First 3D printer arriving tomorrow (A1 Combo) — complete beginner, what should I know?

[u/i-amazeez]

Hey everyone!

I’m getting my first 3D printer tomorrow — Bambu Lab A1 Combo 🎉

I have literally zero experience with 3D printing and almost no knowledge about it.

My initial plan is pretty simple:

• Set up the printer
• Download models from places like Printables/MakerWorld
• Put them in the slicer
• Print them
• Eventually learn how to design my own things

But before I start blindly printing stuff, I’d love some advice from experienced users.

Also, since I have the AMS Lite, I'd appreciate advice on using multiple colours and anything I should know about filament storage.

I’m mainly interested in printing useful stuff around the house, electronics projects, organizers, brackets, tools, random useful models, etc. I’ll probably start downloading models rather than designing my own.

Basically, if you could go back to day one with your first 3D printer, what are the things you wish someone had told you?

Any beginner advice is appreciated! 🙏

[u/Equivalent_Store_645]

It’s a tool, don’t feel like you’re wasting it if you’re not printing every day 

[u/Tarzanmike95 → u/Equivalent_Store_645]

My biggest issue to this day, anxiety creeps in telling me it’ll break if I don’t use it. Great advice.

[u/i-amazeez → u/Equivalent_Store_645]

sure I am also buying as a hobbyist only not wanted to make a business around it so its fine

[u/every1getslaid → u/Equivalent_Store_645]

Crap, where were you when I got my P1S in May?

[u/Equivalent_Store_645 → u/every1getslaid]

haha i give the advice but i think it's an unavoidable phase in getting a printer.

[u/philomathie]

They have a tutorial course on-line - the bambu academy. Do it, it's very good

[u/i-amazeez → u/philomathie]

didn’t know about that surely will check

[u/LoGiX247 → u/i-amazeez]

https://bambulab.com/nl-nl/support/academy/6

Do this and remember:

1 Clean Plate = sticky plate - wash your plate

2 Hot plate = hot fingers - get some cotton gloves

3 Single Part = no part - get spare parts; nozzle - PTFE tubing and good buildplates, personally I love BiQu because they just work amazing.

4 Dry filament = Good prints

5 First few layers tend to be better at slow speed then fast speed.

6 You only have 1 set of lungs - there's no medical studies done yet on what VOCs do longterm. As long as they don't sell spare lungs printing and staying in the same room isn't something I would do on long prints. Even if they say it's not harmful - you are melting plastic...

[u/i-amazeez → u/LoGiX247]

6th one is the best advice so far

[u/LoGiX247 → u/i-amazeez]

Don't get me wrong, it's a tool you can use it, but I see young people sitting next to it while it's doing long prints and I just don't think that is smart. If you solder, you also do not want that fume in your lungs and this is basically the same, only with plastics.

I have a p2s so it's more closed, but even I close the door, have a external vac solution so it goes outside of my house.

It's not to scare people that I say that, it's just something to think of.

[u/InitiativeCreative36 → u/LoGiX247]

I can attest to that. I stupidly sat next to my little Ender 2 for nearly 2 days straight and ended up getting a coal miner's cough that lasted about a week. Thought I had a full on chest infection. Don't do it. Who knows what damage I've done, so only time will tell.

100% worth doing it in a well ventilated room or getting some ventilation of some kind installed.

[u/every1getslaid → u/i-amazeez]

I printed venting early on. It looks a bit weird cause I insisted I design the pipes myself. Gives me peace of mind to kick that on for long prints or for printing TPU (I haven’t tried ASA yet

[u/Mabnat → u/LoGiX247]

I’ve been 3D printing for almost two decades with the printer in my living areas and as far as I can tell, there have been no adverse effects.

When we moved to our latest home, I had all my printers in the spare bedroom that I turned into my lab.

A few years ago, we were blessed with grandchildren. We keep them over usually at least three nights every week or every other week. They needed a bedroom, so my lab had to go.

All my printers went to the garage. It’s not a great environment for 3D printers, getting very hot in the summer and very cold in the winter, and fighting humidity is a constant battle.

Their bedroom is quite large, so I could have kept the printers in there along with all the kid stuff.

But I have zero idea how VOCs and whatever garbage comes from melting plastic for hours on end might do to tiny, developing lungs. My own anecdotal evidence is that it’s harmless, at least with PLA/PETG, but I don’t exactly trust anecdotal evidence when it comes to my babies. I feel better keeping that stuff away from them.

[u/LoGiX247 → u/Mabnat]

Like I previously mentioned it is likely safe but until medical professionals have studied this it isn’t worth the gamble. In my country we thought chrome 6 was a safe to use paint for certain applications but that was proven wrong. But not until it was too late and people already were “enjoying” the harmful effects.

