Friday, September 25, 2020
The Original Prusa i3 Mk3 is an excellent Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) 3D Printer and one of the best ready to run consumer-grade 3D printers out there. With a solid frame, easily replaceable and upgradeable parts, and a community to rally around, it's one of the best places to start a 3D printer journey. But even one of the best 3D printers isn't perfect, and here are some of the best upgrades we would add to the Prusa Mk3.
Latest and greatest
Prusa i3 Mk3 to Mk3s upgrade kit
Staff Pick
This upgrade kit brings you up to date with the latest Prusa machine. The kit has all the electronics needed, like an improved filament run-out sensor. You will need to print the plastic parts yourself, but Prusa does include PETg for you to use.
Print anything. Really
E3D Nozzle X
Nozzle X is a high-performance nozzle from E3D. The hardened steel and WS2 coated surface allows you to print abrasive filaments like carbon fiber-filled nylon without wear, and the coating stops filament sticking.
$30 at MatterHackers $29 at Amazom
Heat creep, whats that
E3D V6 Titanium Heatbreak
This quality of life upgrade swaps out the stainless steel heatbreak for a titanium one. Titanium is more thermally conductive and will therefore diminish the chances of heat creep.
$22 at MatterHackers $16 at Amazon
Protect your block
E3D silicone sock
As baffling as it is, Prusa doesn't include a silicone sock on its printers. This little guy slips over the heat block and around the nozzle, which helps to keep temperatures stable and stop errant filament balling up on the heat block.
$9 at MatterHackers $9 at Amazon
No more SD cards
Raspberry Pi 4 & Octoprint
Transferring G-code via sneakernet to your printer can get a bit annoying, especially if you're in a different room than your printers. By hooking up a Raspberry Pi running Octoprint, you can monitor your printer from the web as well as send G-code to it remotely.
ALL THE COLOURS
Prusa MMU2s kit
Sometimes a model can't be split into multiple pieces for printing in different colors, so MMU2s (Multi-Material Upgrade 2s) take the one color printing of the MK3 and turn into five colors, allowing for amazing multi-color or multi-material prints.
Our top Prusa Mk3 3D printer upgrades
All of the items I've listed will be great purchases, but which ones you buy will often depend on what you want out of the 3D printer — except the MK3s upgrade kit, which should be a mandatory purchase. The upgrade kit is not expensive and comes with everything you need to bring your machine up to the latest Prusa specs. The more reliable filament run-out sensor, the easier maintenance on the X carriage and extruder are well worth the cost.
Other upgrades, such as the three Items from E3D, should all be considered quality of life upgrades, or "set and forget." The Nozzle X lets you print any material without fear of damaging the nozzle such as glow-In-the-dark filament or carbon fiber-filled materials. The Titanium Heatbreak lets you forget about potential heat creep or PLA sticking on the inside and causing a clog. Lastly, the Silicone sock is something that should be there from the beginning, and at such a low cost for three, you'll even have spares.
The only premium purchase is the MMU2s upgrade kit. It's expensive and likely won't be used often. Still, if you want to print in multiple materials or colors, the MMU2s takes the spot of the Palette 2s Pro because of the better integration with the Prusa ecosystem of machine, slicer, and filament.
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