Bamboo A1 for a newcomer?

kinger8938

kinger8938

kinger8938

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I have 0 experience with 3D printing, but have admired it from a far. Kind of fancy a new hobby and maybe it's something I can enjoy with my 2 boys aswell

Just wondering where to start and see this model gets recommended a lot?

I also don't really have experience with 3D modelling.

Where would be the best place to start? Also kind of interested from a work point of view. An engineer / machinist by day and have some experience with cad/cam which may translate in a way

Any tips on where to start or am I way off with the above model etc?

Thanks
 
It is pretty much one of the go to starter printers isn't it? I was making plans for one, to make sensory switches for my son and possibly his old school (they get through so many and get charged silly money because 'special needs education'). Also so many other things we could make that would help useful or fun.

Plans have gone out of the window for now due to a rent increase.
 
Do you want to learn about 3d printing, or do you want to model something, hit print and it appear?
 
I bought an A1 as my first FDM (I had done resin printing a while ago).... For the most part, it does "just work"... There's a few hurdles, cleaning the build plate and getting the temperature right. FB and Reddit are pretty active, just a little toxic.
Primarily I print wargaming terrain and other bits and pieces (cool wall light setup that I need to finish my thread on). My eldest son uses the printer to prototype engineering designs he does for school.
 
Conan257 said:
I bought an A1 as my first FDM (I had done resin printing a while ago).... For the most part, it does "just work"... There's a few hurdles, cleaning the build plate and getting the temperature right. FB and Reddit are pretty active, just a little toxic.
Primarily I print wargaming terrain and other bits and pieces (cool wall light setup that I need to finish my thread on). My eldest son uses the printer to prototype engineering designs he does for school.
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Yeah I'm not overly sure on what it's applications would be for me personally once the initial wow factor wears off, but I'd like to think we could use it for fun/hobby style stuff.
 
Bambu for the price are the most user friendly way to get into 3d printing. When you just want to print something you can go on makersworld via the phone app, use a preset and print it right off your phone.

The desktop app is good enough so that when you want to use your own model / learn to slice, it works fine too.

Advice would be to stay off Reddit regarding them as there’s a lot of people unhappy that they’ve bought into a closed environment and Bambu are locking down exploits that left it open.

Prusa are great , but overpriced if you ask me.
 
kinger8938 said:
Hmmmm option 2, but surely both go hand in hand
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No, if you get something basic like an Ender 3, you will find out the 'issues' that exist with certain parts of its construction, cooling, head soak, bed trimming and so on, these can be fixed and the printer tinkered with to a huge extent..
Or, you just get a 3d printer with direct drive, bed leveling, cameras and so on and after a quick calibration, you hit print and off it goes.
 
I have had an X1C here for just over 2 years now and have not had a single issue with the machine, I also bought an A1 last summer no problems with it at all just set the machine up straight out of the box, all I do is wipe the build plate with ipa after every print.

Can't fault either of the machines, they do exactly what they were designed to do, produce high quality prints with no need to fiddle around on the machine unlike the Creality machines that I used to own.
 
I think I'd like a minimum hassle approach as a gateway.
montymint said:
Bambu for the price are the most user friendly way to get into 3d printing. When you just want to print something you can go on makersworld via the phone app, use a preset and print it right off your phone.

The desktop app is good enough so that when you want to use your own model / learn to slice, it works fine too.

Advice would be to stay off Reddit regarding them as there’s a lot of people unhappy that they’ve bought into a closed environment and Bambu are locking down exploits that left it open.

Prusa are great , but overpriced if you ask me.
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Can I ask what you mean by closed environment? Sorry I just don't want to miss something

Thanks :)
 
kinger8938 said:
I think I'd like a minimum hassle approach as a gateway.


Can I ask what you mean by closed environment? Sorry I just don't want to miss something

Thanks :)
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basically 3d printer purists like the open source nature of the hobby.

Bambu labs are basically like the apple of 3d printers. So the eco-system is closed, meaning spare parts are for the most part (there's a few things you can get 3rd party) bought from them - things like replacement hot end assemblies, gantry parts etc. See https://uk.store.bambulab.com/collections/spare-parts-for-a1-series?skr=yes for example. All the parts tend to be in stock and are fairly priced when compared to buying first party things from brands like prusa.

Filament can be any brand, but some of the nice features (like knowing how much is left on each spool) only really works if you use their filament, as they use closed source RF tags in the spools.

Although there's the worry that planned obsolescence could creep in, I think for the amount of time most people stick with a single printer before moving on to something with better features - this won't be a problem. Similarly by being stuck to their firmware and for the most part, their software - you won't lose out when weighing it up to the convenience their already good package provides IMO. It's like an iphone vs a fully jailbroken android back in the day - the android could technically do more, but most of the time you would be happy with the apple offering , with a lot less of the hassle making sure everything was working well on the android.

Personally, I print with a mix of their stuff and cheap **** from amazon like E-sun, which is about a tenner or more cheaper per roll.
 
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My experience - 2 years with an Ender 3. Lots of tinkering and mods (hardware and software), although I'd not say it was ever stable for a huge length of time.

Bought a Bambu P1P about a year ago. Basically no issues whatsoever since, hundreds of successful prints. Don't miss the ender in the slightest. Yes, sure I learned a lot, but none of it is actually needed now! If I was doing it again I'd go straight to the Bambu, modelling and learning the intricacies of the slicer is a far better use of your time imo.
 
Thanks @montymint for that rub down. I doubt that would affect me as a simple starter/hobbyist at all. I can understand some concerns there, but from a quick Google and YouTube search it seems a bit OTT like a bit of a witch hunt from the outside looking in :D

So if I wanted to try my hand at 3d modelling, which is the current best go to method for a beginner?

I have some experience in CAD via work but no 3d modelling as such.

We use a program called OneCNC for our mills from time to time and I know my way around a dimensional drawing and so on. Hopefully this will translate to a degree.
 
kinger8938 said:
Thanks @montymint for that rub down. I doubt that would affect me as a simple starter/hobbyist at all. I can understand some concerns there, but from a quick Google and YouTube search it seems a bit OTT like a bit of a witch hunt from the outside looking in :D

So if I wanted to try my hand at 3d modelling, which is the current best go to method for a beginner?

I have some experience in CAD via work but no 3d modelling as such.

We use a program called OneCNC for our mills from time to time and I know my way around a dimensional drawing and so on. Hopefully this will translate to a degree.
Click to expand...

I think tinkercad is what a bunch of people start on.

I hate modelling so don't do that myself.
 
I started out with an A1 mini then added an A1. Like both for different reasons.

I also started out with Bambu Filament but now I use Overture/eSun or Sunlu PLA+2.0.

I found TinerCAD great for getting my head into it and the process but for anything complex I would be looking at something like Fusion
 
I'm also thinking of an A1 but the creality Hi also looks quite appealing. Any thoughts on how they compare?
 
I've just got an A1, initially it kept knocking the print off the bed by since using 3D printer glue this has been solved and it prints just fine now. As others have said it it pretty user friendly to get started with as a first printer.
 
Elgoo Ventauri is looking promising. They have revised the model slightly so newer batches feature some improvements. Great price on it. I think for ease of use though you still cant beat Bambu currently
 
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