Prusa i3 MK3s 3D printer

[armalites]

I had been looking at getting a 3D printer for quite some time but I wanted something that wasn't a project in itself.

After a bit a of research and some good reviews I ordered a Prusa i3 Mk3s and some spools of PLA and PETG. Although I didn't want a project I ordered the kit as I thought it would something fun to do with the kids and it saves £200 on the price.

Kit arrived and it was very well packaged, all the parts were in a labelled bags and boxes. There is a comprehensive build book and they have 24/7 support.

Build took us all day and we fired it up around 1800. Didn't get chance to calibrate/setup until the next morning.

It passed all the self tests and calibrated fine, I had some issues with first layer calibration but once I'd watched a video it was all clear.

Compared to an i3 clone it was chunk of money but the print quality was excellent from the word go.

I've left the images full size so you can see the detail, the benchy is actually quite small and nowhere near as big as it is on the screen so it looks much better in real life.

The planet gears were printed in one go and moved smoothly straight from the printer

 

[Ali]

Nice. Any pics of the kit / build process?

 

[Ruffian]

That looks some nice prints.
How bad was the kit building difficulty/frustration wise. I'm getting to grips with fusion 360 and wondering whether to get one for playing with.

 

[AndersK]

Had my eyes on the Prusa a while.
If I buy one for home use it will be the Prusa with the 5 roll upgrade or the latest Snapmaker

Please post more as you progress with the printer

 

[armalites]

No issues with the build, there are some fiddly bits but if the follow the instructions it's all fine. The instrcutions are in a proper printed colour book. Each section has a list of all the parts you need down to each screw. All the pieces are are in separated bags marked for each section. They provide all the tools you need but I did use some screwdriver handle allen keys which made things a bit easier. There were a couple of places where it said "Don't tighten fully we will do that in a later step" on couple of motors but I don't remember reading tigten fully. When plugging the cables in have the online version of the manual would be useful to zoom in as they are tightly packed.

The instructions are very comprehensive even highlighting little bits that people have had issues with. The manual is similar to a lot of manuals these days in that the section will list the steps and you do them and then find when you turn the page it goes through a full blow by blow of the stuff you've just done because you thought those were the instructions . We have manuals at work like that. That said even putting the cables in it list which way they fit.

Ours passed the self tests and checks first time but I didn't get to grips with the first layer calibration until I watched a couple of Youtube videos. It comes with an SD card with some sample prints.

You can save the STL file from Fusion and import it into Prusa Slicer which will provide the G-code. The nice bit is it names the file and include the filamnet type and print time in the name so you can see it on the printer. The printer is standalone and doesn't need the PC except for firmware updates. You can add a Rasberry PI which will allow wireless printing.

Having not had one before I was surprised how long the prints take, both of the prints in the pictures took 2h each.

Youngest has just printed a special socket for the fork top on his mountian bike and printed some feet that fit on Snap On socket rails.

 

[armalites]

Had my eyes on the Prusa a while.
If I buy one for home use it will be the Prusa with the 5 roll upgrade or the latest Snapmaker

Please post more as you progress with the printer

The MMU2 unit is a separate build and does look cool but it is very wasteful on filament because everytime it changes it pumps filament into block on the side of the heat plates

 

[armalites]

I ordered both heat plates and have only used the powder coated one so far. You don't need glue, the prints stick fine and to release them all you do is take the sheet and flew it.

 

[armalites]

It's the nicest day we've had in ages and me and the boys are staring at a 3D printer

 

[Ruffian]

No issues with the build, there are some fiddly bits but if the follow the instructions it's all fine. The instrcutions are in a proper printed colour book. Each section has a list of all the parts you need down to each screw. All the pieces are are in separated bags marked for each section. They provide all the tools you need but I did use some screwdriver handle allen keys which made things a bit easier. There were a couple of places where it said "Don't tighten fully we will do that in a later step" on couple of motors but I don't remember reading tigten fully. When plugging the cables in have the online version of the manual would be useful to zoom in as they are tightly packed.

The instructions are very comprehensive even highlighting little bits that people have had issues with. The manual is similar to a lot of manuals these days in that the section will list the steps and you do them and then find when you turn the page it goes through a full blow by blow of the stuff you've just done because you thought those were the instructions . We have manuals at work like that. That said even putting the cables in it list which way they fit.

Ours passed the self tests and checks first time but I didn't get to grips with the first layer calibration until I watched a couple of Youtube videos. It comes with an SD card with some sample prints.

