3D Printer Club

[Fokker]

BTW, the listing is still there at 1 in stock,....

Definitely call to confirm they have it in hand. I would expect that to be an inventory error.

 

[Octavean]

Definitely call to confirm they have it in hand. I would expect that to be an inventory error.

I would too,.....

However, there is at least one post on Reddit suggesting people interested in a CC check their local Microcenter because the OP was able to buy one. Plus I recall hearing that Microcenter stores would receive some stock in May.


Edit:


OK, so I called in. It took a bit because I didn't have direct number for the store. I got someone to check and they said "Unfortunately it's just been sold". The web page hasn't been updated though so it's still showing as in stock. I'm still not sure if it's a bug and they're just aren't telling people or what. Maybe it take ~24HR before the update occurs or maybe if I clear the browsers cache it'll update. Smeh,...

Back to waiting for my Elegoo order

 

[Octavean]

OK, its been a day,....

I used a different browser (FireFox) and tried searching for Elegoo 3D printers on Microcenter. The store location defaulted to "Flushing" which previously had no stock of the Elegoo Centauri Carbon. Now its listing "1 in stock". What I think is happening is that they are preparing for sale of the CC rolling out the new SKU 824136. So now two of the four local Microcenter stores are now listing exactly 1 CC in stock respectively. Taking note that they haven't removed the listing that they claimed was "Just sold" yesterday when I called in.

FWIW, the Elegoo Centauri Carbon is listed for ~$329.99 at Microcenter which IIRC is about what you're charged when you order directly from Elegoo. However, local taxes apply so when you go to finalize the order only its something like ~$360 or so whereas from Elegoo direct its just ~$329.99.

https://www.reddit.com/r/elegoo/comments/1kddjwi/guys_check_your_local_microcenter_they_do_have_cc

OK, I took a shot. Instead of calling in and asking if the CC was really available I just placed an order at one of my local stores. The order was accepted and I received a confirmation email. About 10 or 15min later I received an email notice that the order reservation was ready for pickup (presumably this part is actual human eyes on the product).

​ We're confirming that the items you reserved are secured for you, and will be held until store closing on Saturday, May 10th, 2025.​

​

I'll probably pop over tomorrow to get it.

I don't mind waiting for my order. I prefer not to. It's just I don't want to run into the possibility of dutifully waiting only to have it delivered damaged (UPS I'm looking right at you). Then having to go through an RMA and even more waiting.

 

[WonkoTheSaneUK]

OK, its been a day,....

I used a different browser (FireFox) and tried searching for Elegoo 3D printers on Microcenter. The store location defaulted to "Flushing" which previously had no stock of the Elegoo Centauri Carbon. Now its listing "1 in stock". What I think is happening is that they are preparing for sale of the CC rolling out the new SKU 824136. So now two of the four local Microcenter stores are now listing exactly 1 CC in stock respectively. Taking note that they haven't removed the listing that they claimed was "Just sold" yesterday when I called in.

FWIW, the Elegoo Centauri Carbon is listed for ~$329.99 at Microcenter which IIRC is about what you're charged when you order directly from Elegoo. However, local taxes apply so when you go to finalize the order only its something like ~$360 or so whereas from Elegoo direct its just ~$329.99.

https://www.reddit.com/r/elegoo/comments/1kddjwi/guys_check_your_local_microcenter_they_do_have_cc

OK, I took a shot. Instead of calling in and asking if the CC was really available I just placed an order at one of my local stores. The order was accepted and I received a confirmation email. About 10 or 15min later I received an email notice that the order reservation was ready for pickup (presumably this part is actual human eyes on the product).



I'll probably pop over tomorrow to get it.

I don't mind waiting for my order. I prefer not to. It's just I don't want to run into the possibility of dutifully waiting only to have it delivered damaged (UPS I'm looking right at you). Then having to go through an RMA and even more waiting.

You'll want to do this all over again in the fall, once Elegoo launch their filament swapper for the CC.

 

[Octavean]

You'll want to do this all over again in the fall, once Elegoo launch their filament swapper for the CC.

I’m sure you’re right. I almost certainly will “want to”. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll spend some coin on products that I want and think I’ll get some value out of. For example, when the RX 7800XT was released I bought the ASRock Phantom Gaming version for ~$550. When the RyZen 7950X was released I bought one. My previous system was based on the AMD RyZen 3950X. And so on and so forth,…

However, if the proposed tariffs are enacted and take effect with the results one would reasonably expect, I’ll reduced spending drastically on all nonessentials. It’s not necessarily because I can’t pay more but more so because I won’t if I don’t have to. It’s prudent to wait and see what happens. So yeah, I definitely want the Elegoo AMS filament swapper but it will probably be released during a hostile economic environment here stateside.

