Bambu X1-Carbon

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mmayo

mmayo

Member
Joined
Jan 12, 2013
Messages
3,119
Location
Tehachapi, CA
After several years printing with two excellent Prusa MKS3+ printers I decided to give both an upgrade to 3.5 and buy a new Bambu printer. The thing is huge and extremely interesting. It simply amazes me every day. There is some learning to move to the future, but most of what I know is still useful. The AMS which automatically feeds in different filaments is a thing to behold. So far it just works as expected which is wonderful.

The Bambu community is very helpful as is the Prusa folks. It is like IAP for 3D printing.

After some worry that non-Bambu filaments would be difficult to use I have proven that was unwarranted. My investment in filaments will still function normally. As with any silk filament or non- PLA filament, a bit of tinkering is needed.

Fun times and worth all of the hundreds of dragons printed to pay for all of it.

Today, I heartily recommend this machine. Check out how smooth the vertical surface of this desiccant container came out. I use a textured plate so the bottom surface is textured.
 

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Nice purchase! I bought an AnyCubic Kobra3 printer instead, simply because of the initial cost and I wasn't sure if filament printing was for me. I am trying to incorporate the printing into my creation of pen components - both in the resin blank space, as well as unique parts. I am more than interested to here if anyone else here is using 3D stuff in their penmaking. One thing I have found is that I have not had great success doing hybrid blanks using Alumilite and PLA filament - much better success with Liquid Diamonds and PETG, but I am still testing further (once my shop warms a bit!!!!). Curious how others moving forward. Also trying to figure out a good but easy to use drawing program to create STL files.
 
NJturner said:
Nice purchase! I bought an AnyCubic Kobra3 printer instead, simply because of the initial cost and I wasn't sure if filament printing was for me. I am trying to incorporate the printing into my creation of pen components - both in the resin blank space, as well as unique parts. I am more than interested to here if anyone else here is using 3D stuff in their penmaking. One thing I have found is that I have not had great success doing hybrid blanks using Alumilite and PLA filament - much better success with Liquid Diamonds and PETG, but I am still testing further (once my shop warms a bit!!!!). Curious how others moving forward. Also trying to figure out a good but easy to use drawing program to create STL files.
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Tinkercad
 
Yes, Tinkercad. It is actually quite a bit more powerful that you would think, but to learn it you need to devote some time to YouTube. I used it to design my Hinze Tenon Cutter organizer as well as organizers for my taps, die, mandrels and drill bits.

I have downloaded Fusion360, which for personal use (limited to 10 active files) is free, but fully functional. I used AutoCAD decades ago and now in retirement, need to make a schedule to start learning Fusion360.
 
I really like Tinkercad but its file size limitsfrustrates me at times. I find myself importing files to other programs to complete some projects.

As for filament in casting resin, in my experiences petg holds up much better to the temps resin reaches when curing. I find filament also expands and contracts a bit with time where you may feel the transition between the materials in a blank. I like them for printing pen holders, fun stuff, and the occasional casting mold. I've printed a few vacuum hole attachments for the shop, and some CA caddy's and shop accessories. My nephews like the articulated animals and had no problem giving me a list. Lol

I like resin printers for casting in resin better. I have an Elegoo Saturn for that. The down side with resin printers… they can be messy, they smell, they can be messy, and cleaning and curing the final print is time consuming and leads to more investments like alcohol or a curing tank, and they can be messy!
 
Had to show this. The thing just works right out of the box. The sides are soooo smooth.

Luckily the filaments I have from Hatchbox work perfectly. After printing all of the desiccant holders and receiving the desiccant beads from Amazon I'll get to work.

I can't wait to try carbon fiber filaments for buffing bushings. PLA and PETG have not been tough enough on a few bushings.
 

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Love the time lapse feature! I've got the P1S which has most of the same features as the X1-Carbon. I only print for fun so luckily my son gifted it to me!
 
JohnU said:
I really like Tinkercad but its file size limitsfrustrates me at times. I find myself importing files to other programs to complete some projects.

As for filament in casting resin, in my experiences petg holds up much better to the temps resin reaches when curing. I find filament also expands and contracts a bit with time where you may feel the transition between the materials in a blank. I like them for printing pen holders, fun stuff, and the occasional casting mold. I've printed a few vacuum hole attachments for the shop, and some CA caddy's and shop accessories. My nephews like the articulated animals and had no problem giving me a list. Lol

I like resin printers for casting in resin better. I have an Elegoo Saturn for that. The down side with resin printers… they can be messy, they smell, they can be messy, and cleaning and curing the final print is time consuming and leads to more investments like alcohol or a curing tank, and they can be messy!
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John - Thanks for the comments. Yep, the one thing that everyone I spoke to about resin printers was the mess and the smell - but all said there is better detail capabilities. The PLA seemed to take the heat, but it didn't bind to the Alumilite, despite my thorough wash with alcohol, but the PETG is holding tight. Another caster I follow suggested trying ABS, but it has a potential vapor hazard that needs to be handled when printing indoors, so I just finished a full enclosure for the printer and just received what I hope will be a good vapor filter for inside the enclosure so I can give ABS a shot. We shall see.
 
mmayo said:
Had to show this. The thing just works right out of the box. The sides are soooo smooth.

Luckily the filaments I have from Hatchbox work perfectly. After printing all of the desiccant holders and receiving the desiccant beads from Amazon I'll get to work.

I can't wait to try carbon fiber filaments for buffing bushings. PLA and PETG have not been tough enough on a few bushings.
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You might also want to consider the HEPA replacement filters for the printer for containing the plastic vapors withing the enclosure. These are replacements for the existing filter, or you can add a full filter assembly inside the enclosure. https://voxelpla.com/products/bambu-lab-x-filter
 
Just about finished printing the desiccant containers so I did some real work today. These are sanding and buffing bushings for PSI Horse pen kit. Just like my Prusa printers it prints slightly smaller than the measurements input into Tinkercad. Not a problem I haven't licked before. The Bambu finishes in 1/3 the time of the MKS3+.
 

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Play time - a multicolor dragon. It took 2.5 hours vs about 6 hours on my Prusa MKS3+.

The textured plate allowed a very easy release of the finished print. No stringing!!!
 

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With my two Prusa printers nearing completion of their upgrades and tuneups I needed a solid space for the Bambu printer. The table wobbled a bit so Mark the woodworker used what I do for other shop machines: 2x4's. It might not be pretty, but it sits flat and is rock solid. I'll probably use my tried and true method to add mass to shop supports by storing two cinder blocks at the bottom.
 

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I have the bambu A1 combo and over 800 hours on it in 11 months. I Don't use it as often as I want but let me agree with you and say this thing was such an upgrade from my ender3 that was 4 years old. Print errors are very few and quality is great.
 
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