@cyberwolfie I am happy MK4S owner and would recommend the CORE, but some considerations:
- Print volume IS small. Not having at least 250x250 x/y has been a step back from my previous printer.
- The platform is less open than I wished (or, better said, than they make us believe).
- I'd recommend getting the kit so you will get to know the printer better. However, CORE's build process difficulty is yet to be seen. I built my own MK4S and it was a fun weekend project.
For many people the size will be fine. Most people can get along with 180 cubed for probably 80% of their printing needs. Not a lot of people need the really large print volumes.
I would assume that a CORE kit would come with Prusa’s excellent assembly instructions. Which should make it quite easy to put together.
I’m starting to think that Prusa is switching their focus from consumer grade printers to entry level pro machines and better. Prusa can’t really afford to be in that market as the race to the bottom accelerates. But there is a niche for small business use and full blown commercial use. Qidi seems to be the only player in that market right now. And the CORE seems to offer all the goodies that Qidi has with a much better reputation for reliability and support that would appeal to a small business.
@bluewing I am sharing my personal experience with the MK4S, since I went down from a 256^3 printer.
Belt tensioning on the MK4S Kit was a pain to do, so I am curious how belt tensioning for a core kit will go. I hope they give a better solution than the tuning app, as tensioning belts for a core xy is noticeably harder.
Neither of these are blockers anyway, like I said, I am happy with my MK4S.
Yeah, There are some maintenance things with CoreXY I’m not overly impressed with. The belts being one of them. Still, I think they are the future for consumer printers now. It’s going to be interesting to see how the CORE does in the market.
I did consider an up grade to my Mk3s to Mk4 abilities. But in the end I didn’t figure it was worth the money and effort for my needs. In the end, it might be considered slow now but it’s a tank of a printer. I am considering upgrading the control system by adding Klipper to my Raspberry Pi and flashing new firmware for the old 8bit Rambo board. It sounds like it would get me a Mk3.5 level of control and speed.