Original Prusa I3 MK2 Manual
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Pict. 1 6 - Yo u ca n fin d U SB port h ere ● Choose connection p ort in Pro nte rf ace (d ow nlo ad a va ila ble w it h th e prin te r d rive rs, see the chapter 8 Pri nte r drive rs ): Ma c use rs use /u sb mo dem p ort, P C W in dow s ports are COM1, COM2 , e tc. ; th e co rre ct p ort is disp la ye d in d evi ce m anager, L in ux users connect the prin te r u si ng th e vi rtual se ria l p ort . W hen th e prin te r is co nnect ed click the Connect butto n. R ig ht co lu mn sh ow s th e co nnect io n in fo rm atio n. ● Next step is loading th e model w it h Load model butto n a nd ch oosi ng th e model_name.gcode (no sp eci al symb ols in file n ame ). ● You can control the mo veme nt o f a ll prin te r a xe s at th e co ntr o l a re a. ● Next you can preheat th e prin te r a nd p re pare it fo r th e prin tin g . S et th e te m pera tu re s for the nozzle (heate r) and he atb ed (b ed) and cl ick Set butto n. P rin te r st arts heatin g immediately. Always c h eck th at th e te mpera tu re s s et in P ro nte rfa ce a re c o rre ct according to our m ate ria l g uid e! ● You can check the a ct ual te mp era tu re s of nozzl e a nd b ed in P ro nte rfa ce . ● When model is loaded ri g ht co lu mn sh ow s th e est ima te d prin t d ura tio n: Estim ate d duration (pessimisti c) 31
Pict. 1 7 - Pro nte rf ace 1. Load file button is use d to lo ad th e d esi re d model .. Model m ust b e in * .g co de file format. 2. Choose the port prin te r is co nnect ed to co mp ute r. (mo stly /u sb modem fo r M ac, COM1, COM2, etc fo r W in dow s PC ). 3. Print button starts th e prin tin g p ro ce ss. 4. Disconnect button d isco nnect s th e prin te r fro m th e co mp ute r. 5. Printer controls. Here yo u ca n ma nip ula te th e prin te r a xe s. 6. Setting the nozzle a nd b ed te mp era tu re s. 7. Thermometer. 8. Confirming the set te mp era tu re s, heatin g st art . 9. 2D print process preview . 10. Info panel. Estimate d prin t time , a xi s posi tio n a nd o th er in fo is disp la ye d a fte r lo adin g the model . 7.3 Printer addons 7.3.1 Different nozzle s E3D, a UK based compan y, su pplie s hote nds fo r th e O rig in al Pru sa i3 M K2 h as whole ecosystem of upgrades an d a ddons. W e su pport so me o f th em. You can check out how to ch ange th e n ozzl e in se ctio n 11.4 R ep la cin g / c h an gin g t h e nozzle. 32
7.3.1.1 Hardened steel nozzle Hardened steel nozzles a re a mu st fo r hig hly abra sive ma te ria ls. R egula r b ra ss nozzl es will degrade very quickly and lo se th eir pro pert ie s. Most of the abrasive mate ria ls are co mp osi te s, p la st ics wit h so meth in g m ixe d in . S om e examples are ColorFabb XT C F20, C olo rF abb Bro nze fill, C olo rF abb B ra ssf ill a nd so me g lo w in the dark filaments. Alw ays ask your fila me nt ve ndor if yo u a re n ot su re . S lig ht disadvantage is that som e st andard ma te ria ls like ABS isn 't p ossi ble to p rin t a s fa st a s wit h regular nozzle. 7.3.1.2 0.25mm nozzle To get finer detail on 0.1m m or 0.0 5mm prin t se ttin gs, yo u ca n u se 0 .2 5m m n ozzl e. B ut u se it for only very small object s, o nly co uple ce ntime te rs big . T he p rin t tim e ca n b e co nsi dera bly longer compared to 0.4mm. Id eal u se is je w ele ry. 8 Printer drivers Latest drivers and informa tio n ca n b e fo und a t http ://w ww.p ru sa 3d.co m/d rive rs/ . Driver package contains fo llo w in g settin gs a nd p ro gra ms: Slic3r - preparing the 3D models to .g co de fo rma t fo r prin tin g . Pronterface - printing from a co mp ute r (in ca se yo u d on’t w ant to prin t fr o m S D ) NetFabb - repairing the corrupte d o r unprin ta ble models Settings - optimized print settin gs fo r Sl ic3 r, C ura , Si mp lif y3 D a nd K IS S lice r Drivers for Prusa i3 prin ter - W in dow s a Ma c drive rs Test objects 9 Printing your own models 9.1 Where you can g et th e 3D mod els ? The best way to get start ed w it h yo ur ow n 3 D prin tin g is to fin d a lr e ady cr eate d models o n internet - they should be in th e .s tl o r .o bj fo rma t . F ort unate ly th ere a re lo t o f fa ns and th ere are sites from which you ca n d ow nlo ad a w ealt h o f re ady-ma de 3 D models - fr o m a si m ple shaver holder to a detailed a ircra ft e ngin e model . 3D models are generally fre e to d ow nlo ad u nder th e Cre ati ve C om mons - A ttr ib utio n - Non Commercial ( Models n ot to b e u se d co mme rcially, yo u mu st a lw ays in cl ude th e n am e of the author) or for a sma ll fe e. W e h ave se le ct ed th e mo st in te re st in g si te s wit h h ig h-q ualit y models : 1. http://www.thingiverse .co m/ 2. https://pinshape.com/ 3. https://www.youmagin e.co m/ 4. http://www.shapeways. com/ 5. http://www.123dapp.co m/ 33
