We have 2 of these at our high school robotics team and they have proven invaluable, we have had them running almost every single school day non stop for robotics and other stem programs, and it has never failed. The carbon fiber nilon has been especially nice
Thank you for the detailed discussion. I think most reviews (excluding you) are missing the point on these printers. If you're interested in printing PLA pieces for tabletop games or custom doodads that aren't mission critical then buy an Ender 3 or Adventurer 3 Lite for 5-10% of what this costs and rock on. However, if you need to print functional ABS/ASA/CF parts for a business and you need strength and dimensional accuracy across the whole print (and you can't afford down time or tinker time), then the Method X seems to be an excellent choice. I've tried every suggestion under the sun for printing ABS/ASA in conventional 3D printers without heated chambers; ABS juice on the build plate, heating the chamber until stepper motors start to skip (~70C), and so on and so forth. Prints still have terrible inter-layer strength and dimensional accuracy due to warping, especially larger pieces or those with sharp edges or more infill. I think a 100C+ chamber is the only way to do it properly, and this is the only sub $20,000 printer that offers it.
cheaper then a lathe and a mill too haha. ender 3 is a great little unit for a beginner, i love it. its amazing how many useful things you can find yourself printing or designing, people always ask me what the hell do you print.. …answer.. everything hahaha
Absolutely fantastic! best features I've seen since I laid eyes on my first 3d printer that was done with a carbon fiber dust mixed with a resin. This looks just amazing can't wait to get my hands on one.
I missed an email from Makerbot on a presentation of this printer and stainless steel parts. Thanks for filling me in on this. This seems like a game changer.
I’m fairly new to 3D printing and when you mentioned humidity my interest was peaked. Is humidity a concern when 3D printing or using this device? I live in Hawaii and humidity is pretty high.
Humidity can be a concern, yes. Some 3D printing materials are more sensitive to moisture than others and will start to degrade if the humidity is too high (or too low in some cases). But the MakerBot METHOD and METHOD X have sealed filament bays, and the spools have desiccant embedded within the spool hub. And the printer itself is fairly well enclosed. So while humidity can be a concern, it would be less of a concern with a machine like this.
The MakerBot Method has dual extruders. Right? Does that mean it is able to 3D print objects that are dual color? If so, can you explain how I can acheive these results? If not, can you suggest a good 3D printer with that capability.
Right now the second extruder is dedicated to support material. The biggest reason is that support is critical in a heated chamber. MakerBot's R&D team has been focused on expanding the Labs program and optimizing as many single material prints as possible. There is nothing mechanically stopping it from doing two colors, so theoretically this could be changed in the future with firmware updates, but it is not currently being worked on by the team. For now, you may want to have a look at the Ultimaker 3D printers, as the Ultimaker S3 and S5 both support dual-color printing. There are quite a few other options also, depending on your budget and needs.
FWIW: have the Method X Carbon Fiber Fiber Edition. I use mainly LABS extruder with ABS. Prints well. Rare to have a failure. Sometimes fails if I push not using a raft. Touch screen response is not good. Can be frustrating when a button lights up, but the software does not respond... I don't report the problems because they are so obvious and I don't want to waste my time helping the company do its job. I keep hoping they will clean things up, but does not seem to happen. The annoying thing is the interface is so pretty compared to old replicator printers, but does not work as well. After 100s of prints, I still have not used dual extruder. Doing so increases print time more than 2X so I try to design parts that use little support material or select break-away material. Carbon fiber nylon is really nice. Printer is dimensionally more accurate than my much older Replicator 2 and 2X. I would pay a few more $1000s for a quiet microstepped printer (presume would require motor encoders). This printer is beautiful, but I really need to move it out of my office due to noise. It sings like a bird.
I currently have one for my high school manufacturing program and it has been extremly difficult to work with. We have had it for 3 months and it is constantly jamming, clogging, not connecting , or not printing at all. I have reached out to customer service several times and have gotten no response. I am determined to return this and purchase something much better from another manufacturer. I would highly suggest against makerbot especiially if you are in a school setting were you need excellent tech support. Makerbot has been very difficult to work with. Do not buy this printer.
I bought about the same time as you for school. Big mistake. Their answer is to replace bad parts until warranty runs out and then I'll be stuck with a non functioning printer.
No, this printer is not designed for PEEK or other very high-temp materials like that. Something like Polycarbonate would be the highest temp material this machine could handle.
I was close to pulling the trigger on a method X or method x carbon fiber but the 'amazon' 1 star reviews any many calling previous models $3000 paper weights have me concerned. I need a printer that can crank out 500-1000 one inch cylindrical plugs for a supply agreement on a regular basis..
