What do i need to start 3D printing?

[Smoke-Town]

Ok I'm sure all of this has been answered before but I don't see a sticky thread with all the information needed for 3d newbies...so maybe this can turn into one.

I just bought an Ender3 V2. I want to print a bunch of those files in the parts archive sticky. What do I need to make that happen? I thought I could just download those files to my laptop and upload onto a USB stick and load that into the ender3 USB port. Apparently there's more to t then that. I'm told I need a slicer. Do I just download a slicer to my pc? which one? any of them?

Also i apparently will need a leveling kit...which one? I see 2 or 3 different kinds of auto levelers available for my printer. Are there any other "upgrades" that are basically requirements for these prints to go well?

Looks like the raw material I will need for anything in a reef tank is PETG. What if I wanted to make a light mount or something that is above or near the tank, what should I use? Any reason not to use PETG for everything? More expensive maybe like most pet friendly things?

I imagine CAD programs are only needed to design my own unique items, and probably require a decently powered pc...are the phone versions worth while? Can the Phone Bluetooth to the printer or is everything transferred via USB?

Anything else I'm missing? I'm sure there must be. My printer is still shipping so I'm sure I have a million more questions I haven't even begun to think about yet. It's a bit daunting getting started, kind of like the reef hobby is, so anything else that you think Newbies should know, please feel free to chime in. Thanks

 

[kpoj9]

COOL - I bought the same one this weekend. It delivers Wed. I paid extra for the glass platform. I also bought these upgrades.

Aluminum Alloy Block Extruder
4 PCS Extruder Nozzles
Bowden Tubing
Teflon Tube Cutter
PC4-M6 and PC4-M10 Fittings

I read that a leveling kit wasn't needed but I'm not sure. Which one did you get?

 

[Smoke-Town]

Looks like im going to go with the cr touch leveling kit as its made for this printer specifically. Mine says it comes with aa carborundum glass bed. probably same as yours i'd guess. i only ordered one spool of hatchbox PETG filament. idk how long that will last. i didn't order and different nozzles or anything like you've listed. guess i have to look those things up. so many different upgrades... had to figure out which ones are really worth it

 

[kpoj9]

Yeah I'm not sure either. The videos I've watched recommend making upgrades like the extruder and fittings while assembling. These printers seem like a major pain in the butt to assemble and disassemble. Going to look into the leveling kit.

 

[Smoke-Town]

i think i'll be adding this Aluminum MK8 Drive Feed. I'm not sure if that's the same thing as the aluminum block extruder you mentioned, but looks similar.

I read about the brass nozzles giving problems so definitely ordering the hardened steel nozzles as youve also mentioned as well as the bowden tubing. those are both too cheap not to implement.

Micro Swiss All-Metal Hot End.. pricey but seems well worth while.

Those PC4-M6 and M10 fittings are cheap too so i guess ill grab those... can't open amazon or anything like that on my limited work internet so can't see why exactly i want them until after work, lol.

I think that should be enough to get started. There are a bunch of little things i'll be adding to the machine that are printable. i figure those little upgrade clips and holders and things would be a good way to start learning the machine.

Down the road the road i'll probably upgrade the main board with this
BigTreeTech SKR Mini E3 V3

 

[firechild]

i think i'll be adding this Aluminum MK8 Drive Feed. I'm not sure if that's the same thing as the aluminum block extruder you mentioned, but looks similar.

I read about the brass nozzles giving problems so definitely ordering the hardened steel nozzles as youve also mentioned as well as the bowden tubing. those are both too cheap not to implement.

Micro Swiss All-Metal Hot End.. pricey but seems well worth while.

Those PC4-M6 and M10 fittings are cheap too so i guess ill grab those... can't open amazon or anything like that on my limited work internet so can't see why exactly i want them until after work, lol.

I think that should be enough to get started. There are a bunch of little things i'll be adding to the machine that are printable. i figure those little upgrade clips and holders and things would be a good way to start learning the machine.

Down the road the road i'll probably upgrade the main board with this
BigTreeTech SKR Mini E3 V3

I wouldn't start planning upgrades until you actually get to printing a bunch of things and deciding what is actually necessary. A bare bones Ender 3 with a glass bed is enough to print most things you're going to want.

