Improve an ANET A8
In 2018 I bought an “ANET A8” 3D printer. I was very happy in building it myself with the help of a friend. The results were ok, but not perfect. Therefore I decided to print additional upgrades and improve the 3D printer.
Buy recommendations:
Both are Must-have improvements.
- Glas panel: the original bed is too sticky. With this one, the printed models get loose by simply cooling down.
- Mosfet for print bed: There are multiple reports that the motherboard is not designed carefully. I experienced as well, that the connection at the motherboard started to get brown. Therefore I highly recommend this to reduce fire risk.
Printed recommendations:
This list is longer, so I categorized them into four groups:
Must-have
- X-belt tensioner: improve precision greatly
- Y-belt tensioner: improve precision
- Brackets to reduce X-Axis Motion: reduce X-Axis wiggle
- Extruder Cooling Duct: way better cooling.
- Spool Holder / Adapter (51/52 mm diameter): without it, the spool rotates very irregular and can cause the filament to leap into the hot nozzle.
Recommend
- Wing Nut bed level screw knob: When levelling this is much more comfortable.
- X-axis belt holder: If the belt gets tensioned very hard this makes sure it stays this way.
- Y-axis belt holder: Same as above
- Filament Guide & Filter: simply remove the dust from the filament to have a better print quality.
- Front Frame Brace: slightly improves the tension of the Y-belt.
- Rear Frame Brace: makes the whole frame stiffer
- Extruder Arm / Filament Release / Extruder Button: when inserting a new filament, this is much more comfortable.
- Mosfet Mount: having a separate Mosfet for the bed is a must-have. This keeps the setup clean.
Nice-to-have
- Tool holder (left), (right): keeps the build clean.
- Power supply cover: I was not a big fan of the direct cable at the power supply. Therefore I bought an adapter for the cold appliance plug.
- Filament Clip: I a filament is not used it tends to unroll itself. This keeps it in place.
- X-Axis Cable Chain with Z Stop Adjustment: prevents the cables from cluttering.
- Extruder Fan Spacer: helps when assembling the heater or cleaning the nozzle.
- Raspberry Pi Mount: to have a tidy setup.
- Raspberry PI B Mount: but the “Raspberry PI B” itself is too slow for good usage
- Filament guide (Horizontal): helps to prevent the filament from breaking
- M8 Nut Cap: just better looking
Not recommend
- Button guide: no idea why, but does not fit.
- Bed Level Thumbwheel Upgrade: only use the spring centering part. There are better thumbwheels above.