3D Test Prints

History

In January of 2021, after doing some research, I ordered a Creality 3D Ender-5 Printer Kit. Due to a lot of life circumstances, to this day I still have not assembled this unit. However, I did see a lot of feedback from others using this unit and there were some issues that I realized I lacked the experience to solve. During this time, Creality sent me an auto-leveling module for this unit, but I could not find a page that really described how to install and set this module up. It also required a firmware update to use, but I could not seem to find the firmware file I needed, so I started to focus on my Laserbox projects instead.

Then in July of 2022, I started a new job where there were several 3D printers in use. One of my co-workers is an avid 3D printer hobbyist and was helping someone with a project at some point and I told him about my still boxed unit. He suggested I sell it and get a newer model that the company was planning on getting.

This would be the Creality Ender-3 S1. So, I went ahead and ordered one. When the unit arrived, I was impressed by the packaging and how much thought went into it. Everything was neatly packed and well protected.

Assembly

Assembling this unit was super easy, thanks to it already being mostly assembled. The printer came in 3 main sub-assemblies that needed to be put together as a whole, and then the wiring harnesses that needed to be connected.

The base and print bed (Y-Axis) were already connected together. There’s a power cable on the back with provides power to the print bed heater. There’s a cable assembly on the left which connects to the stepper motors and print head assembly. There’s a cable on the right which connects to the control screen. On the front is an SD Card slot and a USB-C connector.

Once the X-Z frame is connected, the stepper motors and print head assembly can be connected. Finally, the control screen, filament spindle and filament sensor are attached / connected. Calibration was more difficult than I thought for this printer, being that is has the auto-level feature. I just could not get it to be consistent with leveling. Often the first layer would not stick to the print bed, causing issues. Once the first layer was solid, the results were amazing.

First Prints

The SD Card that comes with this unit has the firmware pre-installed, but it also has some test / sample prints which are all ready to print. That is, you don’t need to run them through a slicer. My first print, which I used for calibration was a little bunny rabbit, however, since I had to restart so many times, I didn’t take any photos of that print.

My first print after calibration was this Asian cat. Once the print was completed, the supports were removed. The results were better than I expected!

The next thing I decided to print was a “handle” that was included on the SD Card. It is designed to fit the front of the print bed to make it easier to pull the bed forward after printing to remove your print. I ended up printing two of them. Not sure why. Now I have a spare, I guess. The print quality of these units isn’t as good as I expected. I’m thinking (hoping) it’s just related to the model.

Resources

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