People who had experience with the MakerBot Replicator 5th Gen printers would have good reason to refer to them as expensive paperweights. MakerBot went through a tough period back then. But it's really not the same company today, and the current products are nothing like the Rep 5th Gen. We have found the METHOD X to be a highly reliable and easy-to-use printer. For consistent and reliable production of parts with excellent dimensional accuracy, you'd be happy with this printer.
I like the heated chamber aspect of the method, but the makerbot materials are insanely expensive and have very limited color options. Second the idea of different extruders for different filaments sound great until you find out they cost $350.- This may very well be a great printer, but those two points make it a no go for me personally.
There's a "Labs" extruder that MakerBot offers whick allows you to print 3rd part materials. Outside of that, this really isn't meant for any hobbyist level printing. For a business, this printer is a great deal when compared to buying an F123 series printer or something else of the like.
We really hesitate to call any printer the "best", since it really depends on what your needs and priorities are. If you're looking for a printer that's very reliable, easy-to-use, and capable of printing dimensionally accurate parts using advanced materials, then the METHOD and METHOD X are some of the best desktop 3D printers available. But if you have simpler needs, there are definitely other options available that might be a better fit.
@@3duniverseOrgWelcomesYou Do you think that they offset the cost? Vs just buying new parts. Are these two printers best used by a business that will eventually make the money back that they paid for the printer? Or perhaps the printing enthusiast that doesn't care about being cost inefficient.
@@enermaxstephens1051 There is definitely a strong return on investment for businesses with a machine like this. I've had several customers tell me that they used to outsource part production for prototyping, and it would take several weeks and hundreds of dollars to do that. Now, they can 3D print a prototype in a matter of hours, for a cost of a few dollars in material. So you can make your money back in a number of ways... You can 3D print end-use parts that can be sold, you can improve the speed and cost-efficiency of product design and prototyping, you can offer customization options that may not have been possible without 3D printing, etc. And yes, it's a great printer for having at home too, assuming it fits your budget.
Do you have to use MakerBots spools of filament with extruder 1 and 2? Is it possible to feed third-party spools without the maker labs add-on extruder?
There may be a way to trick the printer into allowing you to do this, but the intended approach is to always use the MakerBot LABS Experimental Extruder whenever using 3rd party materials.
@@3duniverseOrgWelcomesYou I appreciate the quick response. As of right now I only have a method standard at my school so I'll take my chances with a $25 spool of PETG and if it requires the NFC chip on their $70 spools to work. I'll report back with my findings
Even with the $350 labs add on, I still feel like I need to trick the printer to accept the LABs, really frustrating, maybe I am missing something. A number of firmware updates over past two years and don't see improvement. No way am I going to invest the time to tell them (Makerbot) what they probably already know.
There are a few things that can go wrong. Going from CF to, let's say, PLA, you have at least a 40C change in temp. I think the 12CF has a default of 270 which brings it to a 60C difference. So as you are loading the PLA into the extruder it will be difficult to purge all of the CF out of the extruder. This could result in a jam or damage to the PTFE tube. Going in the opposite direction, you could get some smoke if you overheat PLA and (although I haven't seen this) it is theoretically possible to crystallize it in the hot end. So again, that would damage the PTFE tube or cause jams. The reason why MakerBot allows the 1c to print anything is because the nozzle and ptfe tube can easily be swapped out by the user. So if you want to stick with just one extruder, you can, but I would recommend getting a replacement nozzle and PTFE pack to be safe. Some users do this and go for a while without any real problem, but overall, the life expectancy on the ptfe and nozzle are reduced. I've done some pretty drastic temperature changes on back to back materials in the LABS extruder and it has been ok but I haven't put many hours on that extruder so I can't speak from direct experience.
@@3duniverseOrgWelcomesYou Thank you so much for the detailed response. So it seems wise to have a dedicated extruder for the types of filaments I'd be printing. One more question, I've seen lots of examples with printing dissolvable support from the second extruder head. Are there any examples of using the other extruder to print dual color mode? Same material (PLA, ABS etc) but extruder 1 is grey and extruder 2 is white etc?
@@danielgoodwiniowa Right now the second extruder is dedicated to support material. The biggest reason is that support is critical in a heated chamber. MakerBot's R&D team has been focused on expanding the Labs program and optimizing as many single material prints as possible. There is nothing mechanically stopping it from doing two colors, so theoretically this could be changed in the future with firmware updates, but it is not currently being worked on by the team.
