Anycubiy Photon X

[PatriotClass]

Hello Guys,

 

I hope everybody is doing fine and healthy!

 

Has anybody got an anycubic Photon X? 

I am searching for a printer that features more building volume than an Elego Mars. Is the Photon X worth of its price? 

In the description they announce a speed of 60 mm/h ist this true? How about the quality?

 

By the way, here a picture of my UV hardening device - my family is calling it "The Reactor"  

It's really effective and consits of 6 Lunsy 30 W LED UV floods in alumnium case.

 

Thanks

Cheers 

Chris

 

 

 

 

Edited December 15, 2020 by PatriotClass

[njee20]

@TomEhas one, and is getting great results from it. 
 

I’ve got an Elegoo Saturn, which are coming out markedly cheaper (£410), but with scant availability. It’s fine. It’s actually slower than the Mars due to the necessary reduction in lift speed required due to the larger peel forces. Good for bigger items or printing more of an item. I still use my smaller printers more though. 

[JimFin]

I have a Mono X and so far delighted with it but still on the learning curve. Speed is a pleasant surprise as the penny had not dropped that resin printing time is soley determined by the number of layers rather than the complexity of the shape - as with an FDM printer. Resolution of detail is superb. Handrail on the test print body below are 0.29mm diameter. Damage to them  was down to my poor handling of the support material.

 

Edited December 16, 2020 by JimFin

[TomE]

The Photon X is shaping up to be a great machine, but there are some issues to be aware of if you’re considering one. 

 

Some covers in the initial batch have developed fine cracks over time, including mine. Anycubic are sending out replacements which appear to be of a slightly different design. I raised a ticket with them and they were pretty quick to send out a replacement, although it’s yet to arrive. 

There appear to be two different screens in use and one of them needs the UV power adjusting down to prevent curing the whole area of the build plate. When my machine arrived it was set to 100% power and I had the cured film issue. I'm currently running it at just 50% with no issues. It's a simple menu option to adjust. 

 

There are reports out there of uneven build platforms, although this is not a problem exclusive to the mono X. It appears Anycubic are replacing affected plates though if you contact them about it. 

 

The screen does not have a glass top cover, the polarizing film on the LCD is in direct contact with the FEP so if you get a leak and don't notice, you will end up needing to replace the film. I've seen a fair few people have this problem, although i'm not sure what they are doing to puncture the FEP! 

 

There is no extraction system for fumes, the dual fans are there purely to cool the UV array so you may want to consider that if using indoors. The lid does a good job of keeping the smell in, until you have to take it off to get at the print! I bought a couple of Elegoo carbon filters which have improved things. 

 

Those things aside, it is producing some lovely prints, with detail sharper than the Photon/Mars I also have. The larger build area is also very welcome even though I'm only producing N Gauge stuff. 

 

Hope this helps. 

 

Tom. 

[njee20]

It’s worth saying that virtually all the mono printers out there (Saturn, Mars 2 Pro, Photon Mono SE etc) all have the polariser exposed, and if you damage it you have to replace the entire LCD, not just the film itself. I suspect manufacturers will  start adding an additional layer of protection, as there’s a lot of moaning about this online, and people used to being to scrape cured resin off with a razor blade are suddenly trashing their screens. 

[JCL]

My Mono X turned up at the end of December. @TomE and @njee20 are right in that there have been teething problems, but there are either workarounds available, or Anycubic are sending out new parts. Some of the issues were with early models only. The only problem I have mine so far is operator error.

 

The machine is like a sports car compared to my previous one - the Peopoly Moai. It’s much easier to use, and was able to produce a good print on my first try. It’s also fast enough that I’m more likely to experiment as the results arrive more quickly.

 

 

I’m on Facebook because of work, so I’ve joined up to two Mono X groups on there, and one of them has an excellent FAQ that helps setup and troubleshoot. I also use the Lychee slicer to process my stl files.
 

Overall, I’m very pleased with it so far, I just don’t let it into the house, so I print in the insulated shed because of the fumes.

 

fo me it was worth the money, but then again, I’ve not seen the Saturn, so I’m afraid I can’t directly compare.

Edited December 30, 2020 by JCL

[njee20]

I think the Mono X is faster than the Saturn, by default at least. Everyone on the FB groups is getting excited about faster lift speeds at the moment (gag-inducingly being called “vroom speeds”), the idea being the higher peel force is more like a sticking plaster, where actually slower lift speeds can cause a failure. I understand from Tom the Mono x defaults to 4mm/sec or 240mm/min, where the Saturn GCode is actually limited to 180mm/min by default. Obviously everyone’s now overriding this!

 

I’d be surprised if they weren’t comprised of the same parts ultimately - the screen and the main board are the same AFAIK, so it’s just around things like the rigidity of the z-axis. The Photon always felt more substantial than the Mars, so I suspect the Mono x will have the edge in build quality. 
 

It’ll be interesting to see where prices end up once supply is satisfied.

[JimFin]

 

On 30/12/2020 at 09:07, JCL said:

Overall, I’m very pleased with it so far, I just don’t let it into the house, so I print in the insulated shed because of the fumes.

On the subject of fumes, got a supply of the plant based resin at the beginning of the week. Having done the REFR test print, it actually uses exactly the same settings as the basic resin and it is odourless as far as I can tell.