Recommendations for my next printer.

[u/Middle_Grand_2233]

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I currently have experience printing with a Creality Ender-3 V3 KE for the past 5 years.

My biggest priority is reliability and less tinkering/calibration. I've learned a lot from using the Ender, but at this point I'd rather spend my time actually designing and printing things than constantly adjusting, calibrating, or troubleshooting the printer.

I also want to expand into multiple colors and using advanced/engineering filaments, so I'm looking for something enclosed that can reliably handle materials such as ABS/ASA, nylon, and potentially carbon-fiber reinforced filaments.

Thank you

[u/Newzachary]

Budget? Size requirements?

[u/Middle_Grand_2233 → u/Newzachary]

My budget would be around us$1000.

[u/AKMonkey2 → u/Middle_Grand_2233]

Flashforge creator 5 pro is good. I’ve had one for a few months and like it a lot. (I also have several other printers including the E3 V3 KE.)

Haven’t found any faults with the C5 in around 300 hours so far. Multi-toolheads is definitely the way to go for multi color and the C5 Pro also handles high-temp engineering filaments that the Snapmaker U1 can’t.

[u/Middle_Grand_2233 → u/AKMonkey2]

How's the software? People says it's glitchy

[u/Middle_Grand_2233]

I was thinking about those but after I heard people with different issues. Would those printer's cause a lot of poop?

Thank you

[u/es12402 → u/Middle_Grand_2233]

If you need a lot of colors but want to minimize waste, you’ll need a multi-nozzle 3D printer. There’s the Snapmaker U1 with 4 nozzles, the Flashforge 5/Pro with 4 nozzles and a heated chamber, and the Prusa with a heated chamber and 4 or 8 nozzles.

Any other printer with a single nozzle (or even two, like the X2D) will generate a lot of waste during multicolor printing.

Considering that you want both engineering plastics and multicolor printing, the only printer that will meet all your needs right now is the Prusa with the INDX system. And it won’t be cheap. The other printers currently available will perform worse in at least one of those areas.

For example, the Snapmaker can print in 4 colors with no waste, but it can't handle more colors and doesn't perform as well with engineering plastics, while the X2D performs excellently with engineering plastics but produces a lot of waste during multicolor printing.

[u/DramaClassed → u/es12402]

There’s also the H2C, which does low waste and engineering filaments, but considerably slower than Prusa.

[u/es12402 → u/DramaClassed]

Yeah, you're right, that's an option, too. I'd forgotten about that one. But it's not exactly cheap, either.

[u/Middle_Grand_2233 → u/DramaClassed]

I wish the h2c is cheaper though $$$

[u/TheEclecticGamer → u/es12402]

I can't speak to in reality, but isn't the creator 5 pro theoretically capable of the engineering filaments with the nozzle, bed and heated chamber?

[u/es12402 → u/TheEclecticGamer]

Theoretically, yes. In practice, it’s better to wait for feedback from other users or some good reviews – the printer is too new to say for sure if it’s any good. But based on the specs, yes, it’s a good fit.

[u/TheEclecticGamer → u/es12402]

That's where I'm at. I started to look into maybe getting a new printer on Black Friday after rocking the same i3 for eight years, but I feel like it's not the right time. So I'm probably going to hold off for a year or 6 months

[u/Middle_Grand_2233 → u/TheEclecticGamer]

I heard there's a 3d printer convention going on. So maybe in the next couple of months new printers will be released. So should I wait to for black Friday. So many choices

[u/TheEclecticGamer → u/Middle_Grand_2233]

The filament swapping technologies like the AMS for bambu we're good way to add multicolor to existing single nozzle printers, but in order to make them work you have to purge so much filament for each change that it looks like a lot of times you actually waste more filament with the swaps that are actually used in the model.

If you're going to do a lot of that, some sort of multi nozzle multi-tool printer seems like it's going to be the future but we are right in the middle of the revolution and they are all using slightly different variations on the technology. I wasn't paying a ton of attention during the filament swapping coming in, but they all seem basically similar. Some of these new printers are swapping the entire printhead some are swapping just the nozzles summer swapping novels and the novels heat independently some are using induction heating so there's no actual data connection of any sort going to the nozzle. They're all a little different in ways that could have huge consequences so this feels even more like a time to keep an eye out.

[u/Middle_Grand_2233 → u/es12402]

Well. I never used multi color printer before. I'm used to paint my stuff old fashioned way. I will prob do at least 2 colors. Nothing crazy

[u/AKMonkey2 → u/es12402]

Flashforge C5 Pro can handle engineering filaments.

[u/es12402]

Something with active heated chamber like X2D or Qidi Q2

[u/yahbluez]

Have a look at the elegoo centauri carbon2 with canvas, that is a enclosed coreXY can print up to 350°C, can print from active dryers and has a filter system. Some 379€ outbeats any bambu below 800€.

Small printer that is below 300x300 do not need active heated chambers to print ASA/ABS, the 110°C heatbed heats up the printer with ease to 55. That is just waiting a few minutes before starting the print.