FF Creator Pro - refurbish, upgrade, junk?

[cobnut]

My trusty 2016 FF Creator Pro is showing its age. With over 3200 hours on the clock, almost 9 kilometers of filament, the print quality and reliability is not what it once was. I’m particularly concerned with the extruder assembly - I’m getting occasionally inconsistent feed and hot end problems that I can solve temporarily with a rebuild/clean, etc. are becoming more frequent.

I’m looking to bring it back to youthful performance, but am unsure which way to go. It’s possible to buy a complete new extruder assembly (~ UK£100) and new motors, etc., but I’d be more interested in improving upon what was there before, perhaps trying to move to an E3D solution. I’m not that bothered about retaining dual heads - dual material printing never worked well on this machine - but if a good solution for dual printing exists, I’d consider it.

Has anyone upgraded their FF Pro in this way, or have any tips on which elements might most benefit from servicing?

[wirlybird]

Is it all metals?
Motors should be ok. The drive gears should be replaced and maybe the plastics and springs.
See if you can get any QIDI parts (the Tech-1) on ebay where you are. The whole extruder assembly. Here is an example. This should be the same as the FFCP basically but much less expensive. At least all of the parts are there.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/dual-extruder-for-QIDI-TECH-I-3d-printer/331584942883?hash=item4d3400b323:g:gigAAOSwHnFVgjDU

[cobnut]

Hi @wirlybird thanks, at US$85 for the entire assembly, that’s something of a bargain. No sign of it on the ebay.co.uk site, but the listing you provided says it ships to Europe (for $6 !), so that should be fine.

I may well invest in one…

[wirlybird]

I think the FF one is like $280 for basically the same thing. I bought 3 so far and keep one on hand as a spare.
The only caveat is that the FFCP barrels tend to be just slightly smaller than the QIDI ones. I found that the Micro Swiss all metals are a tiny bit loose in the QIDI cool bar but a wrap of foil does the job fine.

Anyway for the cost all of the parts are there and mostly interchangeable.

It may ship out of China.

[wirlybird]

If you are considering replacing the machine check out the QIDI X-Plus. Single extruder but large build size. I have been testing one for several weeks now and I like it.
One of my favorite features is a controllable cooling fan. I use it a lot for more delicate ABS parts.
Also a very stable bed.

https://www.amazon.com/QIDI-Large-Intelligent-Industrial-Printer/dp/B07FRBMLG3/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1538655605&sr=8-1&keywords=qidi+x-plus

[cobnut]

@wirlybird looks like an interesting machine, but I’m really looking to expand my capabilities and have my heart set on an IDEX machine, probably the new BCN Sigma R19 or, if I win the lottery, the Sigmax R19.

[wirlybird]

I came close to getting a Sigma but in the end just couldn’t justify it. I wanted one for using soluble supports and figured the independent extruders might work better but it is Bowden and the stuff I am using is going to be problematic with that setup.
I am now leaning toward the MK3 with MMU 2.0. Hearing good results from users so far.

In reality I find that I rarely do dual extrusion prints. I did some nice ones on my QIDI X-Pro but I have no real call for them.

Being able to do complex prints with dissolvable supports would be more of a market for me but those are rare also.

I think the MK3 will be a good solution.

[cobnut]

It’s a tough call - especially given that you can get two Mk3’s for the price of one Sigma. It’s a combination of soluble supports and the ability to print simultaneously with two heads that attracts me to the Sigma. Like you, I rarely have a need for actual dual-colour printing. It’s also a bigger bed than I have now, at 297mm x 210mm. I won’t be using it for anything that should have a problem with the Bowden setup (and by the way, the MMU for the Prusa is also a Bowden setup).

My problems with the Mk3 are a lack of enclosure (I do a lot of PETG/CPE printing that really likes a heated enclosure - it’s not always essential, but it helps), and the MMU printing creates huge wastage with the purge block. Joel Telling (3d printing nerd) has a good review of the MMU, and he found that in some cases the purge block was considerably larger than the model itself, though it varies with the model, and I can’t afford to waste like that, especially if I’m printing with PVA, which isn’t cheap.

[wirlybird]

Ok, out of date!! MMU 2.0 is direct drive and 5 material. Joel is reviewing the MMU 1 which I have an unused on for sale.
The new one, MMU 2, along with a newer version of Slic3r PE uses the infill for a lot of transition of colors.
One thing I like is the “use up partial spools” feature. Load it with 5 near empty spools of the same color and it will keep switching to the next one as they run out. I actually do find myself in this situation.
I do a lot of large and very long prints so I usually start with a new spool as I may not be home to make the change out and one of my machines does not like to change on the fly.

For the cost it seems to be pretty good. I just wish it could be used on a MK2!!

Here is a video, I haven’t watched yet but it is recent.

[cobnut]

Ah, sorry! I do like the MMU setup (and that partial reel thing sounds good). I do intend to get a Mk3 at some point, either to replace or supplement my existing Mk2 and would certainly get the MMU. Mind you, by the time I get to that point we’ll probably be on the Mk5 or even higher!

[wirlybird]

Probably so. I will only get the MK3 for the MMU2. My MK2 is a work horse and run most days. I also built a MK2-Zaribo from scratch which is working great.

I think the MMU2 is not the end all but for the cost and to still be able to use the printer as a single filament/color printer without changing things is a nice feature.

I won’t do anything until after the first of the year. I’ll let it get some user time and wait to see what improvements come for it and the MK3.

I am more waiting for QIDI’s new X-Max. I seem to do a lot of larger prints and ABS prints. I use a Guider II now and even though it prints good it has some really stupid design flaws. If the X-Max is as good as it should be the Guider will probably get sold.

Too many printers now!!

[cobnut]

Tell me about it! It seems a new one comes out every day at the moment. I’m very interested in Prusa’s SLA machine - I really miss my Form 2, even though it had problems.

That said, I tend to go with known and trusted manufacturers and, ideally, machines that are in their 2nd version (or more). That’s another reason I like the Sigma R19, this is their 3rd revision, using BondTech extruders and e3D hotends. I’m a big fan of e3D, mainly because their offices are 7 miles away, so useful for emergency parts!