Reddit reviews Micro Swiss MK10 All Metal Hotend Kit .4mm Nozzle for WANHAO, FlashForge

I'm at 2,000 meters of filament printed with my Maker Select, very happy with it, some tips:

-The Maker Select V2.1 is simply a re-brand and upgrade of the Wanhao Duplicator i3. You'll see that name "i3" thrown around more than Maker select, so just be aware they are nearly synonymous


-First, definitely get the blower fan upgrade: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MJU6JR2/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Buy two of them to have an extra in case of death


-Print out a blower fan housing for that fan: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1025471


The fan upgrade provides a huge improvement in print quality


-Get the all metal hot end from micro swiss: https://www.amazon.com/Hotend-Nozzle-WANHAO-FlashForge-Builder/dp/B01C3HEQZC


-THe "Z-Brace" mod reduces vibrations from the machines movements: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:921948


Some people swear by it, but the print time for those parts is roughly 20-24 hours total. In my 2,000+ meters of print, I haven't bothered because of the print time, but still bought the extra pieces in case I decide to do it.


-I've been mass printing tiles for d&d too, I looked at openforge and decided against that line, but went with TrueTiles instead. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUecWG1W-ss


Highly recommend truetiles over the other tile lines out there - the creator is a crafting genius (look him up on youtube - "wyloch"). They take less plastic, are more versatile, faster print time.


I found that Cura 15.04.x was much better than the recommended Cura 2.5.x. My setting for churning out tiles is something like 210C nozzle, 70 mm/s, 55C bed, 0.25 resolution, 0.8 shell, 10% fill, 2mm retraction, 20mm/s retract speed, 60mm/s travel speed, no brim/raft, no supports. You should print at resolution multiples of 0.04 (because of the way the filament feed gear works), ie. 0.08, 0.12, 0.16, 0.2, etc. I'm going to switch to 0.24 resolution for tiles. I do 0.12 for small figures. The printer can reliably print resolution 0.08 right out of the box (lower the speed to ~35 mm/s) but takes a long time to print.

-The black material on the heated bed is call Buildtak - be careful not to puncture it with the supplied putty knife. Get some blunt tools such as https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01A81FXMK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

-you don't need any tape, glue stick, hair spray, for buildtak

-Be sure not to use any acetone or alcohol on Buildtak - both will ruin it.

-Apparently you don't really even need to heat the bed with buildtak, the stuff is super effect with first layer adhesion running at room temp. I ruined my original buildtak by using the supplied putty knife to remove a print that was so super stuck to the bed because I kept it heated. Doesn't hurt to keep it heated though, but be aware heat + buildtak = much adhesion

-That slight lip on the butterfly's bottom layer is due to the settings of first layers being laid down slightly thicker than the others. Sometimes called "elephant's foot" it can also be caused by the nozzle being too close to the bed, which will smush those initial layers more than needed. Closer nozzle = more smushed first layer = better adhesion, but with buildtak you can get away with keeping the nozzle further away, and adjusting your cura settings for a first layer thickness equal to the rest of the print

Flash Forge Creator Pro. I had a lot of problems with it out of the box with clogging in the nozzles and things sticking to the build plate. After adding a metal hotend and magnetic build plate it has worked amazingly with no issues. I see the magnetic build plate is out of stock, so not sure where you can get those now, but being able to just flex the plate and have pieces pop right off is great.

How quickly were you printing your pieces? Some of the parts I saw in your album looked a bit on the rough side (overhangs, perhaps?). Meaning no disrespect of course, I think your projects are awesome! I have a Maker Select and I can get some really nice quality prints without going excruciatingly slow, so I was just curious.

Can I ask what mods you have on your printers? I saw one of them has the support braces, but have you experimented at all with other things? If so, how did they effect your prints?

The only mods I have done are installing an all metal hotend and printing off a new vent for the front fan. I used this one in particular (with a 40mm fan). The hotend mod on it's own significantly improved my print quality, and the vent made printing more intense overhangs a lot less messy.

Either way, those are some great builds! I love the look of the laser rifle. :)

If you can't get the piece of metal out all you really need is a new hotend, possibly just the nozzle but might as well upgrade. A common all metal hotend upgrade is the microswiss > https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01C3HEQZC/

This will work for your printer

Micro Swiss MK10 All Metal Hotend Kit .4mm Nozzle WANHAO, FlashForge, Dremel Idea Builder https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01C3HEQZC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_88i.AbP0QGBHZ

Nozzles are all generally brass. Those should be expected to be replaced from time to time. They are relatively cheap. The Microswiss upgrade is more than just a nozzle. It replaces the stock hotend with all metal. In your stock hotend is a PTFE tube that can cause jams, will deform if heated too high, and prevents you from using certain materials. The microswiss is a relatively inexpensive and easy way to fix this.

