User Panel
You have to break a key on the board to install unsigned fw, which voids the warranty.
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Woah, never heard of that. Smart idea though, as long as they still allow people to do whatever they want.
On the china printer stuff it is crazy to see how many people destroy stuff, and then get all pissy and want a warranty. Obviously gonna be some of the usual china qc stuff, but actually pretty rare compared to the ones that clearly died from self inflicted wounds |
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Yup, you can load whatever firmware you want, you just have to break the tab off the PCB first.
Instructions on how to do so are in the user manual |
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The mesh problem may be the MINDA probe yet: I restored to factory specs, verified firmware, now z homing is non functional . And I already have my Robo tore apart for the upgrades, so I am sans functional printer at the moment View Quote |
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New MINDA probe on the way.
CS thinks it was a damaged wire from the zip tie being put on too tight. I saw that guy on YT as well with the same issue. My guess is they will be sending out hundreds of probes for the first batch printers. Hopefully they have already told the assembly guys to back off a bit on the zip tie! |
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I just got off chat with Prusa CS, was going to get ETA on when the new MINDA probe will ship.
Already should have it tomorrow! Very fast. I got the confirmation on Thursday they will ship one, it shipped Friday, moved via DHL over the weekend, and forwarded for final delivery in Minneapolis (we are 1 day with any carrier from Minneapolis). Hopefully that fixes the issue! |
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I've been interested in these for years but never pulled the trigger. What kind of things are you printing with it?
I can see a future where instead of ordering replacement parts for things that break, you can simply download a file and print it at home. How long until we are at that point? |
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I've been interested in these for years but never pulled the trigger. What kind of things are you printing with it? I can see a future where instead of ordering replacement parts for things that break, you can simply download a file and print it at home. How long until we are at that point? View Quote This Mini will be setup as a detail printer, while my other printer is setup with a Volcano hotend and .6 nozzle for production runs of some stuff and large jigs that I use. We are a ways away from printing your own commercially available replacement parts, but only because there is no viable business model for it currently. There is no way to sell a file and NOT expect it to be put up for free. Its not until printers are truly "just hit print" and some kind of self-destructive software that only allows the print to print on that printer once (figuring out a way to accommodate for failed prints) is figured out where manufacturers and other designers would get on board with this. Of course, if you can CAD it or find a CAD file of what you need, you can print all you want! |
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I print a lot for work, but I am a tinkerer by nature, so having an outlet to easily create what I dream up is awesome! I've printed quite a few custom adapters for stuff from ABS for automotive, an adapter for the shower, all sorts of little stuff. This Mini will be setup as a detail printer, while my other printer is setup with a Volcano hotend and .6 nozzle for production runs of some stuff and large jigs that I use. We are a ways away from printing your own commercially available replacement parts, but only because there is no viable business model for it currently. There is no way to sell a file and NOT expect it to be put up for free. Its not until printers are truly "just hit print" and some kind of self-destructive software that only allows the print to print on that printer once (figuring out a way to accommodate for failed prints) is figured out where manufacturers and other designers would get on board with this. Of course, if you can CAD it or find a CAD file of what you need, you can print all you want! View Quote |
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I print a lot for work, but I am a tinkerer by nature, so having an outlet to easily create what I dream up is awesome! I've printed quite a few custom adapters for stuff from ABS for automotive, an adapter for the shower, all sorts of little stuff. This Mini will be setup as a detail printer, while my other printer is setup with a Volcano hotend and .6 nozzle for production runs of some stuff and large jigs that I use. We are a ways away from printing your own commercially available replacement parts, but only because there is no viable business model for it currently. There is no way to sell a file and NOT expect it to be put up for free. Its not until printers are truly "just hit print" and some kind of self-destructive software that only allows the print to print on that printer once (figuring out a way to accommodate for failed prints) is figured out where manufacturers and other designers would get on board with this. Of course, if you can CAD it or find a CAD file of what you need, you can print all you want! View Quote People have tried things in the 3rd paragraph, but bulk of the community laughs at them. Locked down proprietary stuff doesnt stand a chance at surviving at this point. It only seems to squeak by in a business environment where people arent spending their own money, personal users are a bit more frugal/heads up. This will prob change more toward what you describe as things become more mainstream and accepted by people who arent interested in this as a hobby sort of thing. My guess is by the time these systems roll out, they will be like the apple app store, but turned up a few notches with fees and bs hoops to jump through to even get listed. If you pay attention to the other forums or groups, that guy that makes the nifty fold up models prob makes a chunk of change. Looks like a full time job to me with the number of models he has and the amount of spamming he does. Wouldnt surprise me if it was actually a group of people working together to get all that done. The guy is working it pretty good for what we have now though. |
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I was thinking that for some companies, it would be easier to supply print files than to keep an inventory of obsolete product that is taxed, takes up space that must be paid for, staff to pick, pack and ship. I'd assume that a large corporation would be better off selling new product instead of having warehouses full of old product. View Quote Would be nice if more companies posted models of parts that were applicable to 3d printing. Im sure this would free up a ton of hassle and resources for the mfg. Sad, but prob take some kind of new law to cover their asses unfortunately. Something like "Use your fkn head, if you print this and it kills somebody, that shit is on you". |
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@Rat_Patrol
Can you print ABS with the mini? Or are you limited to PLA for everything? |
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I got the new probe installed. Now it homes as it should. So yes, the MINDA probe was broken.
