21

I thought the tronxy also came with a Bowden as apprised to the A8’s direct drive extruder

22

That’s true

23

The choice of a full metal hotend or not depends on what you want to print. Essentially you can print PLA with ease on a hybrid (plastic/metal hotend, not all metal) hotend, but other more robust materials (like PETG, Nylon, etc.) will require the upgrade. I have noticed my V6 jams significantly less than my hybrid nozzles, and generally have no clog/jam issues with it (unless I swap PLA with a high-temp material and accidentally crystallize the PLA - that’s my fault though). I would never go back to a different hotend now that I’ve used the V6, and am planning on swapping my other hotends with Volcanoes or V6s, depending on the printer.

Upgrading the extruder and the motor is more a reliability choice, as this will ensure the extruder is actually pushing the correct amount of filament into the hotend for printing. An unreliable extruder causes a whole host of problems with 3D printing, and I generally would recommend upgrading to a trusted, reliable extruder if you can.

24

Ok, it was just one of the reviews on the link you had was saying it was a Tronxy.

25
26

Could u link a 5v sensor that you think would work well? Thanks for your time!

27

Sorry, I have never used such sensor. The one I got is this one: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LWNCY4C/ref=oh\_aui\_detailpage\_o08\_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

That’s a 12v NPN sensor that works with the Skynet Firmware, if you don’t plan to install Skynet on your printer then you need to get a PNP sensor instead (or at least that’s what I have heard from Anet stock firmware users, I have never used autoleveling with the stock firmware to be honest and I believe the stock firmware doesn’t even have an autoleveling feature, only end-stop detection)

I just did some searching and could not find a cheap 5v inductive sensors, only 12v (there is a 5v sensor but is expensive, here)

If you don’t want to make a voltage divider my advice is to purchase an optocoupler instead:

-Get this 12v sensor

-Get a 5v optocoupler relay like this one

That way, you can power your inductive sensor with 12v from the power supply, then connect the output of the sensor (which is 12v) to the input of the optocoupler as a trigger, power the optocoupler with the 5v from the printers board (from the Z endstop connector 5v pin) and then wire the output of the optocoupler (5v) to the input pin of the Z endstop pin of the board.

I know it sounds complicated but it is not, and it will save you the wiring and soldering work of the voltage divider

28

Ok, so a friend told me to invest a bit more and get a prusa i3 v2. To me they look extremely similar. What would be the $100-200 difference in? Should I invest in a prusa instead of the anet a8?

29

The Prusa comes stock with everything you’d be upgrading on the A8 (V6 hotend, motors, PSU, etc.), and has a more sophisticated firmware (can autocorrect any skew in the axes, self leveling, etc.). I own a Prusa i3 MK2, and it’s a fantastic printer. Definitely one of the best, if not the best printers I have owned and worked with for it’s price point.

30

The Anet A8 is a clone of the Prusa I3, and the V2 doesn’t have many differences from V1 other than the autoleveling, stronger frame and some minor updates. If you buy an Anet a8 and install the autoleveling sensor, it’s pretty much like having a Prusa I3 v2

31

This question is for Olivler as well, in your opinion do you think I should just buy a Prusa i3 V2 or MK2 instead of the Anet A8? My knife sold for $250 and I would only be adding $50-100 depending if I can find an ebay seller of a real prusa i3.

Or a monoprice maker select 3d?

32

The Prusa is an investment, so in my opinion, you might be better off starting with a cheaper printer and working up to a Prusa if you use it often enough. Seeing as it’s your first printer, you may not want to invest $700+ (for a new MK2) on something you may not use often enough to justify the price. If you get an A8 or Maker Select (which is also a good machine for the price), and end up not using it too often, you’re only $200 or so at a loss. If you can find a decent Prusa i3 in your price range, then definitely pick it up!

For me, the Prusa was an easy choice because I’ve been printing enough to justify the price. A new Prusa i3 MK2 also has a 7+ week lead time currently, so you’d be in for a bit of a wait.

33

My mistake, a friend is helping me with the “research” and had https://www.amazon.com/REPRAPGURU-RepRap-Printer-Plastic-Company/dp/B01KD6T7Z4/ref=sr\_1\_3?s=industrial&ie=UTF8&qid=1489101326&sr=1-3&keywords=prusa+i3+mk2 and told me it was an actual Prusa I3. So really this Anet A8 FDM 3d Printer Precision RepRap DIY & LCD USA Ship for sale online | eBay and the one listed above are the same thing except one is more expensive.

Now that I know I have $250 it would be between the A8 and the maker select. Would the maker have just as many upgrades to the A8? Or is the maker already have everything that I would most likely need?

34

Get the Anet A8 :wink:

35

Ok, I know i am second guessing myself. Could you just list your reasoning on the A8 instead of the monoprice? I am just curious since the monoprice’s build quality seems like it would last longer. Also, I do not know much about 3d printing and having to upgrade components is doable, but might be difficult.

Honestly if the monoprice doesn’t need upgrading then I might save money spending $50 in the long run.

36

The monoprice has a smaller print area, and cannot be moded, or at least I don’t know of any mods you can install on it

37

You can mod it, but not as easily as the A8. One of my co-workers has one and he’s modded it. It’s prints great, but there’s not much you can do about the small build volume.

38

Do you know if they use the same motor or extruder?

39

The Bed is apparently the same size. The monoprice lists it as 8 inches and the A8 is 210 mm, which is about 8 inches.