Smart printing features

There’s nothing worse than a failed print…

Anyone who’s been 3D printing for a while will know the frustration caused by a failed print. It happens, so to save time and money there’s one key step that will help to minimise the risk of a misprint.

Ensure that the first layer for your print has been layered down correctly. To do this, watch as the printer outlines the model on the print base and then use the micro adjustment to raise or lower the nozzle by the minimum amount. What you’re looking for is for the liquefied filament to be pushed into the build plate rather than sat on top. Essentially, examine the line that’s being drawn and look for a flat top rather than curved. It’s as simple as that. Once the height is adjusted for that first layer you shouldn’t have any issues with the prints coming unstuck or moving partway through a print job.

Lulzbot SideKick 747 8/10

Considering the relatively compact size of the SideKick 747, the machine offers a decent print volume of 231x231x248mm. The SideKick 747 features an SE (single extruder measuring 2.85mm) E3D hotend and extruder. These tool heads are by far the best on the market. The quality shows in the consistency and reliability of the prints. The finished models are clear and precise, with little stringing or surface glitches. There’s a degree of accuracy on offer that you don’t achieve with the cheaper machines.

We like the SideKick 747’s versatility. There are options when you initially configure your machine, but you often don’t know what you’ll need until after you get started. The ability to add a toolhead’s design for specific material expands the use and function of the machine, with nozzles and extruders for carbon and metal fill, as well as flexible filaments.

Original PRUSA MK3S 9/10

There’s a reason that the MK3S is the standard for home 3D printing and is the choice of many enthusiasts. As standard, the print volume of 250×210×210mm covers most standard print needs and again, the hotend is developed by E3D.

When it comes to print quality, we’re big fans of PRUSA Slicer. Not only does it do an incredible job of preparing your 3D models ready for print, but it also has builtin features that help you to repair slightly dodgy 3D models – a must-have if your 3D modelling skills aren’t quite up to scratch.

The prints that are produced are excellent, and for a long time the MK3S has been the standard to compare against when it comes to 3D print quality. While the standard E3D hotend and extruder are ideal for all common materials, other tool heads can be attached to increase the range of materials that can be put through the PRUSA MK3S.

RoboxDual 9/10

The RoboxDual has the smallest print platform in this group, but it’s also the only one offering a fully enclosed environment and dual print head. The enclosed environment gives the machine a quality advantage when printing with specialist materials such as nylon and even standard ABS, and helps to stop warping. The dual head enables the machine to print with two materials.

In use, the RoboxDual is a more refined product that the other printers, offering ease of use for home users and scalability for professionals and education scenarios. Driving the material compatibility and quality is the HeadLock system. This enables the quick switching of tool heads for different material types. Dual filament printing enables either two-colour or twomaterial printing. This means that using specialist support materials can aid with the printing of fine details.

AnyCubic Kobra Max 7/10

The Kobra Max is one of a new breeds of 3D printers packed with features that will help with print quality for its 450x400x 400mm print area. This volume is huge compared with the other printers. The printer features AnyCubic’s own hotend with a 0.4mm nozzle that can reach a maximum temperature of 260ºC, covering most common materials.

A nice touch is that the nozzle is replaceable, so if you want to use some of the more exotic materials, such as carbon or metal fill, you can. Overall, print quality is good but some time is required to finetune the CURA retraction settings to minimise stringing.

Overall print quality is exceptional, with the fine-tuning of settings producing prints that easily rival the other printers. The latest print technology also enables this printer to print at speed that leaves many of its rivals lagging behind.

SnapMaker 2.0 7/10

The SnapMaker 2.0 features a large 320×350×330mm print base. This is a great print size and enables plenty of scope for printing large or small. Interestingly, the SnapMaker offers a laser and CNC tool head option that can be easily swapped in and out as required. The print base for each tool head must also be replaced.

When it comes to the 3D print tool head, this has recently gone through an update to make the switch easier, and improved cooling and electronics in the latest unit boost the overall quality of the prints and reduce the machine’s noise. The big print feature for the SnapMaker is the accuracy and precision of each layer, although the amount of adjustability lags behind that of the other printers on test. Material compatibility is good, with the tool head ideally suited to PLA and PETG because of the open frame design.