MAKERGEAR M3-ID reviews

The place to discuss the M3-ID
Mazhdulin
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MAKERGEAR M3-ID reviews

Post by Mazhdulin » Sat Oct 07, 2017 11:00 pm

Hi all,

Right now I own a Davinci minimaker and although it is a very simple machine with horrible software, it made me fall in love with 3d printing.
After careful review I ended up here at makergear to initially buy an m2.
To my honest surprise there is a new version some time now, but I can't find any thorough review of the m3.
Does anyone know of a review somewhere? Or does anyone have done some comparing of the m2 and m3?

Kind regards n
Anthonie

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Tim
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Re: MAKERGEAR M3-ID reviews

Post by Tim » Tue Oct 10, 2017 1:55 am

There's been a bit of discussion on the M3 on this forum but I haven't seen much of anything elsewhere. Overall the M3 looks like a careful redesign of the M2 with a number of useful updates, many of which are not that easy to see just by looking at the machine. The only complaint I've heard about it is that it is more software-driven than the M2, making it harder (or impossible?) to do things like manually crank the Z stage up and down.

The M3-ID is another beast, though, one of only a few printers available with dual independent motor drives. If printing dual extrusion is something that interests you, then the M3-ID beats the heck out of any dual extruder solution with both heads stuck together on the same mount (which is the usual configuration, and the configuration used by the M2 dual). There is also significant room for improvement in the software that drives independent dual extruders, so it will get better over time, maybe even significantly better, without any hardware upgrade.

That said, you should take everything I say with a grain of salt, because I don't own an M3, only an M2 with enough hardware hacks to qualify as maybe an M2.5 or M2.75.

jk42
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Re: MAKERGEAR M3-ID reviews

Post by jk42 » Tue Oct 10, 2017 7:59 pm

The M23 is really the next logical step from the M2 printer. The M3 has a redesigned cooling shroud that directs the airflow and really helps deliver more accurate prints along with a sleeker and more stable extruder assembly. The thing that excites me the most is the new wifi capability due to the addition of a Raspberry PI. You can now slice and print without ever connecting to the printer via USB or using a SD card. MakerGear’s customized version of OctoPrint is really easy to use and gives you total control over the print process. Not only can you slice with the onboard Cura engine, but you can also upload gcode sliced with Simplify3D or other slicers. There is also a new calibration suite built into the MakerGear Octoprint plugin. It walks you through leveling your bed and setting your start height. It’s true leveling system lets you see first hand how your filament is going to print so you can get the best prints possible. You can also access the M3 Knowledge Base that is full of videos and articles on how to get the most out of your M3.

The M3 Knowledge Base now Simplify3D profiles for the M3 and M3ID.

Mazhdulin
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Re: MAKERGEAR M3-ID reviews

Post by Mazhdulin » Wed Oct 11, 2017 9:15 am

jk42 wrote: You can also access the M3 Knowledge Base that is full of videos and articles on how to get the most out of your M3.
The M3 Knowledge Base now Simplify3D profiles for the M3 and M3ID.
Is this something that is available now or only after I buy the printer?

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Tim
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Re: MAKERGEAR M3-ID reviews

Post by Tim » Wed Oct 11, 2017 6:04 pm

Mazhdulin wrote:Is this something that is available now or only after I buy the printer?
No, you can see this now. On the MakerGear site, click on "Support"; that takes you to:

https://www.makergear.com/pages/support

The second line says "Click here to visit the MakerGear M3 Knowledge Base"; that takes you to:

https://makergear.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/ ... 3D-Printer

I forgot what series of links gets you to the Simplify3D profiles, but the page is this one:

https://makergear.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/ ... 3-and-M3ID

There's also a link to the firmware source code which I will have to check out. . .

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rpollack
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Re: MAKERGEAR M3-ID reviews

Post by rpollack » Wed Oct 11, 2017 6:19 pm

FYI - jk42 is Jason from MakerGear support.

jk42
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Re: MAKERGEAR M3-ID reviews

Post by jk42 » Wed Oct 11, 2017 6:48 pm

You can access the M3 Knowledge Base here:
https://makergear.zendesk.com/hc/en-us

The link for the M3 profiles is right towards the top of the page.
~Jason from MakerGear

mathisyourfriend
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Re: MAKERGEAR M3-ID reviews

Post by mathisyourfriend » Sat Oct 14, 2017 9:45 pm

For a ~5 minute video of the M3-ID in action see:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-f_qrCgjLg

Sorry about the 240p. Only thing I had was a 1st gen iPad. I see real improvements (fans, onboard computer, ease of use). I'm not qualified to comment specifically on things I read Ed Nisely, Tim, Insta, and others talk about (you know, technical/engineering stuff - many of Your comments are over my head but I try to keep up).

Setup was easy. Running through the calibration also was easy (it came well calibrated).

I agree with Tim that that software is a limiting factor right now but should improve quickly. Ex: I've found that I need to add ~5 degrees C to hot end temps because of the improved cooling. As the community tweaks settings We'll all be better off.

I've asked this before to no avail. Could We please have a new thread for specific M3 and M3-ID questions (one for each would be nicer). I think it would make finding info much easier for all users.

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insta
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Re: MAKERGEAR M3-ID reviews

Post by insta » Sun Oct 15, 2017 12:00 am

mathisyourfriend wrote: I've asked this before to no avail. Could We please have a new thread for specific M3 and M3-ID questions (one for each would be nicer). I think it would make finding info much easier for all users.
Make one, nobody's stopping you. :)
Custom 3D printing for you or your business -- quote [at] pingring.org

mathisyourfriend
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Re: MAKERGEAR M3-ID reviews

Post by mathisyourfriend » Sun Oct 15, 2017 9:03 pm

I see how to post a new topic in a current thread but not how to start a new thread. I figured that was restricted to certain users and Makergear folks to keep things uncluttered or am I missing something obvious?

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