Qidi Tech 1 or Flashforge Creator Pro

[bobo123]

You definitely upset the apple cart ;-). Thank you so much for all of your info.

[bobo123]

Thank you so much! I am going to copy your response and share it with my father so he can benefit from your experience.

[RogerDS]

I own a QIDI Tech 1, and my brother has a Flash Forge Creator Pro. I used his Creator Pro before I purchased the QIDI Tech 1, and thought that the Creator Pro was very nice. It prints fast enough and nice, but so does the QIDI Tech 1. But since working on my QIDI Tech 1, I have found some advantages; it has a “high resolution” setting, which takes all the guesswork out of having to change settings. They will both print two colors, Creator Pro has to have the two files merged into one file before it will print, while the QIDI Tech 1 combines files in a similar way it seems to work faster. The QIDI Tech 1 has a more extensive onboard menu. Both show the cooling fan mode in its present state, the opposite of what you might expect, where it shows “Cooling Fan On”, it is “Off”, and must be turned on for each print. One thing about the high resolution setting. Larger objects seem to encounter problems. More Later.

Roger

[Tech3design]

Not my intent to hijack this thread…but while QIDI fans are listening when I connect to my QIDI via USB to my it is not recognized - at all. Meaning nothing at all happens (no new device recognized by the PC). My only way to use the printer is via the SD card. No big deal, just wondering if I’m missing something?

Also is there a guide somewhere for the Sailfish to fine tune the calibration of the printer? Lots of menu options that I’m not finding explained anywhere. Thanks, and for whatever reason Google doesn’t seem to like me recently.

[RogerDS]

Try disabling your firewall and Windows Defender. Then install the software. If it shows, but will not connect then Go into your Control Panel, and select Printers and Devices. See if your printer is coming up there. If not try installing a new device. Once it installs the new device look at “Printers and Devcies” to see if it is there. You might have to go into properties to select the com port. My QIDI Tech 1 was a problem at first, but I received help here. My QIDI Tech 1 came up on “Com 3”. Use “Replicator Dual” as the printer selection. The slicer type is the replicator 50, or something with 50 in the selection. I do not have it on this system, because I am at the Phoenix College Library.

Roger

[wirlybird]

If you haven’t you will need to install the latest replicator G software to get the driver to load, maybe redo it anyway. Do not plug the printer in until after the driver installs. Should go to port 3 or higher.

Then see if repG will see the printer. Select printer type as replicator dual 1 (not 2). Don’t worry about other software until repg sees it.

If not work from there.

Use USB2 port not 3 to start. Short cable and no hubs, extension etc.

There is no real calibration you should need to do in Sailfish firmware. Here is the manual and it will tell you how to do the calibration cube etc. this is really everything you need to know about Sailfish.

http://www.sailfishfirmware.com/doc/sailfish.pdf

Also do not flash the firmware without first contacting QIDI about it. I believe they use a modified version of Sailfish and a flash will brick the board.

[Tech3design]

Thanks @wirlybird and @RogerDS

Will give those a shot and see how it goes. I figured Windows 10 would at least “see” that something connected regardless of whether there were drivers or not. but it is as if the cable is bad. I will try your suggestions above and if no luck, another cable. If all else fails it is still perfectly usable via the button interface. Thanks again.

[MakeCorps]

I don’t own a Qidi but I do sell and use Flashforge printers here in Australia. As no one has answered your question about the FFCP weight with any figures I’ll answer it for you. The weight you have for a creator pro is wrong as the Flashforge estimated shipping weight is ~21.5kg (~47lbs - this figure is from Flashforge). The printer weight is ~14.8 kg ( ~32.6 lbs this figure is from Flashforge also).

Best of luck with your printer purchase. Flashforge support is generally great and they’re reliable too (so you probably won’t need it), having said that I have no experience with Qidi (maybe they’re good too?).

Merry Christmas to you and your father

[wirlybird]

I wish the hood was taller. The feed tubes and cable rub and push hard on the upper lip in the back. If you shorten the tubes so they don’t rub then they are really starting to stretch on bigger prints. I usually do not engage the rear clips on the corners but let them sit up on top to gain a little more clearance but then have to tape things up to fill the gaps.

