3D Printer Club

[silentbogo]

Today, I finished converting it from direct drive to a Bowden extruder setup.

Why?...

I think 99% of my problems on Ender3v2 were due to bowden (clogging, inconsistent extrusion etc.). On hi-temp PETG it was near impossible to print, cause the extruder would start skipping few minutes into the print. Had to convert it to direct, and replace that crappy stock extruder with cheap BMG clone.

Same on my first fully DIY Ender clone - it was a direct-drive from the very start, but that crappy MK8-style extruder(like yours) made my life a nightmare for a couple of weeks(skips, clogs, inconsistent wall thickness and print artifacts etc.etc.etc.).

Bowden only works for low-temp stuff like PLA, but not very good for anything else like PETG(at least without sacrificing print speed). I don't think that Anet will reap any benefits of a lighter headpiece and "lightning-fast speeds", but definitely negates all the good stuff from having a reliable direct drive. Get a BMG clone and make it a direct again - you'll see tons of improvements. I think you can find one under $10 nowadays... even seen some light aluminium versions of it for around $15-20(still heavier than orbiter, but good enough for cheap bedslinger for sure).

 

[sam_86314]

Why?...

I think 99% of my problems on Ender3v2 were due to bowden (clogging, inconsistent extrusion etc.). On hi-temp PETG it was near impossible to print, cause the extruder would start skipping few minutes into the print. Had to convert it to direct, and replace that crappy stock extruder with cheap BMG clone.

Same on my first fully DIY Ender clone - it was a direct-drive from the very start, but that crappy MK8-style extruder(like yours) made my life a nightmare for a couple of weeks(skips, clogs, inconsistent wall thickness and print artifacts etc.etc.etc.).

Bowden only works for low-temp stuff like PLA, but not very good for anything else like PETG(at least without sacrificing print speed). I don't think that Anet will reap any benefits of a lighter headpiece and "lightning-fast speeds", but definitely negates all the good stuff from having a reliable direct drive. Get a BMG clone and make it a direct again - you'll see tons of improvements. I think you can find one under $10 nowadays... even seen some light aluminium versions of it for around $15-20(still heavier than orbiter, but good enough for cheap bedslinger for sure).

I mainly want to try it out. At the moment, I exclusively print out of PLA anyway. Not gonna try PETG until I've done the MOSFET mod to my printer.

The stock direct-drive setup on the A8 sucks for changing filament and really likes to clog.

If the Bowden setup ends up sucking, I'll switch back to direct drive but with the E3D hotend instead.

 

[Fokker]

I mainly want to try it out. At the moment, I exclusively print out of PLA anyway. Not gonna try PETG until I've done the MOSFET mod to my printer.

The stock direct-drive setup on the A8 sucks for changing filament and really likes to clog.

If the Bowden setup ends up sucking, I'll switch back to direct drive but with the E3D extruder instead.

I'd argue upgrade printers. Competent direct drive is so much better than Bowden remote drives. $200 will get you a SV06 Plus or if you want to real fast out of the box, $280 will get you an SV06 ACE.

 

[silentbogo]

The stock direct-drive setup on the A8 sucks for changing filament and really likes to clog.

That's the problem with that crappy extruder. Bowden will only make it worse. If you want to keep that printer and just play around, I'd suggest the following:
1) Replace that crap with cheap BMG clone, regardless of whether you decide to stick with direct or bowden
2) Instead of adding mosfet modules to the stock board, I'd rather replace the motherboard (cause it's crap). Almost anything will do. Even the good-ole 8-bit MKS Gen L is wa-a-ay better than this one (I'd even give you one or two of those for free, if you were nearby). Though, I'd rather go for a cheap 32-bit board like MKS SGEN L or something similar with replaceable drivers. It can do both Marlin 2.0++ and Klipper, if you want to migrate later.
3) Get TMC2208 or TMC2209 for the new board
4) BLTouch for sure

That's pretty much what I did for my very first fully DIY printer. It ran Klipper on no-name Android TV box flashed w/ Armbian, SKR Pico was in charge of motion, and BLTouch for probing. After a couple of years it still works in my friend's print farm. The only time I came over to do something was some maintenance and klipper tweaking last year, and did a quick repair after he had a little "wiring mishap" a couple of months ago. We also modded a few other bedslingers for him (Kingroon, Ender3 etc), mostly the same - brains+klipper, BLTouch and mandatory Trinamic drivers.

