I finally got multi-color working on my Creality K1 Max using the 3D Chameleon.
Decided to make a 2 color benchy and scaled it down to 75% to save time, along with 0.25mm layer height.
So far the Chameleon has been pretty picky with filament, but when it works it works well! This print is with silk gold and matte black. I have even gotten 95A TPU to print with it surprisingly!
I modified the color-change code so it takes 1 minute less, which makes a big difference when you have hundreds of color changes.
Next up, 4 color benchy. Probably will be 10 hrs lol
I thought this was going to be a joke where you hand-drew the bench with a filament pen, thought it was really good for that.
Nope. Wow, that took a while.
I misread and thought this was a 40 meter benchy.
Four hours? That seems awfully slow. You say you’re printing this for your store? I would think you’d want to get a Bambu A1.
Color changes are VERY slow.
1min30sec for every color change. Multiply that by hundreds of color changes and it adds up!
I am starting to see why people usually print whole plates full of multicolor prints. It’s the same amount of color changes, but more way more efficient.
Or just well tune your printer. Bambus are fine for people who can spend more money and use proprietary software but will spend less time tinkering.
They have community firmware now and the A1 is $550 bucks with AMS that has no printer poop for multi material. Not that it matters to me, I just grabbed a Qidi X Max 3 for the print volume (and because it was open-ish Klipper).
A1 is recalled isn’t it?
I also need the large size, otherwise might have gotten a P1S
A1 mini is recalled
A1 technically is as well. But if you have one that isn’t affected it’s not a huge deal.
Oh good to know. I do think as a toy printer for your kids, the A1 mini looks great. And assuming you have kids, then you don’t have time, making the premium price more attractive.
no, this was a print for myself to test the Chameleon. I don’t sell any multicolor prints as of now.
I prefer non-proprietary parts and unlocked software you get with a rooted K1. I can edit my klipper configs directly.
This is not my multicolor-specific machine. It will be used mostly for single color regular prints
Ah I see! Did you see Bambu has an open source-ish option now with the community firmware?
Yeah that is pretty cool how Bambu is dealing with it too, but not the same as having full root access to the Linux computer that runs the printer.
I can SSH into my K1 and change things, install programs, etc. I even changed my Start_Print sequence to stop doing all the time-consuming calibration for every print. Sometimes I am just prototyping and dont want 10 min of calibration for a 3 minute print.
I hear you on that. I ended up getting a Qidi Max 3 for that reason.
The multi color is neat but that print quality… woof
and this is coming from someone who daily drives an ANET
Yeah it’s not the prettiest lol. This is 75% size, and 0.25mm layers, which doesn’t help. (I just wanted to shorten print time)
I had to use Prusa Slicer because of the custom GCode features, so my settings there are not perfect yet. It also isn’t controlling the aux fans properly like Creality slicer.
My normal 1 color benchies are 22 minutes and absolutely perfect, using my finely tuned Creality Slicer profile.
How do you like your ANET? Is the A8?
If you don’t mimd me asking, what practical use case for this is there? Like it’s cool but I just split the model up and print them separately and it seems like so much less of a pain
If you print with incompatible filaments (materials which don’t bond/adhere) you can get cheap, nearly perfect breakaway supports. I’ve done some rocket parts on my PrusaXL and it’s certifiably magic.
yeah I saw people were doing that with PETG and PLA. I haven’t tried it yet but good to know that’s in my back pocket if I need it.
Also soluble supports are a thing, although they might be trickier and more expensive
Oh that’s sick! I’ve been interested in the chameleon since they first posted on Reddit. How finicky is it?
very. I spent the last 3 weeks fiddling with the timing. If you are not willing to troubleshoot and work on it I’d go for a ready-built solution like the AMS. I like the challenge, but definitely underestimated it
Most of it was me not fully understanding what was happening in the filament swap gcode. Once I understood that I was able to tweak settings to make it work. Once I found out certain filaments are just trouble I have had better luck. Still working on getting it to be less picky.
the updated version in April is going to have sensor-less detection of where the filament is in it’s path, which will make timing a non-issue. Any Chameleon sold until then will have the hardware needed, and can be updated for free in April. can’t waiit
Oooh, that sounds awesome! I need this.