 

[Octavean]

FWIW, I picked up the Elegoo Centauri Carbon at a local Microcenter. It’s in the car now but I’m not currently where I would set it up. If I were to set it up here it would be in the garage but the temperature fluctuates there as well as the humidity. There is a dehumidifier and I can keep below 60 (this time of year) but it’s not ideal IMO.

I haven’t cancelled my Elegoo pre-order yet. I may not. I kind of want to see the difference between the two. I might opt to keep both.

However, the Artillery M1 Pro Core XY printer is actually looking really good IMO. It has a heated chamber and comes out the gate with an AMS filament switcher. Oh and it’s like ~4mm larger on the build plate which I’m guessing means next to nothing. I kinda want it LOL

 

[Fokker]

I'm still trying to find a 400+ hotend Core X-Y with a heated chamber. I was interested in the Qidi 4 Plus, but with their chamber heater electronics issues and customer service response, I've decided to abandon that one.

I've been keeping an eye on the Elyarchi Alcheman. I'm waiting for the production release before I commit.

 

[Octavean]

I'm still trying to find a 400+ hotend Core X-Y with a heated chamber. I was interested in the Qidi 4 Plus, but with their chamber heater electronics issues and customer service response, I've decided to abandon that one.

I've been keeping an eye on the Elyarchi Alcheman. I'm waiting for the production release before I commit.

Like I said, the Artillery M1 Pro is looking mighty good IMO:

• Enclosed Design, works right out of the box
• 260×260×260 mm³ Build Volume
• Fully Automatic Calibration
• CoreXY with 600 mm/s Velocity
• 20,000 mm/s² Acceleration
• 320°C Nozzle & 60°C Active Chamber Heating
• Closed-Loop Cooling Fan System
• Built-in AI Camera for Real-Time Monitoring & Time-Lapse Capture

https://artillery3d.com/products/m1-carbon?srsltid=AfmBOoryblrbjHMDoa4EOISQI-cQkn3qLS_w-Lfqgd-HIRZUPJUD1N0D

Edit:

Klipper support too IIRC all for under ~$400 USD (~$379) pre-order.

 

[Fokker]

Like I said, the Artillery M1 Pro is looking mighty good IMO:

• Enclosed Design, works right out of the box
• 260×260×260 mm³ Build Volume
• Fully Automatic Calibration
• CoreXY with 600 mm/s Velocity
• 20,000 mm/s² Acceleration
• 320°C Nozzle & 60°C Active Chamber Heating
• Closed-Loop Cooling Fan System
• Built-in AI Camera for Real-Time Monitoring & Time-Lapse Capture

https://artillery3d.com/products/m1-carbon?srsltid=AfmBOoryblrbjHMDoa4EOISQI-cQkn3qLS_w-Lfqgd-HIRZUPJUD1N0D

Edit:

Klipper support too IIRC all for under ~$400 USD (~$379) pre-order.

320 is a bit too low for a number of these newer, more engineer oriented filaments. That's why I want something that will go up to 400 or more. I'm not wanting to print PEEK, but ~340 will likely be what I use for stuff like PPS-CF.

 

[Rover4444]

It's too bad the CC still doesn't have any open firmware available. Gonna have to steer clear until the mainboard replacement documentation gets updated.

Like I said, the Artillery M1 Pro is looking mighty good IMO:

• Enclosed Design, works right out of the box
• 260×260×260 mm³ Build Volume
• Fully Automatic Calibration
• CoreXY with 600 mm/s Velocity
• 20,000 mm/s² Acceleration
• 320°C Nozzle & 60°C Active Chamber Heating
• Closed-Loop Cooling Fan System
• Built-in AI Camera for Real-Time Monitoring & Time-Lapse Capture

https://artillery3d.com/products/m1-carbon?srsltid=AfmBOoryblrbjHMDoa4EOISQI-cQkn3qLS_w-Lfqgd-HIRZUPJUD1N0D

Edit:

Klipper support too IIRC all for under ~$400 USD (~$379) pre-order.

Looks okay I guess but I can't trust Artillery. They're really only known for their X1 and that's several years out of date and had QC problems even then.

320 is a bit too low for a number of these newer, more engineer oriented filaments. That's why I want something that will go up to 400 or more. I'm not wanting to print PEEK, but ~340 will likely be what I use for stuff like PPS-CF.

You're going to need to put your own hotend on then.

