This Machine is just more reliable than my toaster. And the Build Quality is great. The X/Y-Accuracy is fantastic. The Z-Accuracy didn’t got really tested. Despite the load of work, it did, the machine still looks pristine and there is no noticeable “bad” change in the acoustics.
I can just say, if you use the machine more or less in it’s specifications, there is no noticeable wear after one year of intensive usage.
I made some slight modifications to the machine which i explain in Separate topics.
The Ruby Print Nozzle
Switching to the 10W Laser
Magnetic Laser BED for fast switching between Print and Laser Jobs
Border for the laser BED
Magnets in the Laser BED to fix parts, again, with magnets
Anti BED Rocking Addon
Nothing to crazy but accelerating the general setup times and overall quality.
The Software Luban is still very basic but does the job. I use a bunch of other tools to get stuff done.
Blender → 3D Construction and Pre-Rendering (replacement for 3D-Studio ) https://www.blender.org/
Javascript based G-Code Manipulation → (To change G-Code for usage of Pens and Razorblades)
Over the last year, using this machine in all disciplines just became daily business. It’s not the fastest printer or laser, but very accurate and durable, which prefer. I do only single jobs and if multiplication is needed i let the parts be made from companies.
But for:
general prototyping,
developing
quick custom jobs
Art and passion,
surprising your friends, family and colleagues (also getting on their nerves)
Learning all this freaking stuff
in my Opinion, this machine is one of the best choices for beginners and still valuable for experienced makers.
Hello @whilex
Thank you for beating me to the punch with your thoughts. Such a contribution had been on my mind for a while. But I could not have made it as explicit as this. I am also very, very happy with my Snapmaker. Everything you wrote speaks from my heart. I have learned so much from scratch.
And thanks to the forum and its many helpers.
Special thanks to @sdj544, @Skreelink, @Hauke, @brent113 and all you others with your problems with or without solutions.
Jork
I agree. My uses are not nearly as broad as yours @whilex. But I have been cranking out 3D prints and some CNC work with no errors that couldn’t be traced to me. And my A350T is almost a year old and still looking great. If I may ask, others will probably be curious, which model 2.0 are you using?
And thanks again for sharing your experiences. I agree with @jork that the details and specifics are great. Which causes me to ask a related question @whilex; did you pull those stats from the machine or do you keep a separate log. I did a cursory look for a log and didn’t find one. I may have given up to easily. I was hoping to do some machine run time and cost analyses for projects.
I have the A350T Rev2 with the upgraded more silent linear rails.
I also use the original housing which is pretty ok-ish.
The 10W orginal laser from Snapmaker.
The original CNC module.
The original Print Module.
Inbetween i would feel comfortable with a Stepcraft or any other good quality generic portal machine.
Still the snapmaker bundle saved me many, many hours of tinkering and failing, letting me concentrate on the processes themselves. I learned the rest also with working machine … and less frustration.
I had four different 3d Printes beforehand, 3x FDM 1x Resin, so i didn’t start at zero. But i was really not willing to beginn fixing and teweaking my printer after some month for the rest of it’s lifespan, becaus i have to.
I have the same model and I came to it with the same attitude, although with none of the experience you had. I watched my son try to get his Creality going and wasn’t signing up for that. He still has not gotten a usable large print and I’ve pumped out dozens. I printed/burned/and cut the three starting models they provide flawlessly and my son was kind of hurt that they came out so good and I had none of the time in grade so-to-speak that he had. I started out “shopping” in Thingyverse for stuff to make and pretty quickly began solving problems for myself with Fusion, Cura and Luban to load to the machine. You can see some of the stuff I’ve make on thingyverse. Nothing earth shattering… but life improving, like a splash guard for an aquarium, a caddy for my phone and notebook on my indoor cycle, some parts for macro photography and a housing for a shop-made bench power supply.
BTW, my son is still the better designer by far. He speaks to Inventor in the command line, like the guy reading the code straight off the screen in The Matrix. But I know enough to get what I want out of the machine. In my opinion, Snapmaker has done a TON to make this accessible to the knowledgeable, but inexperienced folks. I don’t think the state of the art is truly ready for every-man yet. It’s not like operating a TV, but it took a giant leap with Snapmaker.