 

[sam_86314]

That's the problem with that crappy extruder. Bowden will only make it worse. If you want to keep that printer and just play around, I'd suggest the following:
1) Replace that crap with cheap BMG clone, regardless of whether you decide to stick with direct or bowden
2) Instead of adding mosfet modules to the stock board, I'd rather replace the motherboard (cause it's crap). Almost anything will do. Even the good-ole 8-bit MKS Gen L is wa-a-ay better than this one (I'd even give you one or two of those for free, if you were nearby). Though, I'd rather go for a cheap 32-bit board like MKS SGEN L or something similar with replaceable drivers. It can do both Marlin 2.0++ and Klipper, if you want to migrate later.
3) Get TMC2208 or TMC2209 for the new board
4) BLTouch for sure

That's pretty much what I did for my very first fully DIY printer. It ran Klipper on no-name Android TV box flashed w/ Armbian, SKR Pico was in charge of motion, and BLTouch for probing. After a couple of years it still works in my friend's print farm. The only time I came over to do something was some maintenance and klipper tweaking last year, and did a quick repair after he had a little "wiring mishap" a couple of months ago. We also modded a few other bedslingers for him (Kingroon, Ender3 etc), mostly the same - brains+klipper, BLTouch and mandatory Trinamic drivers.

Looking at other boards, I'd probably go with an SKR 1.4, as I've found other A8 owners upgrading to that one. Looks like it'll need either a display upgrade or the current one to be modified.

I've found printable files for an E3D V6 printhead that supports BLTouch and had options for Bowden and the factory direct drive.

First impressions with the Bowden setup have actually been decent. With no tuning or adjustment, it can print at 60mm/s with okay quality. Only real issues are occasional underextrusion (my filament is old and probably needs drying) and wobble on the X and Y axes (likely from the acrylic frame?). It's easy to load filament into, I can see what the extruder is doing, and so far I haven't had any issues with it jamming or clogging.

EDIT: Upping the temp from 190C to 205C and lowering the print speed back to 45mm/s completely eliminated the underextrusion issue.

EDIT 2: Looks like it was just the temperature that fixed that issue. I'm printing a part for the printer at 60mm/s, and so far, there aren't any underextruded layers.

 

[silentbogo]

Looks like it'll need either a display upgrade or the current one to be modified.

I think the stock one will work with some persuation. Just need to double-check the LCD pinout and maybe fix few lines in Marlin config. If anything goes wrong - you can always get a cheap-ass reprap controller with an encoder (same 20x4 LCD). Costs less than $10. And I have few of those laying around the house and workshop (I really like to use those for various Arduino gizmos, not just 3d printers, cause it's cheap and easy to work with).

 

[Gilletter]

Anyone have any thoughts or opinions on this printer - Kobra s1 Combo?

 

[SN2716057]

Hey all,

Is it possible to spray water repellent on ABS? Just to test it out, it's going to be in a damp place so no direct contact with water.

PS: I've ordered some PETG which hopefully comes this week.

Anyone have any thoughts or opinions on this printer - Kobra s1 Combo?

It looks like my Creality K1C but with the display on top. And the cat approves, what else is there to say?
Oh, does it have a camera? it does

 

[WonkoTheSaneUK]

FWIW - NDAs have lifted on Elegoo's "Centauri Carbon" Core XY machine. Order books to open on the 17th.
The main differences from Bambu's X1C are $500 price tag and no AMS equivalent.

 

[Fokker]

Hey all,

Is it possible to spray water repellent on ABS? Just to test it out, it's going to be in a damp place so no direct contact with water.

PS: I've ordered some PETG which hopefully comes this week.


It looks like my Creality K1C but with the display on top. And the cat approves, what else is there to say?
Oh, does it have a camera? it does

You could coat it in Max CLR A/B epoxy resin to keep moisture at bay. I need to do some testing to see how effective it is, but I've also tried using multiple layers of clear coat paint to keep water at bay.

 

[SN2716057]

Thanx. Epoxy resin is a step for future use, so I'll try the clear coat paint. Hell, considering this is a test print I could just test the stuff I use for clothes, right?

 

[silentbogo]

Hey all,

Is it possible to spray water repellent on ABS? Just to test it out, it's going to be in a damp place so no direct contact with water.

PS: I've ordered some PETG which hopefully comes this week.