That would really be an "apples to oranges" kind of comparison. Other than both having dual extrusion capabilities, there's very little similarity between these machines. The METHOD and METHOD X have an actively heated build chamber, whereas the Zortrax 300 Dual has the usual heated bed. The heated build chamber allows much more reliable printing of advanced materials, improved dimensional accuracy, and improved part strength due to better layer bonding. There are also significant differences in terms of the user experience (software, printing workflow, printer maintenance, etc.)
@@3duniverseOrgWelcomesYou I had been speaking with a representative for Makerbot about the method x and carbon fiber x, they are running a promotion through June %20 off and 2 free carbon fiber spools.
@@sankarkrishnan7425 Yes, as an authorized MakerBot reseller, 3D Universe is offering those same promotions. You can find details here: shop3duniverse.com/collections/makerbot-3d-printers Feel free to email us at info@3duniverse.org or call us at 800-689-4344 for more information.
Good review. I realize you’re selling them but I’ve got a believe Beyond the obvious price point that makes these perhaps less competitive than others, there are some downsides that you might know of and would mention.
The main benefits are a heated chamber and soluble SR-30 support material. Both are great and invaluable for complex ABS prototypes. Stratasys machines have mastered the use of a secondary support material. Much better than the Prusa MMU but you pay a lot for it. Stratasys for businesses all the way. Maybe a Prusa or two on the side for quick PLA/PETG prototypes but a Stratasys can print advanced materials with very little training supporting lots of users over a network. This is a huge plus for an R&D or Manufacturing group. ABS/Nylon etc are great materials when a printer is specifically designed to print it but lets be honest MOST applications PETG and even the the PLA Plus materials are fine. I would only consider a Stratasys if you need something designed to be used my many people in a big business where cost isn't a huge factor and the material type is very specific. IE high heat, high impact, ESD, Flame resistant polymers etc. In that case you may as well get a Stratasys Fortus 450MC (A great machine). The Method X is just a junior/cheapter version of the Fortus. For most startups/schools/home users you would have to be insane to buy this printer over a Prusa MK3S.
its tempting because of how accurate it is. the price is ridiculous, but you expect people to buy dedicated nozzles, for a 5,000$ machine, that should come with every nozzle included. all so you can force people into using the filaments of your company, to isolate your customers. you can claim that its more professional all you want, but the fact is, one high temp nozzle should be able to be used at lower temperatures. you do this to maintain wear of the nozzles within specs of degradation and keep these very expensive nozzles as a wearable part, am i correct? supposedly, these machines are tested up to 250,000 hours of use. however, they never mention the longevity of the nozzles. being that i'm forced into using their explicit filaments. what should happen if the company goes out of business? and i can't use 3rd party filaments?! i'd have a very reliable block of potential. from a company that didn't understand proper reliability what if i want to use Polyetheretherketone, so i can autoclave the part? your lack of settings and ability to modify prints, prevents me from really using this printer as it should be used. its like putting a governor on a race car. you are really setting yourselves up for failure
Are you aware that MakerBot printers do not require the use of MakerBot materials? If you use the MakerBot LABS extruder, you can use any 3rd party materials you like.
The dimensional accuracy section is misinformative. Chuck another brand of filament in this printer and you would have to do what all other printers to - calibrate for that filament. "Default settings" in this case is the manufacturer already calibrating settings for their own filament giving you good results right away, much lika Prusa does with Prusament filament. Getting these models to print well and fit together is no problem even on an Ender 3 as long as you calibrate it properly.
If you're a business printing functional parts on the regular than you're going to need or want the ability to print ABS / PC / etc. That is not something you can trust an Ender 3 or Prusa to do reliably or accurately repeatedly. The whole point of this printer is the ability to use the materials trickled down from Stratasys and also have a heated and regulated build chamber.
Unfortunately, it looks like the MakerBot Print software they're saying to use for this is no longer available for download. Maybe it's possible to do this through their CloudPrint platform. I'll see what I can find.
I'm waiting to hear back from the MakerBot team about this, but I'm not seeing any option to set a static IP through PrintCloud or through the printer's touch panel. As a workaround, you could ask your IT staff to do a IP address reservation on the DHCP server. To do that, you would just need to give them the MAC address, which you can find by going to Settings / Printer Info. Once they have it set up on the DHCP server, your printer will always be assigned the same IP address, resulting in effectively the same result as a static IP. Hope that helps.
Just heard back from the Makerbot support folks. The Makerbot Print software is the only way to set a static IP address. While that software is no longer being supported, it is still available for download, here: www.makerbot.com/3d-printers/apps/makerbot-print/download/ Download and install that, then follow the instructions from the link previously shared above to set a static IP.
