Two-minute review
Many of us would not essentially consider 3D printing as an inexpensive passion, particularly in the event you're seeking to discover resin-based SLA and MSLA printers, however the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro proves you needn't lay our a fortune to get a premium product.
Affordability is relative after all, however you may at the moment seize the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro for $260 / £230 / (*2*)AU$640, which is greater than a good worth to pay for the standard that you simply're getting, putting it in an analogous worth band because the AnyCubic Photon Mono.
The Mars 2 Pro has a slighter bigger construct quantity than that of the unique Mars 2 printer, and a steel resin vat slightly than the replaceable plastic model. Other variations outdoors of price (with the unique Mars 2 accessible for round $200 / £215) is the inclusion of an air filtration system and a rubber seal across the edges of the crimson acrylic cowl, although we could not discover accessible inventory for the unique Mars 2 on any Australian-based web site.
The printing capabilities for each printers are the identical on paper, so if yow will discover the Mars 2 accessible and you are not fussy about getting the next high quality machine then you may count on the identical printing outcomes from both.
The construct quantity, or accessible printing area, is on the smaller aspect, not unusual for resin-based printers because the constructed plate needs to be absolutely submerged in specialised UV reactive resin to perform, however with bigger printers accessible just like the Elegoo Saturn or the AnyCubic Photon Mono X you is perhaps tempted to look elsewhere in the event you assume the Mars 2 Pro will not present sufficient area on your prints otherwise you're seeking to batch print for a small enterprise.
The area is greater than enough for printing smaller fashions although, and plenty of bigger collectible figurines will be break up into sections to print if you do not have the area to maintain a bigger printer. In truth, its compact measurement and built-in air filter imply that this can be a much more 'residence' pleasant possibility than a bigger machine and will be arrange someplace like an workplace slightly than a devoted printing room. We would nonetheless suggest solely printing in a well-ventilated area (as resin is a poisonous materials), however the air filter can not less than give us some assurance concerning well being and security.
There are a handful of small criticisms we have now in regards to the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro, however they are not sufficient to dissuade us from buying the printer given what number of execs it has over cons. If you are into tabletop miniatures or board video games, this can be a unbelievable machine that may apply churn out high-quality and intensely detailed fashions with minimal fuss.
Design
If you've got seen the remainder of the Elegoo Mars household of 3D printers then you definitely may really feel such as you're getting déjà vu whenever you have a look at the Mars 2 Pro. The design may be very acquainted, with a strong steel black base, a textured steel construct plate and a transparent crimson acrylic hood to include fumes through the printing course of.
You're not anticipated to construct the printer your self fortunately, not like some FDM-style machines that require some meeting out of the field. Instead, the Mars 2 Pro is effectively packaged and able to go after you peel off some defending movies from the LCD show and the hood.
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You additionally get a helpful instrument package included that incorporates an array of beneficial tools to start out printing, reminiscent of a steel scraper for eradicating prints from the construct plate, a plastic scraper for eradicating any failed prints that adhered to the fragile FEP movie, a USB follow load STL recordsdata onto, some latex gloves and disposable facemasks to put on for defense and paper filters to filter used resin again into bottles for storage.
Spec Sheet
These are the specs for the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro:
Operation: 3.5 inch Touch Screen
Software: Chitu Box
Connectivity: USB
Technology: LCD-based SLA UV Photocuring
Light-source: high-quality filament (wavelength 405nm）
XY Res.: 50 Microns (2560 x 1620 pixels)
Z Axis Res.: 0.00125mm
Layer Res.: 0.01-0.2mm
Printing Speed: 30-50mm/h
Printer Size: 7.87" x 7.87" x 16.14" (20cm x 20cm x 41cm)
Build Volume: 5.08" x 3.15" x 6.3" (129mm x 80mm x 160mm)
Material: UV Resin
Net Weight: 6.2kg
You additionally get the required allen keys to regulate the construct plate throughout leveling, and some extras that have been absent in different merchandise just like the Elegoo Saturn – a substitute FEP sheet and a drip bracket that permits the construct plate to relaxation at an angle and drip insured resin again into the tank earlier than washing.
