8 ms·

ABL has been recently improved with the Beacon 3D probe (https://beacon3d.com/ https://beacon3d.com/), I haven't had a chance to try it myself yet, as my cheap

ABL has been recently improved with the Beacon 3D probe (https://beacon3d.com/ https://beacon3d.com/), I haven't had a chance to try it myself yet, as my cheap induction probe has been working reliably ever since I mounted it. But, the Beacon 3D along with mesh leveling and selective leveling area are my favorite recent innovations in 3D printing.

stavros 3y ago
Does it work well? All I want is a reliable first layer, as that's what causes 99% of my failed prints.
- TaylorAlexander 3y ago
  Look in to the Prusa Mk4 which uses the nozzle itself with a built in load cell to probe the bed, providing perfect offsets every time!
  - stavros 3y ago
    Ah, damn, that's great! Not CoreXY, but I'm sure someone will put this on a CoreXY printer, and then no more bed leveling!
    - TaylorAlexander 3y ago
      Oh someone has put this on a CoreXY: ;) https://www.prusa3d.com/product/original-prusa-xl-3/ https://www.prusa3d.com/product/original-prusa-xl-3/
      - stavros 3y ago
        Ahaha XLent.
    - jyxent 3y ago
      The Bambu Lab CoreXY printers have force sensors in the bed for leveling using the nozzle: https://wiki.bambulab.com/en/x1/maintenance/replace-the-heatbed-force-sensor https://wiki.bambulab.com/en/x1/maintenance/replace-the-heat... Vorons also have a nozzle probing design: https://github.com/VoronDesign/Voron-Tap https://github.com/VoronDesign/Voron-Tap
      - stavros 3y ago
        Can they live-adjust Z to keep constant pressure? Otherwise they aren't much different from a BLTouch.
        jyxent 3y ago
        They measure a series of points to get a bed mesh, the same as other leveling sensors do. You shouldn't need to live-adjust z, because you've measured the bed surface with the nozzle tip. With a BLTouch, you need to adjust the z-offset, because the nozzle tip and the BLTouch trigger height are not the same. Once that is calibrated, it should continue to work fine as long as the sensor is working properly. I think it mainly comes down to the accuracy of the sensor. If your sensor gives you a +-0.03mm reading when probing the same spot, then you will have high and low spots in your bed mesh that you can't correct with z-offset. This could explain your issues with the BLTouch you mentioned in another thread here. I have various brands of knockoff BLTouch sensors, and the worst one had a +-0.02mm range when measuring points, which made it impossible to get a good bed mesh. The one I replaced it with had about a +-0.005mm accuracy, which fixed my issues with the low and high spots.
        stavros 3y ago
        I've measured the repeatability on mine, and it was pretty good, though I don't remember the number right now. The pressure sensor on the hottend is superior to any other method, because it has much better resolution (though maybe not better than the Beacon), and it can adjust to print conditions in real time, which no other start-of-print sensor can do.
- Kirby64 3y ago
  Yes, I have one and it works exceptionally well. The only caveat is that it’s measuring the metal surface directly and not the actual physical surface (such as PEI), so you need to load different offsets if you swap between different material surfaces such as textured PEI, flat PEI or bare steel.
  - stavros 3y ago
    Oh, how does it do it? I thought it used light/laser to measure, if it's measuring the metal it might not be very accurate with my two layers of magnet and PEI sheet on top...
    - Kirby64 3y ago
      It generates a field using the coil measures the eddy currents in the material directly below it. As long as you have a spring steel sheet and don’t have those large discrete magnets (either lots of tiny round magnets or the sheet magnets) it works just fine. It’s accurate to single digit micrometers (yes, actually).
      - stavros 3y ago
        Wow, that's impressive. Aren't most buildplates made of aluminium, though? Also I always worry that the PEI sheet over the plate will introduce inconsistencies, let alone that mine has an extra layer of magnet sheet on it (and, as you said, the magnet even makes the detection not work). However, it seems very doable to have a Beacon for the bed scanning, and a BLTouch for getting the physical distance over the sheet plate.
        Kirby64 3y ago
        Most PEI sheets are quite uniform so you don’t really have issues with that. As long as they’re applied to the build plate without bubbles they’re generally as flat as the plate surface. Also, no, almost no build plates are aluminum. Modern printers usually use a silicone heater bonded to an aluminum frame, which either has magnets embedded in it or a sheet magnet applied on top of it, then a spring steel plate with some sort of PEI on top is what you print on. That’s what Prusa and Bambu use, for instance. I don’t know why you’d want to use BLtouch to get the physical distance, since you calibrate the physical distance when calibrating the beacon sensor itself. Not a problem unless you frequently swap between materials of different thicknesses.

stavros 3y ago

Does it work well? All I want is a reliable first layer, as that's what causes 99% of my failed prints.