 

[silentbogo]

So, I pulled the trigger earlier than expected. Wanted to fix up and sell both of my old printers, but ended up fully rebuilding and upgrading my Ender3v2 for a co-worker, while the big guy is still waiting its turn.
Got me a Creality K1 SE. Same hardware as K1C, only missing side panels, front door, camera, and rear filter. Basically nothing that I can't add later.

One hilarious thing, is that my Ender3 was never so spot-on and reliable while I had it. Even rebuilt the hotend and replaced the heater with 60W instead of stock 40W, and my buddy pretty much never had a failed print since (only minor issues, like ringing artifacts and slight oozing).

Now, with my new toy I can finally play around with some larger prints. Print volume is the same, but for some of my long-forgotten backburner projects I never risked to run 24hour+ prints on my old printers. I think the longest print I ran on my ender was 12 hours or so....

 

[Octavean]

I finally had the opportunity to setup the Elegoo Centauri Carbon and it’s a nice bit of kit. Well chuffed would be an understatement and well worth the ~$299 to ~329 (shipped) to ~$359 in stores.

There are some minor niggles but nothing major given this is my second printer (Creality Ender 3 v2 being the first). The filament loading process was a little surprising for me because during the process it seemed to automatically grab it and start auto feeding. So I figured “done, that was easy”. But nah, you have to go into the menu system and hit the load button assuming the nozzle is to temperature for the material be used. Now I know so not really a problem. The light, yeah, the light is a bit shite but upgrading shouldn’t prove too difficult if it’s enough of a bother. The camera also doesn’t seem great but it’s good enough. Accessing the camera through the browser also has some glitches but there are workarounds as I understand it. It’s a bit noisy especially if the material requires the lid / door be open but if it’s in another room you probably won’t hear it.

Print quality is really good IMO and it can print very quickly. It’s a beast!!! So far I’ve only printed the pre-sliced Benchy, the Elegoo Poop-shoot receptacle and the included vase model.

Really enjoying it so far though.

 

[silentbogo]

I finally had the opportunity to setup the Elegoo Centauri Carbon and it’s a nice bit of kit

That was on my wishlist, but unfortunately it won't appear on shelves until summer/fall. Right now only 3 listings, and all of them have scalper prices around twice that of MSRP. Otherwise - excellent printer. Reviews are excellent all around, considering it's the cheapest production CoreXY printer.
Had to settle on cheaper K1 SE, but I think it's quite comparable. I still haven't flashed full Fluidd, but after fixing my buddies K1C I'm already proficient at tweaking that series and editing configs via SSH.
I did a full klipper install on his printer, but it broke the "power loss recovery" feature.

 

[Octavean]

That was on my wishlist, but unfortunately it won't appear on shelves until summer/fall. Right now only 3 listings, and all of them have scalper prices around twice that of MSRP. Otherwise - excellent printer. Reviews are excellent all around, considering it's the cheapest production CoreXY printer.
Had to settle on cheaper K1 SE, but I think it's quite comparable. I still haven't flashed full Fluidd, but after fixing my buddies K1C I'm already proficient at tweaking that series and editing configs via SSH.
I did a full klipper install on his printer, but it broke the "power loss recovery" feature.

Also the Creality printers should have access to a lot of replacement parts relatively cheaply,...

 

[silentbogo]

Yep, that's true. Plus they already posted servicing/repair videos for most common cases. A bit clunky and incomplete, but still useful. Though, on my friend's K1C we had an issue which made me dig into its firmware (and that's how I learned to configure it by hand). Basically all we needed is to replace XY gantry belt, but after replacement the sensorless homing was no longer working properly. It either slammed into the wall, or got stuck halfway to the end. So, I had to remove Creality's parking script and just use the standard homing, while adjusted TMC driver sensitivity. Also had random glitches with bed piezo sensor, which I could only minimize, but were never able to solve completely(it only glitched out on "resume after powerloss").

 

[Fokker]

Well, while looking at other things I might do to my to my Sovol SV06 while doing all the upgrades I had sitting around, I ran across this:

E3NG

Ender 3 NG - coreXY conversion

rh3d.xyz

It looks like I found a use for my Ender 3v2 that's better than some of the basic upgrades I had planned.

 

[silentbogo]

Well, while looking at other things I might do to my to my Sovol SV06 while doing all the upgrades I had sitting around, I ran across this:

That's gonna be lots of work and tbh quite expensive. It's easier to either sell it as-is and buy a cheap CoreXY printer like mine or Elegoo Centauri.
I'd rather keep it a s a bedslinger. You can still get decent speed out of it. Just don't go overboard with upgrades. Converting it to klipper, adding accelerometer, and swapping the nozzle to 0.6mm or to high-flow would be the first thing to do on my list.

