3D Printer - Prusa XL

Inductions for the 3D printers are now available on the member portal (right-hand PC by the electronics bench). Tap your card/keyfob on the reader, select “Manage machine inductions”, and take the 3D printer quiz. You will be shown the padlock code on successful completion.

Print file format: bgcode or gcode - bgcode will load and start printing faster

Change the print in settings to Prusa XL

General usage and safety rules are the same as the other printers.

However with regards to filament the loading and unloading is slightly different as there are 5 lines.

Standard settings: 1st colour, 2nd supports. These can be modified in the settings. You can use different types of filament within reason but consider the heat of the bed. Always make sure the filament in each line matches that in the software.

prusa3d_manual_xl_104_en.pdf

All Hackspace 3D printers use 1.75mm filament. Most filaments such as PLA, ABS, PETG, FLEX etc are supported. Do not use filaments that require a nozzle temperature above 285°C such as polycarbonate. Abrasive filaments can be used on toolhead 1 as it has an ObXidian nozzle, but printing them on any other toolhead will wear down and break the brass nozzles. Examples of abrasive filaments are CF / GF filaments, wood and metal filaments, and glow in the dark filaments. Please also structure your multi-material prints to avoid printing with the brass nozzles on top of an abrasive filament.

If you are starting with the printer, we recommend choosing PLA for the initial print. This material is easy to work with and does not require complex pre-print preparation.

Before you insert the filament, start by placing the filament spool on the side holder. Be careful not to let go of the end of the filament strand - the spool could easily tangle up.

If there is filament already in the lines please remove following the removing filament guidance below.

1. Cut the end of the filament into a sharp point. Insert the filament into the PTFE tube on the side and keep pushing it inside. If the filament sensor is on, the filament will be automatically fed. If the filament sensor is off, proceed to step 2.
2. Select the LCD Menu - Filament - Load Filament and confirm with the button.
3. The Preheat menu will automatically appear. Select the material of the filament you want to insert and confirm the selection with the rotary knob.
4. Wait until the nozzle reaches the desired temperature.
5. Press the rotary knob to start feeding the filament. Push the filament into the PTFE tube lightly until you feel that the extruder gear has grabbed the filament and is pulling it in.
6. The feed wheel in the extruder will then pull the filament further into the extruder. Once it heats up fully, it will push out a bit of material from the nozzle. The printer will ask if the colour of the extruded filament is okay. The message on the screen will say: Yes / Purge More /Retry. Check if there is filament extruded from the nozzle, then select:
   • If the filament is extruded and the colour is correct, select YES
   • If the filament is not extruded or is contaminated with another colour, select: PURGE MORE (you can repeat this step)
   • If the filament is not extruded and PURGE MORE doesn't help, repeat the loading procedure by choosing RETRY

After use: Please completely remove your filaments from all of the lines rather than leaving a clipped amount in. Due to the PTFE lines this would be a significant loss of filament and also potential pain of the filament being used by accident by following prints.

1. Select LCD Menu - Filament - Unload Filament
2. The printer will preheat automatically depending on the selected material. As soon as it reaches the right temperature, the filament will be unloaded from the extruder in a few seconds.
3. Once the extruder stops unloading the filament, remove it from the PTFE tube by hand. Please keep in mind that the process of unloading the filament strand from the extruder takes a few seconds. Do not pull hard on the filament when the unloading process is running. Check the printer's screen for information.
4. Make sure to secure the unloaded filament when you wind it up back onto the spool. If the end of the filament slips out, the spool may become tangled.

The priming tower (not to be confused with the wipe tower produced by MMU2S/MMU3) is a small, mostly hollow block that is used to stabilize the pressure inside the nozzle once an extruder is unparked from the dock. The printer extrudes a tiny amount of filament from the nozzle to stabilize the pressure inside the nozzle and then continues to print the main object. As a result, the priming tower is thin and light, resulting in minimal waste. The priming tower is supported with a hollow cone to ensure better stability. The priming tower settings can be altered in the Print Settings → Multiple Extruders menu. However, the default values work for the vast majority of prints and we recommend keeping them untouched. In case you're encountering stability issues, you may consider changing the Width of the tower or the Stabilization cone apex angle.

Switching between extruders is nearly instantaneous and there is very little waste because the XL doesn’t require a full wipe tower or a bin for plastic waste. All that is needed is a compact priming tower design to stabilize the pressure inside the nozzle. You can further reduce the amount of wasted filament by employing smart features from our PrusaSlicer, such as wipe to infill, which allows you to prime the nozzle into the object’s infill.

Similarly to the MK4 is that it's very easy to print on different steel sheets. We have three:

• smooth – this is the same as the previous printers. It should only be used for PLA. If you're printing ABS, PETG or FLEX, then you *need* to use the textured sheet.
• textured – this is the strongest sheet and is a good choice for general printing in almost any filament. It has slightly lower bed adhesion than smooth when printing PLA, but only slightly. Remember – you may also need glue stick when using sticky filaments.
• satin – this is for PLA only and gives a slightly different surface finish.

Toolhead 1 is equipped with a 0.4 mm ObXidian nozzle, allowing it to print with abrasive materials such as CF/GF filled filaments. DO NOT PRINT THESE WITH OTHER NOZZLES, ONLY TOOLHEAD 1. It will work with all other filaments on the approved list as well and should be all around more durable than the other nozzles.

• Printer design: Core XY
• Build volume: 360×360×360 mm (14.17’’×14.17’’×14.17’’)
• Printer dimensions: 700 mm (w) × 900 mm (h) × 720 mm (d) (27.5’’×35.5’’×28.5’’) including side spoolholders and the separate top enclosure cover
• Filament diameter: 1.75mm, wide range of thermoplastics supported (including, but not limited to PLA, PETG, ASA, ABS…)
• Extruder: Planetary 1:10 gearbox with no-slip drive gear, Load Cell sensor, E3D V6 compatible*
• Tool Changer with up to 5 tool heads (optional upgrade via built-in expansion port)
• Bed: Segmented heatbed with 16 individually controlled segments
• Print surface: Removable magnetic steel sheets with different surface finishes
• Electronics: 32-bit custom-made board with an expansion slot, single-cable communication with tool heads, network features, one-click printing
• Mesh Bed Levelling: Load Cell-based fully automatic first layer calibration with no Live Z adjustment
• Power panic: Hardware-based, single G-Code line accuracy
• Ethernet connection: built-in; network connectivity not required for setup or operation
• Wi-Fi module: built-in; network connectivity not required for setup or operation

The tools can get slightly out of line with each other. This can be particularly noticeable on the z axis – when multi material printing, you might find that one tool prints slightly higher or lower than the others. If this happens, you can re-run the tool offset calibration wizard: https://help.prusa3d.com/guide/4-first-run_468832#469249

As the printer isn't enclosed, it's prone to getting dust on the bed, and as it's a bigger bed anyway, it takes more cleaning. You might find that it takes noticeably more time to fully clean the bed. If you're having problems with bed adhesion, make sure it's very thoroughly cleaned.