3D printing technology has improved significantly in just a few years. We’ve seen a shift from those large, industrial machines that needed plenty of technical know-how and could be quite pricey to today’s affordable, compact, and super user-friendly devices that are perfect for personal use.
Continuing this exciting trend, Elegoo, an industry stalwart in the 3D printing scene, is releasing its very first CoreXY 3D printer, designed to make printing accessible for everyone eager to explore this world. Here’s everything you need to know about the Elegoo Centauri Carbon!
Why Elegoo’s first CoreXY 3D printer is a game changer
To understand why Elegoo’s release of a CoreXY 3D printer is exciting, we have to look at the current printing methods available with consumer devices. Essentially, there are two main types of FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) 3D printers. The more commonly found option involves moving the print bed back and forth while printing a model.
On the other hand, CoreXY models move the bed up and down, and the print head only needs to handle movements along the X and Y axes. This is better for speed and helps with accuracy and positioning precision. The Centauri Carbon offers a maximum speed of 500mm/s and a maximum acceleration of 20,000 mm/s2, which are impressive numbers for a consumer-level personal 3D printer.
And it allows for significantly more compact bodies since you don’t need the extra room to allow for the full movement of the print bed. The Centauri Carbon has a build volume of 256×256×256mm, which is par for the course for most home-friendly 3D printers.
Compact, enclosed, and built to last
The Centauri Carbon may be one of the more affordable 3D printers you can get. But that doesn’t mean that Elegoo has skimped on quality in any way. In fact, the Centauri Carbon is one of the most durable options around. Its top frame and chassis are crafted with integrated die-casting, and it has four reinforced aluminum alloy pillars and SPCC side panels. Its build quality provides a huge boost in precision and stability compared to the plastic or sheet metal frames that some competitors use.
It’s also enclosed with tempered glass side and top panels to enhance insulation and offer precise temperature control. This reduces internal stress that might otherwise cause warping when using materials like ABS. Not only will this improve the quality and strength of the prints, but it also ensures regulated temperatures when using a large variety of print materials like PLA, ABS, PETG, and others.
This is a significant improvement from competing open-framed printers, where the heated bed tends to lose heat quickly. Open-frame printers are also usually limited to using only PLA, while the Centauri Carbon can use almost any 3D printing material without issue.
3D printing made easy
The Centauri Carbon’s biggest selling point is its extremely beginner-friendly nature. This starts right from the setup stage, with the device arriving mostly assembled in the box. After just a few final steps, you are ready to start your first printing job within minutes.
A slew of features, like one-click bed leveling, make that printing job easy. The Centauri Carbon uses four pressure sensors and a proprietary algorithm to level the heated bed with just one click. It also utilizes automatic Z-axis compensation while printing to avoid any defects and issues that are otherwise caused by an uneven surface. Anyone who has gone through the pain of manual adjustments while leveling the bed of a 3D printer will appreciate this simplicity. And, of course, this feature makes it an ideal choice for beginners.
Another helpful and user-friendly feature is the flexible double-sided plate. The textured PEI plate is standard and compatible with a wide range of materials. However, on the reverse side is a PLA-specific plate. It’s a smooth surface that supports cool plate printing since the heated bed only needs to reach 30°C for PLA printing. The addition of a PLA-specific option ensures energy efficiency, minimizes warping and makes removing the model a breeze once the print is complete.
After you start printing, you don’t have to stay in front of the printer to track and monitor progress. The Centauri Carbon comes with a built-in time-lapse camera that you can use to watch live as it happens or record every step of the printing process for later viewing. There’s even LED lighting in the chamber, so you can continue to monitor the printing process while the lights are off in the room.
Get the Elegoo Centauri Carbon now!
The Elegoo Centauri Carbon is rugged and durable, beginner-friendly, provides excellent quality, and is surprisingly quick. Most importantly, especially for someone who is thinking about dipping their toes into the world of 3D printing, the Centauri Carbon is affordable. Priced at just $299.99, it’s a fantastic option for both first-time users and 3D printing enthusiasts alike.
