Would you recommend I assemble the MK4S kit first, then Core One upgrade?
Due to procrastination, I have the MK4S kit and the MK4S->Core One upgrade kit. Is it best to just fully assemble the mk4s and get it working properly, then do the upgrade? Or would you recommend combining them somehow to save having to take the mk4s apart? I'm new to 3D printing, so combining them would have to be fairly straightforward, and not require a lot of experience with printing. Thanks.
RE:
>> I'm new to 3D printing
Take your time, fight one battle at a time. Build whatever is easiest, make your own mistakes and learn from them, and proceed when you are confident.
Do you actually need the upgrade for a specific reason? If not, postpone.
Skipping steps is faster but there's a tendency to fall over my feet. "Hell" is multiple problems to solve at the same time.
Preaching to myself here as I have an occasional habit of forgetting those insights 🙂
Build the MK4, get it working, use it for a few months as you start the learning curve and make your first mistakes - it's a little easier for a beginner as everything is open ...
Then, when you are ready, having some experience, do the upgrade.
The learning won't start over as (like buying your second car) it will be a case of knowing the basics and adjusting to the novelty.
Cheerio,
RE: Would you recommend I assemble the MK4S kit first, then Core One upgrade?
Echo the above - get the MK4 kit built. Use it. When you are happy with both the reliability and the results, proceed with the upgrade. It will mean some disassembly all over again, and some degree of duplication, but at least you know everything 'should' work when you reach the final milestone......
RE: Would you recommend I assemble the MK4S kit first, then Core One upgrade?
Echo the above - get the MK4 kit built. Use it. When you are happy with both the reliability and the results, proceed with the upgrade. It will mean some disassembly all over again, and some degree of duplication, but at least you know everything 'should' work when you reach the final milestone......
As of now, I would agree with this. The irony for me is that when I had the MK4 and then the MK4S, I knew nothing about g-code nor the internals of the printer. Why? Because I didn't need to. I turned on the printer and it just worked. With the Core One even though it was a kit upgrade, I didn't expect to be wading into g-code workarounds for nozzle cleaning or scraping powder coating off the frame to ground the x-motor to fix crashing (to name 2 out of 9 things I had to deal with). OK, it's a brand new printer so I get there are teething pains. And I suppose if Prusa didn't get the C1 out when they did, they would rapidly decent into irrelevance... But then I also didn't expect to be a beta tester for a $1200 printer. I've already invested too much to back out now but I do have my eye on SnapMaker U1 (hopefully it lives up to hype).
- Bob Marley
RE: Would you recommend I assemble the MK4S kit first, then Core One upgrade?
One last thing, before building the Core One kit, it's worth picking up a spool of Prusa PC-CF, Prusament PETG orange and PETG black (any brand is OK) and print the spare parts that may or may not be needed with assembling the Core One. There are several threads that list potential spare parts needed. I'll try to find the link to this thread later.
- Bob Marley
RE: Would you recommend I assemble the MK4S kit first, then Core One upgrade?
Thanks for all the advice. I'm going to build the MK4S first and get familiar with it first, then apply the core one kit. Thanks again.
RE: Would you recommend I assemble the MK4S kit first, then Core One upgrade?
Or you could procrastinate a bit further, wait for the release of an improved "Core One S" and corresponding upgrade kit, and assemble that! 😉
RE: Would you recommend I assemble the MK4S kit first, then Core One upgrade?
Hi,
Not sure if this is the place to ask this, but here it goes:
In my case I bought an used MK4 6 months ago and I've been printing and tinkering with it since then. I'm playing with the idea of upgrading to the Core One, but I wonder if it's needed to upgrade first to MK4S and then to the Core One. I have already upgraded the cooling of the MK4 by mods and I believe that a lot of Core One parts can be printed.
So I'm wondering if I really need to purchase the MK4S upgrade kit or I can save some money here and just purchase the Core One upgrade.
Cheers!
RE: Would you recommend I assemble the MK4S kit first, then Core One upgrade?
So I'm wondering if I really need to purchase the MK4S upgrade kit or I can save some money here and just purchase the Core One upgrade.
Some of the parts in the MK4S upgrade kit will be redundant since the Core One kit comes with new replacements, e.g. the fan shroud and LCD cover. Other parts are used in the Core One and you would need to buy them individually unless you have already done so: High-speed extruder fan, high-flow nozzle, Wifi and NFC board, maybe some printed Nextruder parts/covers?
It will probably be a wash whether you order them individually or in the MK4S kit. I would do the latter, I guess, to avoid the annoyance of a missing part during the Core One conversion.
Do add the accelerometer to your shopping list if you don't have it yet! With its longer belts, the Core One benefits from input shaper tuning as well as phase stepping calibration.
RE: Would you recommend I assemble the MK4S kit first, then Core One upgrade?
Hi Jürgen,
Thanks for the useful repply! I'll probably go for both upgrade kits and I'll consider buying the accelerometer as well.
Do you own a Core One? If so, can I ask if you're happy with it? I see in the forum and in other people reviews that Prusa has been fixing some of the issues that some printers had (VFA, etc).
Cheers!
RE: Would you recommend I assemble the MK4S kit first, then Core One upgrade?
Do you own a Core One? If so, can I ask if you're happy with it? I see in the forum and in other people reviews that Prusa has been fixing some of the issues that some printers had (VFA, etc).
Yes, I have a Core One -- an early full kit, received and built at the beginning of April. I am generally quite happy with it; it prints reliably and accurately. VFAs (belt ripple artifacts) are still there, however, even with the latest firmware, slicer, and stroboscope-based belt tuning to the new specs.
Current hardware nuisances that still need attention in my unit:
- One of the Z lead screws has a different thread pitch than the others. Prusa has sent free replacements, but I have not checked and installed them yet. Will report in the dedicated thread when I have done so.
- The LCD will only operate when switched back to the slower data transfer rate. Apparently that's not uncommon; Prusa has made provisions in the firmware, even including an automatic fallback when transmission errors are detected. But I find the display noticeably sluggish when driven at the reduced rate, and it did work at full speed when the printer was new -- so I want to get to the bottom of this.
In good news, my printer never suffered from excessive acoustic noise, endless X/Y homing (banging), or problems with the nozzle probing the bed height. I'd like to credit my careful assembly for that, but there is probably luck involved too...