A frustration we had proper off the bat was the resin tank. It's constructed from strong steel, a particular improve from the plastic model used within the unique Mars 2, however it's designed to be slide into place from the aspect of the machine slightly than positioned straight down like within the Elegoo Saturn. You will not spill any resin in the event you're cautious, however the FEP sheet constructed into the resin tank (the clear sheet that UV gentle shines by means of to treatment the resin) can follow the floor of the show, making eradicating the tank a fragile course of.
Another difficulty that appeared pertains to the rubber edge across the base of the acrylic hood, that whereas does make a really efficient seal throughout printing, is not mounted in place in any manner and popped off at any time when we lifted the hood. An excellent concept in idea, however the precise execution was poor.
It's not all doom and gloom although. Where Elegoo likes to modify up its port location for its USB, the Mars 2 Pro has it on the entrance, on the decrease right-hand aspect, so you will not must awkwardly attempt to entry the rear or aspect of the printer to load a brand new file in to print.
The USB port is simply beneath the three.5-inch coloration touchscreen LCD which proved to be pleasantly quick and reactive, and really straightforward to make use of. There are a bunch of languages to select from, however every thing is clearly labeled which ought to make issues simpler for an entire 3D printing novice.
The Mars 2 Pro can be straightforward to degree – all you want is a chunk of paper and the equipped allen keys. There are additionally directions supplied in a guide which can be straightforward to observe and undergo each step from setup and leveling to putting in the Slicing software program Chitu Box (as supplied on the USB drive), so you may actually go from unboxing to printing your first file in lower than half-hour.
Features
A easy however appreciated characteristic on the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro is the inclusion of a 'Max Fill' line on the resin tank to forestall spills when the construct plate is absolutely submerged, in addition to a 'lip' that acts as a spout when you might want to pour away the unused resin post-print. Resin-based printers are all the time going to be a messier affair than FDM-style machines, however we discovered that these helped to scale back the variety of spills and drips in our work space.
More intuitive options value mentioning are the built-in air filter system that pulls fumes from beneath the crimson hood of the machine through the printing course of, decreasing the chemical scent of the resin. If you reside in a studio or a small area then this lets you arrange the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro in a heavy-traffic space of your house, supplied there's sufficient air flow.
On the topic of security, the latex gloves and disposable masks are included for a purpose. The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro makes use of 405nm UV resin which is a poisonous substance. If you get any in your pores and skin, make sure to wash it off instantly, and no matter in the event you can small the resin or not, attempt to keep away from being within the neighborhood of the printer whereas it is operational. Fumes from the printing course of could make you sick, so open any home windows and clear up any spills with isopropanol alcohol.
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The tools supplied is enough however you'd do effectively to buy greater high quality instruments like a respirator rated for fumes and a razor window scraper to take away caught prints from the constructed plate.
We're additionally uncertain if it is the air filter or the cooling followers however the Mars 2 Pro is a really noisy printer. If you are behind a closed door then many of the noise will likely be blocked off, however in the event you're within the room the place it is working you could discover the loud followers to be a nuisance.
The construct plate is held in place with a twist-style clamp for simple removing, and its smaller measurement means you may detach it from the Mars 2 Pro and join it straight with the Elegoo Mercury Plus, a 2-in-1 wash and treatment machine. You'll should buy this individually, however utilizing one will assist washing delicate prints with out eradicating them from the construct plate first.
Something that might have been a pleasant addition is a magnetic flexplate system. You can discover these by means of third-party retailers like 3DJake they usually work by sticking a versatile sheet that covers the construct plate floor that may then be peeled away to straightforward detach any fashions which will have adhered too firmly.
The tech beneath the hood – or on this case, beneath the show – has modified throughout earlier iterations of the Mars household of printers. In the Mars 2 Pro you are getting a robust UV lamp instead of the LED matrix that featured within the earlier Mars Pro, permitting for a sooner treatment.
A caveat to that is that these new screens lack a protecting glass layer like these seen in older Mars fashions, as a substitute being professionally taped straight into the machine. There are clear indicators to not take away this tape whereas unpacking the printer, however it does really feel like a step down from having an simply replaceable sheet, particularly as you'd have to switch the whole display if any leaked resin by accident cures on it.
Performance
The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro has a decision of 2560 x 1620 which equates to 50 microns, which truly works out barely bigger than the unique Mars Pro at 47 microns. This is usually as a result of the Mars 2 Pro has the identical 2K decision stretched throughout a bigger construct plate, however the distinction is negligible and it is unlikely you may see any element misplaced to the bare eye.