BUT It still has the original issue of MESH not compensating properly for the bed level. The left side of the bed first layer is too squished down, the right sigh is just laid on top with no squish. I'll send Prusa another email and see what they think. |
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I got the new probe installed. Now it homes as it should. So yes, the MINDA probe was broken. BUT It still has the original issue of MESH not compensating properly for the bed level. The left side of the bed first layer is too squished down, the right sigh is just laid on top with no squish. I'll send Prusa another email and see what they think. View Quote |
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More Prusa CS.
To be fair, their willingness to expedite parts out to me is nice. Couple tests later, I am getting a new Y carriage as mine has a .5mm warp in it. The MINI uses their MINDA sensor, and it lacks temp compensation. Lets just say I'm not the only one having issues... They are looking at a fix for it (likely a new sensor), but nothing as of yet. At this point, I shimmed the bed to try to get it pretty good, and I have a new Y carriage coming. |
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More Prusa CS. To be fair, their willingness to expedite parts out to me is nice. Couple tests later, I am getting a new Y carriage as mine has a .5mm warp in it. The MINI uses their MINDA sensor, and it lacks temp compensation. Lets just say I'm not the only one having issues... They are looking at a fix for it (likely a new sensor), but nothing as of yet. At this point, I shimmed the bed to try to get it pretty good, and I have a new Y carriage coming. View Quote Hopefully a lot of this stuff will be resolved by the time mine ships. |
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Will do.
Prusa said that if the new Y carriage doesn't fix it, they will probably take it back for repair I'm sure I have to pay to send it back. |
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Will do. Prusa said that if the new Y carriage doesn't fix it, they will probably take it back for repair I'm sure I have to pay to send it back. View Quote |
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Back to Czechia? No way. That's crazy. They should send a new one with a return label included in the box for the old one at this point. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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Will do. Prusa said that if the new Y carriage doesn't fix it, they will probably take it back for repair I'm sure I have to pay to send it back. At this point, I think its more software or just a problem with the lack of thermal compensation in the MINDA probe. |
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If it’s software, then it should be an easier fix.
If it’s hardware, hopefully it’s a simple change and not a redesign. |
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I think they will regret not using the PINDA probes from the mk3.
I'm not sure if there are any available I/O pins available on the Buddy board. Maybe could upgrade to the PINDA or a BLTouch? |
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I replaced the bowden tube after I noticed its not super smooth and seemed to have some drag for filament to travel though it. Foreign contaminate? Over-zealous tightening of the compression nuts? Either way, replacing the tube worked. Nice that Prusa includes extra compression sleeves for a new Bowden tube. They look like a standard shelf item to me, but I'm not sure yet. Well, it worked for a while anyway. Back to uneven extrusion. Maybe I'll swap the nozzle, try that. In other news, The replacement Y carriage arrived. Up against a piece of MDF its perfectly flat. As a double bonus, they also sent a new heated bed. Would be pretty easy at this point to make another small form factor printer, or a Mini clone with different extruder/electronics/homing probe. |
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New nozzle seemingly has fixed the extrusion issues, have almost an hour of printing with no problems. Must have been partially clogged. I did have a jam once where it printed for a few hours w/o me knowing it jammed. Nice to have spare parts on hand...
