For the past few years, I have owned a cheap Chinese printer(print-rite collido diy). every time something broke or had issues, I would bodge in(mostly 3D printed) fix. i also added some important missing features(bed levelling, part cooling fan etc.) this hack on top of a hack recently started to become just plain unusable, with wearing out components and other things( for example, raising the Z axis 150 mm and then lowering it would result in 15 slant on ACME screws, and levelling the bed could take up to 4 hours and had to be done after every print, because of the flimsy constructions) I decided to get a new printer, or maybe two. I was wondering if I should get 2 CR-10’s, or an original Prusa i3 MK3. the extra build volume of the cr-10 would be nice, but I expect the Prusa to be less of a hassle. I have no problem with levelling the bed from time to time, but I also want to decide I want to print something, put it on a sd-card, plop it into the printer and start printing(provided I levelled the bed after the last print, of course) are there any cr-10 users here? how often do you need to level the bed? what print surface are you printing on? is the stock bed surface usable? and perhaps most importantly: how fast can you print with it? I would like to be able to achieve 70mm/s. thx in advance, RUWO
2x cr-10 vs original PRUSA i3 mk3
They are two completely different printers with different capabilities. Instead of making it a budget for 2x cr10 vs mk3 why not one mk3 and one cr10. If you are low on money go for the cr10 first. If you have it go for the mk3. I have two cr10s and usually only use the other when the first is down for maintenance. You usually end up with three printers anyway if you aren’t going to sell prints in bulk. One for cading and prototyping, one for big prints and one workhorse.
I can go up to 120 mm/s on my cr10s but the quality will take a hit. If you go for two cr10s your will probably produce the same amount of prints as your one mk3, I use https://www.printinz.com/ plates for my cr10s to get better finishes. Both the mk3 and cr10 can use octoprint so you can make them wifi enabled. I level the bed usually every month. About 400h print time for 15 min calibration. If you are more precise in your calibration you can use it more before recalibration is needed.
If you have the budget, go for the MK3. The MK3 uses premium parts which is why it cost so much. The CR-10 is a good machine but it has some QC issues with the glass for the heatbed. The one that shipped with mine was a bit warped and it appears that it’s a common problem. Changing the glass would easily fix it…I’m changing mine to a mirror soon. I use my Prusa I3 MK2S most of the time because i haven’t really had the need to print anything big. The CR-10’s heats up slower also partly due to its size. Hope that helps?
thx for the fast replies! i have decided to go with the MK3 for now. i will probably end up printing parts with it in combination with my lasercutter and some mechanical parts from my old printer to make a brand new big volume 3D printer. i’m thinking of a slightly modified hypercube, in order for it to use laser cut acrylic instead of aluminium extrusions. i ordered the kit version of the MK3, i hope i will be able to build it without too many issues.
I have very good experience with the prusa i3 Mk2 and i think the mk3 is amazing. Better stepper motors (printquality), faster, able to restart print after power loss, out of filament sensor and so on… mega features. I suggest buying a i3 Mk3 - you´ll do ´nt regret it.
The Original Prusa i3 MK3 is the right choice…it’s an amazing Printer! The kit assembly is very easy due to the step-by-step instructions Prusa has provided. Follow his online instructions and your assembly, setup, calibration, and first print will be flawless. The MK3 has changed the World of 3D Printing!