For many years Zortrax M200(first edition) was my main printer. It offers very good quality but unfortunately it is a closed system with dedicated software. I found it hard to communicate and forward the setting for other users as a lot of them are hidden inside the program.
I decided on Bambu Lab X1-Carbon Combo to be my next printer. It has a dedicated program called Bambu studio and it is able to use other slicers.
It offers the possibility to see more settings and with some tweaking I was able to make my own preset that rivals and I dare to say offers a better quality than my M200 and prints 300% faster. A lot of files in my project rely on proper support. Since my projects were optimized and toleranced using the Z-Suite the first outcome was not very good initially.
Here is what I have learned
I used the basic preset called 0.20mm Standard @BBL X1C first. The print was a bit distorted and extremely loose. Next I tried the 0.20mm Strength @BBL X1C preset. The print was thicker and more stiff but the shapes were distorted. I also had some problems with the bottom layers on both presets.
Using this knowledge gained from the initial prints I created my own preset. I decided to make it based on the 0.20mm Strength @BBL X1C preset. I visually analyzed the zortrax prints and tried to see what was different.The most importants settings turned out to be “Wall loops” set to 1 and setting the top interface spacing to 0. Both ensured that the shape was detailed and geometrically correct and the bottom layer was much better looking and solid. I also set the top and bottom shells to 7.
With these settings the print looked very good and printed at the same speed. I used the X-Y contour compensation to add the thickness that I needed.
If you are having tolerance problems I suggest experimenting with a few parts(the arm for example) till they are nice and stiff and use the setting for the rest of the files since whole project is toleranced the same. My ideal setting was 0,1.In some parts I also experimented with ironing to make the surface more smooth.
Here is a chart of what was changed.
You can also download the presets from this –>link<– or from my Printformers dropbox. I will be updating the files with the newest version if I learn a way to improve them. I mostly used ABS+ from Devil design at 245 but also experimented with some PLA silk with good results.
I was using the cool plate that came with the printer initially but unfortunately it was a bit messy and got damaged easily (I mostly print in ABS). After doing some research I purchased a Wham Bam plate. I had to set the bed temp to 100 but the results are outstanding. No need for glue and the prints come out with ease.
Testing these settings made me improve my Prime print and I will be updating it to version 4.0 along with a 1.5 version of my Turtle Prime 🙂 You can get it in my store