 

[Fokker]

That's gonna be lots of work and tbh quite expensive. It's easier to either sell it as-is and buy a cheap CoreXY printer like mine or Elegoo Centauri.
I'd rather keep it a s a bedslinger. You can still get decent speed out of it. Just don't go overboard with upgrades. Converting it to klipper, adding accelerometer, and swapping the nozzle to 0.6mm or to high-flow would be the first thing to do on my list.

I'll weigh the costs versus other options. I still have other projects to finish before I do anything to/with the Ender. Reportedly it can be converted as cheaply as $200. There's a multitude of options, and there's a configurator app for you to determine what parts you'll need and costs.

 

[silentbogo]

Reportedly it can be converted as cheaply as $200.

With today's prices probably a bit more than that, plus if you sell it for $100 or so you'll have around enough $$$ to get Elegoo Centauri or K1 SE.
And that doesn't include labor, if you wanna count it. Otherwise it'll just end up like my other printer

It's been sitting like that for over a year I even bought all the parts and upgrades to make it into a decent printer. 300x300x250 print volume, already came with linear rails on XY gantry and fairly robust mechanical parts, but given that it was one of the earliest "made in Ukraine" 3d printers - the whole electronic and electrical part is f#$%ed up.
Came with an 8-bit board running Marlin 1.1, while the market already adopted klipper. Bundled with THE cheapest set of Allegro drivers, THE cheapest and crappiest extruder/hotend, wiring was a total mess, and a live wire on SSR was exposed and the only thing that saved me from being electrocuted was a nice layer of powder coating on that 3mm steel chassis. It's been over a year, and I still can't find time to put it together. Already have all the parts.

 

[Fokker]

With today's prices probably a bit more than that, plus if you sell it for $100 or so you'll have around enough $$$ to get Elegoo Centauri or K1 SE.
And that doesn't include labor, if you wanna count it. Otherwise it'll just end up like my other printer
View attachment 399979

It's been sitting like that for over a year I even bought all the parts and upgrades to make it into a decent printer. 300x300x250 print volume, already came with linear rails on XY gantry and fairly robust mechanical parts, but given that it was one of the earliest "made in Ukraine" 3d printers - the whole electronic and electrical part is f#$%ed up.
Came with an 8-bit board running Marlin 1.1, while the market already adopted klipper. Bundled with THE cheapest set of Allegro drivers, THE cheapest and crappiest extruder/hotend, wiring was a total mess, and a live wire on SSR was exposed and the only thing that saved me from being electrocuted was a nice layer of powder coating on that 3mm steel chassis. It's been over a year, and I still can't find time to put it together. Already have all the parts.

I was just looking through my printer stuff since moving and I forgot I have a Sonicpad sitting around. I might grab a Microswiss direct drive extruder, flip it to Klipper with the pad, and just keep it for rapid prototype/PLA prints.

On the SV06 I'm finishing installing 5015 fans with printed shroud/duct, swapping the stock bearings for drylin, and replaced the stock PSU with a Meanwell LSR-350-24 and an extension cord to get it off of the frame.

Next I'll add an ADXL345 and look at insulating/cooling the stepper motors since they occasionally throw warnings.

At the end of the day either someone has to make a 400+ hot end with a decent chamber or I do for what I want to achieve. The Ender NG caught my eye because they support using some of the ~500 hotends on the market.

 

[silentbogo]

and look at insulating/cooling the stepper motors since they occasionally throw warnings.

It's likely not motors throwing warnings, but drivers. In either case the best way to solve it, is lowering the current.
In normal scenarios motors should be warm to the touch during operation, but not hot enough to burn your fingers. You should only up the current and install radiators on motors if you are doing it on purpose (e.g. "overclocking" the print speed), which in your case isn't needed at least until you upgrade your extruder and install high-flow hotend.
On your old board with stock Marlin - you need to do it the old-school way with multimeter and a tiny screwdriver. Adjust it to no more than 1.2A running current.
Once you upgrade to Klipper (and assuming your new board runs TMC drivers in UART mode) you can change that in printer.cfg.

