Extruder grinding filament is a common issue related to the Driver Gears that most 3D printers have.
These gears are used to grab the filament and push it forward or backward, depending on the driver’s direction. It has sharp teeth that allow it to bite into the filament to move it. If the 3D filament is unable to move, and the drive gear keeps spinning, the filament will get “stripped”. Meaning that too much plastic has been stripped away for the extruder to function correctly.
If you see lots of small plastic shavings from the plastic and noticed that the extruder motor is spinning but the filament is not being pulled into the extruder body, then you may have this problem. This can eventually make your 3D printer not extrude at the beginning of your printing process.
Retraction Settings Adjustment
Checking your retraction settings for your extruder is one of the first things you need to do. If the speed of the retraction is too fast, it might stress the extruder, affecting the filament flow.
If this happens, try to reduce the retraction speed by 50%.
Extrusion Temperature
Another way to avoid your extruder to keep grinding your filament is by increasing your extrusion temperature. Consider increments of 5-10 degrees to allow the filament to flow easier. We recommend the following printing temperatures for different 3D filament types:
| 3D Filament Type | Printing Temperature |
| PVA | 160-190°C |
| PLA | 180-220°C |
| ABS | 200-250°C |
| PETG | 220-255°C |
| TPE | 210-240°C |
| TPU | 230-250°C |
| ASA | 230-260°C |
This is an easy adjustment in the temperature tab under Process Settings.
Printing Speed
Reducing your printing speed is another way to avoid your extruder grinding your filament. Speed reduction will slow how fast the extruder motor spins, making the filament extrude over a long period of time.
Easily adjust the printing speed settings in the Speed Tab under Process Settings. Try decreasing the value you already have by 50%, and keep pushing downwards till the filament grinding disappears.
3D Printer Clogged Nozzle
If after all of these procedures you are still finding your extruder grinding your filament, then it’s probable that your nozzle is partially clogged. We recommend checking our Diamondized Nozzles, which are developed with high-end materials, that will help avoid all these issues.
Dive deeper into our 3D printer nozzle clog troubleshooting guide to solving this 3D printing problem.