Review on 🖨️ ANYCUBIC Resumable Filament Printing - Enhanced for Inches by Craig Lovro

First of all, I have experience in high-precision engineering jobs. I used to work with 3D printers but personally I didn't have one before purchasing this Mega Pro model. I chose this model as it has several quality of life characteristics and appears to have a solid build quality. My intention with this printer was to learn and hone the basic skills, dial them in to get consistent results, and then look forward to updates or a more performance-oriented platform. Overall, first impressions of the build quality were solid. It was possible not to be afraid that it would fall into pieces, since the frame is strong and composed of two main parts. However, the experience I had after the build was very disturbing - I will not be buying from Anycubic again. In terms of workplace management, I'm not impressed. The SD card slot and cable connector are located on the right side of the printer at the front. Again, the thread hold lever is set by default, meaning your thread spool is in front of both communication ports. You can maneuver the cable under the spool, but it feels like a half measure at best. The power connector is located on the left side of the machine at the rear. While not a critical functionality issue, it does indicate sloppy design. 3D printing can get messy and create all kinds of cuts and messes and is therefore often difficult to maintain. Be wary if tool design makes workflow, space management, and standards maintenance *more tedious*. These omissions made me wonder if anyone bothered to test the design before releasing it for sale. I can't stress this enough, the company that makes the tools you use should *always* care about *how* the tools are used and not just try to follow a checklist of features. Moving on to functionality where my machine failed in a very difficult way. For those of you who are relatively new to 3D printing, one of the first techniques you should learn is how to properly calibrate your new tool. Don't be fooled whether your printer is part of your career, hobby or something else, it serves as a tool to achieve those goals. Accuracy is everything and consistent results are always based on consistent calibration methods. Bed orientation is high on the calibration list. Bed leveling with the sensor on was unreliable - it would get you closer, but not quite. You still have to make manual adjustments with the adjustment knobs. The feel of the buttons was inconsistent. Two of them feel secure in their response and inspire confidence in smooth adjustments. Unfortunately, the other two are loose and sloppy. Normally this would be a minor nitpick, but turns out there's another design oversight here! On my machine, the natural resting place for the Y-axis cables is in direct line of fire with one of the adjustment knobs. The print bed can be moved along these cables, and a loose adjustment knob can be moved through them. I'll let you guess how I know that. To Anycubic's credit, the print bed with this machine was a pleasant experience in terms of adhesion and consistency. I had to do some prep between prints. Clean the waste bed and wipe all the oils off your hands - that's all you need. When using the included scraper, make sure the beveled edge is facing up; It's not difficult to etch a few new marks onto the textured surface. The hot end was something of a happy experience. I had no issues with the extruder clogging, which was a relief, but the fans mounted in the printhead itself were a nuisance at best. There's an unholy mix of gasps, vibrations, and cries for mercy that have built up in the short time I've had the printer. However, noise is not the biggest issue for me. Which brings me to why my machine has a one-star rating - my printer was only able to make a few relatively quick prints in a couple of weeks. When prints fail, I find that the nozzle is being pushed into the print. The point of failure was inconsistent in terms of print head position and print time. I have no clear indication as to why these prints failed other than the "Hot Station Complete" message on the display. Incomplete printouts aren't the worst part of this recurring problem; The biggest problem is that I find the bed and nozzle temperatures are held at their print settings indefinitely, despite failed prints and a "Hotend Finished" message on the display. Let me repeat that again, the printer hasn't completed its job and is showing a message that it's heating up complete, BUT WILL HEAT INDEFINITELY until I tell the machine to stop printing or turn off the power. verification) from a special laptop. The environment is controlled by temperature. I've rebuilt the printhead using a spare hot end that came with it, but still haven't had any success solving this problem. As for troubleshooting, I'll check the soldering next. There have been numerous reports of poor soldering resulting in resistance problems (overheating) that can lead to similar print failure scenarios. If I have anything worthwhile to review in terms of tech support, I'll update this review. To my knowledge, this printer has now become a fire hazard. Does Revain have a fire rating? Got to. for this printer. This printer is a fire hazard.