Ezra Harris

Category: 3D Printer

  • My Project Printer: A Year in the Making

    For the past almost year, I have been working on a project printer that I bought; the original frame and parts were from a CR-10 S5 (with a 500x500x500 build size) the first couple of test prints worked, but they were not optimal with many issues, elephants foot, layer line issues, and a couple other minor issues, some of the problems I was able to fix by tweaking hardware.

    But most of my issues I could fix by changing my slicer settings; I currently use PrusaSlicer v2.5.0; I used to use Cura slicer; I swapped slicers because of the easier-to-use interface and the number of features built into the base program. Overall I prefer it for its interface and configurability, which makes it easier to swap machine settings from my Ender3 to my project printer. As well as built-in support for Octoprint.

    After an army of calibration cubes and Benchy’s, I could finally tune my prints to the best of my ability. I use a .6 nozzle, and I figured the best results are with a .3 layer height and about 70 mm/s (it can depend on a print-by-print basis) for PLA. I also have changed many more settings, which you can find here:

    https://github.com/BillyDaBones/Project-Covenant-3D-Printer

    The main issue I ran into was warping on the print bed when printing thinner models, and the way I solved it was by having both a higher bed temperature and a short 1-minute pause before printing after the bed had heated.

    I have previous short posts and status updates on the printer projects at my Instagram (here)

  • Octoprint

    Over the year, I’ve used Octoprint for my 3d printers. Octoprint is a server that hosts on a Raspberry Pi (and now even an Android device), which then you connect to your printer, which you can connect using the local IP. Octoprint is mainly used for managing your prints since it’s a lot easier to upload the.GCODE files to a local server and have Octoprint start, stop, and pause the 3D print with a press of a button. Many other features make Octoprint one of the best companions for a 3D Printer.

    One of the other benefits is its plugins; since Octoprint is open-source, they fully support plugins by independent developers; Octoprint has been out for almost a decade now, there are many plugins in its library. Some of my favorites include:

    • PrintTimeGenuis. Which uses an algorithm that can accurately predict how long a print will take, I have used this many times, and after about a month of printing, the plugin can predict the exact time all the way down to the number of minutes a print will take.
    • Octolapse, Octolapse is a plugin that has a highly comprehensive way of taking time-lapses of your print; instead of just taking a video and speeding it up, it can tell the printer at each layer of plastic to move to a fixed point and take a picture, which ends up being similar to a stop-motion video. The amount of options you can change to take time-lapses is fantastic, and why it is a favorite of mine.

    Another valuable tool is Octoapp (android exclusive) Octoapp is a fantastic app by Chris Würthner, who made it work around Android OS. Like many other developers, Chris benefits from a subscription to the app in which the user gains more features, which with a small amount each month, is a great way to support the developer and get valuable upgrades to the app. Many plugins work inside the app, including PSUControl, MultiCam, Octoeverywhere, and many more. What I like is that the app is primarily bug-free when it comes to the interface and is definitely built with the user in mind, such as the quick switch option, pausing and canceling prints, having a swipe to confirm option.

    There are many really nifty and interesting plugins that have been made for every use case available below is a link to every plugin in Octoprint’s public repository, which is constantly being updated with new plugins.

    https://plugins.octoprint.org/by_author/

    Other links:

    Octoapp by Chris

    PrintTimeGenuis plugin by Eyal

    Octolapse plugin by Brad

    Octoprint.com

    Octoprint on Android

    The best Cura plugin for Octoprint

    Note: I am not a developer, nor am I affiliated with Octoprint by any means, just a Octoprint user who is grateful for the many developers who make 3D printing a better experience.

  • Changing the LCD Configuration in Marlin

    When updating my firmware on my 3D Printer (the ender 3), I recently ran into an issue when using a modified version of Jyers marlin. I realized that the screen configuration was of another type of LCD. So when I tried to flash it, the LCD screen would appear blank. After a lot of googling, I found a blog post by Crosslink describing how he is changing his Ender 3 V2‘s printer LCD to a smaller and older version of the screen. The LCD on the newer Ender 3 V2‘s are vertical, and the LCD I have is horizontal, for example, in the image below:

    screen comparison

    In crosslink’s tutorial on how he changed out his screen, he showed how to change his marlin firmware to accept the different style screen. You had to enable the screen type to be #define CR10_STOCKDISPLAY instead of using the #define DWIN_CREALITY_LCD, which was the setting to allow the config for the Ender 3 V2’s display. Then you need to change a setting required to flash the firmware.

    And after that, I compiled the code in Visual Studio Code (with the PlatformIO plugin installed) and was able to successfully flash it onto my 3D Printer. There are more tweaks to the firmware I need to make for all of my hardware to work. But a huge thanks to Crosslink for his post! (Link to it here) he goes in-depth on why he switched to the older display and explains the process in great detail. He also has a Youtube video on it here:

    crosslink youtube video/tutorial

    Learn how i changed my screen’s boot screen here: blog.ezraharris.com/customizing-my-3d-printer-boot-screen/

  • Pros and Cons of an Ender 3 3D Printer

    One of the most popular 3D printers on the market is a Creality printer called the Ender 3. I have owned an Ender 3 for the past two years, and here are my thoughts on the pros and cons of owning one:

    Pros:

    • It’s cheap: this is a typical 3D printer because it’s cheap, only $200, which, compared to its competitors, like Prusa and Makerbot’s printers, is an accessible price for beginners just entering the 3D printing space.
    • Great for beginners: With the cheapness and the ability for it to be taken apart quickly and put back together. It does come disassembled. It’s a great learning experience for newer beginners just coming into 3D printing. Since it’s a popular printer, there are hundreds of guides and tutorials on almost any topic about this printer.
    • Upgradability: Since its popularity, many 3rd party brands have offered upgrades to this printer. For example, the BL touch, which in my opinion, is one of the best upgrades that this printer needs, the BL touch auto levels the bed, so there is no need to fine-tune the hotbed manually anymore, which is a hassle. Even Creality offers their own upgrades, they offer an upgraded silent stepper board that improves the sound, and they also sell a CR Touch (their version of the BL touch).

    Cons:

    • Cheap Quality: since this is cheap and straight from China, the parts and pieces are not of the best quality, and I found myself upgrading almost every single aspect of this printer to make it better, and after upgrading all of the small things like a new motherboard and a BL touch, adds up over time. I’ve spent at least an additional $200 on upgrades for my printer.
    • The Noise: Buying a new motherboard was a HUGE change from the printer’s noise when printing. It is rather loud with the standard motherboard. Which for some isn’t an issue as you can move it into another room or buy an enclosure for it. But even with the motors making almost no noise, there is still the fan’s noise, specifically the extruder fan and the power supply fan. Both are pretty loud, which you can also upgrade with Noctua’s silent series fans.

    Final Thoughts:

    Should you buy the Ender 3 in 2022? No, but I believe that if you are set on buying a cheaper printer, I would save money and go for the Creality Ender 3 pro, or the Creality Ender 3 V2, or the Ender 3 max. which has all of the base upgrades you need at a slightly higher price. I would also recommend the Prusa i3 MK3s+ edition if you want the more expensive 3D printers, since it has a vast community, and the owner is based in the Czech Republic and is seemingly going for quality rather than cheap and quick parts. Unlike what Creality3D produces. I also wrote about how I upgraded my Ender 3 with many upgrades here

    Products mentioned in this post:

    Prusa i3 MK3s+

    Creality Ender 3

    Ender 3 pro

    Ender 3 max

    Ender 3 V2

    BL touch

    CR Touch

    Ender 3 Silent Motherboard Upgrade 4.2.7

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