Mine has been a disaster. I've only succeeded with 2 prints. The touch screen is hugely buggy and locks up frequently. Makerbot support is non-existent.
I agree touch screen is buggy (I say it sucks). Nothing like pressing a button, seeing it light up, and knowing software has not processed the input. Glad I have not wasted my time telling them about the problem(s). Does tick me off to see pretty little animations that run flawlessly, but then flawed command processing. They probably know about it, but the person(s) who wrote the UI probably left the company... I have had better luck with prints, but I am pretty conservative.
I have had pretty good luck printing without rafts on Method X, but if you push it too much part detaches from bed and you get a lovely birds nest. Overall I love the textured stick-on material and flexible removable build plate. I finally destroyed my first sheet after 100 prints or so. I agree rafts suck time - so does dual extruder, I use breakaway supports and try to design parts that use little or now support material.
@@54egg Good to know that the raft need is reduced. I'm liking the dissolvable support I'm seeing to solve the breakaway issue. I would print more if i did not have to do the break away process. Even when designing to minimize that, break away removal consumes more time than 3D printing its worth to me. If i can throw it into a container of water and let it do the work for me, i would be much more interested in printing a more. I'm not interested in giving myself a part-time job as a support remover which is what that process feels like when i have to do take all that off of a print and clean it up. I'm glad they are working out the issues with the newer models.
I have bought this printer because of offering some of the best features and promises the best material properties. I spend 6k€ on the machine and another 1k€ on the material. Not to mention you can not print with one material directly on the build plate and don't get me started on the software. Don't make such a mistake and buy this printer it is garbage. DO NOT BUY!!!
I have tried many things to get this printer to be worthy. But... It's a over marketed paper weight. Software is crap. Bed is too flexible. There CF nylon material is terrible. Been running mark forged onyx material on the labs extruder to try to get close to Mark Forged print quality. Problem is, software. Prior to the last major update at the beginning of the year I actually made progress and had it printing a quality first layer. After the update the settings do not do anything for the first layer. Everyone knows first layer is key. Someone tell MakerBot to hire competent software engineers, not marketing fools. All these companies they claim are using these printers for development I guarantee is false. MakerBot gives them a free printer and they act like it's revolutionary. It looks cool, yes. However at the end of the day, our basic Mark Forged desktop printers run 24/7 and this did idle waiting for a print where quality doesn't matter. Fyi, support is little to no help.
@@seandor8353 "it may not be possible to fine tune the settings further to reduce those gaps. Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you. Best, Kevin MakerBot Support"
Thanks for your feedback. That's not the experience I've had, but I know everyone is different. I did share your feedback with senior management at Makerbot, and they appreciated it. In my experience, they seem to be adding more freedom to adjust print settings compared to what used to be available. They're really focusing more on CloudPrint than the desktop software, so if you haven't tried that, it may be worth checking out. They're constantly improving it with updates, so it should keep getting better.
Since sharing the printer with our other engineers in the office we have been using the cloud print, the issue is also in the desktop software. You can see the visual gaps in the print preview for the first layer. Increasing extruder percentage for the first layer doesn't change it. Searching brings up experimental settings.. that seem conflicting with the standard/advanced settings. Another frustrating thing about cloud print compared to MFs Eiger cloud print is it doesn't store the parts, you can't go back and make a quick tweak and reprint, have to start over by importing the part ect. It's not exactly the fastest software either.
Not impressed with their Makerbot Print software. It wouldn't send the file to the printer. I guess they deliberately did that because they want you to use their online Cloudprint.
It can be frustrating as hell. It does work, but very often I have had to restart the software after a print, pretty sad. I use experimental extruder mostly, maybe I am getting burned for that. I hate the fact the print software keeps reselecting support material when I say use break away support and no support material is loaded in machine ... Ack.
We have 2 of these at our high school robotics team and they have proven invaluable, we have had them running almost every single school day non stop for robotics and other stem programs, and it has never failed. The carbon fiber nilon has been especially nice
Thanks so much for sharing your experience with us! Glad to hear it’s working well for you.
In terms of 3d printer reviews, that was one the best ones I’ve seen so far, and I’ve seen many. Helpful, concise, and thorough. Thank you.
