Configuring the settings of your slicer as optimally as possible is a neverending cycle as there is always something you can improve on and take your prints to the next level.
With so many parameters included in a slicer, especially in a detailed one such as Cura, even the most experienced 3D printing enthusiasts find themselves discovering new parameters and ways to use these parameters to improve their prints with each passing day.
Today, we will be touching upon a particular setting we have been noticing a lack of information about, which is the wall thickness setting in Cura.
So, what is the wall thickness setting in Cura?
The wall thickness setting in Cura, denoted in millimeters (mm), allows you to set the thicknesses of both the inner and outer walls of the models you will be printing.
In most scenarios, setting the wall thickness to a value three times the line width is optimal, as configuring the settings this way gives you three wall lines, providing enough sturdiness to the model.
Moving forward, we will take a more detailed look at the wall thickness setting and how you can correctly configure it depending on your use case in greater detail.
Table of Contents
What is Wall Thickness in Cura?
The wall thickness parameter is a part of the wall settings category in Cura, where you can find the inputs for all wall-related values.
In a nutshell, the wall thickness (mm) parameter in Cura is what determines how thick each individual wall of the models you print will be, whether it’s an outer wall or an inner wall.
Higher wall thickness values cause your model to become sturdier and reduces the chance of leaks, whereas lower values allow the printing process to become quicker and reduces the amount of filament a model will require to print.
Wall thickness and line width are closely related, where dividing the wall thickness value by the line width gives you the number of walls your model will have.
As a result of this relation, Cura automatically rounds the wall thickness value to the closest multiplier of the current line width.
Moving on, let’s look at how you can configure the wall thickness setting in Cura as optimally as possible.
Configuring Wall Thickness in Cura
Configuring wall thickness in Cura is a very straightforward task that won’t take too much of your time and effort.
Here are the steps we recommend taking for the configuration process:
- Click the prepare tab on the top of the window.
- Click the rightmost tab to bring the Print Settings up.
- Click the Custom button.
- Type “wall thickness” into the search box and press Enter.
- Fill the wall thickness input with the wall thickness value of your choice.
In most cases, the best way to calculate wall thickness is by multiplying the line width with a value between 2 and 4, depending on how sturdy you want your model to be.
Configuring Wall Line Count in Cura
The wall line count parameter is another way of configuring the wall thickness, as it’s possible to calculate the wall thickness value by multiplying this value with the line width.
Here are the steps we recommend taking for the configuration process:
- Click the prepare tab on the top of the window.
- Click the rightmost tab to bring the Print Settings up.
- Click the Custom button.
- Type “wall line count” into the search box and press Enter.
- Fill the wall line count input with the number of walls you would like your model to have.
As between 2 and 4 walls are optimal for most scenarios, using a value that falls in this range will provide you a wall that is sturdy enough.
Since Cura automatically calculates the wall thickness with the combination of this value and the line width value, it will block the input for wall thickness.
Wall Thickness Greyed Out in Cura – What to Do?
If the wall thickness input is greyed out in Cura, don’t worry just yet, as this behavior is entirely normal.
Manually inputting the wall line count parameter causes Cura to grey the wall thickness input out, as the slicer automatically calculates the wall thickness value by multiplying the wall line count and the line width values.
By clicking the icon next to the input to restore the calculated value of the wall line count, you can reactivate the wall thickness input.
You can observe a similar behavior when you change the wall thickness or line width values, where you will notice that the wall line count parameter automatically changes.
Once again, this is normal behavior due to the relationship between wall thickness, line width, and wall line count.
Optimal Wall Thickness Settings in Cura for Ender 3
To calculate the optimal wall thickness for Ender 3, let’s start with the optimal line width.
Since the Ender 3 has a 0.4 mm nozzle by default, the optimal line width is between 0.4 mm and 0.48 mm, as the line width should be between 100% and 120% of nozzle diameter.
Considering that a wall count of 2 to 4 is optimal, the correct wall thickness in Cura for Ender 3 would fall in the range of 0.8 mm (2 walls * 0.4 mm line width) to 1.92 mm (4 walls * 0.48 mm line width), depending on the line width and wall count you have chosen.
As Cura automatically rounds wall thickness to a multiplier of the line width, you should not have an issue with the calculation as long as the wall line count input displays the number of walls you intended to have after you input the wall thickness.
How to Activate Thin Walls in Cura?
While not directly related, “print thin walls” is another vital wall-related setting to keep in mind.
Activating this setting causes Cura to instruct the printer to print the walls of the model that are thinner than the nozzle size, allowing you to print the minor details of the model.
You can activate the “print thin walls“ setting in Cura by checking the box next to it under the Walls section of print settings.
Alternatively, you can search for it with the search box instead of manually finding it in the print settings menu.
As the nozzle technically cant print parts thinner than itself, this process can be problematic at times, where the thin walls end up being defective.
Wrapping Up
Wall thickness is a vital setting to get right in Cura to achieve the best print quality possible as a wrongly set wall thickness can easily cause your print to turn out defective.
As apparent from the name, this setting allows you to set the thickness of the walls of the models you will be printing, which plays an especially significant role in the sturdiness of your model.
Fortunately, wall thickness is one of the more undemanding settings to configure in Cura as it doesn’t require too much time and effort to find the correct values.
We hope you have found this an informative and enjoyable read, and we will see you next time!
Mike started his 3D printing journey with the Anet A8 when it first came out back in 2017, and has been obsessed with 3D printers ever since. Nowadays, he primarily uses his Ender 3 to print functional parts that make his life more convenient whenever possible.