For the un-evenness of the bed, adjusting the tension on the XZ to Y assembly screws is making the issue manageable, per advise of Prusa. And now is where I rant a little: Current FW does NOT have ABL, and only small MESH capability. If the bed is not near perfectly flat, MESH doesn't work. They are aware of the issue and they are working on it. IMHO, the printer should have NEVER been released where it requires manual-ish leveling with now way to manually level it. At minimum, actual torque specs on the assembly manual should be included, as the final torquing is VITAL to how it prints. Since I didn't have that issue, I can only imagine that moving the machine (using the recommended method of holding onto the Z assembly) torqued the connection to the Y assembly and gave me my issues. The cantilever system may bite them in the a$$ on that one, especially with no way for the software to deal with it. Yes, this was basically a beta version, being first production run. Yes, I expected bugs that needed to be worked out. But that was a bit hole in their FW to release into the wild. If you get a mini, do NOT be moving it around. Assemble and don't move it around. Still don't regret my purchase, and I am a notorious perfectionist with my 3D printing. Most of the issues I have would likely go un-noticed by a novice or someone not chasing perfect prints. |
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Quoted:
New nozzle seemingly has fixed the extrusion issues, have almost an hour of printing with no problems. Must have been partially clogged. I did have a jam once where it printed for a few hours w/o me knowing it jammed. Nice to have spare parts on hand... For the un-evenness of the bed, adjusting the tension on the XZ to Y assembly screws is making the issue manageable, per advise of Prusa. And now is where I rant a little: Current FW does NOT have ABL, and only small MESH capability. If the bed is not near perfectly flat, MESH doesn't work. They are aware of the issue and they are working on it. IMHO, the printer should have NEVER been released where it requires manual-ish leveling with now way to manually level it. At minimum, actual torque specs on the assembly manual should be included, as the final torquing is VITAL to how it prints. Since I didn't have that issue, I can only imagine that moving the machine (using the recommended method of holding onto the Z assembly) torqued the connection to the Y assembly and gave me my issues. The cantilever system may bite them in the a$$ on that one, especially with no way for the software to deal with it. Yes, this was basically a beta version, being first production run. Yes, I expected bugs that needed to be worked out. But that was a bit hole in their FW to release into the wild. If you get a mini, do NOT be moving it around. Assemble and don't move it around. Still don't regret my purchase, and I am a notorious perfectionist with my 3D printing. Most of the issues I have would likely go un-noticed by a novice or someone not chasing perfect prints. View Quote |
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They prob dont run Marlin. Guessing RepRap fw, but it should have the same option.
Where the real shit is going to hit the fan is when these get into the hands of new guys looking for a budget printer, and not the more experienced release group like rat. That design just isnt for the non-experienced or non-mechanically inclined 1st timers that are going to be attracted to the price. |
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They prob dont run Marlin. Guessing RepRap fw, but it should have the same option. Where the real shit is going to hit the fan is when these get into the hands of new guys looking for a budget printer, and not the more experienced release group like rat. That design just isnt for the non-experienced or non-mechanically inclined 1st timers that are going to be attracted to the price. View Quote I think these machines could have used more beta testing and firmware completion prior to release. The zip tie issue would likely have happened anyway, since it's strictly a mass production training issue. |
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They prob dont run Marlin. Guessing RepRap fw, but it should have the same option. Where the real shit is going to hit the fan is when these get into the hands of new guys looking for a budget printer, and not the more experienced release group like rat. That design just isnt for the non-experienced or non-mechanically inclined 1st timers that are going to be attracted to the price. View Quote |
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Starting an 8 hour long print....
Of a standard size Benchy . Trying out the .05mm ULTRADETAIL profile in PLA. I'll check back with a pic later today of the results, good or bad. |
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I opened the gcode in S3D, looked fine.
I have no idea why it did what it did. |
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So did this company test this printer before introduction for sale?
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thanks for keeping us posted. I'm still waiting for my mini...hopefully by the time they get ready to ship mine, they will have solved most of these issues.