Chitu Box is accessible to download from the equipped USB drive and you will find that profiles are already accessible for the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro and the software program may be very user-friendly – when you've got a pre-supported STL file you may merely drag and drop onto the appliance, with instruments to maneuver and rotate the print being clearly displayed. Chitu Box additionally permits for lots of optimizing when you're snug with the fundamentals so we have now no complaints concerning the selection of slicing software program.
With Chitubox being really easy to make use of, we'd advise you do not print the check STL file already on the USB drive. The mannequin itself is serviceable as a benchmark, with some complicated particulars for the printer to attempt however it's set as much as constructed straight onto the constructed plate with no helps, which then proved to be virtually unimaginable to take away.
In truth, we truly snapped the print after a number of minutes of attempting to shimmy the equipped steel scraper beneath the print, then counting on brute pressure and boiling water to detach it. If you do want to give it a attempt, buy the aforementioned flex plates or constructed your personal helps into the file.
We elected to make use of the Elegoo Water Washable resin with the Mars 2 Pro and noticed unbelievable outcomes. Typically, resin prints will have to be washed in isopropanol to do away with any uncured resin that is perhaps clinging to the print, however we noticed no distinction in high quality between the usual resin and the water-washable selection which makes it interesting for anybody who cannot stand the pungent scent of alcohol (or in any other case cannot use it for well being or private circumstances).
We tried a number of fashions to see how a lot high-quality element might be picked up utilizing zombie collectible figurines that have been sized for tabletop gaming, and the outcomes have been very spectacular. Even within the sections the place the recordsdata have been extraordinarily fragile reminiscent of uncovered bone or sword blades, the Mars 2 Pro efficiently spat them out with none hiccups. You may even see the stitching within the clothes, and ultra-thin uncovered ribcages got here out cleanly in lovely element.
We solely had one print that noticed half-cured resin adhered to the PEF movie and that was straightforward eliminated with some isopropanol and a gentle paintbrush, and even then, that was probably all the way down to consumer error as some STL recordsdata needed to have helps manually added.
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Below you may see a washed mermaid print moreover the supplied USB drive for scale that hasn't been sanded or in any other case completed, and the nets and fish are clear and really outlined. The scales on the mermaids tail are additionally visually detectable and sharp when seen beneath a magnifying glass.
These fashions all printed in a short time, effectively beneath two hours for a full constructed plate of miniatures which shaves a while off older merchandise from the Elegoo line-up (and certainly, some cheaper merchandise in the marketplace from different producers), so whereas you do not have loads of free area for bigger prints, you may get sooner outcomes which may sway you if you might want to batch print.
Ultimately, measurement goes to be what sells you on the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro. It's removed from the smallest SLA printer in the marketplace, however it's sooner than most bigger printers and comes with some nice high quality of life options.
We think about you may be significantly bought if you'd like a printer for board recreation equipment and tabletop miniature collectible figurines as they're so small {that a} FDM printer do not have the ability to obtain the high-quality element wanted, and never everybody has the posh of getting a big area accessible for one thing just like the Elegoo Saturn. The Mars 2 Pro is ideal for attaining the sharp, minuscule particulars wanted and with a quick print velocity besides. In all, there's quite a bit to like about this printer.
Buy it if...
You hate the scent of resin
The Mars 2 Pro's built-in air filter can eradicate many of the pungent chemical scent related to resin-based printers, although be sure to're solely utilizing the printer in a well-ventilated space.
You want high-quality particulars in your prints
The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro can obtain some lovely element on prints, even when working with miniature fashions not a lot larger than a bottle cap.
You haven't got loads of area
If you do not have the room for a bigger printer then you may nonetheless convey your concepts to life with the Mars 2 Pro due to slicing software program that may will let you break up your recordsdata into segments.
Don't purchase it if...
You need to print giant fashions
While you can print bigger recordsdata by splitting them up, in the event you're principally going to print massive fashions you may need to spend money on a machine with a a lot bigger construct quantity.
You don't love resin
Using UV curing resin is normal for SLA and MSLA model printers as it could actually obtain a lot higher element, however when you've got an aversion to the mess that comes with it, you would be higher off with an FDM model printer as a substitute.
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