I printed a model in PETG shortly after a PLA print, which was fine, and it damaged the plate as shown. What’s odd is I’ve printed this same model with this same filament on this printer and it was fine. The temps in the gcode are the same between those prints.
Is this a Z-offset issue? Would PLA and PETG require different Z-offsets on the same printer?
Edit for more details: Creality Ender 3 V3 SE, stock plate.
Maybe it’s an opportunity to upgrade to something that’s not an Ender :) The bed leveling/z-offset issues on them are a nightmare. I did the same to mine. I lowkey think that’s why people recommend them as a first printer, because they know you’re inevitably going to destroy the bed and by that time you’ll have decided whether it’s worth continuing in the hobby with a better printer or whether you hate it completely by that point.
I have an ender I inherited and put a ton of mods on.
It absolutely sucks for consistency on z-offset.
The bed is shit, the auto leveling is inconsistent, even not leveling it seems to not home properly every time.
I want a better printer but have been too cheap to buy something reliable. It’s at the point I really want to print something that I have to spend so much time making sure it actually gets the first few layers it’s usually not worth the effort.
What would you recommend instead?
I’d not heard anything negative about Ender, and until now have not had issues. I even printed this giant-ass computer case and fan shrouds with good success: https://www.printables.com/model/1616167-amd-bc-250-case-atx-psu-fan-duct
I think the problem in this case is my inexperience, and unearned confidence due to previous success.
I went straight to Prusa, which mostly protects me from my own ignorance and gives me way more confidence to actually learn and experiment with different materials, it’s worth every penny, haven’t looked back. YMMV. I too destroyed my Ender’s bed with inexperience. More than once. Being cheap, I suppose that’s why it isn’t such a tragedy. The other option is to just replace the print bed and carry on. I went through about 3 before I gave up on Ender. Still on my first Prusa Satin sheet 3 years later. I flip it occasionally just to even out any wear and tear.