Yes, of course it is possible, but it may not make it any more waterproof.
If you are making an enclosure for some sort of electronics - I'd consider making a simple seam seal, and use some sort of hydroisolating spray on the PCB itself.
I use this stuff:

It's liquid acrylic spray, but in the past I also successfully used polyurethane spray: it's more flexible, so it doesn't flake off with seasonal changes in temperature (but it's pain in the ass to remove if you need to fix the board later).
Both are good enough to coat FPV drones that may fly in the rain/fog/snow, also used both on industrial gizmos which also work in high-humidity environment, automotive electronics etc. and so far so good. The only thing you need to watch out for, is if you have digital mics or barometers on the PCB - you need to cover it before spraying (otherwise it'll likely die).

 

[Frick]

Yeah spray paint, stuff you use for metal and stuff.

 

[SN2716057]

ty all.

 

[Fokker]

Thanx. Epoxy resin is a step for future use, so I'll try the clear coat paint. Hell, considering this is a test print I could just test the stuff I use for clothes, right?

What do you mean by 'stuff for clothes'?

 

[Count von Schwalbe]

What do you mean by 'stuff for clothes'?

3M Scotchgard Heavy Duty Water Shield 10.5 oz Mfr# 5020-10 - Ace Hardware

Be ready for any adventure, no matter the weather with Scotchgard Heavy Duty Water Shield. Whether your kids' coats need an extra layer of defense or your patio furniture needs some serious water repellency, Scotchgard Heavy Duty Water Shield defies the elements with an improved formulation that...

www.acehardware.com

 

[Fokker]

3M Scotchgard Heavy Duty Water Shield 10.5 oz Mfr# 5020-10 - Ace Hardware

Be ready for any adventure, no matter the weather with Scotchgard Heavy Duty Water Shield. Whether your kids' coats need an extra layer of defense or your patio furniture needs some serious water repellency, Scotchgard Heavy Duty Water Shield defies the elements with an improved formulation that...

www.acehardware.com

Thanks. I wouldn't rely on something like that for any long-term protection as it's meant to be reapplied eventually.

Anyone have any thoughts or opinions on this printer - Kobra s1 Combo?

It looks like a solid printer, though the filament box doesn't secure to the top and seems to be flip prone, even with filament loaded, so you'd have to be careful when opening. The box also has a separate power plug, so you'll need two outlets. The only real complaint would be that they skinned Orca instead of just providing profiles. You'd have to check their site, but they may offer profiles you can import into standard Orca (my recommendation).

 

[de.das.dude]

Hey all,

Is it possible to spray water repellent on ABS? Just to test it out, it's going to be in a damp place so no direct contact with water.

PS: I've ordered some PETG which hopefully comes this week.


It looks like my Creality K1C but with the display on top. And the cat approves, what else is there to say?
Oh, does it have a camera? it does

i keep my spools inside vaccum bags from amazon basics, they are super cheap. I put some silicon dry sachets inside as well.

 

[SN2716057]

The first prototype is printed in ABS! Untreated, so I'll use it as a test subject. Printables.com has loads of these [LINK].

 

[de.das.dude]

The first prototype is printed in ABS! Untreated, so I'll use it as a test subject. Printables.com has loads of these [LINK].
View attachment 383301

Oh this is what you mean!

honestly just paint it. Car bumpers are made out of ABS and they last ages without degradation.

 

[SN2716057]

Oh this is what you mean!

honestly just paint it. Car bumpers are made out of ABS and they last ages without degradation.

and ty

 

[Octavean]

I finally got around to slapping together my first 3D printer. The Creality Ender 3 v2 I got from Microcenter new for ~$49.99. My son wanted to help so it was a two man job. There is no question that the frame is squire but the T-Rod is ever so slightly bent. It all went together fairly well though.

After a tedious leveling process we started the first print from the included mSD card,….a cat in PLA. Surprising it all seemed to go swimming until it started to fail. It was about 50% done when it started to go through some Z contraction. So it seemed to be all there but squashed a little. Then later it seemed as if there was a nozzle clog.

Before I could address the problems the mSD card got corrupted. So we couldn’t test with the same print job.

Anyway, here is what I think caused the problems:

The print was squashed at the ~50% mark because there was a Z axis problem. It turned out that the Z stepper was fine but the T-Rod wasn’t tightened down enough. Nipping that up addressed the issue but I also loosened the brace on the filament feeder for the T-Rod.

As for the clog, there wasn’t one. It seems as if the filament feeder may have shaven down some of the filament away in one spot. Pushing it through manually a little while the nozzle was at temperature seemed to solve the problem.

So at that point I opted to connect a PC via USB, download a slicer and a Benchy model. Currently it’s in the middle of a 3h39m37s print job. So far it looks really good.

Fingers crossed that it doesn’t S#!t the bed.

