MK3S time based maintenance question
Hello all! I need some advice. I have a MK3S I purchased back in 2018, and it has seen on/off usage ever since (I am guessing probably no more than 100-150 days print time total, primarily PLA with a handful of PETG prints) with a couple car trips thrown in for fun. It has been printing beautifully without issue. For the most part I have kept up with basic maintenance when I have been printing. My question is, at this point, giving the length of time since purchase, should I do a more thorough overhaul? IE strip it down to check rods for wear/straightness, thorough cleaning, potentially replace bearing sleeves (up in the air on this one based on the needing to pack with grease/ok from factory debate), not sure if belts would need replacing, etc. I am planning on purchasing a new printer (up for debate on which one currently) so I am more looking at keeping this one in good working order rather than mod/etc (unless someone has better fans they can recommend, the current method of speed control causes a ticking sound when not at full speed).
RE: MK3S time based maintenance question
I would consider your printer new. If you want something to make it better, consider the Prusa + upgrade for your printer and also get the Hemera Revo extruder upgrade with a 0.6 nozzle to replace your 0.4 nozzle.
Both of these made a great improvement for my printer.
That is very light useage, it would probably benefit from a clean (evict the spiders) but otherwise regular maintenance and lubrication should be enough.
https://help.prusa3d.com/en/article/i3-printers-regular-maintenance_2072
https://help.prusa3d.com/guide/maintenance-tips_23200
Cheerio,
RE: MK3S time based maintenance question
I would consider your printer new. If you want something to make it better, consider the Prusa + upgrade for your printer and also get the Hemera Revo extruder upgrade with a 0.6 nozzle to replace your 0.4 nozzle.
Both of these made a great improvement for my printer.
How much did that affect print time/quality? I have been happy with print quality so far, not sure if the speed gain from switching to a .6mm would be worth it since I am looking at getting a new printer to go along with this one. I will take a look at the +upgrade kit.
That is very light useage, it would probably benefit from a clean (evict the spiders) but otherwise regular maintenance and lubrication should be enough.
https://help.prusa3d.com/en/article/i3-printers-regular-maintenance_2072
https://help.prusa3d.com/guide/maintenance-tips_23200
Cheerio,
That is good to hear.
Thank you both for the responses
RE: MK3S time based maintenance question
The quality and speed of the upgrade was very noticeable with all filaments especially the flexible (TPU) filaments.