I've used a few slicers and have found different ones can be better in specific situations but I almost exclusively use Cura. It's an easy to use interface and updates are pretty regular so you can keep it using the latest features pretty easily. There are plenty of youtube tutorials for any of the major slicers.
Files you download will usually be .obj or .stl files but these are just 3d objects. Gerber files are a set of instructions for your printer to move and extrude filament (as well as other things like temperature). These will be different for different printers so can't be downloaded generically for anyone to print. This is what a slicer will produce. Also it has been shown that people can put commands into gerber files that will destroy your printer, so never download gerber files, even if they are supposed to be for your printer.

PETG and PLA will work for most things. ABS is more heat resistant (and needs a higher print temp) but also needs to be printed in an enclosure to prevent rapid cooling, so isn't really an option on an Ender 3. I'd generally use PLA for anything that isn't going to get wet such as power supply/controller holders.

 

[Smoke-Town]

oh wow. appreciate the heads up about gcode files being able to break the printer. good to know about the PLA also. will grab some.

as for the upgrades....i read that the printers can be a pain to take apart and upgrade and build so i was told some upgrades like the hot end and bed leveler should just be done right away to save the headache. but either way i bought those already so no harm done. they're pretty affordable.

i'm sure i don't need all that extra stuff but it's just fun getting into a new hobby. like all my hobbies i just wanna get all the cool stuff even if i don't use it, lol.
like the laser etching add on...i want that...it's super cool...was hard for me to tell myself not to add it to the cart as i don't need it.

i also already want to build a raspberry pi with cad and octoprint on it, i think i have an old tv monitor somewhere for it. but i'm trying to convince myself to wit with all that stuff.

 

[Chris Ferrell]

I agree with firechild, right out of the box you can print most things. I have an older ender 3 and a ender 3 V2 and its a big improvement. The only upgrades that I think you will appreciate are changing the bed springs and the bowden tube with the hot end. Those are pretty cheap on Amazon. The springs that come with it are kind of weak and I had issues keeping the be level and had to level it after every other print. The upgraded ones on Amazon are a little beafier. As for the bowden tube and hot end its recommended you change those out if your going to print with PETG because of the higher temp. My original tube started melting some and clogged the hot end so on my v2 I changed it out when I put it together. Those upgrades are pretty cheap. I watched a lot of youtube videos when I started there is a ton of information out there then the rest is playing and trying out things. The plastic extruder kit that comes with seems to fail pretty often mine did after about six months so on the v2 changed it to the metal one. Here's the links to what I got on both printers now. I have the CR touch for the v2 but have not installed it yet. After some practice leveling the bed is easy you just get a feel for it and I make minor adjustments as its printing. One you get it dialed in your good for a while. I hope this helps. If you have any other questions Id be glad to help

Good luck

Hot End
Metal extruder kit
Springs with extruder kit

 

[Brucealmighty]

Interesting thread for many people who are thinking about dipping their toes into the 3d printing world, definitely need more info as you go through the process of learning how to use it and the pros and cons you will discover along the way I will be keeping an eye on this thread, top job so far mate

 

[oredith]

as with most upgrades, it's to address a specific deficiency. Some upgrades are universally good, while others are very situational.

I'll talk about the E3v2 first since that's what people have listed as having here already (spoiler alert, you really don't NEED any upgrades).

1. metal extruder - this is a good backup, but not necessary. the stock plastic one is pretty crappy, and eventually, it may crack, and give you problems. that could be 2 minutes from now, or it could be 2 years from now. It really depends on how often you are using it, and more importantly, how well your hotend / print settings are. The stock plastic extruder doesn't just magically break on its own, it's when you have a clogged hotend, and the extruder starts endlessly clacking against itself that it starts developing stress points, and eventually breaks. I ran an ender 3 pro for 2+ years with the stock plastic extruder, printing probably over 20kg of filament, and it did not crack.

2. bowden tube - aka "capricorn tubing", this is solidly in the "situational" category. Capricorn tubing is great INSIDE the hotend fix (This is one upgrade that I actually WOULD recommend everyone do) because it has higher heat tolerance, but using the capricorn tubing from the extruder to the hotend actually doesn't do much of any good, the stock PTFE tubing isn't a rubberband, it's not going to stretch anymore than the capricorn, at least not in any noticeable degree. With little upside, the downside is actually significant. There's plenty of people who have had their prints fail because the capricorn tubing has a tighter tolerance, so when you print with cheaper filament, it could get clogged inside the capricorn tubing whereas it would have just printed fine in the stock PTFE tubing.

