SnapMaker: 3 in 1 Printer, CNC and Laser Engraver (First Impressions)

The snapmaker is one of the weirdest printers I own and I totally love it. I wanted to go over why I decided to add this weird little device to my ever growing family of printers at the shop.

To start with this machine does 3 things which sets it apart from the rest of my printers. Usually I am skeptical when a machine says it can do 3 things well but this one does and then some.

To start with the machine is very well made. The attention to detail and the instructions themselves really tell you this machine was created with care. It comes with 3 modules: 3D, CNC and laser. That means this machine can do all 3 and all you need to do is change the head based on what you want to do.

The machine takes about half hour to put together since it comes as a kit. The instructions are easy to follow and it recommends to start with the 3D printing module which attaches the hot bed and 3D head.

The machine is small, so you are restricted in what you can do. Here is the machine next to my larger anycubic Mega X which will print fursuit sized heads. Take in mind the snap maker 2 will come out later this year and will include a larger size if you are wanting to go big. I went with the original snap maker since it was available on eBay as an open box so scored a great deal. Overall I have zero regrets with it.

The machine has a great cable system, comes with spare parts and everything looks clean the way it's set up. To use the CNC or the laser head of the machine you do need to swap out the heat bed with their non heat bed and add the clamps it provides. Once that is swapped you can swap out the head. You remove 4 screws and put the new head in. The change is easy so switching out heads is extremely simple. The company definitely took into account beginners when it comes to printers.

Once I swapped out the head to the cnc head I put a scrap piece of wood and did my test. I was actually really impressed and see how good this machine really is. Take in mind this is the first time I had done anything with a cnc and with very little tinkering on the app itself. The cnc is scary when it starts up but it does a great job. Will test it on a different material that isn't laminated next time to get an even cleaner cut.

I decided I wanted to test out the laser portion of it. I swapped out the head, put on my safety glasses and started a test on cardboard.

The screen itself can be removed and works just like you would expect any touch screen. The screen knows and changes the options based on the print head you have attached. Calibrating any of the heads is very simple and the machine comes with 3 different instruction  books based on what you want to do.

The laser cutter/engraver is really neat and does a good job. I did start off with a photo but did not bump the contrast up so the image did not show well. I decided to play with some text and overall the result was good even if I stopped it mid way through.

Overall I really like this machine even if the build plate is on the smaller side. It is a great starter 3 in 1 printer that does all 3 things really well. With the amount of people wanting to get into 3d and wanting something small that is reliable I highly recommend this one. Take in mind no machine is going to be perfect and still takes time to learn but out of the ones I have used this is a great option. 

The are coming out with a larger version later this year and recommend checking out their website for more information.

https://snapmaker.com

Since the machine is pretty new at my shop I will continue posting progress and projects done with this machine. Will circle back to it in about a month or so and write up another post to see if I still love the machine by then.

For now I give this machine 2 thumbs up.