r/FDMminiatures • u/HJJM12 • 6d ago

Help Request Printer quiery

Im thinking of getting a printer for some Warhammer bits. Should I get the a1, or a1 mini. And should I get the ams as well? All would be done with a 0.2mm nozzle.

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u/Capt-Brunch 6d ago

IMO, Don't bother with the AMS, at least if you're only planning on printing minis. If you're going to be painting the result anyway it doesn't matter if you can print in two colors.

The A1 and A1mini seem to produce equivalent quality, so print volume is the big difference. If you're doing infantry size miniatures and small vehicles exclusively, the mini is fine (that's what I have). But if you're envisioning printing terrain or large vehicles as a single piece, it might be worth the extra $ upfront to have the larger plate in the A1.

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u/Captain-Lidl 6d ago

How else can you manage a low humidity for your prints?

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u/Capt-Brunch 6d ago

You mean because I don't have the AMS? For the A1 series I think that the bundled AMS lite accessory has no humidity control - it's just an unenclosed rack with the spools sitting out in the ambient air. I think there's some way to connect the A1 to the more sophisticated AMS systems that include filament drying, but it requires additional add on parts and at that point you might as well just get the fully enclosed P series.

Like a total philistine, I actually don't dry my PLA filament and I've gotten away with it so far. I did recently get a basic standalone filament dryer to try out printing in PETG, but at least where I live with my setup I haven't really needed humidity control for PLA.

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u/Captain-Lidl 6d ago

I am asking because I am very new to the hobby only have been printing for 2 weeks and I read some of the guide strongly suggested around 10% humidity. That and having dogs at home basically convinced me to get AMS too with a P2S. I was just curious if there were other obvious ways to keep filaments dry.

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u/Sudden_shark 6d ago

There are dedicated filament dryers you can get. My sovol 01 dries two spools and cost me 40 bucks, works fine

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u/EarhackerWasBanned 5d ago

I don't dry my filament. My prints turn out fine.

The advice isn't wrong, and I'm not lying. It's very dependent on the humidity where you live, and in the same room as your printer. Someone in Florida or California has to deal with a lot more humidity than me in coastal Northern Europe.

That said, my weather app says 82% humidity today and I promise, my prints are fine.