New Elegoo printers

[tnuag]

This is just a note on the new Elegoo Mars 5 Ultra and the Saturn 4 Ultra. Both are currently on offer in the summer sale and differ in that the resin vat tilts to separate from the build plate, rather than the up-down motion we are all used to.

 

We currently have two of each, with others on order and the Mars have already been used for production. The verdict so far is very good results, and about 30+% faster than the previous generation machine.

 

I hope this helps - they certainly are worth considering if you are shopping for a machine.

[dnl42]

I have the Saturn 4 Ultra. I agree, it's a nice, large, unit. 

[tnuag]

We have had each iteration as they came along, and the new ones are a major step forward.

 

Because we are using only 3D printing now, we can offer improved models, with clear windows, decent panel detail and most important of all no other tooling costs. To put that in perspective, a new vacform model had a 3 to 4 figure tooling cost. Even an etched brass & resin piece of ground equipment could cost three to five hundred in launch costs.

 

As a result we have been able to hold prices for a long time.

 

As I have now said many times, I regard 3D printing as the biggest advance in decades.

[Ebf2k]

I must say even as a Phrozen fan boy, the specs of those Elegoo printers look really interesting.  How does this tilt release work?  I'm wondering how the peel forces will be different compared to the standard lift release I'm used to and work around.

[tnuag]

When we started we used Phrozen too, but we are now just Elegoo, and their support is superb.

 

This is how they work:

Traditionally the build plate goes up and down on the Z drive, but there is considerable suction between the FEP and the build plate as the build plate lifts, getting greater as the  base area of the models get larger.

 

The 'Ultra' models of Mars 5 and Saturn 4 have a deeper vat, and these tilt instead of the build plate going up and down. This reduces the forces on the FEP because it is now a peeling action, rather than a straight vertical pull.

 

As regards the mechanism, the 'hinge' for the vat is actually a spring steel plate at the rear edge (i.e. adjacent to the Z drive). and at the front of the machine is an electric motor with a crank, and this is connected through a connecting rod to the opposite edge of the vat mounting to the hing.

 

One of our merry men told me that it is around 35% faster than the traditional up-down action, while someone else who was using earlier Mars 2 Pros got two new Ultras and has since asked for more!

 

There is plenty of information on the Elegoo web site.

 

I hope this helps.