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| Ender 3 as currently configured |
After 6 months of using the Ender 3 in stock configuration I ran into a few areas that were showing signs of failing. So I thought I'd do a couple upgrades in the process of fixing them. Three key areas that were showing issues were the bed-springs, extruder idler arm, bed surface, and part-fan duct, so I picked out some upgrades for them.
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| 1.75 mm Genuine BondTech drive gear kit. |
As the extruder is one of the highest wear parts on a 3D printer, any breakdown there is going to show up instantly in the printed parts. So I opted to upgrade to some BondTech drive gears with the original motor-end result is that I'm now able to print flexible filament without issue and haven't had a jam due to chewed up filament since. The housing is a PLA version of the official STL files from BondTech's website. They're surprisingly easy to print with an FDM machine-some slight supports in a couple minor areas and on the idler/compression arm and that was it.
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| Extruder Motor with BondTech mounting bracket |
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| Fully assembled extruder block in use |
The next area that needed upgrading was my bed-levelling knobs. I came into the shop one morning to find one had spun clean off the bottom of the bed assembly from the vibrational force of normal operation. So I decided to install the same nyloc nuts solution that I've been using on my i3MK2 clone with some custom 3D printed replacement knobs.
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| Custom and Stock leveling knobs |
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| New Leveling knobs fully installed, note M4 nyloc nut locking mounting screw |
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| Flex-sure branded spring-steel build plate |
And speaking of the bed, I've been through a couple different printing substrates before settling on the current setup. I started with the official mag-bed upgrade after encountering bending issues with the strange flexible plate that came with the printer. The Creality mag-bed upgrade is much better than the starter plate, but the upper surface is far too rigid for practical use. Mine quickly developed cracks and started flaking apart with little bits stuck to prints. I was pleasantly surprised when a batch of spring steel plates that fit the Ender 3 build plate showed up on Amazon. It works perfectly with the magnet sheet from the official bed. I stuck some BuildTak on top and I've been using it ever since.
And lastly are a couple upgrades from Thingiverse. First one is a 5015 radial part-cooling fan mount to replace the stock 4010 radial fan, (I've found that it gives about the same airflow with much lower noise levels, always a plus when working in the same space with the printer). The other upgrade is an elegant electronics bay intake cover, probably the simplest and most effective one I've found to date since it literally just snaps into place straight off the bed after printing. Combined, these two mods reduce the printer's noise level from a howl down to a minor background noise that is comfortable to work around.