 

[Fokker]

I finally got around to slapping together my first 3D printer. The Creality Ender 3 v2 I got from Microcenter new for ~$49.99. My son wanted to help so it was a two man job. There is no question that the frame is squire but the T-Rod is ever so slightly bent. It all went together fairly well though.

After a tedious leveling process we started the first print from the included mSD card,….a cat in PLA. Surprising it all seemed to go swimming until it started to fail. It was about 50% done when it started to go through some Z contraction. So it seemed to be all there but squashed a little. Then later it seemed as if there was a nozzle clog.

Before I could address the problems the mSD card got corrupted. So we couldn’t test with the same print job.

Anyway, here is what I think caused the problems:

The print was squashed at the ~50% mark because there was a Z axis problem. It turned out that the Z stepper was fine but the T-Rod wasn’t tightened down enough. Nipping that up addressed the issue but I also loosened the brace on the filament feeder for the T-Rod.

As for the clog, there wasn’t one. It seems as if the filament feeder may have shaven down some of the filament away in one spot. Pushing it through manually a little while the nozzle was at temperature seemed to solve the problem.

So at that point I opted to connect a PC via USB, download a slicer and a Benchy model. Currently it’s in the middle of a 3h39m37s print job. So far it looks really good.

Fingers crossed that it doesn’t S#!t the bed.View attachment 383371

The cards they come with a cheap trash and should be discarded for a quality one of you're going to be needing the card for anything.

 

[silentbogo]

I finally got around to slapping together my first 3D printer. The Creality Ender 3 v2 I got from Microcenter new for ~$49.99.

Congrats on your first printer!
That's a great first machine, cause a cheap-ass or DIY bedslinger is such a pain in the ass, that it teaches you a lot about how 3D printers work and how to troubleshoot various issues.
Regardless of that, at $50 it's a steal.

I have the exact same machine, and here are few things that you should start planning for occasional weekend tinkering projects:
1) Either buy or print an adapter for direct-drive and get a cheap BMG clone extruder. That stock one sucks, and sooner than later you'll have to replace it (might as well do it the right way)
I think that's the model I used for mine:

Ender 3 V2 BMG Direct Drive with Bl-touch mount by onodono

Hi everyoneThis is my first post and I'm 100% a beginner with CAD.I wanted to add a BMG direct drive extruder to my Ender 3 V2 as well as the Bl-touch by Jkostenov so I could use the custom firmware without editing.I've remixed napfkuchen's BMG direct drive design to fit the Ender 3 V2's...

www.thingiverse.com

Works for BMG, plus has a mounting arm for BLTouch
The basic one is around $5-$7, but for a few more dollars you can get a metal gear version which is wa-a-a-y better. Though the plastic one still gets the job done. Heck, they even survived a couple of years of heavy abuse at my friend's print farm.
2) BLTouch is a must. Simple bed leveling does not compensate for surface warp etc., so you gotta have bed mesh leveling. Can be as cheap as $5 or so.
3) Upgrade your firmware to MRISCOC build of Marlin. Takes a few minutes, but adds a bunch of useful stuff (BLTouch support, universal bed leveling, etc.)
Here's a link to prebuilt binaries:

Release Professional Firmware for 3D Printers 20240122 · mriscoc/Ender3V2S1

New Year 2024 (20240122) This is not the latest version, to get the latest version go here: https://github.com/mriscoc/Ender3V2S1/releases/latest What's new in this release The background of hot-e...

github.com

Just don't forget to read the wiki and chose the right version.
4) Dual z-axis motors. That's optional, but will help with gantry issues. Costs around $25-30 for a kit, or even cheaper if you print it. Though a creality kit is much more reliable.
I didn't do it on mine, cause I managed to tighten up the gantry quite well, but it's for sure on my shopping list.
5) magnetic print surface. Currently I'm using a flexible magnetic sheet from Kingroon, but it's not very reliable. Sometimes it prints just fine, but other times leveling is not up to par. So, I'd rather switch to a rigid PEI plate. Already ordered a couple on Aliexpress. I think it's ~$6-7/ea.

Since you've basically over half of its price, I think investing another $40-50 to make it much better and more reliable ain't that big of a deal. BTW, I paid nearly $200 for mine (used, but fully serviced) back in a day, and it was the cheapest option on the market at the time.

The first prototype is printed in ABS! Untreated, so I'll use it as a test subject.