Thank you for the detailed discussion. I think most reviews (excluding you) are missing the point on these printers. If you're interested in printing PLA pieces for tabletop games or custom doodads that aren't mission critical then buy an Ender 3 or Adventurer 3 Lite for 5-10% of what this costs and rock on. However, if you need to print functional ABS/ASA/CF parts for a business and you need strength and dimensional accuracy across the whole print (and you can't afford down time or tinker time), then the Method X seems to be an excellent choice. I've tried every suggestion under the sun for printing ABS/ASA in conventional 3D printers without heated chambers; ABS juice on the build plate, heating the chamber until stepper motors start to skip (~70C), and so on and so forth. Prints still have terrible inter-layer strength and dimensional accuracy due to warping, especially larger pieces or those with sharp edges or more infill. I think a 100C+ chamber is the only way to do it properly, and this is the only sub $20,000 printer that offers it.
cheaper then a lathe and a mill too haha. ender 3 is a great little unit for a beginner, i love it. its amazing how many useful things you can find yourself printing or designing, people always ask me what the hell do you print.. …answer.. everything hahaha
Absolutely fantastic! best features I've seen since I laid eyes on my first 3d printer that was done with a carbon fiber dust mixed with a resin. This looks just amazing can't wait to get my hands on one.
I missed an email from Makerbot on a presentation of this printer and stainless steel parts. Thanks for filling me in on this. This seems like a game changer.
Agreed! It does seem like a game changer! Learn more here: shop3duniverse.com/collections/basf-ultrafuse-316l
What a crock. This technology is years old and likely stolen by Stratasys from other companies like the virtual foundry.
I’m fairly new to 3D printing and when you mentioned humidity my interest was peaked. Is humidity a concern when 3D printing or using this device? I live in Hawaii and humidity is pretty high.
Humidity can be a concern, yes. Some 3D printing materials are more sensitive to moisture than others and will start to degrade if the humidity is too high (or too low in some cases). But the MakerBot METHOD and METHOD X have sealed filament bays, and the spools have desiccant embedded within the spool hub. And the printer itself is fairly well enclosed. So while humidity can be a concern, it would be less of a concern with a machine like this.
The MakerBot Method has dual extruders. Right? Does that mean it is able to 3D print objects that are dual color? If so, can you explain how I can acheive these results? If not, can you suggest a good 3D printer with that capability.
Right now the second extruder is dedicated to support material. The biggest reason is that support is critical in a heated chamber. MakerBot's R&D team has been focused on expanding the Labs program and optimizing as many single material prints as possible. There is nothing mechanically stopping it from doing two colors, so theoretically this could be changed in the future with firmware updates, but it is not currently being worked on by the team. For now, you may want to have a look at the Ultimaker 3D printers, as the Ultimaker S3 and S5 both support dual-color printing. There are quite a few other options also, depending on your budget and needs.
FWIW: have the Method X Carbon Fiber Fiber Edition. I use mainly LABS extruder with ABS. Prints well. Rare to have a failure. Sometimes fails if I push not using a raft. Touch screen response is not good. Can be frustrating when a button lights up, but the software does not respond... I don't report the problems because they are so obvious and I don't want to waste my time helping the company do its job. I keep hoping they will clean things up, but does not seem to happen. The annoying thing is the interface is so pretty compared to old replicator printers, but does not work as well. After 100s of prints, I still have not used dual extruder. Doing so increases print time more than 2X so I try to design parts that use little support material or select break-away material. Carbon fiber nylon is really nice. Printer is dimensionally more accurate than my much older Replicator 2 and 2X. I would pay a few more $1000s for a quiet microstepped printer (presume would require motor encoders). This printer is beautiful, but I really need to move it out of my office due to noise. It sings like a bird.
Thanks for all the details! Great video👍🏻
I currently have one for my high school manufacturing program and it has been extremly difficult to work with. We have had it for 3 months and it is constantly jamming, clogging, not connecting , or not printing at all. I have reached out to customer service several times and have gotten no response.
I am determined to return this and purchase something much better from another manufacturer.
I would highly suggest against makerbot especiially if you are in a school setting were you need excellent tech support. Makerbot has been very difficult to work with.
Do not buy this printer.
I bought about the same time as you for school. Big mistake. Their answer is to replace bad parts until warranty runs out and then I'll be stuck with a non functioning printer.
Phenomenal Review. Many Thanks!
Excellent review
Nice
Can you use PEEK?
No, this printer is not designed for PEEK or other very high-temp materials like that. Something like Polycarbonate would be the highest temp material this machine could handle.
I was close to pulling the trigger on a method X or method x carbon fiber but the 'amazon' 1 star reviews any many calling previous models $3000 paper weights have me concerned. I need a printer that can crank out 500-1000 one inch cylindrical plugs for a supply agreement on a regular basis..
People who had experience with the MakerBot Replicator 5th Gen printers would have good reason to refer to them as expensive paperweights. MakerBot went through a tough period back then. But it's really not the same company today, and the current products are nothing like the Rep 5th Gen. We have found the METHOD X to be a highly reliable and easy-to-use printer. For consistent and reliable production of parts with excellent dimensional accuracy, you'd be happy with this printer.
