Did I mention they also have a pretty good direct drive extruder and Artillery machines are really silent?

While I enjoy assembling 3D printer kits that consist of many small parts, I have assembled and disassembled many 3D printers, so a simple assembly that is done in minutes was a welcome change.The 4 screws with which you fix the frame are already pre-assembled in the 3D printer base and only need to be screwed on. To do this, it is best to place the 3D printer on the edge of a table so that one side protrudes over the edge of the table and you can comfortably turn the screws from below.

To find the right printing temperature for the material used, a so-called temperature tower is useful. With such an object you can print a recurring geometry with different temperatures to test the right temperature. To such a tower always belongs the appropriate script that changes the print temperature from a certain height. The Sidewinder X2 still uses a single 80mm 24V fan for venting the air out from the electronics chamber. This time, it’s situated in the front-middle of the printer. Dual Z axis with sync beltThe Sidewinder X1 direct drive extruder was pretty good, but it had some design issues which made it less efficient, and more prone to failures. Specifically, the plastic idler which broke all the time, and the separate heatsink which was not that effective in keeping the heat break cool. In addition to PLA, I also wanted to test a slightly more demanding filament. For the PETG filament, I have performed the calibration again. The result ( link to the model) is impressive and there was only some over-extrusion in a few places. Install Klipper. This is personal. I just like the tuning freedom of Klipper and I find Marlin the less user-friendly platform for testing and upgrading any printer. Replacing the touchscreen with a larger one will be difficult, but there are certainly firmware upgrades/updates that make the handling more comfortable by adjusting the menu.

The updated version takes after It’s predecessor in being simple but also having an extraordinary ability to bring out every detail beautifully thanks to how well processed they are! With the Sidewinder X2, manual levelling of the print bed is no longer necessary, the 3D printer does it easily by itself, which avoids levelling errors and saves a lot of time. You can improve the print bed adhesion by adjusting the layer height, the line width, the printing temperature, the print speed and/or the flow rate. The first optimization should always be the print speed, as this has the least negative impact on print quality. Automatic print bed leveling: The Sidewinder X1 must be leveled manually. While there is 5-point leveling supported via the menu, you will still have to do it manually on a regular basis with this printer. Under the print bed, there are four turning screws to manually adjust the inclination of the print bed. They are large enough to be turned comfortably.A synchronized, dual Z-axis, double lead screw and a closed synchronous belt ensure good performance. The exclusive Z-axis coupler avoids layer problems and gives the print a certain sophistication and better quality. Eliminating an aluminum plate between the heating element and the build surface minimizes the weight of the build platform. This is important for such large printer and contributes to better print quality (less mass/inertia). The filament sensor can move relatively freely to dynamically follow the movements of the filament and the print head. This ensures undisturbed feeding of the filament.

For TPU, glass print bed surfaces are very good for creating sufficient print bed adhesion. For most TPU filaments it is sufficient to find the right temperature. However, for some filaments, you may need to use adhesives like Magigoo. With its integrated cable design, the visual look is refined and maintenance is significantly simplified. The double Z-axis stabilizes the movements of the X-axis and thus of the printhead and helps with positioning accuracy in the Z-direction. This not only improves print quality, but also reduces printing errors caused by vibrations or an imperfectly horizontal X-axis. In all the time I’ve been using the Sidewinder X2, I’ve only manually leveled it once. After several 3D prints, I ran the automatic print bed leveling and saved it. Once I had to readjust the Z-Offset after I ripped a print object too violently off the print plate. Apparently, the print bed was slightly misaligned in the process. Features

3D printer with an unbeatable price-performance ratio

The Sidewinder X2 has a PTFE-lined Volcano hotend. This is not really bad and is very common among 3D printers. However, the maximum temperature is limited to about 240 °C, otherwise the PTFE would melt. For most standard filaments this is sufficient. Printing temperature: Same as the rest of the object or 5-10 °C higher for better print bed adhesion.