Poor overhang quality appears as curling, drooping, or rough surfaces on angled sections that extend outward without support beneath them. Most printers struggle with overhangs steeper than 45 degrees from vertical.
Common Causes
- Overhang angle too steep — Angles beyond 45-50° lack sufficient support from previous layers
- Insufficient cooling — The extruded filament needs rapid cooling to hold its shape
- Print speed too fast — Fast extrusion on overhangs does not allow time for solidification
- Layer height too large — Thicker layers have less overlap on angled surfaces
- Temperature too high — Hot filament remains fluid longer and sags under gravity
Recommended Fixes
- Add supports for overhangs exceeding 45° using tree or standard supports
- Increase part cooling fan to maximum on overhang layers
- Reduce print speed to 20-30 mm/s for overhanging regions
- Lower layer height to 0.12-0.16mm for better overhang resolution
- Decrease nozzle temperature by 5-10°C to speed up solidification
- Reorient the model to minimize steep overhangs where possible
- Use variable layer height in your slicer for overhang-heavy sections