Official Creality Ender 3 3D Printer Fully Open Source with Resume Printing Function DIY Printers Build Volulme 8.66x8.66x9.84 inch

For being a novice 3D printer person, this device can do a lot of things. A friend of mine has this same printer and with his help and previous knowledge from using the same printer, I have really learned a lot and his expertise has helped me with a lot of questions that I would have had to ask others about. I ordered this 3D printer on 28 Jan 2021 and it was delivered on 04 Feb 2021. Creality really does a great job packing all of the parts and pieces. It took a little bit of setting up, but watching several YouTube videoes on how to unbox and setup this printer really was a big help. The most critical thing with this printer, is making sure that the bed is level. If your bed is not level, then the filament will not stick to the surface of the bed. It will take 30-45 minutes to level your bed. There are several videos on YouTube on "How to level your Ender 3 v2 printer". Also, depending on what type of filament you are going to use, you need to know what is the best nozzle temperature to set. I found that the GEEETECH, MILKA and HATCHBOX PLA filaments are the best, but that is my own opinion. I found that 185 Celsius for the nozzle temp and the bed temp of 50 degree Celsius was the best settings. But, most manufacturers will have printed on the side of the spool what temps to use and also when you use the "slicer program" for the things you want to print it will already be programmed into the "gcode". But, still set the temps to 185C and 50C for the PLA filaments and see how that works.I also ordered the "Ender 3 Springs, Creality Upgraded 4PCS Hot Bed Die Springs with 4PCS Aluminium Hand Twist Leveling Nut for Ender 3/3 Pro/3 V2, Ender 5/5 Pro/5 Plus, CR-10, CR10S/10S Pro, CR 20 3D Printer" kit. This replaces the springs that come with the Ender 3 printer and is a more sturdier spring (hot die spring) instead of the less sturdier spring that comes standard on this printer. It will keep your bed level after several prints.Also, make sure that you check the belts for the X and Y axis after several prints. All you have to do is to tighten the knobs just a fraction of a turn, but make sure not to overtighten.My friend printed me some additions, which we found on "Thingiverse.com", to add onto my printer which really helps, one is a pulley wheel that attaches to the side of the printer to help streamline the filament from the spooler to the extrueder so that it doesn't crimp when printing. Also, I have printed several items that I downloaded from THINGIVERSE.COM and all of them turned out great. I found out from my friend that using blue painters tape and the Elmer's Purple glue stick really helps the different filaments to stick to the surface. Put the blue painters tape down and then level your bed and once leveled, then use the purple glue stick on the painters tape and smooth with your finger. I also downloaded the slicer software "CURA" (the "slicer software") to create the "gcode" that this 3D printer uses to print your items that you download from "THINGIVERSE.com". There is a "slicer" program that comes with the printer on the SD Card and it looks just like "CURA" but Creality just added a few other things to make it look a little different. Either "slicer program" will work. I have also purchased about $200 worth of PLA (harder) and PETG (softer) filaments. Should not be running out of that anytime soon. Overall, Creality does make a great printer and so far, I have not had any issues to be really concerned about. Overall, I give this printer a 5 out of 5 stars. Just do your research on what you and your friends are likely to use. I am very pleased and recommend this printer to everyone. Those people that are giving this device bad reviews are ones that have no idea on what they are doing and have not done the reasearch in order to make this thing enjoyable. You just can not setup this printer and expect it to automatically print. There is some work involved and once you do the research and learn from those that have gone thru these situations, i guarantee that this device will be the next fun thing that you will ever own and have fun using day-in and day-out. I am glad i had the expertise from my friend or I might be giving some critical reviews also. Do your homework. I think this is the future toy that everyone will have in their household. Happy 3D printing!19 April 2021I have had this printer for almost 3 months now, and i can say that I have had no really big problems with this 3D printer from Ender. Yes, there is a few twikking that needs to be done from time-to-time, but if you have the patience, this thing can really be fun for you and the family. Once again, the biggest thing is getting the bed level but usually you don't have to worry with that until after 8-10 prints. Again, i use the Blue Painter's tape for the filament to adhere to and i also used the Purple Glue Sticker. For smaller and more detailed prints, using these 2 things can make for removing your print a little difficult. I use a little rubbing alcohol and it will come loose. For finer prints where things are more detailed, you might also want to slow the speed of the print from 100% to about 50-70%. I have printed some pedals or flowers for the hummingbird feeder that i made and the print speed needed to be adjusted and really did a fine job. Using the faster speed (100%), the detailed flowers were messed up. I would still recommend this to everyone. I enjoy my Ender 3D printer everytime i print something. Good luck.