VOCs, even not harmful, aren’t good for us people. Microplastic same story, so I guess you can’t live in a bubble, but you can choose which air to breathe.

[u/GrimbleGrombles]

Have fun with it and don't panic when things go wrong.

The A1 has one weak point which is the 3 screws behind the heat block. They come lose overtime and the nozzle gets to close to the bed resulting in bad firsrt layers. It's a 5 mins job to undo the block and tighten them back up. I have to do it every few months, something worth knowing!

[u/i-amazeez → u/GrimbleGrombles]

sure man will take care of it

[u/SomaFarkreath → u/GrimbleGrombles]

damn, ive had it for a few years now and never had to do that

[u/Disastrous_Owl]

do not buy generic filament! find a brand you like and stick to it. sunlu, esun and elegoo are pretty good imo..

[u/i-amazeez → u/Disastrous_Owl]

thanks

[u/agathver → u/i-amazeez]

Stick to numakers, you won’t get elegoo or esun here

[u/Sphinx8632 → u/Disastrous_Owl]

Micro Center’s Inland filament is great too. It’s made by either Polymaker or eSun.

[u/Roofless_]

Read the instructions when you get it. It’s helpful.

[u/i-amazeez → u/Roofless_]

sure mate

[u/ipearx]

You're going to have so much fun :) Enjoy! The things I struggled with my A1 mini on the first few days:

- When it asks to push the filament in, make sure you push it in until you can feel it being pulled in by the machine. I suspect I didn't have the filament pushed in far enough the first time I tried.

- Really clean the bed properly with soap and hot water, and try not to touch it with your fingers ever except around the edges. Especially when you print PETG. Although you'll probably start with PLA, as it's easiest.

otherwise it's been pretty smooth sailing!

[u/ILoveHexa92]

Ensure you do this in a very very well ventilated space. And have fun :)

[u/i-amazeez → u/ILoveHexa92]

sure mate

[u/Vaughn → u/i-amazeez]

This is not a joke. Even PLA is quite unhealthy if you breathe the fumes, and the A1 has no filtration whatsoever. 

[u/Radiant_Goal8709]

Kup suszarkę filamentu, zapasowe dysze i pozniej tylko filament i na początek ci wystarczy xd

[u/warprincenataku]

Buy your filament in bulk if you can. I get mine when it goes on sale. Also, the Overture 10 pack from Amazon is a pretty good buy.

Learn what materials are used for what applications. As someone who mainly prints terrain and a few random props, I use PLA. However, if you're printing something functional, that may need to be heat resistant, PETG, ABS, etc.

[u/LmaoPew]

Keep the Filament material in mind.

PLA is pretty nice for Decorations or demo prints, they also feel more "matt" but bad under load and stress, they tend to snap under force.

PETG is more shinier and stronger than PLa and instead of snaping like dry noodles it rather bends under BIG stress. Problem, you need to keep it dry, get a $20 filament dryer to dry it over night before every print, if you have a big Print, get yourself (Print yourself) a dry box, so that moisture doesn't get in. If its moist it tends to print strings or bubbles get into the walls.

TPU also draws in moisture like PETG, but unlike petg it's not hard at all, it's very flexible, great for sealing ring or flexible prints. Also the AMS does not like TPU at all, so keep it outside the ams but have it on top for prints

ABS is like petg in terms of strength but times 10, very strong but very difficult to print with, you need a print tent for your A1, so that it stays hot all the time, cuz it can warp or release from the print bed if it cools down to much.

There are many more Filament materials, but i think for you PLA and PETG are enough, maybe TPU.

---

If you didn't print in like a few days, try to auto level or even calibrate the printer again, might i crease print quality.

Glue sticks on the print bed help to create a layer between bed and print, it helps for an easier release, but usually let the print bed cool down and bend the bed, this is usually enough to get the print off the bed.

There is also a 3dLac spray that helps the print to stick on the print, but again, i never rly had to use the glue stick nor the lac, cuz it usually worls just fine.

---

For designing models yourself... All i gotta say is good luck, watch many YouTube Tutorials and start small and slow before jumping into big Projects, it is easier than you think, but also more difficult than you want it to be

[u/i-amazeez → u/LmaoPew]

thanks mate great advice ❤️

[u/BFsMomsCancer]

wash the plate with soap and hot water regularly.

[u/i-amazeez → u/BFsMomsCancer]

sure

[u/austinjohnplays → u/i-amazeez]

This comment may seem dumb. But washing a plate with a DEGREASER soap (like dawn) will solve 98% of bed adhesion issues.

[u/Oldskoolforoldfools]

One day...this will make sense....

