Hello all, I am not a SM2 power user, just a novice user of an A350 SM2.0. I would like to upgrade the 3D printer head and the 10W laser module…do I also need to upgrade the power module and the XYZ linear modules?
Noise is not an issue for me and speed matters a bit…but just curious if I could just buy the new 3D and 10W laser module and benefit, or MUST I buy all of the upgrades (power mod, liner mod, and 3D, Laser heads.)
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You do not need all the modules, just the ones you want. If noise isn’t an issue? Don’t buy the rails. If you want the more powerful laser? Just grab the 10W Laser (don’t get the bundle, since you already have the bed plates). Just grab what you want. Any newer 2.0 will come with the upgraded 3DP head already (I bought mine a year or so ago and it came with it already). You can tell if it has the 2 slot vents on the front of the module.
Overall? My favorite upgrade module is the 10W laser. I think it’s overpriced a bit, but it has been fun to use. The PSU and Rails are not worth it either, since they’re literally just for making operation a bit quieter, and as far as the rails go I would consider it a downgrade. The rails moved from 8mm to 20mm lead on the X/Y so it can ‘print faster’, while yes it can, a finer lead is better for torque and accuracy, especially for say, the CNC. The laser (especially the 10W) can benefit from the faster rails, as there’s no forces acting on it, but I never found the old, noisy rails to be a problem and run them up to 6000mm/m. You’ll never be engraving, printing, or cutting at those speeds anyway, just rapids.
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That is what I was assuming. I appreciate the knowledge. I had an original A350 from kickstarter so I have the old 3D print/laser heads. Thank you!
You can kick the 3DP toolhead to the same “quality” as the new head by adding an external fan (cf. 3DP Part Cooling Fan 5015 Replacement), because the main improvement for the new 3DP head is cooling. The extruder gear is a bit finer also, But I do not think that this is a fundamental improvement.
The 10W laser is a huge step up and will do more for speed as the rails - the higher power lets you cut things single pass that the old laser too several passes for, so that’s a considerable speed gain. I’d agree with @Skreelink: It’s slightly overpriced, but compared to the rotary module, which I find ridiculously expensive, it’s still OK IMHO. EDIT: Just checked the current price - forgot that I got it cheaper during preorder phase - current price is again beyond what I find reasonable…
That said, I still may at some point cash in my 50% voucher for the updates and get the new 3DP head, for two reasons: a) the extruder gear will certainly at some point wear down and is difficult to replace, and b) I consider to adapt a Hemera hotend or something like that to the SM2 at some point, because the 3DP toolhead IMHO is not great (just OK) and a more proven hardware may get the quality a noth up. For that, I’d tear down the old 3DP toolhead then to harvest the elctronics, sparing me the effort to develop my own control and interfacing board.
I think the new extruder is what now allows me to print with some filaments (TPU, PLA/PHA) that gave me problems before.
I can confirm am using the 10W on an A250 (so mine doesn’t have to move quite as much table mass as yours, but that’s probably not too big a difference) Kickstarter edition with otherwise all stock parts, and the PSU is also powering the enclosure lighting and fan, and an extra fan I added for my own fume extraction / filter plan for the laser. I did not upgrade rails(Footnote) or PSU. I have made a fan swap in the existing PSU to a quieter one that helped a lot, and inside the enclosure rail noise doesn’t bother me any.
The 10W laser is a total game changer for me, the 1.6W was a toy, good for engraving but not really acceptable for reliably cutting anything beyond 2-3mm ply or balsa. The software has also improved over time.
Footnote: I have purchased the faster replacement rail set, just to take advantage of the 50% off coupon we got and have them as spares, I have made no attempt to swap them in yet though. Ditto with the new printhead as a backup, but I’m still using the original, and into my 3rd nozzle I believe. I print entirely PLA right now, and don’t really do a lot of bridging things that I think I “need” the upgrade. I have noticed some filaments work a lot better than others. (Polymaker “Tough” PLA black is great, white though just sucks and warps and contracts all over the place. Sunluu Clear is my go-to for most prints though, I seem to have the best layer to layer adhesion and dimensional stability with it…but at this point I’m changing subjects just trying to qualify my own semi-upgrade purchases, since YMMV of course. 
)
EDIT added note since you mentioned ‘speed’: I regularly violate their standard speed pre-sets (mostly print on their ‘fast’ settings) and have had no issues, so don’t be afraid to bump their presets a little. I have print speeds at 30mm/sec except outer wall at 26mm/sec and infill at 60mm/sec, and travels at 80mm/sec. Looks like the preset Fast in the version I’m on (4.1.4) are all in the 20-25 range except infill at 50. I know that’s not much of a bump, but it’s still enough to cut print times a bit.
For what it’s worth, these are the settings I use for a 0.2 layer height in prusaslicer for my old A350 with original loud rails.
I was rather surprised that this page officially states that SM2 A350 (old linear modules) can go up to 100 mm/s. In the past they more went for 60-80 mm/s as their official limit…
I’m often going beyond, 120 mm/s is something I do not shy away from, but I can already see my Y-axis haveing increasing backlash. Sometime in the next weeks I’ll need to check what exactly is the problem - if I’m lucky I just need to retighten the slider, but there’s a risk that the stupid plastic nuts are worn. In which case I’ll replace them with brass nuts and see where this takes me…
As long as I can remember 100mm/s was the top speed without losing steps. Can go faster at your own risk.
I’ve only had problems with play from trying to push too hard on cnc. There’s very little stress with laser or 3dp comparatively. Once I reduced my step down and speeds have had no problems. (Other than trying to use a 300w spindle).
-S