[MakerRx]

Flashforge released a redesigned model in 2016. It’s probably the nicest makerbot clone out there now. They got rid of the laser cut hood that you assemble in favor of a solid formed hood. They also added an active cooling fan for PLA printing. Full disclosure I’m a US reseller but if you want to buy one through me I can help you guys get into the 3D printing world… cost effectivly https://www.makerrx.com

[rastoma]

The XY design is more stable than the i3, usually. But regarding the MK2 i3, the only advantage buying directly from Prusa at that price is it’s already built. It’s 3D printed parts along with off-the-shelf parts. The design is excellent. But it’s an open-sourced printer that anyone can download, print out and build. I’m not knocking the printer. It’s an awesome printer and I don’t have to own one to know. But there’s no difference in it and a $400 kit of the exact same printer bought elsewhere. I know that doesn’t apply for the OP since they are looking for an out-the-box solution. I just wanted to reply regarding it being the best printer you can buy today only because it’s coming directly from Prusa himself.

[wirlybird]

“But there’s no difference in it and a $400 kit of the exact same printer bought elsewhere.”

Some of this is not really accurate. Yes, you could download and build and buy all of the parts etc. provided you already have a printer and know exactly the part to get. Certainly doable but at what cost?

Where it changes a little is that the firmware is modified and constantly being improved for the printer specific. Also drivers, a version of Slic3r etc. are made specifically for the MK2. This is a big advantage over the clone kits but you do pay more. Not for everyone though.

[rastoma]

I probably didn’t get my point across well and shouldn’t have said anything at all LOL because the OP needed an out of the box solution, not a kit… again, not putting down the MK2 at all… it’s a pretty awesome printer. I was just pointing to the comment that the MK2 was one of the best printers available solely because it was assembled by the guy that designed it. If someone else were to put together the same kit, using the same printed files, same firmware, etc. it should be the same printer. There’s a premium included in the price when just because you’re buying directly from Prusa.

I was just making a comparison (failed at it lol), not at all putting down Prusa or the machine itself. If cost wasn’t an issue, I would buy an assembled unit directly from Prusa in a minute just for the ease of being able to start using it immediately.

[Printneo]

Hi

I have a Powerspec 3D pro. I bricked the FW trying to upgrade to Sailfish rev 7.7.

Would you have any recommendations as far as MB replacement?

Thank you

Chris

[wirlybird]

Unless the board is fried I would google and see how to fix it. Also contact the maker and see what they say. It may not be to hard to get it back.

I wouldn’t give up yet!! As far as a replacement board I am not sure.

[A_Nony_Mouse]

You’ve probably already bought a printer, so this is more for anyone else finding this post and is considering the Qidi Tech 1.

I bought a Qidi Tech 1 about a month ago and I love it. It is my first 3d printer so I don’t have anything else to measure it against. However… although I love the thing it’s got some interesting “quirks” to say the least.

I haven’t weighed the printer but I don’t think the printer itself weighs 50lbs. I think that’s the shipping weight. I’ve picked the printer up several times and to me it doesn’t feel anywhere near 50lbs, so that means either I’m stronger than I think I am or the printer itself is lighter than what it says.

The printer comes with two spools of filament to get you started; one spool of PLA and one spool of ABS. It also comes with a few other things including some spare parts (fuses, clips, and a spare servo controller questionably inserted into a piece of foam that isn’t ESD safe), an SD to USB adapter, an extra printing bed mat, and a small tool kit with extra screws, screwdrivers, and hex key wrenches. The only things it doesn’t include that in my opinion it REALLY needs to come with are a soldering iron and a roll of 1/2" Kapton tape. I can’t speak to anyone else’s experience with the Qidi Tech 1 so I’m only speaking for myself here. The Qidi Tech 1 kinda reminds me of a Lada car. It’s built like a freaking tank and it gets you where you need to go. It’s the assembly and reliability that’ll have you scratching your head wondering what the person assembling it was thinking.

Two days into owning it I got a TOOL 0 Temp failure (unable to read the temp sensor). Although I ended up figuring out what the problem was in the end, I had contacted their tech support VIA Skype and they got back to me immediately with an answer so thumbs up to them on that front. However, the experience didn’t give me the warm and fuzzies since it’s obviously a known issue. The fix is to literally unplug the temp sensors from the control board and plug them back in. It’d work fine for a few days but it got annoying enough where I just left the bottom of the unit off so I could reseat the connections easier.

This morning the heated baseplate stopped heating up. The fix? Reseat the connections.

At this point I had enough of this stupidity and decided to permanently fix the problems with the printer. I literally went through every connection one by one and examined them. I found that only half the connections to the quick disconnects were tinned, and those that were tinned were poorly done. So right now *every* lead with a quick disconnect has been tinned properly (or re-tinned with some good solder) to prevent corrosion and to give it a better electrical contact. I also squirted some Deoxit on the quick disconnect terminals too.

