So I finally got an opurtunity to get a 3D printer, and i want to buy a Voron. I found a V2.4 with 350mm build volume for 770€. Is it worth it? How reliable is a Voron? Have any of you got any experience? All input welcome.
(Edit) I forgot to clarify, the printer is new, not second-hand.
I just got a Sovol SV08, which is like a Voron but changed up a bit so the teacher doesn’t get mad… and to be cheaper :-)
I’m just coming in from an Ender3 clone, but overall, other than the potential of taco bed messing up some prints, I’ve been really pleased with it. I’m still fine tuning what it likes to do, including slowing it down on some small vertical prints, letting the bed “heat soak” for a while to even out, and running the Z Offset calibration on every print, but Core XY, auto leveling, and all the other little QoL advantages are nice, and I’ve already used the big bed to print stuff that wouldn’t fit on a “normal” bed.
For your specific printer, Vorons are generally even more kit built than most printers, sometimes even completely assembled from a BOM by the builder/user. If they did it well, and if it loks to be in good shape, it should be an excellent and well supported printer. I paid USD490 for “We have Voron at home” and I feel like it was a good deal. I’m not super well versed in pricing in Europe, but EUR770 seems like a good deal on a kit, a REALLY good deal on a new 350mm, and a very solid one for a used printer in good shape.
Now, all that said, I am super glad that I kinda had some experience with more primitive printers before I got the Sovol. I’m less panicky about little inconveniences and realities of printing (especially on a budget), and I feel like I at some high level understand how it’s all supposed to be working and that I can look up how to fix things and implement what I learn. If you don’t want to deal with any of that, a Bambu, even with its potential walled garden “sword of Damocles”, might be a simpler idea.I understand they really are just super easy to live with.
Thanks! Actually, i have got some experience with 3D printing already, and I don’t mind fiddling with the printer and assembling it, so I’ll probably steer clear of Bambulab. Actually, I just searched the Sovol up, and it looks really similar to the V2.4, just like 300€ cheaper, but how is it different from the V2.4? Actually, now I’m tempted to buy the SV08.
I know the beds are worse, apparently almost all of them. Sovol chose to change the Voron reference design to be cheaper and it’s just not held down right, so they exhibit varying degrees of “taco” inconsistency that the diagram accentuates visually. Mine has a corner that seems to be about 0.4mm too high, and the rest is a bit wavy to lesser amounts. This is the main reason I set it to redo its z offsets before every print.
The Sovol doesn’t use standard extrusion profiles so it’s less moddable, its hot end is not completely standard, and it uses injection molded parts in places the Voron uses 3d printed parts (that last may be be an advantage, lol). The Sovol also doesn’t run a completely clean version of Klipper. I think it’s set in a way to make it work a little better with their cheaper BOM.
It’s big and fast and Voron-like, but it’s just not a hand crafted super printer like a Voron can be.
Look on github for Rappetor’s SV08 mainline repository. You’ll need a new mmc or sd card (both are ok) and a “five bucks” STLink programmer, but then it is quite easy to put mainline klipper on your sv08. The mainboard is a cb1 clone with the “main” ST microcontroller for driving the steppers on the same board (for cost reduction, probably)
That’s the prerequisite for using a probe. like a btt eddy on a SV08, for example.
Other than the SV08 has a few issues like super noisy board fan which can be very easily be taken care of. (Funnily software control of the fan is possible, but just not done in the default firmware)
My mods are mainline klipper, btt eddy, new (printed) extruder shroud with better airflow, a microswiss hotend and a second camera (USB webcam for second viewing angle and better resolution).
Out of the box the SV08 has a bit of problems keeping a consistent Z offset due to missing temperature calibration for the probe. More reliable solutions (ported from voron) like klicky are available. I chose eddy - but haven’t perfectly tuned it in, either. I’ll try the eddy-ng firmware (github) next week.
Thanks! I am going to keep those all in my back pocket for when the honeymoon of not having a $99 “box o’ parts” Voxelab wears off, though I feel a little guilty for never installing that BLTouch clone now.
I haven’t printed much with the Sovol yet. So far, the main things I’m running into are bed adhesion (the old standby of a washable glue stick is helping), and I’ve had a couple of vertically oriented parts get knocked off the bed, and slowing down quite a bit helped.