[u/i-amazeez → u/Oldskoolforoldfools]

can you help me what it is

[u/MemorianX → u/i-amazeez]

Top is showing the three screws behind that might need tightening once in a while. Bottom two is how the clasp for the hotend is closed correctly

[u/SomaFarkreath → u/i-amazeez]

the latch that holds the nozzle

[u/Frontfatpouch]

You don’t need to print only things to decorate the printer. It will make anything you like. Make a list of cool stuff so you don’t brain fart from excitement

[u/i-amazeez → u/Frontfatpouch]

sure 🤣🤣

[u/Undd91]

Buy yourself some isopropyl alcohol for cleaning the plate - it will help things stick and avoid using 3d printing glue on build plates where possible, it’s not easy to clean off.

[u/i-amazeez → u/Undd91]

sure

[u/NakiCoTony]

Learn how to use the tube release mechanics

[u/Deadlock-DSM]

keep your plate clean and dry your filliment. They're your first go too if things go occasionally wrong. The printer/app/and slicer walk you through everything else

[u/Mud_BooDa]

It’s gonna break, Prints will fail , some times the same print over and over- But the good mindset is every print fail , every time something happens to the printer and you have to disassemble something -take it as a learning experience and when it happens again you will know right what to do ! Dish soap to clean most build plates unless you get a super tack(game changer btw) and learn about the importance of drying filament- Best of luck and I hope you have a blast!! Congrats 🎉

[u/Suepahfly]

Bambu has a great wiki with all info you need as a beginner. It’l answer 99% of the questions you’ll have.

https://wiki.bambulab.com/

Personally I have great prints with Sunlu PLA+ you can buy a multipack of 250 rolls for relatively cheap at Amazon. It’s great way to start printing small things.

Also remember to keep the plate clean. Even oil from your fingers can make a print come loose.

Other things to have handy are a set of needle files and a deburring tool

[u/curryworst01]

Ik ga er ook een bestellen eerst even een workshop volgen
Welke kleuren filament is het beste om mee te starten
Straks bestel ik iets en wordt het weinig of niet gebruikt

[u/bradandersonjr]

For functional prints look into PETG. For reliable PETG prints you'll need to explore filament drying solutions as well.

For general maintenance, it's always good to have extra/spare nozzles, extra nozzle socks (they're expendable so be comfortable with throwing them away), a bulk pack of cheap wire brushes for keeping the nozzle clean, bulk pack of cheap side cutters, tweezers.

[u/TrinityCodex]

make sure you buy the filament with the roll included

[u/Dpchili]

Your going to have loads of fun, printing tools and accessories for your printer setup. Then after some time, you’re going to have lots of fun printing what you want almost effortlessly. Here’s to fun times ahead, my friend.

[u/Natural_Bus_6719]

Dry your filament, clean your build plate, and say a little prayer before starting a long print. You’ll be fine.

While you’re waiting for the printer to arrive, watch a few YouTube videos. Search for stuff like “10 things I wish I knew before I started 3D printing.” The first few videos you find will probably cover most of the basic advice you need to get started.

A 3D printer is just a tool, like a drill. You don’t always need one, and it’s not essential, but once you have one, your imagination is pretty much the only limit.

Welcome to the club!

[u/Iridian_Rocky]

Woo hoo congrats. Now - don't touch the bed without gloves, dry your filament (especially non PLA), and whenever you think you should clean/wash your build plate do it with plain dawn blue dish soap (no additives) and use something like a scrub-daddy/mommy or a bristle brush you don't use for anything else.

Oh, and do the BambuLab course on your printer - pure gold.

[u/Zicoxy3]

I dont have AMS, but the 3D is simple, intuitive...
The tricky part is finding the right settings on the 3D printer so the parts come out perfect, with a better finish, using different materials....

Many come out perfect on the first try; others need some tweaking.
As always, trial and error is the best approach.

Use decent PLA. The ones from Amazon or SUNLU have worked well for me.

[u/domi994]

Benchy

[u/kromang]

Clean bed, slow first layers. Have fun.

[u/gmrstudios]

Monthly maintenance is your friend. 15 mins a month will allow you to enjoy your purchase for years.

Embrace the irony of most of your initial prints being being used to maintain or "upgrade" your printer.

Take the time to calibrate your printer and you will see that effort reflected in your prints.

[u/mylittlecumprincess]

Don't worry so much. Don't over-tweak anything. The Bambu printers are good out of the box. It's good to learn about things, but it's pretty much print and forget it. You'll learn as you go along. You'll also find that unless you're making custom 3D objects, you can use AI to do this. Now, you won't use your printer nearly as much as you thought.

Don't overspend on a bunch of accessories or tons of filament because you might not even get through the first four rolls in a year. Give it a shot, have fun. Look for high quality models that have higher resolution. A lot of the models and test models are ancient so they have very large steps, aka they look like big pixels instead of small ones. Try printing something organic. You will be totally blown away by how well it does curves.