I recommend the block too: https://www.amazon.com/Micro-Hotend-SLOTTED-Cooling-Wanhao/dp/B01E1HANLS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1503589251&sr=8-1&keywords=microswiss

However you can save a little money:
https://www.amazon.com/Hotend-Nozzle-WANHAO-FlashForge-Builder/dp/B01C3HEQZC/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1503589251&sr=8-3&keywords=microswiss

Micro Swiss MK10 All Metal Hotend Kit .4mm Nozzle WANHAO, FlashForge, Dremel Idea Builder https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01C3HEQZC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_Xj7Dzb5FTEP7R this is the one I bought from amazon

1. borosilicate glass plate + silicone thermal pads to evenly distribute the heat. (cut pads in 2inch squares and place them in a grid. The glass plate will sit on top of the pads)
   
   
2. D4 extruder gear upgrade
   
   
3. 50mm radial blower fan for DIIICooler upgrade
   
   
4. 8mm or 5/16" threaded rods for Z-brace upgrade
   
   
5. Micro Swiss All-metal hotend
   

Which one did you buy this one?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01C3HEQZC/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1526789946&sr=8-4&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=micro+swiss+mk10+all+metal+hotend+kit&dpPl=1&dpID=31PL9jMit-L&ref=plSrch

Had to get spare aluminum strip, and aluminum blocks from FFCP directly.
my glass bed from amazon https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NY8F172/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
thermocouples from amazon as well https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00QKQ8G0E/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1 note they are 4mm and 24volt, thats unique to flashforge, my model at least.
and heating elements from amazon as well https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00SUYVLYC/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1 again note the 24v specialty, apparently flashforge is one of the few that uses that, everyone else is on 12v or something?
and lastly but most importantly, the all metal hot end. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01C3HEQZC/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1 dual printing sucks, i just run 1 nozzle.

Did you print using the generic filament they give you? I also just purchased this printer and printed the same thing but I used Hatchbox filament and it printed perfect. I wish I had a better answer but I'm also new to printing. If you haven't ordered one of these yet https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01C3HEQZC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 order it right meow well worth the $$ and a glass bed will make your print bottoms butter smooth https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00QQ5Q3BI/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I bought the Maker Select V2 a few weeks ago, so I'll give you a dump of what I've bought so far:

MOSFET - You'll also need some 14 gauge wire, spade connectors, and something (like velcro) to mount it inside the case.

PEI Sheet - After going through tape/hairspray/glue this is what you'll end up wishing you started with. I bought some standard window glass from a big box store and had them cut it to size. I used the thermal pads at first, but I prefer just clipping it on. This way I can have 4 different glass beds to swap among.

Raspberry Pi 3 - OctoPrint is so much nicer than transferring the sd card back and forth.

Fan - DiiCooler or CiiCooler or a few others you can print out that are compatible with this fan (I think, I haven't finished printing them yet).

Y carriage plate - Not sure what the difference between this and yours is - I haven't installed mine yet).

MicroSwiss

Also ordered a couple rolls of Inand PLA from MicroCenter online.

I did this one

I am already running this but have not yet recieved this
EDIT: I just saw the Microswiss extruder plate. I have not purchased that. If you have it, do you recommend it?

The OEM in mine was a shroud of metal with a plastic feed tube. The material of that tube melts slightly below ABS temps (230C).

Original
New

The $50 version includes a replacement for the cooling block. I got the $38 version and reused the original cooling block, and it works fine. Here's a link to the cheaper one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01C3HEQZC

https://www.amazon.com/Hotend-Nozzle-WANHAO-FlashForge-Builder/dp/B01C3HEQZC
Edit: AS much of a clone the QIDI is, I personally can't guarantee it'll be compatible.

Got two of them.

Looks like you have a clog in your nozzle. Happened to me recently and i had to end up swapping the whole thing out.

Do your self a favor and grab one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Hotend-Nozzle-WANHAO-FlashForge-Builder/dp/B01C3HEQZC/

Its an all-metal hot end upgrade that is all sorts of better than what came stock on your printer and really easy to install. It will also fix the issue you're having right now.

Otherwise you need to figure out a way to get what ever is clogging your print head and causing you to under extrude out.

I am using the Micro Swiss mk10... https://www.amazon.com/Hotend-Nozzle-WANHAO-FlashForge-Builder/dp/B01C3HEQZC

I used the replacement PTFE as well and it didn't work. I then tried cutting my own and still couldn't get it quite right. here's everything you need for the all metal replacement. It's incredibly painless to switch over and my prints are extremely consistent. I will say though that I know people have had troubles with the microswiss occasionally, so it's not a miracle worker.

210-215 so far. The printer auto heated to 215, then I tried at 210 since that's what the Hatchbox directions said. Is this the hotend? I actually already purchased this but didn't install it yet. So I should purchase this as well? Thanks so much for the help!