Printer
A printer is defined by its maker/model, toolhead, extruder (+ drive) and hotend — the things that dominate pressure advance. Swapping any of those is a new printer. Nozzle and filament are chosen per test, not here.
+ Add a printer
Nozzles for
Pick the nozzle you're printing with. Nozzles swap often and change PA, so they live with the printer. Add as many as you use.
+ Add a nozzle
Filament
Pick the filament you're calibrating, or add a new one. Filaments work on any printer unless you restrict them. A run you've started but not finished shows an orange PA or Iron button on its filament card — click it to pick up where you left off.
+ Add a filament
PA Test
In-Flight · Settings lockedTest type
Nozzle velocity (mm/s) is what Orca's PA Pattern dialog actually asks for, so it's the default. Volumetric rate (mm³/s) is the same test expressed as flow — comparable across printers and nozzles. Switching converts the values below.
Adaptive PA depends on both flow and acceleration. The point counts start from a smart default that scales with your printer's envelope — a narrow accel or flow range needs fewer points, so a low-accel/low-flow machine won't be forced into a big matrix. Both counts are yours to override, and the value lists auto-fill from them (or type your own). The test grid is every speed × every accel.
Non-standard range: this is PA-Helper's own recommended range for , not OrcaSlicer's stock Tower dialog default (0 / 0.1 / 0.002 direct-drive). Expect it to differ from the wiki.
Run Orca's Pressure Advance Tower test with that range. Prints as a mm tower.
Non-standard range: this is PA-Helper's own recommended range for , not OrcaSlicer's stock Pattern dialog default (0 / 0.08 / 0.005 direct-drive). Expect it to differ from the wiki.
Run Orca's Pressure Advance Pattern test with that range, leaving the acceleration and speed fields blank — Orca then prints one block at your profile's own settings (no override). Click the cleanest chevron below once it's printed.
Non-standard range: this is PA-Helper's own recommended range for , not OrcaSlicer's stock Line dialog default (0 / 0.1 / 0.002 direct-drive). Expect it to differ from the wiki.
Run Orca's Pressure Advance Line test with that range. Click the cleanest line below once it's printed — the printed number beside every other line is the PA it tests, same as it prints.
Enter the settings you already printed in Orca — the PA range, plus the accelerations and the flow or speed points — then load them into the table. Or import the printed .gcode to auto-fill them.
Results
One row per test point. Flow & accel are locked to the test grid — import the printed .gcode (under “Settings I already printed”) for the exact points, or tick Override on a row to edit that pair. Fill in the best PA you saw at each.
| Override | Flow (mm³/s) | Accel (mm/s²) | Best PA | Notes |
|---|
Measure the tower
Scroll on the field to adjust — snaps to whole mm, clamped to what actually printed.
Pick the best line
Click the line that printed cleanest (sharpest corners, no bulge/gap).
Pick the best line
Click the row that printed cleanest (no blob or gap at either speed transition).
Result
Analyze
Export for Orca
Save this run
Ironing Test
Generates a grid of flat pads — one per (ironing speed, ironing flow) combo — as an OrcaSlicer 3MF project, so Orca does the real slicing. Print it, then note which pad gave the best top-surface finish.
Based on LeoganPro's Top Surface Ironing Test (CC0).
Speed sweep (X axis)
Flow sweep (Y axis)
Pad geometry
Plan
⚠ Before you slice in Orca
Generate
Opens directly in Orca — double-click the downloaded file, or drag it in. Orca does the real slicing; the per-object ironing_speed / ironing_flow overrides are already set. Multi-plate isn't supported yet — if the grid doesn't fit, reduce points, pad size, or gap.
Save this test
Records the printer, nozzle, filament, and settings used — reopen anytime from the Filament tab.
Permanently deletes the in-progress run for this printer + filament. Only shown while one exists.