I am currently debating between getting a used but upgraded 350T (10w laser, dual extruder, enclosure) or saving some pennies and waiting a few months and getting an Artisan. (I have 90% ruled out separate machines) Having trouble deciding. Of course, I have compared specifications and read through reviews and forums, but still can’t quite come to a conclusion.
If anyone could chime in with their insights and experience, things that don’t show up on a spec sheet, it would be much appreciated. Here is what I am going to be using it for:
Two colour 3d prints. I have 3d printers at work (including a J1s) and I have decided I don’t want to own a single color printer. I mostly use ABS and PETG.
Laser cut boxes, bins, signage
CNC game boards, signage
I will eventually be getting the 40w laser module regardless
I guess from your description it boils down to work area available and how hard of a CNC you want to go.
If both have a heavy weight on your scale of things - go with artisan.
If not, people do cut aluminum and brass with a350t after some mods (stock head) and happy with it. The rest is the same.
Firmware equally closed and can have some features added for sure.
The quick swap mode for a350t is a must. Community of a350 larger and have more experience with it then artisan. Dual extruder and 10w modules are exactly the same for both machines.
I think the size is okay for me. Bigger is always better, but snapmaker 2.0 is pretty big. Like a lot of people, I have the least experience with cnc. But I use fusion 360 every day and I certainly have a few ideas to utilize it the cnc… I am not really sure how fast I will outgrow it…no plans for using aluminum right now.
The other thing I am wondering about is the bed temp and abs printing. Seems like the 350t can do abs, but I’ve always printed abs at 100c. I’ve read on these forums that some people are modding these beds for higher temps, but procedure seems unclear
100 is a bit overkill in my experience. Even with stock build surface. I always printed it at 85, just clean surface.
But I have a diy enclosure. It a must by the way.
At 100 stock build surface delaminates, glue just can’t hold it together.
Either way, you eventually, probably will think of a different build surface - check out garolite. It’s been like magic for me. There are plenty of solutions for leveling mods. I made a klicky probe for myself.
Another advantage the Artisan has is automatic Z height calibration for 3D printing. I don’t know about you, but I hate doing the paper or feeler gauge thing to get the Z height right. Also, the Artisan is just a more polished experience, as you would expect. I don’t do ABS though; I’ve found that PETG does the job where I need heat tolerance in the final print.
IMHO, the Snapmaker 2.0 and Artisan list prices are too high for what you get. The 2.0 is a decent machine, but with a few design flaws. I’m happy I got mine for the Kickstarter price, and I guess a used one should be OK. Also, Snapmaker regularely does sales where you by now can get a 2.0 for an acceptable price.
I cannot judge Artisan, but infering from the “official” material they seem to have learned at least some lessons, so machanically it seems to me the more mature machine. @TheBum Auto Z calibration comes with the Dual Extruder, it is not Artisan specific.
Final remark: Snapmaker tries to give the impression that their machines are out-of-the-box-easy-go-machines. They are not, you need to be willing to accept some hickups and problems on your journey. If that’s OK, you’ll have fun with them. Still, Artisan is sooo expensive…
Maybe they fixed it to work with the 2.0 machines, but when it first came out, the one feature that was promised to work on Artisan but not on 2.0 was the Z height calibration. The controller firmware still needs to support it.
I never did the paper thing. Always with filler gauge and then 1029 correction if needed. But yeah, auto z would be amazing.
Maybe snapmaker will make a better single extruder…
It does come with dual extruder but only to Artisan.
Mayco was able to adopt 2.0 firmware and enabled it. But it’s not officially supported due to pressure applied and build plate flex.
Thanks for the input guys. I could go either way on auto leveling. I learned 3d printing on some old printers at work (that I still use) and its tedious, but at least you can get it right if you put the time in. On the flip side, we now have a snapmaker J1S at work with auto leveling…the auto level is functional, but not perfect.
I totally understand what you mean about the price, espicially with the artisan. it is tempting to just grab a cheaper 3d printer and a refubished or used Xtool laser. However when I consider how many machines I would have in a few years if I started doing that, my mind comes full circle back to the 3-1 concept. Time will tell if this is the correct route.
In terms of out of the box / plug and play…I am always skeptical of such claims. I spent 10 years in IT and now 5 years in CAD / manufacturing. It is staggering how few softwares/machines/tools are actually plug and play. I have already been sentenced to a lifetime of tinkering and troubleshooting, so everything will work out for me unless its straight up broken.
Realistically, I think in 2 years time I will own two 3 in 1 machines. Then sometimes they will both be 3d printing, or both on wood, or, a mix. Would be a good use of the space I have.
My feelings on leveling are that I’m happy if I can get a decent first layer. If it’s off a few hundredths of a mm, it’s not a big deal. The remaining layers will take care of themselves.
I’ve had cheap 3D printers whose Z height would drift from print to print, which is beyond frustrating. I’ve had no such issues with Snapmaker machines going back to the original.
Although I have neither yet, I studied both in depth.
My preference is the 350. I would get several upgrades with my initial purchase.
Upgraded rails
Enclosure
Dual extruder
20W Laser
Quick change kit
Stop button
Control Cable expansion module
For now, don’t need the Rotary mill or the ventilator. 40W Laser is overkill for me, and 10W Laser a bit underpowered. The 1.6W very much so.
My biggest pair of Artisan “turn-offs” is the enclosure with only one door that opens full wide. The 350 encl. has 2 doors that open in thirds for a smaller desktop imprint.
The Artisan control screen is embedded in the bigger power supply, making it impossible to hold while doing fine positioning of the head. The 350 screen is on a coiled cord making it quite mobile and easier to put down.
If you will be doing a lot of 3D printing, best to go for a dedicated machine and maybe leave the Snapmaker or Artisan for CNC and Laser. I have a Kickstarter A350 and my only real complaints (apart from the fact that it is quite slow, but that is understandable to a degree since it has to cater for CNC), is that I can never print across the whole bed surface, but only in the middle part, due to the bed not being level and the machine being unable to compensate sufficiently for this. This issue is a well known one and you will see many comments in the forum about it. Might affect CNC and Laser also, but mainly evident on printing. Hopefully they resolved this in the Artisan, but maybe even in the newer releases of the Snapmaker itself. Good luck.
I’ve had a full bed prints without any problems… On a350t. But I guess the only thing changed is the the extruder and the axis.
Strange that you weren’t able to do this.
The kickstarter version has very uneven print beds, at least a significant number of them. I succeeded to do a full bed print, but only with 11x11 bed levelling matrix. My Quick Swap Kit will arrive soon, and with it a new bed frame - I’ll see if that improves my bed flatness…
Nah, I guess it’s not much of improvement then. My frame is the latest. But I’ve spent 8hr+ leveling it with alum tape to make the heat bed + stock build plate flat. Printed very nice after that. Thanks to your leveling guide tho!
Then I switched to garolite, took out all my shims and attached everything stock with garolite sheet instead of stock PEI sheet. Works like a charm, I don’t care about leveling anymore
Hi all, based on the responses, I am more comfortable getting a 350T than I was. It is going to be the most expedient purchase and best value to get me started. But I still have a eye for the artisan. Now considering the artisan 3d print version then upgrading the rest after christmas. We shall see, I will make up my mind in a week or two.
