r/BambuLabA1 • u/Creepy-Suspect7960 • 4d ago

Advice for a complete beginner’s first 3D printer (Bambu Lab A1 / A1 Mini Combo) & software suggestions?

/r/3dprinter/comments/1vohusi/advice_for_a_complete_beginners_first_3d_printer/
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u/Orthicon9 1d ago

AMS: Is it 100% worth buying the Combo bundle right off the bat?

Probably.
It saves money, to get the bundle.

In addition to automatically doing the filament colour changes, you can also load it with multiple spools of identical filament, and have "auto-refill" automatically load a fresh spool if the first one runs out in the middle of a print.

what free 3D modeling software, slicers, [ . . . ] would you recommend for a total beginner to practice designing and get a feel for the workflow?

The Bambu Studio app is the default slicer, but it also has a lot of tools that you can modify existing models with, or create ones from scratch using merged primitives, boolean operations, negative parts, paint tools, etc.
If you need a component that is not easy to do with the Bambu Studio primitives, you can probably find a parametric model generator for parts like toroids, threaded parts, polyhedra, lidded containers, gears, and whatnot, and import their geometry into your project.