[EricH]

Originally Posted by Andrew Schreiber

Leveling the build platform is really important. It's not a set once and forget it. I tend to level it before every print or two.

Kapton Tape is a nightmare to apply. If anyone has any tips on this please let me know.

We check if the printer gets moved around, or we notice deteriorating build quality.

As far as the Kapton... It's much easier with an extra pair of hands. What we'll do is to stretch it across first, but only tack down one corner with your fingers. Then run across the plate on one edge, using the other hand to keep the stretching (or, the other person's hands). Then you get the fun part: start in the middle of the platform and smooth the tape down going away from the center/already smoothed area towards the edges that haven't been dealt with. Pick up if you need to get rid of a wrinkle or air pocket. Sometimes you may need to poke a hole in an air bubble with the tip of an Exacto knife to let the air out. Line up the next piece and repeat.

If you really need some advice in dealing with Kapton, find your local R/C aircraft club, figure out who their best monokote applier is, and ask him/her for lessons. Then treat the Kapton like monokote and your fingers like the iron used to apply it.