Bambu Lab FDM 3D Printer Tutorial

Overview

How to 3D Print with the Bambu P2S or A1

1. Ensure you've read and agreed to the risk assessment, RA ID #3407 titled 3D Printing in the Dyson Centre on the Engineering Department Risk Assessment App. You will need to log in with your university email and password
2. Source a 3D model in the STL format. This can exported from CAD software or downloaded from an online repository
3. Convert it to GCode (click here for details) using the Bambu Studio software and save it to a memory stick if you're using a P2S or micro SD card if you're using an A1
4. Plug your memory stick or SD card into the printer and set it going (click here for details)
5. After it's printed, give it a minute to cool down, peel the bed off the magnetic base and remove the print by hand. You shouldn't need any sharp objects.
6. Remove any adhesion or support material by hand or using our red side cutters
7. Pay for the PLA you used (click here for details)

Each step is listed in-detail below, and you can find Bambu Lab P2S technical specification or the Bambu Lab A1 technical specification on their website

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Source an STL File

From CAD Software

Solidworks

To export an STL from Solidworks, click File > Save As, and in Save as type: select STL (*.stl) You might need to scroll down the list of file types to find it.

If you're in an assembly and you just want a single STL, you'll need to select STL (*.stl) then Options, and tick Save all components of an assembly into a single file.

Fusion 360

Click File > 3D Print, make any changes to the export settings you want, usually none are needed. Then tick Preview, click OK, name your file and save it.

Onshape

To export and STL from Onshape, select the parts you want to export in the bottom left of the browser window, right click on any one of them, click Export. In Format, select STL, scroll down and click Export. You can alternatively select parts by clicking them in the viewer.

Onshape is free and completely browser based, so a great option if you don't have Solidworks on your computer or are using multiple machines. https://www.onshape.com/ 

From an Online Repository

There are many online collections of free and paid 3D models on the World Wide Web. Here are a few to get you started that mostly host free models

• MakerWorld: Download Free 3D Models
  • Bambu Lab's collaborative 3D printing repository. You can access this in the Bambu Studio software
• Thingiverse - Digital Designs for Physical Objects
  • The largest repository and often our go-to
• STLFinder - The 3d models search engine
  • Scans other repositories for the 3D Models matching your search query
• Cults・Download free 3D printer models・STL, OBJ, 3MF, CAD
  • A well reviewed 3D model repository
• 3D models database | Printables.com
• or just Google search

The hard thing is deciding what to search for. Think favourite films, computer games, famous landmarks or mechanisms.

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Slice the STL and Export a GCode File

Install Bambu Studio

The recommended slicer software is Bambu Studio. It's pre-installed on all the Dyson Centre PCs or you can download it for free on your own laptop.

Open Bambu Studio

1. Search for Bambu Studio on your computer and open it
2. Select Europe as the region
3. In the printer selection, choose
   1. Bambu Lab A1
   2. Bambu Lab P2S
4. In the filament selection, accept the default selection
5. Untick Network Plug-In, we will use a USB stick to transfer the file, or a micro SD card if you're using an A1 printer

Add the STL and Orient

1. Click Prepare in the top left
2. Select your desired printer using the Printer drop down in the top left
3. Above the plate, there's a toolbar with lots of icons. Click the far left icon Add and select your STL. Alternatively you can drag it into Bambu Studio from a normal file explorer window
4. Left click on the plate and drag it around to orbit your model. You can zoom in and out using the mouse scroll wheel and move the object on the bed by clicking on the object, not the plate, and dragging
5. Click the Auto-Orient icon in the toolbar to position your print in a good orientation for printing. There are various things that need to be taken into account here, like avoiding overhangs and reducing the need for support material. You can also scale, rotate and tile your model using other buttons in this toolbar
6. In the bottom left sidebar are the print settings. You can leave almost all of these as they are, but if your model has any parts that cantilever out at 30 degrees or shallower, you will need to enable support. To do so, click the Support tab, then tick Enable Support
7. Feel free to play around with other settings in the sidebar, you can
   1. Change the system preset dropdown to different levels of quality. Higher quality means longer print time
   2. In the strength tab, changing top and bottom surface pattern will change the look of your print
   3. In the support tab, you can choose between tree and normal support. Normal is a grid like support structure directly below the overhang, tree support can be rooted slightly to the side and uses less filament

Slice Your Model

1. Click the Slice Plate button in the top right and it will automatically slice your model. Clicking Preview in the top left will have the same effect.
2. It generates a toolpath for the print head so it can print it layer by layer with a single thread of filament. It will display a preview of this when it's ready
3. A small window will appear in the top right with an estimate of printing time and the mass of filament required
4. Save it to a memory stick if you're using a P2S printer or a micro SD card for an A1 printer
   1. Insert your memory stick or SD card
   2. Click the drop down next to Print Plate in the top right of Bambu Studio
   3. Select Export Plate Sliced File
   4. Click Export Plate Sliced File again and save it to your memory stick or SD card

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Print your GCode

1. Insert the memory stick or SD card into the 3D Printer
2. Tap Print Files on the touchscreen display
3. Tap the USB tab at the top
4. Untick Timelapse as it's not needed and just fills up memory sticks
5. Tap Next
6. If you're using the P2S with the Automatic Material System (AMS) on-top, you can choose which filament you want to use
7. Tap Print

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Clean up the print

1. Models can take varying amounts of time to print. A 15g print will be done in an hour, some larger prints can take many hours. For prints longer than 4 hours, please set them off overnight or over the weekend.
2. Once it's finished printing, allow it to cool down for a few minutes, then
3. Remove the print from the bed by hand. No sharp objects are required
4. If you can't get the print off from inside the machine, peel the plate of the magnetic bed, remove it from the machine and gently bend it back and forth to encourage your print to detach
5. Remove any excess filament from the bed including the calibration line at the front of the plate
6. Weigh your print(s) using the scales nearby and pay for the PLA including support material and failed prints. See our How to Buy Materials Page for details.
7. Most support material and adhesion can be broken off by hand. But red side-cutters and small files can be helpful to get everything off. Ask at the desk if you can't find these

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