Kit build and first prints  

Kit build and first prints

I've had my Prusa i3 kit from prusa3d.com for a few weeks now and I thought I'd share my experiences. This is my first experience with 3D printing.

The kit was shipped the day after I ordered and was delivered to the US in just a few days. The packaging was excellent with all the parts in well marked boxes and bags. The only problem was that the glass bed was cracked - but that was easily replaced locally for a few dollars.

Building the kit was easy. Much easier than I expected. The online manual combined with the labelling of the parts made it simple to put together. And while I had other tools, I only used the ones supplied. It took me about 8-10 hours and I was being slow and deliberate. I only had two points of confusion. One was how tight to make the belts (make them very tight!) and which fan plug and direction to use for the hot end cooling fan.

My first print was pretty ugly because I didn't load the slic3r default config but once I did the prints turned out much better. I recommend that everyone use the material guide on the prusa3d.com website - I've had very few problems with prints not sticking.

I'm still using the default steps in the electronics. My next project is to do a better calibration on the steps but I think it is only off at worst by 1% or so.

Attached is a picture of some of my prints so far.