A recurring scorching subject inside the 3D printing trade proper now’s whether or not or not it is actually essential to dry out spools of filament (materials) previous to initiating a print. Some imagine that moist filament is nothing greater than a fable, however from my very own expertise in testing a few of the greatest 3D printers in the marketplace – I can affirm that working with damp filament is a really actual concern that may end up in poor print high quality.Fortunately, there are a number of options out there to deal with damp filament, and I have been beta testing SUNLU’s newest AMS Heater, which is an improve particularly designed for individuals who personal Bambu Lab 3D printers with AMS (automated materials system) items, just like the X1 and P1 sequence. The heater is accessible to preorder now, with orders anticipated to ship out in October and November.Lately, Bambu Lab has launched its AMS 2 Professional unit with built-in filament drying capabilities; nonetheless, this machine is fairly expensive (round £300), which is the place SUNLU’s improve turns out to be useful. For beneath £100, the SULU AMS Heater is actually a lid that attaches to the unique Bambu lab AMS (changing the usual lid), and provides highly effective filament drying with temperatures of as much as 70 levels Celsius.
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I will be operating by my first impressions and experiences of utilizing this improve with my Bambu Lab X1 Carbon 3D printer, however for individuals who do not personal a Bambu Lab 3D printer but nonetheless need to fight damp filament, see my information to Do you have to purchase a filament dryer? For extra data.First impressionsImage 1 of 5(Picture credit score: Future)(Picture credit score: Future)(Picture credit score: Future)(Picture credit score: Future)(Picture credit score: Future)Good designVery straightforward to installSimple touchscreen controlsThe pattern of the AMS Heater improve that I obtained from SUNLU seems to be a prototype, and the ultimate product ought to look a bit of completely different to the one you see under. I feel this heater seems fairly modern, all issues thought-about, though I do want it have been much less rectangular and had a slight curve to it like the unique lid for my Bambu Lab X1C has, and with extra transparency to assist it mix collectively higher.The unit arrived with a type of darkish sticky wrap utilized across the whole casing, which might have been high-quality, had it been caught on with a bit extra care – there are a number of air bubbles across the casing because of this, which if I am trustworthy, is driving me a bit of crazy. I would must fully strip off this wrap after I end reviewing the heater to straighten these out, however like I stated, that is only a prototype, and the completed unit needs to be extra sturdy and opaque, I imagine.Assembling the AMS Improve could not have been simpler, and entails a easy 4-screw course of utilizing a equipped Allen key and plastic adapters. Mainly, I simply needed to flip my Bambu Lab AMS the other way up, take out 4 small screws, take away the lid, connect the brand new heater improve rather than the unique lid, and put the 4 screws again in place. Voila.Every day design information, opinions, how-tos and extra, as picked by the editors.SUNLU despatched me a US plug for the heater, however fortunately, I had a spare UK determine 8 cable to swap it out with. After plugging within the unit, there is a crimson on/off change on the again to activate the heater, or you need to use the button on the far proper of the show display screen to wake it up when switched on.PerformanceImage 1 of three(Picture credit score: Future)(Picture credit score: Future)(Picture credit score: Future)Max temps as much as 70CIntuitive interfaceAffordable improve for Bambu ownersIf you are already conversant in filament dryers, then there’s not an terrible lot of distinction between the performance of standalone machines in contrast with this AMS Heater improve. It really works by blasting scorching air into the AMS chamber through a double blower setup, in a position to attain all 4 spools with ease. It makes a little bit of a low buzzing sound when drying, however I am really actually impressed with how quiet this dryer is.I’ve discovered after only a few days of use that this heater works exceptionally effectively at drying out filament, and may attain a formidable most temperature of 70 levels Celsius, and may run for a drying time of as much as 99 hours, do you have to select. The one draw back, if I am nitpicking, is which you can’t management every filament slot individually, so all 4 rolls will probably be dried without delay, no matter what number of rolls you have been hoping to dry out. Although I can not think about this being an issue for a lot of.It makes use of an identical touchscreen management system that you will discover on different SUNLU filament dryers (such because the S2 and S4 fashions) for filtering by materials temperature presets (PV) and adjusting the SV (set quantity) temperature as much as 70. It provides humidity management, shutting itself off as soon as it falls under 20% (an important power-saving characteristic) and in addition has real-time temperature monitoring and can robotically activate if it detects humidity above 50% (how cool is that?).(Picture credit score: Future)There’s additionally an air vent on the high of the heater, which will be opened or closed. I believed this was an important contact, permitting customers to retailer filament contained in the chamber even whereas drying will not be energetic. The seal across the fringe of the lid matches snugly with the unique Bambu Lab AMS chamber for a safe seal, conserving out any outdoors moisture.I feel the SUNLU AMS Heater improve is a wonderful possibility for Bambu clients who need to improve their current AMS unit for a decrease value, however what is the injury? Proper now, it retails for an early fowl worth of $109.99 / £99.99, although it should often value round $119.99 / £109.99 when it formally rolls out.I feel this worth is a steal if I am trustworthy, contemplating that almost all standalone 3D filament dryers (excluding Creality’s SpacePi X4) can solely dry one or two spools of filament at a time for the same worth. This does not essentially align with Bambu Lab’s AMS, which is primarily wanted for multicolour 3D printing. Having the ability to print and dry on the identical time is a luxurious that not all 3D printers supply, however this SUNLU improve makes it a risk for lots lower than choosing Bambu Lab’s AMS 2 Professional unit.At the moment’s greatest offers on filament dryers
