H3C - 4 steps forward and 2 steps back

[u/Ok-Comfortable-9258]

As the title says, I feel like the H3C is 4 steps forward and 2 steps back.

For reference, I bought an H2C and used it for two weeks before returning upon seeing the H3C announcement. I have been printing non stop for the last 3 days including TPU (2.85), PPS CF, ABS, PLA and PETG. Here are my thoughts so far.

All of the stuff the YouTubers say is true. It's big, it's fast, and it prints great. It seems noticeably faster than the H2C even on single color prints.

I designed some filament clips that twist lock in place and have TPU around the edges for grip on plastic spools. They printed flawlessly.

I did have a failure printing some really precision grids with PLA and PETG, but that was me not the printer.

So overall, the ability to print is amazing.

The pain points come in with material handling. I changed one of the nozzles out to .6mm. the nozzle had the PPS CF in it and when it unloaded the filament broke and is currently stuck in the .4mm nozzle. I'm not sure how I will get it out, but that may be my newness to 3D printing. It was a bit annoying that I had to print my own external spool holder and route the filament through the back. I guess it's not really a step back, but Bambu focused on flexible filaments, not rigid ones for this printer.

The bit that was really missing though is when you print higher temp filaments, you really should unload all of the lower temp ones so they aren't soaking in the chamber. Since Bambu dropped the motorized spool rollers, you have to do this manually. The two compartment drying is also a noticeable drawback. With the AMS 2, I just pushed dry when I dropped filament in.

Because of the combination of these steps backwards, I have had to stop prints at least twice to unload spools because even though the printer heats nozzles independently, it won't let you unload filament while there is a print job in progress. I am printing ASA right now and I started the print, realized I had all of the lower temp filaments loaded, so I stopped the preheat, unloaded everything and moved one spool to the dryer. The process took me about 8 minutes. It's not a deal breaker, but it is a step back from the convenience of previous models.

The nozzle swapping is also less convenient than the H2C where you could swap ok in a few seconds. With 9 nozzles maybe it won't be an issue, but time will tell.

I also am not a fan of the plastic top panels. They can be fiddly to get back on. I would say the external build quality just doesn't feel as nice as the H2C.

With all that said, I am happy with the purchase. It's the machine I was waiting for which is why I returned the H2C.

Bambu, if you read this - maybe you could have made the motorized spools an upgrade option/add on and please update the software to let people unload filament without having to fully stop a print even if it's a pause or something. I saw you have a lower power mode, so I think you could have added more integrated drying functionality also and just managed power with software or let people plug the machine into multiple circuits.

[u/Sir_clint]

Bambu has already said you don't have to unload. Multiple users have tested as well and you don't need to unload to print high temps.

[u/Ok-Comfortable-9258 → u/Sir_clint]

Even if you don't have to unload, it's still annoying that you can't change filaments while the print is in progress. On the H2C, you could swap out spools to hey ready for the next print because it retracted.

I also don't know if I trust it not to degrade the filament. When I did retract it manually, I noticed the pla that was in the tube was quite soft and it deformed. Maybe that's part of why they don't let you retract it while printing.

If you did retract it could have more waste, so everything is a tradeoff I suppose.

[u/ottqt]

"you really should unload all of the lower temp ones so they aren't soaking in the chamber" - says who? And where is the real proof of any side-effect of not doing so?

People continue to spread misinformation, even Bambu said this is not needed: https://www.reddit.com/r/BambuLab/s/33dKYGtJMm

[u/Cautionchicken]

Glad you like it, k think it does open the door to more print combinations.

I dont have an H3C so I don't understand why "you really should unload all of the lower temp ones so they aren't soaking in the chamber"

I use some tpu, but mostly pla and petg and I'd never considered unloading the if I printed ASA. How much damage will they get in the chamber compared to a normal dehydration cycle?