I like the heated chamber aspect of the method, but the makerbot materials are insanely expensive and have very limited color options. Second the idea of different extruders for different filaments sound great until you find out they cost $350.- This may very well be a great printer, but those two points make it a no go for me personally.
There's a "Labs" extruder that MakerBot offers whick allows you to print 3rd part materials. Outside of that, this really isn't meant for any hobbyist level printing. For a business, this printer is a great deal when compared to buying an F123 series printer or something else of the like.
Very nice video... would you say that this is pretty much the best consumer printer? Or close to it.
nope: low audio
@@DavidLeeMenefee Low audio? Are you saying the video wasn't nice because it was too quiet?
We really hesitate to call any printer the "best", since it really depends on what your needs and priorities are. If you're looking for a printer that's very reliable, easy-to-use, and capable of printing dimensionally accurate parts using advanced materials, then the METHOD and METHOD X are some of the best desktop 3D printers available. But if you have simpler needs, there are definitely other options available that might be a better fit.
@@3duniverseOrgWelcomesYou Do you think that they offset the cost? Vs just buying new parts. Are these two printers best used by a business that will eventually make the money back that they paid for the printer? Or perhaps the printing enthusiast that doesn't care about being cost inefficient.
@@enermaxstephens1051 There is definitely a strong return on investment for businesses with a machine like this. I've had several customers tell me that they used to outsource part production for prototyping, and it would take several weeks and hundreds of dollars to do that. Now, they can 3D print a prototype in a matter of hours, for a cost of a few dollars in material. So you can make your money back in a number of ways... You can 3D print end-use parts that can be sold, you can improve the speed and cost-efficiency of product design and prototyping, you can offer customization options that may not have been possible without 3D printing, etc. And yes, it's a great printer for having at home too, assuming it fits your budget.
Do you have to use MakerBots spools of filament with extruder 1 and 2? Is it possible to feed third-party spools without the maker labs add-on extruder?
There may be a way to trick the printer into allowing you to do this, but the intended approach is to always use the MakerBot LABS Experimental Extruder whenever using 3rd party materials.
@@3duniverseOrgWelcomesYou I appreciate the quick response. As of right now I only have a method standard at my school so I'll take my chances with a $25 spool of PETG and if it requires the NFC chip on their $70 spools to work.
I'll report back with my findings
Even with the $350 labs add on, I still feel like I need to trick the printer to accept the LABs, really frustrating, maybe I am missing something. A number of firmware updates over past two years and don't see improvement. No way am I going to invest the time to tell them (Makerbot) what they probably already know.
Is there a downside to running a lower temp material thru the higher temp extruders? I.e. if you ran PLA or PETG thru the Carbon Fiber extruder?
There are a few things that can go wrong. Going from CF to, let's say, PLA, you have at least a 40C change in temp. I think the 12CF has a default of 270 which brings it to a 60C difference. So as you are loading the PLA into the extruder it will be difficult to purge all of the CF out of the extruder. This could result in a jam or damage to the PTFE tube. Going in the opposite direction, you could get some smoke if you overheat PLA and (although I haven't seen this) it is theoretically possible to crystallize it in the hot end. So again, that would damage the PTFE tube or cause jams.
The reason why MakerBot allows the 1c to print anything is because the nozzle and ptfe tube can easily be swapped out by the user. So if you want to stick with just one extruder, you can, but I would recommend getting a replacement nozzle and PTFE pack to be safe. Some users do this and go for a while without any real problem, but overall, the life expectancy on the ptfe and nozzle are reduced. I've done some pretty drastic temperature changes on back to back materials in the LABS extruder and it has been ok but I haven't put many hours on that extruder so I can't speak from direct experience.
@@3duniverseOrgWelcomesYou Thank you so much for the detailed response. So it seems wise to have a dedicated extruder for the types of filaments I'd be printing. One more question, I've seen lots of examples with printing dissolvable support from the second extruder head. Are there any examples of using the other extruder to print dual color mode? Same material (PLA, ABS etc) but extruder 1 is grey and extruder 2 is white etc?
@@danielgoodwiniowa Right now the second extruder is dedicated to support material. The biggest reason is that support is critical in a heated chamber. MakerBot's R&D team has been focused on expanding the Labs program and optimizing as many single material prints as possible. There is nothing mechanically stopping it from doing two colors, so theoretically this could be changed in the future with firmware updates, but it is not currently being worked on by the team.
How does this model fair versus the Zortrax 300 dual model printer?