9.2 In what program you can cre ate y ou r ow n mod els ? To create a 3D model yourse lf , yo u n eed a d edica te d p ro gra m. T he e asi est w ay to q uickl y create a model is TinkerCad ( ww w. tin ke rca d .co m ) - an onlin e e dit o r ( n o in st alla tio n n eeded) - you create your 3D model d ire ctly in th e b ro wse r w in dow . It is fr e e, is easy to o pera te a nd you will find even basic v id eo tu to ria ls, so a fte r a fe w mi nute s noth in g p re ve nts yo u to cr eate your first 3D object. Other popular tool for cre atin g models is 123D Desi gn ( http ://w ww.1 23dapp.co m/ desi gn ) fo r PC, Mac and iPad. Webs it e p ro vides a q uick guid e alo ng w it h deta ile d vi deo tu to ria ls so it ’s a very good choice for no vice e nth usi ast s. There is a great deal of 3 D p ro gra ms - fre e o r paid - yo ur ch oice d epends m ore o n yo ur personal taste and prefere nce s. T he fo llo w in g is a list o f o th er pro gra m s use d fo r m aki ng 3 D models : OpenScad, DesignSp ark Mechanica l , F usi on 3 60°, Bl ender, M aya , 3 D S M ax, Autocad and many more… 9.3 Slic3r A 3D printer can print almost anyt hin g. W heth er yo u’ve d ow nlo aded 3 D models fr o m th e Internet or created your own models , yo u w ill n eed to co nvert th e .o bj o r .s tl f o rm at in to a .gcode file . Gcode is a file fo rma t re adable b y a 3 D prin te r . T he file co nta in s in fo rm atio n fo r nozzle movement and the amo unt o f fila me nt to e xt ru de. T he ri g ht to ol fo r th is ta sk - a nd fo r many more - is the Slic3r pro gra m. You set the printing materia l , prin t q ualit y and th e prin t speed in S lic3 r. Y ou ca n m anip ula te the object here, varying t he p la ce me nt o n th e p rin tb ed, re size it , e tc. 34
Pict. 1 9 - Sl ic3 r in te rf ace 1. Add button loads mo dels in to Sl ic3 r. 2. Delete and Delete A ll b utto ns re mo ve th e model (s) fro m Slic3 r. 3. Opens the detailed settin gs o f prin t , fila me nt a nd prin te r . 4. When the model is re ady fo r prin t th is butto n g enera te s th e .g co de file . 5. Quality / Speed settin g o f a prin t 6. Material selection 7. Printer selection 8. Right-click on model o pens th e me nu w it h ro ta te , re size a nd o th er o ptio ns 9. Type of model preview 10. Model preview 35
9.4 Bundled 3D mod els We asked couple known 3 D d esi gners and p re pare d so me p rin ta ble o bje ct fo r yo u to p rin t. They are ideal for the first p rin ts on yo ur new p rin te r. ST L a nd G CO DE file s are a va ila ble after installing the drivers packa ge in “3 D O bje ct s” fo ld er or bundle d o n yo ur S D ca rd . Y ou can check them out at http://w ww.p ru sa 3d.co m/ prin ta ble -3 d-mo dels/ . Pict. 20 - 50 microns tre efro g is co mmo nly use d a s a 3 D p rin tin g b ench mark. 9.5 Print in color with C olorP rint There is a simple way on h ow to cre ate la ye r base d mu lt ico lo re d 3 D p rin ts wit h o ur si m ple ColorPrint app. Pict. 2 1- Mu lt ico lo re d o bje ct p rin te d w it h C olo rP rin t ColorPrint will not w ork corre ctly if yo ur prin t se ttin gs co nta in h op o r z- lif t. T he a pp detects layers in gco de b y tra cki ng in cre ase in Z h eig ht a nd th e h op/zl if t d oes th at multiple times in th e sa me la ye r. T urn o ff th is se ttin g b efo re u si ng C olo rP rin t. T he preconfigured Slic3 r in o ur drive rs offe rs th e Orig in al Pr usa i3 M K2 C olo rP rin t option in the printer selec tio n. 36
