Interested in possibly switching to a Rostock V3 -- can you answer some questions and provide some examples of prints?

[TheForrestFire]

Hi everyone,

I currently have an Original Prusa i2 mk2 that I'm not super happy with. I've had it for about two months, and it's just been problem after problem after problem. I'm unhappy with the quality of the printed parts on the machine, and I'm one of the unlucky customers who received warped beds, among other things, and I haven't been able to legitimately print on it yet, and was getting better quality off of my Wanhao Di3. I was considering a Rostock Max v3 before I purchased my mk2, and now that Prusa is offering me a full refund, I'm wondering if I should jump ship!

I'm hoping you guys could provide me with your honest impressions of the V3, including issues you've been struggling with, and answer a few questions that I have!

1. Do you think you could show me some example prints? One of the reasons it was hard to choose the V3 over the mk2 is that it's hard to find example prints from the V3.

2. How is the autoleveling? I saw there were issues with it back in November -- have they been ironed out? I remember people would have one side be too close, and the other be too far. Is the autoleveling working well? What are some current issues with it? How automated is it?

3. How is the stock hot end? I've heard some complaints, and I'm wondering if upgrading it is a necessity.

4. Do you ever feel constrained in the x and y directions? The z build height is massive, but I can see that it might be a pain if you want to print rectangular objects.

5. Can you easily print flexible filaments, like TPU, using the setup on the V3?

6. Can you add PEI to the glass plate on the V3? Will that affect the autoleveling at all? I've become very fond of the PEI build surface on my mk2.

7. What are some other things you think I should be aware of? Are there certain parts that tend to break or fail, like the thermister wires on the mk2? How has your experience with the V3 been?

8. Why does the V3 forum seem to be pretty inactive? Is there a better place to discuss the V3? Or have not too many people jumped from the V2 to the V3?

I'm sure this thread can be helpful to other people that come here as well. I might share the responses on Reddit on /r/3dprinting if that's okay, because I feel like the V3 is a bit of a mystery over there!

Thank you for all of your advice.

[djarmag]

I am a complete noob since December but I learn fast. The V3 is my first real 3d Printer (last year I bought a Micro3D and it's been collecting dust)
Print quality wise I think it looks great but compared to some of the vets here it can be MUCH better. For about a month I have been a bit back and forth with MatterControl and prints were a bit hit or miss, but I recently got the hang of it and loving the fun of printing.

- Autoleveling is fairly easy and straightforward. Use 3 clamps instead of 6 and then send G29 command. I can get good results with stock setup, but better to upgrade to FSR though which I am doing soon. With proper mounts, it's been reported easier to swap to multiple surfaces without having to fine tune everything, it is much more reliable and very consistent.

- I am okay with the stock hotend, it gets the job done with .5 mm nozzle and average print speed of 60mm/s (it can reach up to 120mm/s) . I am upgrading to E3D V6 soon because I like the silicone boot to keep things clean and multiple options.

- I think x y build area is great, it still offers one of the biggest build volumes on the market for $1k.

- I tried printing TPU but it didn't come out great (possibly from inexperience as well) but I plan to get a BondTech QR soon.

- I have the PEI sheet and they sell both the circle sheet and adhesive on amazon. Worth every penny and easily the best addon as I struggled to get some prints off. I sanded the surface with 800 grit and bevel sharpened the spatula (thanks mhackney for the tip) and makes tough parts come off clean and has great outer matte look. Plus it can be repaired with cyanocrylic glue or whatnot.

- I haven't had anything break or fail since owning it. Be aware that the hotend connector can come loose (there is a clip you can print, just look up whip clip for he280), make sure belts are tight and polarity on all connections are correct. Other than that, I didn't have much issue with anything hardware wise. Software is a different story, just depends on your experience. I never used Python, Arduino/Repetier, MatterControl, Octoprint, Cura, so tweaking print settings can be a daunting task but stick with it and it'll come to you.

- V3 forum may seem inactive because I think most everyone has V1/V2 and just upgraded to V3 with their upgrade kit, or have different mods. But these forums are VERY helpful and polite.

A lot of my ranting seems to be geared towards upgrades but as a stock printer it can definitely get the job done with great results. The kit took me 14 hours and instructions were very detailed with pics and drawings. They also sell the preassembled version on their website. You can also opt for the Raspberry Pi so you can print over Wifi to eliminate USB stutter issues and have remote print. This also let's you use Octoprint and have time-lapsed recordings. You can use MatterControl for slicing, or others like Cura/Kisslicer/Rhino and upload into MC.

[Twac1]

I bought the diy kit 6 months ago and had a blast building it! Took me 36 hours. I have had many small problems but all due to inexperience. It has been very fun learning how to fine tune and upgrade the machine! I have a total of 18 days of print time on it now, and have been able to produce some cool print and some very usefull prints. I have had fails and many of them but this is not a makerbot, it needs tlc and patience. For 1000.00 it is by far my best payback in entertainment and quality