You can save the STL file from Fusion and import it into Prusa Slicer which will provide the G-code. The nice bit is it names the file and include the filamnet type and print time in the name so you can see it on the printer. The printer is standalone and doesn't need the PC except for firmware updates. You can add a Rasberry PI which will allow wireless printing.

Having not had one before I was surprised how long the prints take, both of the prints in the pictures took 2h each.

Youngest has just printed a special socket for the fork top on his mountian bike and printed some feet that fit on Snap On socket rails.

I think more pictures are definitely needed!!
Stop teasing and more showing.
Machine and prints please.
Also where did you purchase it from??

 

[armalites]

I ordered from Prusa, if you are going the kit route then I would tempted to order the kit separately to the filament because the kits are in stock ready to ship but the filament takes a week to produce.

The kit comes with a roll of silver but I ordered a couple of rolls of PET and a couple of PLA but my ordered was deleayed because one of the filament lines was down.

https://shop.prusa3d.com/en/51-original-prusa-i3-mk3s

I chose this printer as I saw one review where the guy had done 1000h of prints with no errors.

Prusa print all the parts for their printers on these machines

 

[armalites]

This is a battery holder for a Ryobi One + battery

 

[DAPPH]

I have got a self built kit form one too , it was damaged severely , terminal in fact in transit with DHL .. so it took another five or so weeks to send it back and get the replacement via UPS as their bar code readers in Swansea miss read the barcode and sent it from close to my home up to Sheffield and then round all the Sheffield area depots .

The only issue I had was that silver PLA filament issued with the printer kit has problems in the light sensor part of the filament drive unit
For some reason it reflects the led light and confuses the sensor circuitry .. All new models sold after April 2019 have a free modification to over come it. Models before that date can be updated at a cost .
I second the screwdriver Allen keys and add a set of screw dive metric sockets is also handy . If you can get the space a 600 x 600 bit of work top is about the minimum space you need to build it on . With the same area again to put the bit's pieces on , some in a several cardboard shoe boxes so you can put the nuts screws & washers in size order in a small shoe box .

One thing I did miss first off was putting the two shaped conical filament deflectors on both the vertical screw rods against the actual motors as they stop bits of material clogging the upper bearings of the motors . , so I had to dismantle things a bit to put them on as they are important to stop very small bit of filament clogging the upper bearings of the motors .
When it was finally built & tested it seemed a bit jerky I also cleaned all of the bright rods and the height screw threads and re-lubed them with a smidgeon of liquid silicone the sort that's used to lubricate a rolling road exercise machine's conveyor belt . I polished it in so there is no obvious thickness of the silicone on the rods to attract dust ..as a result the machine the machine seem to operate as smooth as silk .. we'll see how it is when I fire it up again in the late Autumn .

Initially I had problems till I put the printer in a 60 mm thick based 20 mm walled & roofed plywood cabinet with sliding Perspex front so that it is dust free and temperature stable as it didn't like trying to print when it was 14 oC or less out in my office cum mancupboard . It likes a nice stable 20 oC that's for sure & being in the cabinet it's almost inaudible .

I also had issues getting the first layers to stick when the ambient temp was 11 oC but after running the bed plate through two heating cycles , puttingthe man cupboard heating on for 20 oC and adjusting the nozzle setting a few dozen points closer to the bed it all came out great .

The printed Prusa logo plate programme that came on the memory card printed as smooth as a baby's bum on the edges and the faces of the letters PRUSA .( So I know any further rough / poor prints will be down to me ).

The PLA does not like moisture , it absorbs it , so having it in the heated cabinet should keep the humidity and temperature fairly even . Come autumn I'll find out if my putting two 7 watt CFL's on baton holders , wired in parallel in the top of the printer enclosure cabinet as a light & heat source has been effective , they have been on 24/7 since January 2019 .
It's two CFL's in parallel so if one dies The other should still be on and the failed lamp might be noticed as I usually go into the office at least once a day

If a reel is left out exposed to the air it seems the first 10 mm of layers will tend to have more moisture than the inner ones that have been partly protected from moisture in the air . As a consequence of the pressure of the swelling moister filaments I feel it will take on two flats as well so might be a problem I'll need to think about when storing half a dozen or more rolls of opened filaments .

I've not played with it this spring & summer as I have a big interest in friends , raised bed square foot gardening and pressure canning abundant crops where it's safe to do so .

I you look up the Anet 8 thread there is a lot of useful info in there as well as some links to useful YouTube's for Fusion … The ones with the old American male lecturer showing how to do things is not as good as the Swedish guy Lars , but they are where I started till I found I needed a greater knowledge which Larslive 1 provided in easy to follow tube video's .