The Ender 3 marked my entry into the 3D-printing world, and I love it! The 3D printer has been a godsend! If you're also newbie and searching for advice, here's my brief take on the Ender 3. It's awesome!The Ender 3 arrives in pieces that you must assemble. Since it is essentially a robot, assembly can seem overwhelming at first, but if you take it one step at a time, you'll be printing in no time. I found the printed instructions accompanying the unit to be more sizzle than steak, but, fortunately there are several videos on YouTube that make assembly a breeze. Believe it or not, assembling the unit yourself is beneficial because it familiarizes you with the device. It will allow you to easily make the minor adjustments that 3D printers often require.My wife and I have found that 3D printing comes with somewhat of a steep learning curve, but it's fun. YouTube and websites such as "all3DP dot com" have proven themselves to be life savers.The most common adjustments you'll make while 3D printing is "bed leveling." In truth, though, you're not actually "leveling" the print bed, but rather you're ensuring that the print nozzle is uniformly distanced from the bed (the print surface) on all its 4 corners. The nozzle needs to be super close, too. ...not about an inch or two away from the print bed, but rather it needs to be no further than the thickness of a piece of paper. Crazy, huh?When my wife and I printed a test file provided by Creality (the manufacturer), we frankly sat mesmerized at the unit's precision. It was like staring into a campfire and getting lost in the flames. The nozzle just zipped back and forth across the print bed leaving tiny bits of corn-based "plastic" one layer at a time, and eventually (over time) created a cat/dog thingy.In search of more things to print, we settled on two websites with tons of 3D-printable files that are very often free to download. The websites are "thingiverse dot com" and "cults3d dot com". The latter site takes longer to load, but seems to have more options. Creality has one too, but I haven't really checked it out yet. It's important to note that the files you download from such websites are *.stl files, whereas the Ender 3 needs *.gcode files. To make the file conversion, we downloaded a piece of software called Cura. It appears to be the best (free) software on the market for "slicing" 3D files into *.gcode files. That too has a steep learning curve, complete with complicated settings. But fortunately there are lots of tutorials online along with settings you can copy from experts. I mostly rely on "all3DP dot com" for that.After a while, we decided to invent our own designs and then print them into existence. In my opinion, the cat's meow -- the best and easiest 3D design application -- is Fusion360. It has a limited free version for students and schools, but otherwise it's quite pricey. My wife then found free, open-sourced design software called FreeCAD. We love it, and haven't turned back since.The filament we prefer is PLA. In our experience, PLA produces little to no fumes and it's guilt-free because it's corn-based and biodegradable. It should be noted, though, that not all PLA is created equally. This is primarily because (according to what I've read) pigments affect the PLA in different ways. So, when I order PLA from Amazon, I always look for the PLA with the most and highest reviews. Then, I refer upon their temperature recommendations.Overall, we absolutely love the Ender 3. At under $200, it's extremely affordable, and the process of printing things into existence can be (in my experience) somehow transformative. And if you find yourself confused about something, take my advice by not wasting time by trying to figure it out for yourself. Just refer to the experts on any of the websites I mentioned so, later on, you can focus on things that really matter...like design.Note: the bearing on a little fan went out. So, I reached out to Comgrow, they got back to me immediately, and now a new fan is on the way. No fuss no muss.Finally, at the risk of getting to personal, I'm a disabled veteran who benefits from focusing on tangible things. The process of 3D printing has proven itself to be such a godsend in that regard, that I think the VA should seriously explore ways of getting more vets 3D printing.I hope this helped newbies like me. Happy printing!