelling explained: what it is and how to set it up

Bed mesh levelling probes a grid of points across the print surface so the firmware can compensate for any warp or unevenness in real time, giving a consistent first layer even on an imperfect bed.

8 min read

PLA print settings: a practical guide for better results

The best PLA print settings depend on your specific filament and machine, but this guide covers the core variables — nozzle temperature, bed temperature, speed, cooling, and retraction — and explains how to tune each one without guessing.

9 min read

TPU print settings: practical guide to flexible 3D printing

TPU needs lower speeds, minimal retraction, and ideally a direct-drive extruder to print reliably — this guide covers every key setting and the most common failure modes.

8 min read

PETG print settings: a practical guide for getting it right

PETG prints hotter and strings more readily than PLA, but with the right temperature, retraction, and cooling settings it produces strong, heat-resistant parts consistently.

8 min read

Klipper Pressure Advance Tuning: A Practical Step-by-Step

A no-nonsense, machine-agnostic guide to tuning pressure advance in Klipper using the standard tuning tower, with realistic per-filament values from our workshop.

6 min read

Bambu A1 vs Creality K2: An Honest Comparison from a Workshop That Runs Both

We run both a Bambu A1 and a Creality K2 in our workshop every day. Here is the honest breakdown of where each one wins, where each one loses, and which one is right for what you actually want to print.

6 min read

Instant quote for sliced .3mf files (Bambu Studio / OrcaSlicer)

Most UK 3D-print services bounce sliced .3mf files to a manual quote form. Hark Tech doesn't — drop the file, get a firm per-plate price in seconds. Multi-colour and multi-plate included.

6 min read

Why CoreXY printers need separate X and Y input shaper calibration

If your CoreXY firmware copies the Y-axis shaper result onto X after one calibration run, that's mechanically wrong — different mass, different belt path, different damping. Three reasons CoreXY isn't symmetric, plus how to disable Creality's silent copy on the K2.

7 min read

How to clean up a bloated Klipper SAVE_CONFIG section without breaking anything

Open any well-used printer.cfg and the SAVE_CONFIG region at the bottom is probably a mess: multiple input_shapers, duplicate bed_mesh defaults, several auto_addr entries. Klipper handles it, but the file becomes unreadable. A safe step-by-step cleanup that took my K2 from 707 to 568 lines with zero behaviour change.

6 min read

PLA vs PETG — which filament should you pick for your 3D print?

PLA prints clean and cheap, PETG handles heat and impact. The real answer depends on where the part lives and what it has to put up with — here's a UK workshop's plain-English breakdown so you can pick without guessing.

5 min read

STL file won't print? How to fix it before you upload

If a 3D printing service rejects your STL or your slicer chokes on it, the file usually has one of five common problems. Here's how to spot them and fix them yourself in 10 minutes with free tools — no CAD experience needed.

5 min read

Why you don't need a 3D printing quote in the UK any more

Most UK 3D printing services still ask you to email an STL and wait for a quote. There's a faster way: a firm price the moment you drop the file. Here's what changed, what an instant price actually calculates, and when a manual quote still makes sense.

5 min read