● First of all you need to p re pare re gula r gco de w it h co mmo n p rin t a nd fila m ent settings. Save the file . ● Then go to www.pru sap rin te rs .o rg a nd ch oose Colo r Pri nt in th e h eader m enu. ● Drag the gcode to fra me a nd cl ick on Add c h an ge butto n. ● Find the height of th e la ye r w here yo u w ant to ma ke th e co lo r ch ange. T his ca n b e easily found in Slic3r under ta b “L aye rs. ” The sca le a lo ng r ig ht si de d isp la ys th e height of individual la ye rs. Se t th is numb er to th e b ox. N um ber o f th ese ch anges is unlimited. ● When you are done w it h yo ur mo dif ica tio n, d ow nlo ad th e file . T his file is re ad y to b e printed! Insert the filament which yo u w ant to st art w it h in to yo ur prin te r and st art p rin tin g th e file . When the color change is tri g gere d fro m th e g co de th e p rin te r w ill fo llo w si m ple p ro ce dure : ● Stop moving and retra ct ● Raise the Z by 2 mm and mo ve q uickl y outsi de th e p rin tb ed ● Unload the current fila me nt ● You will get asked to in se rt th e n ew fila me nt. W hen yo u d o so a nd co ntin ue, fila m ent will be pulled into the h ote nd a nd L C D w ill d isp la y “Chan ged c o rre ctly ? ” wit h th re e options: 37
1. “Yes” Everything w ent o k and prin tin g ca n co ntin ue. C heck if th e n ew colo r is clear without any remains of th e p re vious fila me nt - if ye s, ch oose th is optio n to co ntin ue printing with a new colo r . 2. “Filament not loaded ” If th e n ew fila me nt w as not lo aded pro perly , ch oose th is option and the printe r w ill st art th e a uto ma tic fila me nt lo ad a gain . W hen th e fila m ent is loaded properly , yo u ca n ch oose th e “Ye s” optio n a nd th e prin tin g w ill co ntin ue w it h a new color . 3. “ Color not clear” Fila me nt w as lo aded b ut th e colo r is still m ixe d w it h th e p re vi ous filament . Press the b utto n w it h th is optio n a nd th e prin te r w ill e xt ru de m ore fila m ent from the nozzle . When th e colo r is pure w it h out a ny re ma in s of th e p re vi ous fila m ent you can choose the “Ye s” optio n a nd th e prin tin g w ill co ntin ue w it h a n ew colo r . After confirming, printer r etu rn s to th e o rig in al p osi tio n a nd co ntin ues to p rin t. Other options for multi co lo re d prin t is to use th e fila me nt ch ange o ptio n. C hoose the Tune and then Chan ge fila m en t o ptio n d urin g th e prin t . P rin te r w ill p ause th e printing process, u nlo ad th e fila me nt a nd si gnals yo u to in se rt th e n ew fila m ent . T he procedure is the same a s above . You should always use th e sa me ma te ria l o r co mb in e m ate ria ls wit h si m ila r p rin t temperatures and se ttin gs. 9.6 Printing of non-stan dard mod els Slic3r helps you while printin g th e non -standard models a s models w it h ove rh angs a nd/o r models larger than a printin g b ed. 9.6.1 Printing with support material When you print models you ca n fin d sp eci al ca ses dif fe re nt fro m standard prin tin g . T he fir st case is printing with support mate ria l . If you print an object with a g ra die nt lo w er th an 4 5° th e mate ria l ove rh ang w ould b e preventing the object to b e p rin te d co rre ctly. Sl ic3 r allo w s yo u to prin t su ch o bje ct s th anks to the ‘ Printing with support’ fu nct io n . Su pport mate ria l is an e xt ra st ru ct ure p rin te d a s scaffolding for the object - yo u ca n re mo ve th e support mate ria l a fte r th e prin tin g is fin ish ed. Choose the Print Settings ta b (1) a nd cl ick th e Support Mate ria l optio n (2 ) in le ft co lu m n. First you have to check th e Genera te support mate ria l b ox (3) . N ext it e m - Ove rh ang threshold (4) lets you set th e mi nima l a ngle fo r prin tin g th e support mate ria l . S ettin g th is it e m to zero lets the printer detect p ro ble ma tic part s auto ma tica lly and prin t support w here it ’s needed. 38
Enforce support option (5) is use d mo stly wit h sma ll models o r models w it h sm all b ase to prevent the object from bre aki ng o r te arin g o ut fro m th e b ed. Pict. 2 3 - Print w it h support me nu 9.6.2 Large object printing Another special printing case is when prin tin g o bje ct s la rg er th an th e heatb ed . F ir st o ptio n is to resize the object to a p rin ta ble size . R ig ht-cl ick on a n o bje ct in S lic3 r o pens a m enu w it h the Scale … option, then you ch oose Unif o rml y , if yo u w ant to scale d ow n th e model e ve nly; or you can alter the size of a model alo ng th e o ne o f th e a xe s: Along X , Y , Z a xi s … Pict. 2 4 - Size ch ange o f a p rin te d o bje ct 39
If you need to print an object th at d oesn ’t fit th e prin te r , yo u h ave to cut th e o bje ct u si ng Slic3r. Right-click and cho ose th e Cut … o ptio n in me nu. Yo u ca n cut th e o bje ct h orizo nta lly - if you need to perform a cu t in a d if fe re nt a xi s, u se th e Flip ... optio n in th e sa me m enu. Pict. 2 5 - C uttin g th e o bje ct w it h th e Cut o ptio n 40