Ah.... don't bother waterproofing it. It's going to be fine.
I thought it was going to be some sort of watertight enclosure.
If it's just plastic - just do a bit more infill and call it a day. For my friend's filament extrusion line we used 3D printed mounting brackets made out of PETG, which hold a half-pipe with open water for cooling the plastic. It's been over 1.5 years and so far no issues, and no trapped water either.

 

[Frick]

Congrats on your first printer!
That's a great first machine, cause a cheap-ass or DIY bedslinger is such a pain in the ass, that it teaches you a lot about how 3D printers work and how to troubleshoot various issues.
Regardless of that, at $50 it's a steal.

I have the exact same machine, and here are few things that you should start planning for occasional weekend tinkering projects:
1) Either buy or print an adapter for direct-drive and get a cheap BMG clone extruder. That stock one sucks, and sooner than later you'll have to replace it (might as well do it the right way)
I think that's the model I used for mine:

Ender 3 V2 BMG Direct Drive with Bl-touch mount by onodono

Hi everyoneThis is my first post and I'm 100% a beginner with CAD.I wanted to add a BMG direct drive extruder to my Ender 3 V2 as well as the Bl-touch by Jkostenov so I could use the custom firmware without editing.I've remixed napfkuchen's BMG direct drive design to fit the Ender 3 V2's...

www.thingiverse.com

Works for BMG, plus has a mounting arm for BLTouch
The basic one is around $5-$7, but for a few more dollars you can get a metal gear version which is wa-a-a-y better. Though the plastic one still gets the job done. Heck, they even survived a couple of years of heavy abuse at my friend's print farm.
2) BLTouch is a must. Simple bed leveling does not compensate for surface warp etc., so you gotta have bed mesh leveling. Can be as cheap as $5 or so.
3) Upgrade your firmware to MRISCOC build of Marlin. Takes a few minutes, but adds a bunch of useful stuff (BLTouch support, universal bed leveling, etc.)
Here's a link to prebuilt binaries:

Release Professional Firmware for 3D Printers 20240122 · mriscoc/Ender3V2S1

New Year 2024 (20240122) This is not the latest version, to get the latest version go here: https://github.com/mriscoc/Ender3V2S1/releases/latest What's new in this release The background of hot-e...

github.com

Just don't forget to read the wiki and chose the right version.
4) Dual z-axis motors. That's optional, but will help with gantry issues. Costs around $25-30 for a kit, or even cheaper if you print it. Though a creality kit is much more reliable.
I didn't do it on mine, cause I managed to tighten up the gantry quite well, but it's for sure on my shopping list.
5) magnetic print surface. Currently I'm using a flexible magnetic sheet from Kingroon, but it's not very reliable. Sometimes it prints just fine, but other times leveling is not up to par. So, I'd rather switch to a rigid PEI plate. Already ordered a couple on Aliexpress. I think it's ~$6-7/ea.

Since you've basically over half of its price, I think investing another $40-50 to make it much better and more reliable ain't that big of a deal. BTW, I paid nearly $200 for mine (used, but fully serviced) back in a day, and it was the cheapest option on the market at the time.


Ah.... don't bother waterproofing it. It's going to be fine.
I thought it was going to be some sort of watertight enclosure.
If it's just plastic - just do a bit more infill and call it a day. For my friend's filament extrusion line we used 3D printed mounting brackets made out of PETG, which hold a half-pipe with open water for cooling the plastic. It's been over 1.5 years and so far no issues, and no trapped water either.

This is just me ranting but this kind of thing is intensly off-putting to me. I have an Ender v3 SE which is as cheap combined with plug-n-play as you can get, but even that is too complicated. I long for the day 3D printing is on the same level as printing. I want to buy a thing for €200 tops, plug it in and hit print on something I downloaded and literally nothing else. I still don't know what an "extruder" is or what "dual z-axis motors" mean or "direct-drive" or literally anything else that you wrote and I will never know becuase I don't want to and I don't care. I just want it to work. And this is what annoys me with 3D printing in general: It is assumed that anyone even remotely interested in 3D printing is also interested in all of those things. I don't know what a splicer is, and I don't want to know. I do like how DIY 3D printing is/has been, but I dislike how that is the assumed base level. You say it's a great device because it teach you about 3D printing, and I say that is the very reason it sucks as a first device. I don't have to know the inner workings of a laser printer to be able to use one. I don't have to be able to do Karnaugh maps to be able to use a computer. I don't have to know how combustion engines work to be able to drive a car. I don't have to know physics to sit in a chair. But for 3D printers the assumption is that indeed you want to know all those things and indeed you really should know all those things to "properly" use one.