Not Extruding at Start of Print

Use this guide when the printer follows the first-layer path but no plastic reaches the plate, or flow starts only after part of the skirt or model has been printed.

First determine whether the nozzle can extrude away from the build plate. That separates a loading or hotend problem from a nozzle-to-plate gap problem.

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Choose the First Check

1. Confirm the Active Head and Loaded Material

1. Stop the failed print. Check which head the sliced job uses.
2. Confirm that the selected head contains the intended material, the spool can unwind, and filament reaches the extruder.
3. Check the lever against Extruder Lever. Filament sitting in the sensor or guide tube is not enough; the drive gears must engage it.
4. Use the standard loading macro for the material and let it complete.

If a guide tube contains broken filament, use Filament Breaks Inside Tube before attempting to load again.

2. Check Manual Extrusion

Select the intended head in the Web Interface. Heat it using the standard material macro or the temperature in the printer-specific filament profile. Wait for actual temperature to reach the target; do not keep issuing extrusion commands while the hotend is still heating.

With the nozzle clear of the plate using the printer's normal controls, command a small extrusion and observe the result:

• A continuous strand emerges: loading and melting work at this test rate. Continue with the first-layer check.
• The gears move but material does not emerge: inspect the spool and path, then the nozzle and heatbreak using Under-Extrusion.
• The drive clicks or grinds: stop repeated attempts and follow Grinding Filament.
• The drive does not move: read the Web Interface messages, confirm the selected head and temperature, and send unresolved errors to support.

Do not increase temperature indefinitely to force a suspected blockage through. After nozzle or heatbreak replacement and reassembly, run Auto Calibration.

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3. Check the First-Layer Gap

If manual extrusion is normal but the nozzle cannot lay down material at the plate, inspect clearance. A nozzle too close to the plate can prevent flow or leave severely flattened, ridged lines.

Follow First Layer Calibration. For the V4, its Web Interface procedure uses positive 0.02 mm Babystepping increments to increase clearance. Watch the next lines after each small change rather than making a large offset jump.

If the gap remains inconsistent, run full auto-calibration using its plate-removal and preparation instructions. Then check relative head heights and the first layer again. Do not use a large temporary offset to compensate for an incorrectly assembled head.

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4. Restore Reliable Startup Flow

If extrusion begins late but then stays normal:

1. Confirm the loading procedure extrudes material all the way to the nozzle.
2. Compare edited start G-code, retraction, and priming settings with the stock profile.
3. Add a skirt in the slicer and check its preview. It gives you a visible flow check before the model starts.
4. Repeat the start sequence and watch whether the skirt becomes continuous before the model.

A skirt will not fix a blockage or an empty extruder. Resolve those first.

Verify the Result

Start a short job from the same normal loaded state you expect for future prints. The skirt and first model lines should be continuous, with the correct first-layer gap and no clicking. Check each head used by the final job.

Record the Diagnostic Results

Record the active head, material and nozzle details, actual and target temperature, and any Web Interface errors. Keep these with the slicer project and note whether manual extrusion succeeds away from the plate. This distinction is useful when comparing tests or asking support to investigate.

FAQ

Support

If you could not find an answer here, reach out to our support team.