Microswiss direct drive extruder

Too expensive for what it is. Heck, you can buy a whole printer for that price. While all-metal sounds cool and all, and machined aluminium looks intimidating and reliable, it's still a single-gear piece of excrement. Even a plastic BMG clone for $3 will perform better. Heck, even your stock extruder is better(cause it's basically a BMG clone). I'd rather get an all-metal BMG variant from Aliexpress, or even go as far as doing this:

Sovol Sv06 Voron Stealthburner mod *now includes support for inductive and eddy probe by Eclypse3D | Download free STL model | Printables.com

I remixed the factory models to mount the Voron Stealthburner hotend and Clockwork2 extruder. As well relocated probe | Download free 3D printable STL models

www.printables.com

Or design your own mounting brackets for something like Orbiter extruder or one of the newer planetary-geared compact extruders. Creality has a decent one, though it's still heavier than an all-metal orbiter.
This will make your toolhead much lighter, and will give you a little boost in print speed as well.

 

[Fokker]

Fan upgrades installed, new bed magnet and sheet (hopefully addresses my bed issues somewhat), and I added an insulating layer to hopefully speed up the bed heating and keep it in the bed/print area.

 

[Rover4444]

It's likely not motors throwing warnings, but drivers. In either case the best way to solve it, is lowering the current.
In normal scenarios motors should be warm to the touch during operation, but not hot enough to burn your fingers. You should only up the current and install radiators on motors if you are doing it on purpose (e.g. "overclocking" the print speed), which in your case isn't needed at least until you upgrade your extruder and install high-flow hotend.
On your old board with stock Marlin - you need to do it the old-school way with multimeter and a tiny screwdriver. Adjust it to no more than 1.2A running current.
Once you upgrade to Klipper (and assuming your new board runs TMC drivers in UART mode) you can change that in printer.cfg.


Too expensive for what it is. Heck, you can buy a whole printer for that price. While all-metal sounds cool and all, and machined aluminium looks intimidating and reliable, it's still a single-gear piece of excrement. Even a plastic BMG clone for $3 will perform better. Heck, even your stock extruder is better(cause it's basically a BMG clone). I'd rather get an all-metal BMG variant from Aliexpress, or even go as far as doing this:

Sovol Sv06 Voron Stealthburner mod *now includes support for inductive and eddy probe by Eclypse3D | Download free STL model | Printables.com

I remixed the factory models to mount the Voron Stealthburner hotend and Clockwork2 extruder. As well relocated probe | Download free 3D printable STL models

www.printables.com

Or design your own mounting brackets for something like Orbiter extruder or one of the newer planetary-geared compact extruders. Creality has a decent one, though it's still heavier than an all-metal orbiter.
This will make your toolhead much lighter, and will give you a little boost in print speed as well.

Only somebody crazy, uninformed, or both would ever get a microswiss now. You can get a bimetal heat break and a BMG extruder for twenty bucks. I don't know why people are still buying the massive MS "direct drive" extruder when the sprite has been out for years now either. Not to mention if you're already approaching the cost of the printer with upgrades you should just get a better printer instead, it's not like we're still in the era of bed slinger sidegrades anymore.

 

[Fokker]

Only somebody crazy, uninformed, or both would ever get a microswiss now. You can get a bimetal heat break and a BMG extruder for twenty bucks. I don't know why people are still buying the massive MS "direct drive" extruder when the sprite has been out for years now either. Not to mention if you're already approaching the cost of the printer with upgrades you should just get a better printer instead, it's not like we're still in the era of bed slinger sidegrades anymore.

I'm just spit balling around what I already have on hand versus buying something else. I'll look at more options in idle time and I'll address it seriously when I get to the point of touching that printer. I already have a number of projects that I'm focusing on first.

Regarding the cost,$100+ less than a new printer is still cheaper and the effort spent on it is a learning process that will assist all other printing projects going forward. The Ender 3v2 is only being used for PLA, so enclosures, chamber heaters, lights, cameras, etc. aren't really a concern.

 

[WonkoTheSaneUK]

Elegoo have announced they're open-sourcing the RFID tag system they're using on the upcoming filament switcher for the Centauri Carbon.

ELEGOO RFID Ecosystem Feedback Solicitation

With the development of the ELEGOO Automatic Filament Switching System, which is highly anticipated by users, we have ushered in a new era of intelligent filament management. During the R&D process, one core feature has demonstrated immense potential—not only enabling automatic filament...

www.elegoo.com

GitHub - ELEGOO-3D/ELEGOO-RFID-Tag-Guide: This document details the data structure and content format to be used on RFID tags for ELEGOO's FDM 3D printing filament spools.

This document details the data structure and content format to be used on RFID tags for ELEGOO's FDM 3D printing filament spools. - ELEGOO-3D/ELEGOO-RFID-Tag-Guide

github.com