That would really be an "apples to oranges" kind of comparison. Other than both having dual extrusion capabilities, there's very little similarity between these machines. The METHOD and METHOD X have an actively heated build chamber, whereas the Zortrax 300 Dual has the usual heated bed. The heated build chamber allows much more reliable printing of advanced materials, improved dimensional accuracy, and improved part strength due to better layer bonding. There are also significant differences in terms of the user experience (software, printing workflow, printer maintenance, etc.)
@@3duniverseOrgWelcomesYou I had been speaking with a representative for Makerbot about the method x and carbon fiber x, they are running a promotion through June %20 off and 2 free carbon fiber spools.
@@sankarkrishnan7425 Yes, as an authorized MakerBot reseller, 3D Universe is offering those same promotions. You can find details here: shop3duniverse.com/collections/makerbot-3d-printers Feel free to email us at info@3duniverse.org or call us at 800-689-4344 for more information.
Good review. I realize you’re selling them but I’ve got a believe Beyond the obvious price point that makes these perhaps less competitive than others, there are some downsides that you might know of and would mention.
The main benefits are a heated chamber and soluble SR-30 support material. Both are great and invaluable for complex ABS prototypes.
Stratasys machines have mastered the use of a secondary support material. Much better than the Prusa MMU but you pay a lot for it.
Stratasys for businesses all the way. Maybe a Prusa or two on the side for quick PLA/PETG prototypes but a Stratasys can print advanced materials with very little training supporting lots of users over a network. This is a huge plus for an R&D or Manufacturing group.
ABS/Nylon etc are great materials when a printer is specifically designed to print it but lets be honest MOST applications PETG and even the the PLA Plus materials are fine.
I would only consider a Stratasys if you need something designed to be used my many people in a big business where cost isn't a huge factor and the material type is very specific. IE high heat, high impact, ESD, Flame resistant polymers etc. In that case you may as well get a Stratasys Fortus 450MC (A great machine).
The Method X is just a junior/cheapter version of the Fortus.
For most startups/schools/home users you would have to be insane to buy this printer over a Prusa MK3S.
its tempting because of how accurate it is. the price is ridiculous, but you expect people to buy dedicated nozzles, for a 5,000$ machine, that should come with every nozzle included. all so you can force people into using the filaments of your company, to isolate your customers. you can claim that its more professional all you want, but the fact is, one high temp nozzle should be able to be used at lower temperatures. you do this to maintain wear of the nozzles within specs of degradation and keep these very expensive nozzles as a wearable part, am i correct? supposedly, these machines are tested up to 250,000 hours of use. however, they never mention the longevity of the nozzles. being that i'm forced into using their explicit filaments. what should happen if the company goes out of business? and i can't use 3rd party filaments?! i'd have a very reliable block of potential. from a company that didn't understand proper reliability
what if i want to use Polyetheretherketone, so i can autoclave the part? your lack of settings and ability to modify prints, prevents me from really using this printer as it should be used. its like putting a governor on a race car.
you are really setting yourselves up for failure
Are you aware that MakerBot printers do not require the use of MakerBot materials? If you use the MakerBot LABS extruder, you can use any 3rd party materials you like.
The dimensional accuracy section is misinformative. Chuck another brand of filament in this printer and you would have to do what all other printers to - calibrate for that filament. "Default settings" in this case is the manufacturer already calibrating settings for their own filament giving you good results right away, much lika Prusa does with Prusament filament. Getting these models to print well and fit together is no problem even on an Ender 3 as long as you calibrate it properly.
If you're a business printing functional parts on the regular than you're going to need or want the ability to print ABS / PC / etc. That is not something you can trust an Ender 3 or Prusa to do reliably or accurately repeatedly. The whole point of this printer is the ability to use the materials trickled down from Stratasys and also have a heated and regulated build chamber.
Adding two neodymium mini magnets 🧲 to the top filter lid. I have a MethodX
Is this a Delta Printer or an i3 type?
what do you expect, its NOT a delta printer
hello . how to set fix IP address? it has no webpage and onscreen menu has no option
thanks
You can find instructions for setting a static IP here: support.makerbot.com/s/article/MakerBot-Print-Setup-a-network-connection
Unfortunately, it looks like the MakerBot Print software they're saying to use for this is no longer available for download. Maybe it's possible to do this through their CloudPrint platform. I'll see what I can find.
I'm waiting to hear back from the MakerBot team about this, but I'm not seeing any option to set a static IP through PrintCloud or through the printer's touch panel. As a workaround, you could ask your IT staff to do a IP address reservation on the DHCP server. To do that, you would just need to give them the MAC address, which you can find by going to Settings / Printer Info. Once they have it set up on the DHCP server, your printer will always be assigned the same IP address, resulting in effectively the same result as a static IP. Hope that helps.