Saw your video on their forum showing the leveling issue. On one hand, the wait is killing me, on the other, the further back I am in the queue, the more likely some of these issues will be addressed. I see they've already switched out the rotary encoder that use for the selector on the UI. Also looks like they've changed the mounts for the MINDA and the cables. So they definitely are paying attention to the issue people are having. hopefully your stuff will be sorted out quickly. |
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I re-sliced the Benchy, but this time I remembered to fix the model (right click on the warning icon in Prusa Slicer next to the name of the model) and it started printing to proper scale.
Perimeters still looked like shit. So I figured that .05mm is a tall (short?) order for a .4mm nozzle, and maybe Atomic filament was having none of it. I switched to a .25mm nozzle and re-sliced, and it started printing better. Not perfect, but the perimeters looked about 90% better. I then stumbled upon this video: Prusa mini hotend / underextrusion fix And indeed my heat break was too low. I applied the fix, ran 1st layer cal again, and now I'm letting it run with the .25mm nozzle, same gcode as last time. With a .25mm nozzle on "0.05 ULTRADETAIL" with the .25mm nozzle MINI printer profile, print time is estimated at 11h 32m . If it keeps looking as good as the first few layers, I'll let it run until tomorrow. If it still doesn't look great, I'll kill it early. |
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so for a noob like me, who is waiting for their first printer to arrive, do I need to purchase additional nozzles, and if so what, where, how, etc?
thanks! |
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A little off subject but I notice from that video that they are using a compression fitting for the bowden tube vs. a PTC. Gotta admit I like that. Never really did care for those in the industrial world as they always seemed to fail in a high vibration/movement environment.
Seeing many people in the 3D print world having issues with them and coming up with band-aid fixes (retain clips,zipties..etc) Nice to see someone out there going with an "old school" version. |
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so for a noob like me, who is waiting for their first printer to arrive, do I need to purchase additional nozzles, and if so what, where, how, etc? thanks! View Quote I would have at least 2 nozzles of any size you want to use in your inventory at any given time. On a V6 style hotend (genuine or clone), I would not bother with bigger than .4mm. Even a .5mm and you will outrun your hotend's ability to melt plastic. I also would not recommend smaller than .25mm: there just isn't any benefit. I like genuine nozzles and not Chinese clones. They are only $7 for brass, so they won't break the bank. The manufacturing is just far superior than the clones. Matter Hackers or Filastruder are my main sources for stuff like that. I'm exceedingly doubtful of anything on Amazon or eBay advertised as genuine. Matter Hackers is free shipping, but higher prices. Good for an order of a couple nozzles. Filastruder is paid shipping (very reasonable) for small orders, but free over $100-ish IIRC. I generally use Filastruder for larger orders. |
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it will be a Prusa mini, if it ever arrives...they paused their shipments while they re-worked a few parts. I was scheduled for march, we will see if it stays that way.
thanks for the info. |
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it will be a Prusa mini, if it ever arrives...they paused their shipments while they re-worked a few parts. I was scheduled for march, we will see if it stays that way. thanks for the info. View Quote https://www.filastruder.com/collections/e3d-spare-parts-and-accessories/products/e3d-spare-nozzle-v6 I like the new X nozzles, but only maybe 40 hours of printing on it. Lot of scratch for a nozzle, but it should last as long as the machine does. If you use anything abrasive (glow-in-the-dark is abrasive), you need a hardened nozzle. IMHO, if you are going to spend $23 on the hardened steel nozzle, pay the extra $7 and get an X nozzle. ETA: I would not go crazy with exotic nozzles at first go unless you know you want to use abrasive filament. |
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Thanks. Trying to learn as much up front as possible. With the fixes to the mini, my ship date has pushed out to April.
I guess that’s a good thing, as I’d rather have the problems solved before I get mine. Sucks for the early adopters, like you, that you have to find and deal with all the problems. Prusa has a reputation for making things right, so we will see how it all plays out... |
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For anybody wondering...
YES An AR lower does in fact fit on the Mini. And takes 2 days, 5 hours with a .25 nozzle and .1mm layer heights. ETA: It takes 8.5 hours on my R1++ with .6mm volcano, .2mm layer heights. |
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