3. nozzles - hardened or brass. hardened nozzles are almost always a waste of money, unless you're printing very specific material like carbon fiber ABS. Personally, nozzles are a wear item that gets used and thrown out. I've gone through 200+ nozzles from various manufacturers on amazon, and no manufacturer has come out as significantly better or worse than any other.

4. bed springs / silicone spacers - these are OK as upgrades. the stock ones are pretty soft, but still work. I see this as more of a quality-of-life upgrade that helps retain bed level, rather than an actual needed upgrade. if your printer is setup in a way that you're not bumping it and accidentally loosening the screws, it's not really necessary.

5. BL-touch / cr-touch / EZ-ABL - these are really not necessary on a "small" printer like the ender 3. The auto bed leveling isn't magical, and if you read the white paper info on it, you will see that it has a limited range on what it can actually compensate for, so you have to manually level your bed to a certain degree anyway. My (2) ender 3 pros and Ender 5 do not have bed leveling on it, but my E3v2 and Cr-10s do. I honestly do not think there's any difference. I actually prefer the ender 3 pros just because I don't have to listen to 2 minutes of the printer slowly probing the surface.

what I would recommend:

1. magnetic build surface. if you watch amazon, there's generally a flexible PEI sheet on sale for the ender 3 size (220x220) at about 25 bucks. these are definite worth it just for the ease of use. I have used and love glass beds, but there's a level of frustration with a print that is REALLY stuck on glass bed that simply can't be described. the PEI does away with that, and lets you pop the print off immediately.

2. firmware update. the stock firmware just sucks, there's no way around it. i reflash my firmware on the ender 3's almost immediately as part of the assembly process.

 

[Smoke-Town]

as with most upgrades, it's to address a specific deficiency. Some upgrades are universally good, while others are very situational.

I'll talk about the E3v2 first since that's what people have listed as having here already (spoiler alert, you really don't NEED any upgrades).

1. metal extruder - this is a good backup, but not necessary. the stock plastic one is pretty crappy, and eventually, it may crack, and give you problems. that could be 2 minutes from now, or it could be 2 years from now. It really depends on how often you are using it, and more importantly, how well your hotend / print settings are. The stock plastic extruder doesn't just magically break on its own, it's when you have a clogged hotend, and the extruder starts endlessly clacking against itself that it starts developing stress points, and eventually breaks. I ran an ender 3 pro for 2+ years with the stock plastic extruder, printing probably over 20kg of filament, and it did not crack.

2. bowden tube - aka "capricorn tubing", this is solidly in the "situational" category. Capricorn tubing is great INSIDE the hotend fix (This is one upgrade that I actually WOULD recommend everyone do) because it has higher heat tolerance, but using the capricorn tubing from the extruder to the hotend actually doesn't do much of any good, the stock PTFE tubing isn't a rubberband, it's not going to stretch anymore than the capricorn, at least not in any noticeable degree. With little upside, the downside is actually significant. There's plenty of people who have had their prints fail because the capricorn tubing has a tighter tolerance, so when you print with cheaper filament, it could get clogged inside the capricorn tubing whereas it would have just printed fine in the stock PTFE tubing.

3. nozzles - hardened or brass. hardened nozzles are almost always a waste of money, unless you're printing very specific material like carbon fiber ABS. Personally, nozzles are a wear item that gets used and thrown out. I've gone through 200+ nozzles from various manufacturers on amazon, and no manufacturer has come out as significantly better or worse than any other.

4. bed springs / silicone spacers - these are OK as upgrades. the stock ones are pretty soft, but still work. I see this as more of a quality-of-life upgrade that helps retain bed level, rather than an actual needed upgrade. if your printer is setup in a way that you're not bumping it and accidentally loosening the screws, it's not really necessary.

5. BL-touch / cr-touch / EZ-ABL - these are really not necessary on a "small" printer like the ender 3. The auto bed leveling isn't magical, and if you read the white paper info on it, you will see that it has a limited range on what it can actually compensate for, so you have to manually level your bed to a certain degree anyway. My (2) ender 3 pros and Ender 5 do not have bed leveling on it, but my E3v2 and Cr-10s do. I honestly do not think there's any difference. I actually prefer the ender 3 pros just because I don't have to listen to 2 minutes of the printer slowly probing the surface.

what I would recommend:

1. magnetic build surface. if you watch amazon, there's generally a flexible PEI sheet on sale for the ender 3 size (220x220) at about 25 bucks. these are definite worth it just for the ease of use. I have used and love glass beds, but there's a level of frustration with a print that is REALLY stuck on glass bed that simply can't be described. the PEI does away with that, and lets you pop the print off immediately.