Don’t get me going on the horrible wire management job they did too. Although that sounds like a nit-pick, the way they had thrown the wires into the bottom half was blocking the airflow over the servo controllers, so to give my unit a fighting chance at long term survival I went and cleaned that up too.

Then there’s the issue of the cabling going to the X axis servo. They literally zip tied it in such a way that it rubs against a sharp edge on the right side of the case. After a few prints you’ll start to see some light shavings from the wiring housing being left on the case. The first thing you’ll probably want to print out is a parametric chain guide to stop that from happening (there’s a really good one on Thingiverse: Cable chain for Replicator Dual Xmotor by stephenmhall - Thingiverse ). Then there’s the issue of the filament guide tubes lying directly against the back of the printer, and because of that when you first put a spool of filament in the back it’s very easy for the filament to come off the spool and get tangled. With that said, after you print the chain guide you’ll want to print one of these out too to stop that from happening and to save your sanity: Qidi Tech Filament Alignment Bracket by KludgeGuru - Thingiverse .

I mentioned that the printer should come with a roll of 1/2" Kapton tape, and what the tape is for is to help secure the build surface to the bed. The build surface is stuck to the bed with some adhesive, but what kept happening to me is that the edges would lift off no matter how many times I’d press them back into place. The solution? Use the Kapton tape to secure the build surface to the bed along the edges.

Then there’s the whole unpacking of the printer in the first place.

The printer comes with a manual that explains how to unpack and set up the printer for the first time. The manual isn’t printed though; it’s on the provided 8GB SD card, and that card comes shipped with the printer pre-inserted into the SD card slot. The SD card slot just so happens to be INSIDE the printer, so to get at it (and the electronic manual that explains how to unpack the printer) you have to unpack the printer first. Obviously someone didn’t think that through. I mean it’d have made more sense to put the SD card into the SD to USB adapter since you can get to it easily, but what do I know, right?

Although it may sound like I’m nit picking and ripping apart the Qidi Tech 1, in reality I REALLY like my printer. For the price it’s hard to go wrong. Just be aware of these potential issues and work-arounds in case you have a problem though and know that going in you may encounter them. I’m not saying YOU WILL encounter them, I’m saying that I did encounter these issues.

[A_Nony_Mouse]

Just a quick follow-up. It’s been a week since I re-did tinned all the connections going to the control board and so far I haven’t had a single error pop up. I’m fairly confident in saying that the root cause of the “TOOL x” errors/heated plate not working is due to poor and/or non-existing tinning of the leads.

[jabernethy]

This is probably an obvious question, but what is re-tinning? I have a Flashforge Creator Pro and I have had the same problem since a month and a half after I got my machine (coincidentally after the warranty ran out.) Aftertaking apart the machine and putting it back together several times and checking the connections, I started working with Flashforge’s support team. First they had me replace the thermocoupler. When that didn’t work, I replaced the heating cartridge. Next I ordered an entire brand new extruder set (over $300) and still had the same message and no working printer. The company has finally admitted defeat and is sending me a new motherboard. It is August and I have been unable to use my 3D printer since the beginning of May. In the meantime, I also have a Flashforge Finder which I like a whole lot better than the Creator Pro. However, the beginning of July I needed a new PTFE tube which is a $3 part. I decided to order two of them. The shipping was $17! After waiting for about three weeks for the part to arrive, I received a message stating that the part was backordered and it would be a few more weeks before I received it. In the meantime, they had already charged my PayPal account for the parts! In addition, there is nowhere else I can get the part. Therefore, I have two Flashforge printers sitting in my house and I haven’t been able to print for over a month.

I came on here to see if Qidi was any better, and it doesn’t sound like it. I must warn you all, though, that Flashforge is NOT the way to go. They will break down or at the very least need part maintenance. Sometimes the parts can be found on Amazon. However, if they cannot, you can be stuck with a non-working printer for months!!! In addition, the shipping is outrageous! They send everything UPS and the shipping cost is sometimes higher than the cost of the parts. They do not take into consideration that you are ordering more than one part, either. They add a shipping cost to each part.

[A_Nony_Mouse]

Tinning is applying solder with a soldering iron to the ends of the electrical connections. Here’s a video that shows what I’m talking about.

Qidi support is actually REALLY good. They monitor web forums and reach out to people having issues.

What problem are you having exactly?

[Iceman24k]

I have sold five of these and still can’t can’t their reseller deals LOL how did you do it lol