Lender Ender
- "Just don't print unattended. Sucks but just don't do it. "
Will it catch fire?
- the wire to the bed is high ampage, and is constantly being moved, which wires hate, so over time will become a hazard.
- the "XT60" yellow power plug seems a weak point also... some youtube dingbat
Spool Holder
This is likely the first hurdle. Unlike the Ender-3 in the space this has a side mounted spool. It slips on the bottom rails. See pictures
Spool holder before installation
Endcap is removable
Spool holder slides on from the end.
Filament Change
Comprehensive video on changing filament on the Ender-3
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bv46Wu87Z5k
Stuff to make it safer
this is a straight paste from this reddit thread
there are various guides and discussions out there, but here are the basics I do for pretty much any chinese printer I buy:
- Re-flash with marlin and enable Thermal Runaway protection (I think this is done)
- Clip all soldered mains connectors and use crimped ferules instead
- Bypass onboard mosfets with more reliable external mosfets (this has the added benefit of diverting high voltage from your mainboard, so if the mosfets fail it doesn't fry your board).
- Add in-line fuses to all mains sources (take care of it at the same time as the mosfets- one for the hot end, one for the bed).
- Replace your bed wires with high strand count silicone insulated RC wire with proper AWG rating for current
- Relieve wire stress on moving parts by using stiff ribbed nylon wire sleeves
Additionally, I have a custom smoke detector wired to a 120v relay that will shut down power to the printer in the event any of those other precautions fail. Generally speaking, you'll have smoke before you have fire- so the theory is that if something starts to burn the power gets disconnected before it can ignite. BUT, if you really want to play it safe you can get an automatic fire suppression canister and mount it above your printer.
I've done it so many times now I just buy the parts in large quantities, so the cost per machine is negligible. But if you only plan on running one printer and don't want to go through the hassle it's possibly cheaper and easier to just buy a printer that has higher manufacturing and safety standards.