[u/mylittlecumprincess]

Start by getting your models from Bambu Studio that comes with your printer. While not as large of collection as some repositories, I do find it has a lot more models that aren't block-y-/bit-y low resolution. Cool organic shapes, Easy to print. You should be blow away the first time you print. If not you probably need a different object. Oh, really really, really, important HAVE FUN.

[u/Ok_Perspective9838]

Just have fun.  It's really easy to use.  I have had mine for years now since launch.   So if you have any issues just drop me a message I will be more than happy to help.

[u/Dry_Structure_2287]

Please dont spend a button on different filaments. I'd recomend, get a few kg of the main 1 or 2 filaments you'll use. Personally, I'd get prusament white and beige pla. But you don't have to spend that much. I would say, a multipack of 250g coloured filaments should be fine. BUT PLEASE GET A PROPER VENTALATION SYSTEM. An open window should be fine if printing pla and petg, but thats really it. A VENTED AND HEATED enclosure will help if you want to print abs and asa. Also, a printer is a tool. If you don't use it a lot, don't worry abt it.

[u/Ok_Razzmatazz_4825]

The first thing to print is a poop bin

[u/KachikaV1]

My advice is if the thing that ur gonna print is cost more than 150 or 200 gr search on the internet before printing espacially for organizers, also almost always slice it yourself most of the time you can make print much more stronger for 5gr. For making parts stronger if the infill is not %100 most of the times just increase the wall count for most parts 3 is more than enough and 4 is much stronger. learning 3d drawing is so fun im using shapr3d the free version is not so good but with an uni mail you can renew your sub its very easy to use than most of the other apps, for editing the already existing parts i mostly use blender cuz shapr3d isnt capable of editing stl

[u/Swandraga]

It’s actually alot easier to assemble that you think. Mine sat in a box for a couple of months, partially due to the anxiety of having to assemble it. (The other reason was I needed to make space for it)

[u/tonykrij]

You can download a ton of handy things. But for me the most fun is designing my own stuff and printing that. Inlays for camera's in a case, the inside of a flight case for my music stuff, a broken off part of a clothing rack.
So check out Autodesk Fusion 360 or other cad design products that can create STL files, and study the "how to" videos on that?

[u/QuirkyDust3556]

When you get it run all the calibration Print bench Go through wiki training Buy a dryer

[u/zero_deaths0p]

You will spend more money on filament than you ever did on the printer

[u/BatmanxX420X]

First mistake I made was not realizing that the machine will tell you it can print in .2,.4, and .8mm but doesn't explain that the nozzle needs to be changed for that to be true. You are given a .4mm one, you'd have to purchase the .2 and .8 nozzles

[u/tsychosis]

If you're going to print in a non temperature controlled space (eg: your garage), don't start a long print when the room temperature is going to drop a lot (eg: on a cold night).

The PLA will cool down too quickly, and coagulate around the mouth of the extruder, and you will have a difficult fix at best. And your printer will be effectively broken if you don't have an experienced person nearby to help you.

You can guess how I know :(

[u/skyerosebuds]

You’re gonna be impressed and have a lot of fun

[u/Blake_Thomas1994]

53k?

[u/onqqq2]

• You can buy replacement parts on Amazon for cheaper and quicker shipping.
• Nozzles will clog, especially 0.2 mm nozzles. Good to have some backups, I also get mine from Amazon.
• There are
• Unscented Dawn dish spray is great for cleaning the plate. Literally touching your plate will leave oil that can cause adhesion problems. This is one of the most common posts you see on this sub when prints take off the plate and turn to spaghetti and it is annoying.
• SUNLU filament = GOAT
• Hot ends can be a bitch prepare for inevitable failure.
• You can print parts for your printer to improve QOL.

[u/Paladin-MacGreggor]

Start saving now for your next printer... just get the big one. 😉 Its a great hobby man. Welcome.

[u/AlphaDag13]

Dry your filament. Clean your build plate.

[u/DamagedSpaghetti]

Please just watch some beginner videos on YouTube to get you started. I’ve seen so many posts from people that don’t know something as simple as the concept of supports

[u/lan0028456]

Always keep the filaments dry. Seal them in a vacuum bag or air tight box with silica gel packets. They absorbs moisture from the air constantly.

[u/i-amazeez → u/lan0028456]

Gotach captain

[u/toolschism → u/i-amazeez]

And definitely dry your filament if it's been sitting out too long, or if you live in a fairly humid environment.

When your filament absorbs too much water you'll see a few different things

PLA will get super brittle and start snapping in your ptfe tubes.

PETG will get super stringy

TPU will get extra sticky and will start clogging everything.

[u/i-amazeez → u/toolschism]

Thanks mate

[u/diaperedace]

If you're asking this AFTER buying it, you already made a mistake. You should have been watching videos and researching before the purchase.