Just heard back from the Makerbot support folks. The Makerbot Print software is the only way to set a static IP address. While that software is no longer being supported, it is still available for download, here: www.makerbot.com/3d-printers/apps/makerbot-print/download/ Download and install that, then follow the instructions from the link previously shared above to set a static IP.
Mine has been a disaster. I've only succeeded with 2 prints. The touch screen is hugely buggy and locks up frequently. Makerbot support is non-existent.
I agree touch screen is buggy (I say it sucks). Nothing like pressing a button, seeing it light up, and knowing software has not processed the input. Glad I have not wasted my time telling them about the problem(s). Does tick me off to see pretty little animations that run flawlessly, but then flawed command processing. They probably know about it, but the person(s) who wrote the UI probably left the company... I have had better luck with prints, but I am pretty conservative.
Is the need to print a raft eliminated? Those are a major waist of time and filament on the replicator.
I have had pretty good luck printing without rafts on Method X, but if you push it too much part detaches from bed and you get a lovely birds nest. Overall I love the textured stick-on material and flexible removable build plate. I finally destroyed my first sheet after 100 prints or so. I agree rafts suck time - so does dual extruder, I use breakaway supports and try to design parts that use little or now support material.
@@54egg Good to know that the raft need is reduced. I'm liking the dissolvable support I'm seeing to solve the breakaway issue. I would print more if i did not have to do the break away process. Even when designing to minimize that, break away removal consumes more time than 3D printing its worth to me. If i can throw it into a container of water and let it do the work for me, i would be much more interested in printing a more. I'm not interested in giving myself a part-time job as a support remover which is what that process feels like when i have to do take all that off of a print and clean it up. I'm glad they are working out the issues with the newer models.
I have bought this printer because of offering some of the best features and promises the best material properties. I spend 6k€ on the machine and another 1k€ on the material. Not to mention you can not print with one material directly on the build plate and don't get me started on the software. Don't make such a mistake and buy this printer it is garbage. DO NOT BUY!!!
Makerbot….😭😭😭
This thing is a proprietary mess
Hey Brian, is there a machine that you would suggest or is comparable to this one?
Funmat HT
Why has nobody shown it print Metal UF 316L?
I have tried many things to get this printer to be worthy. But... It's a over marketed paper weight. Software is crap. Bed is too flexible. There CF nylon material is terrible. Been running mark forged onyx material on the labs extruder to try to get close to Mark Forged print quality. Problem is, software. Prior to the last major update at the beginning of the year I actually made progress and had it printing a quality first layer. After the update the settings do not do anything for the first layer. Everyone knows first layer is key. Someone tell MakerBot to hire competent software engineers, not marketing fools. All these companies they claim are using these printers for development I guarantee is false. MakerBot gives them a free printer and they act like it's revolutionary. It looks cool, yes. However at the end of the day, our basic Mark Forged desktop printers run 24/7 and this did idle waiting for a print where quality doesn't matter. Fyi, support is little to no help.
have you reached out the makerbot support? what was their reaction regarding your issues?
@@seandor8353 "it may not be possible to fine tune the settings further to reduce those gaps.
Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you.
Best,
Kevin
MakerBot Support"
Thanks for your feedback. That's not the experience I've had, but I know everyone is different. I did share your feedback with senior management at Makerbot, and they appreciated it. In my experience, they seem to be adding more freedom to adjust print settings compared to what used to be available. They're really focusing more on CloudPrint than the desktop software, so if you haven't tried that, it may be worth checking out. They're constantly improving it with updates, so it should keep getting better.
Since sharing the printer with our other engineers in the office we have been using the cloud print, the issue is also in the desktop software. You can see the visual gaps in the print preview for the first layer. Increasing extruder percentage for the first layer doesn't change it. Searching brings up experimental settings.. that seem conflicting with the standard/advanced settings. Another frustrating thing about cloud print compared to MFs Eiger cloud print is it doesn't store the parts, you can't go back and make a quick tweak and reprint, have to start over by importing the part ect. It's not exactly the fastest software either.
Not impressed with their Makerbot Print software. It wouldn't send the file to the printer. I guess they deliberately did that because they want you to use their online Cloudprint.
It can be frustrating as hell. It does work, but very often I have had to restart the software after a print, pretty sad. I use experimental extruder mostly, maybe I am getting burned for that. I hate the fact the print software keeps reselecting support material when I say use break away support and no support material is loaded in machine ... Ack.