2. firmware update. the stock firmware just sucks, there's no way around it. i reflash my firmware on the ender 3's almost immediately as part of the assembly process.

Appreciate all that insight. Is there a specific firmware that you recommend and is the install just a download to PC and upload to printer?

Also do consider the micro Swiss all metal hot end to be necessary? My printer is still in its box as I'm not yet done building the room it will be in. Hopefully start putting it together this weekend.

 

[oredith]

Appreciate all that insight. Is there a specific firmware that you recommend and is the install just a download to PC and upload to printer?

Also do consider the micro Swiss all metal hot end to be necessary? My printer is still in its box as I'm not yet done building the room it will be in. Hopefully start putting it together this weekend.

Firmware update is a bit of a challenge. the first time you do it will likely be frustrating. Best case scenario is you have a printer / configuration that is very common and someone has already compiled a firmware for it, in which case it's relatively straight forward. if you have an odd combination of specifics though, you may end up having to compile your own firmware, which would require downloading a few different (free) software, and following some youtube videos to walk through how to do it. My first time compiling my own firmware literally took 6+ hours of multiple trials, redo, looking at different videos, and finally getting it to work - now, it takes me about 15 minutes total to compile and flash a new printer.

Personally, I like the Th3d firmware, but that's mostly because that's what I've used a lot and familiar with the menu layout. For the E3v2, a lot of people run Jyers firmware. I actually installed it on one of my previous E3v2, and thought it was pretty slick. I remember the install to be pretty easy and straight forward too, so that's probably the one I would recommend.

Microswiss is a nice product, but I honestly do not think it's worth the hefty premium you pay for it. One thing people don't tell you when they say "upgrade", is that the all metal hotend is not an upgrade into itself. you only need all metal hotend if you're intending to run some "exotic" materials, and even then, it's not 100% necessary. I have printed ABS, ASA, PETG, TPU, and PLA all on the stock ender 3 hotend with the PTFE insert without problem. All i did was the hotend fix (that was linked in the previous post), and replaced the short ~1" capricorn tubing after about 10 days of run-time of the hot material because the higher temperature starts collecting goop around the tubing. If you are just printing PLA and PETG, there's absolutely no reason to need an all metal hotend.

the microswiss all metal hotend really isn't even any better than any of the chinese knockoffs out there. I run cheap chinese all metal hotends on 4 of my printers, and have had no issues. The microswiss DIRECT DRIVE setup is pretty slick, but again, it WAS a pioneer design, but now there's not only a bunch of cheap copies (or fully 3d printable direct drive setups like I'm using on several of my printers), but also just better designed direct drive motor/hotend combinations.

I'd say that the MS products are more for if you just want the bling to show off.

 

[caddnima_reef]

I have a very old 3d printer circa 2013 but still works. I am not sure about the hight tech options out there, and a lot of those topics are already mentioned above. The only thing I want to add is I use sketchup to do all my modelling. I know it is not the best, but it is super easy to use and does not require a heavy duty PC. If you have a chance, sketchup make 2017 is free and can be downloaded. I don't use the cloud version. And if you need help how to use it, let me know, I am willing to help. I think it is critical that you design and print so that if you need to customize it, you can do it easily. And you are not stuck because someone did the design.

 

[fr3n0z]

It's exactly like reef keeping. Start easy and grow up little by little, especially when you encounter problem. Don't do any upgrade, many upgrade demand that you moidify also the firmware, like adding a different extruder means that is likely that you will have to calibrate E-steps. Not hard if you are a tiny bit a geek but not the easiest of thing when you don't know even to print. New printer aren't like old anet where u had to upgrade before to start since was not impossible for it to catch fire (literally).

Just use it as you received and you will be happy. Then, if you really want to do upgrade i would start with direct drive extruder, rasperry pi and using it with OctoPi (that is for remote management of 3d printer, you can start,stop,control,camera, etc etc), and 3d touch sensor that is now a really, really good upgrade (but not easy at all to install and configure and require to flash firmware).

Just buy a couple of KG's of filament (white color hide very well little imperfection), open CURA (the more user friendly slicer) u will be most likely surprised by the quality it will have by just printing out of the box.