Assembling a CR-10 - Any "gotchas" to be aware of?

[PNWMaker]

I'm awaiting delivery of a Creality3D CR-10S 3D and I'd like to know if there are any "gotchas" or tricky bits to be aware of when assembling the printer.

I got the 10S 3D, the "upgraded" version (according to Gearbest).

FWIW, I'm very familiar with assembly and repair of all sorts of electromechanical stuff, and it's because of that I'm asking ahead of time.

I don't have any concerns about doing the assembly itself, I just want know if there are any steps in the manual that are unclear or wrong, out-of-date, confusing, etc. I'd like to avoid putting parts of it together only to have to take them back apart later to fit a cable or belt or bracket.

To put it another way: What if anything would you have liked to have someone tell you before you began assembly of your CR-10 printer?
Is there anything you would have done differently?

[GrueMaster]

You'll find that the 10S is fairly simple to assemble, but I see a lot of people do simple mistakes on other forums (Facebook, Thingiverse). Namely, they forget to actually tighten the couplers between the Z axis motors and the threaded rods.

Another common issue is the supplied glass. If you have problems getting the print bed level in the center, when the sides are ok, this is why. Simple fix is to get a mirror, as mirrors are manufactured differently with 0 distortions. You can find a 6 pack at Home Depot, Lowes, Ikea, etc.

Beyond that, the printer is fairly stable. Good luck.

[LePaul]

Not sure if this is your first printer or what....but a good video to review

[PNWMaker]

Thank you Gruemaster and LePaul.

This is my first 3D printer so I know I have a lot to come up to speed on. I have a week or so before it arrives so I'll be trying to learn as much about it as I can.

• Since this is my first 3D printer, what kind of tools, supplies, or add-on things would you all recommend I get? I'm thinking maybe some extra nozzles and a cleaning kit, but there must be more than that. (I do have plans to buy a bunch of filament, but not just yet.)

• For slicing software, what do you recommend? I just moved to a Linux box, but I also plan to install Win7 in a VM so I can run it for some of the stuff that won't run under Wine.

[GrueMaster]

I use Ubuntu exclusively, and run Cura just fine. Not sure, but I believe Simplify 3D also has a Linux version, but that app isn't free. There are others to be sure, but these are the two top slicers, and Cura now has CR10 profiles (not sure how accurate they are, I have had my own for a year).

First thing I would print is a strain relief bracket for the bed power cable.

Next would be bed leveling knobs.

Speaking of leveling, here is a gcode file my son made specifically for the CR10. First, level the bed per the instructions with a sheet of paper, all 4 corners. Then use this print to fine tune. The squares and lines that fill them should be almost translucent, the top will not have any blemishes, and the bottom will be smooth as glass if leveled correctly. If the fill lines don't blend together to make a solid flat surface, you're too high. If the corner squares turn out great, but the center is bad, you have a bad glass top. There are simple fixes for that.

I recommend releveling every few days.

Keep us posted, and don't be afraid to ask questions.

[LePaul]

I think the newer versions has the strain relief. My CR-10S had it stock
I did the bed knobs but have since removed them since I removed the springs and use solid bed mounts with my EZABL bed leveling sensor.

I would watch some videos on doing a few things, like a PID autotune which allows the firmware to calibrate for nozzle heating. And calibrating the extruder esteps...which may sound sort of advanced, but these are ways to fine tune your printer so you can work more on printing once the printer is dialed in.

[PNWMaker]

Thanks for these tips and suggestions; I'll work on them once I get the printer and I'll let you all know how it goes...


Well, it's coming....I'm in the PNW* area so it may be here much sooner than they projected; it wasn't scheduled to arrive until the 13th or so.

2019-01-05 07:11:05 FEDEX SMARTPOST LOS ANGELES, CA Departed FedEx location



*Pacific North West, i.e. Seattle WA

[PNWMaker]

Well I got my CR-10S, now to find a little time and space to put it together and fire it up.

Standby for incoming questions and frustrated rants, lol.

[PNWMaker]

I suppose I should also ask for recommendations on software...

For slicer software I have Cura and Repetier installed, but I'm really interested in seeing what I can use to create and modify 3D models. I'd like to create some of my own and I've no idea of where to start.

I found the TinkerCad.com site which looks like a good place to start, but I'd also like to know what other sites or software I could use for designing my own shapes and models.

What do people here use and/or recommend?

[GrueMaster]

I've used Blender to modify existing STL files, and OpenSCAD to design a few (look for me on Thingiverse). I tend to stick to the open (i.e. free) tools. I don't spend a lot of time on this part of the hobby, and can't justify expensive software when free works just as well.

[TinkerGnome]

but I'm really interested in seeing what I can use to create and modify 3D models. I'd like to create some of my own and I've no idea of where to start.

If you're looking for free parametric modeling software, don't miss FreeCAD.

While for more organic/artistic work there are probably other/better suited possibilities.

[Lez0]

I have played around a little with FreeCad and also Onshape, both are free, Onshape is a lot more powerful.
Try the ones suggested and see which you find the easiest to use for you. You can always change to a more "powerful/less easy to use" later.

[PNWMaker]

Thanks to everyone who responded to my questions, I got a lot of good info out of the posts.

I put my CR-10S together (I'm doing a test print right now) and I have a few observations.

The printed 'manual' is beyond dreadful. The PDF is marginally better, but all in all, they're just awful, lol. I'm a tech writer by trade and if I ever wrote or published something like this I'd be fired on the spot. I understand that English isn't the first language of whoever wrote the manual, but it's cheap and easy to get a proper translation/localization done on a 15-page manual. The graphics are fairly well done but could use more labelling and callouts. Lots more.

The mechanical design is solid and stable with a few minor caveats.The nuts that hold the T-brackets to the base frame and gantry must be rotated 90° or else they won't lock in properly. Unfortunately, the motors and other components mounted to the frame prevented me from being able to see or get to the vertically positioned nuts to make sure they're rotated. Are they clamping properly? I have no idea; probably not.

The filament sensor came with a printed installation/instruction sheet that could have been much, much better. Yikes. There were also a couple of loose screws, one on a coupler and one on the gantry. Not a big deal, but lock washers are dirt cheap- there's no reason not to use them. I'll probably be adding them all over later.

All my griping aside, the printer seems to work great. My first print (a small square cup with divider walls) started to go bad right away, but it wasn't the fault of the printer- I didn't put the tape down firmly enough and it started to delaminate. I aborted the print, reapplied the tape more firmly, and printed again. It's about 1/2 done and it looks perfect. Super crisp, no stringing, nothing wrong at all that I can see.

I'm not sure why they included the tape, from what I understand you can print directly onto the glass bed with PLA, correct? I know some people recommend putting a a light coat of hairspray on the glass.

Anyway, I'll post a pick of my first print when it's done.

[PNWMaker]

Here it is...my first print on the CR-10 S (Sharpie for size reference).

It's not much, but it seems like a good start.

[Lez0]

Hi
I used tape and hair spray on the bed. It works OK but get messy.
I bought these sheets to stick on the bed instead of tape, for PLA they work great, you don't use anything else.
They are OK'ish with ABS, it depends on the size of the print, better with smaller parts.
I would recommend sticking them on glass that way they can be taken off easily, sometime the larger prints stick too well.
I know they do similar in the states but these are the ones I buy, they last for ages before they need to be replaced.