TaylorAlexander 3y ago
Look in to the Prusa Mk4 which uses the nozzle itself with a built in load cell to probe the bed, providing perfect offsets every time!
- stavros 3y ago
  Ah, damn, that's great! Not CoreXY, but I'm sure someone will put this on a CoreXY printer, and then no more bed leveling!
  - TaylorAlexander 3y ago
    Oh someone has put this on a CoreXY: ;) https://www.prusa3d.com/product/original-prusa-xl-3/ https://www.prusa3d.com/product/original-prusa-xl-3/
    - stavros 3y ago
      Ahaha XLent.
  - jyxent 3y ago
    The Bambu Lab CoreXY printers have force sensors in the bed for leveling using the nozzle: https://wiki.bambulab.com/en/x1/maintenance/replace-the-heatbed-force-sensor https://wiki.bambulab.com/en/x1/maintenance/replace-the-heat... Vorons also have a nozzle probing design: https://github.com/VoronDesign/Voron-Tap https://github.com/VoronDesign/Voron-Tap
    - stavros 3y ago
      Can they live-adjust Z to keep constant pressure? Otherwise they aren't much different from a BLTouch.
      - jyxent 3y ago
        They measure a series of points to get a bed mesh, the same as other leveling sensors do. You shouldn't need to live-adjust z, because you've measured the bed surface with the nozzle tip. With a BLTouch, you need to adjust the z-offset, because the nozzle tip and the BLTouch trigger height are not the same. Once that is calibrated, it should continue to work fine as long as the sensor is working properly. I think it mainly comes down to the accuracy of the sensor. If your sensor gives you a +-0.03mm reading when probing the same spot, then you will have high and low spots in your bed mesh that you can't correct with z-offset. This could explain your issues with the BLTouch you mentioned in another thread here. I have various brands of knockoff BLTouch sensors, and the worst one had a +-0.02mm range when measuring points, which made it impossible to get a good bed mesh. The one I replaced it with had about a +-0.005mm accuracy, which fixed my issues with the low and high spots.
        stavros 3y ago
        I've measured the repeatability on mine, and it was pretty good, though I don't remember the number right now. The pressure sensor on the hottend is superior to any other method, because it has much better resolution (though maybe not better than the Beacon), and it can adjust to print conditions in real time, which no other start-of-print sensor can do.
Kirby64 3y ago
Yes, I have one and it works exceptionally well. The only caveat is that it’s measuring the metal surface directly and not the actual physical surface (such as PEI), so you need to load different offsets if you swap between different material surfaces such as textured PEI, flat PEI or bare steel.
- stavros 3y ago
  Oh, how does it do it? I thought it used light/laser to measure, if it's measuring the metal it might not be very accurate with my two layers of magnet and PEI sheet on top...
  - Kirby64 3y ago
    It generates a field using the coil measures the eddy currents in the material directly below it. As long as you have a spring steel sheet and don’t have those large discrete magnets (either lots of tiny round magnets or the sheet magnets) it works just fine. It’s accurate to single digit micrometers (yes, actually).
    - stavros 3y ago
      Wow, that's impressive. Aren't most buildplates made of aluminium, though? Also I always worry that the PEI sheet over the plate will introduce inconsistencies, let alone that mine has an extra layer of magnet sheet on it (and, as you said, the magnet even makes the detection not work). However, it seems very doable to have a Beacon for the bed scanning, and a BLTouch for getting the physical distance over the sheet plate.
      - Kirby64 3y ago
        Most PEI sheets are quite uniform so you don’t really have issues with that. As long as they’re applied to the build plate without bubbles they’re generally as flat as the plate surface. Also, no, almost no build plates are aluminum. Modern printers usually use a silicone heater bonded to an aluminum frame, which either has magnets embedded in it or a sheet magnet applied on top of it, then a spring steel plate with some sort of PEI on top is what you print on. That’s what Prusa and Bambu use, for instance. I don’t know why you’d want to use BLtouch to get the physical distance, since you calibrate the physical distance when calibrating the beacon sensor itself. Not a problem unless you frequently swap between materials of different thicknesses.