The Nozzle Blog
Field-tested 3D-printing know-how from the team behind the askthenozzle.com diagnostic AI. Materials, calibration, slicer settings, failure analysis.
Uncategorised
26 July 2026
8 min read
Layer adhesion is a thermal problem before it is anything else. Every new layer has to briefly re-melt the surface of the layer beneath it so the polymer chains diffuse across the boundary and entangle. If the fresh …
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Uncategorised
13 July 2026
8 min read
Motorsport 3D printing in the UK isn’t a novelty any more — it’s baked into how teams design, test and race. From wind-tunnel models in Enstone to on-car components at Milton Keynes, additive manufacturing (AM) has moved from …
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Uncategorised
12 July 2026
7 min read
If you’re asking “why is my 3D print failing?”, you’re almost certainly looking at one of a handful of repeat offenders: a first layer that didn’t stick, corners lifting off the bed, strings webbing between parts, or under-extrusion …
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Uncategorised
10 July 2026
6 min read
Get your flow ratio wrong and everything downstream suffers: weak layers, gaps on top surfaces, blobby corners and parts that measure a fraction off. If you print functional parts, this is the single calibration that pays back fastest. …
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Uncategorised
8 July 2026
6 min read
Search for an orcaslicer ini profile download and you’ll hit a confusing mix of file extensions, half-right forum posts and menu paths that don’t exist in your version. Let’s clear it up in plain English, because getting this …
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Uncategorised
6 July 2026
7 min read
Stringing is the fine cobweb of plastic threads left strung across your model when the nozzle moves between two points without extruding. It’s cosmetic, it’s annoying, and — most importantly — it’s fixable with a handful of settings. …
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Uncategorised
4 July 2026
7 min read
If you slice your own gcode and print parts that actually do a job — brackets, mounts, enclosures, gears — the PLA-versus-PETG debate isn’t academic. Pick the wrong material or the wrong settings and you get a part …
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Uncategorised
2 July 2026
6 min read
Almost every failed print shares one thing: the first layer didn’t stick. If that foundation fails, the print is already lost — everything above it depends on that single layer bonding to the bed. So when you’re chasing …
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Uncategorised
30 June 2026
6 min read
Under-extrusion is one of the most common — and most misdiagnosed — FDM problems. It happens when your printer doesn’t push enough filament to fill the layers it’s been told to lay down, leaving thin, weak walls, visible …
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Uncategorised
28 June 2026
9 min read
If the bottom of your print is bulging out wider than the rest of the part, you’ve got elephant’s foot — and you’re probably here for a quick elephant foot fix in PrusaSlicer. The good news: every modern …
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