Maker Project · Part Two

Maker Box, Part Two

Progress has been slower for real-life reasons, but this was still a great chapter: setup, teamwork, and first prints that made the whole thing feel real.

Warren Blackwell Making

Progress has been a little slower since The Maker Box, mostly due to medical reasons, but we were still able to get the printer set up and push through to first prints.

We also split the "electronic" doodads away from the main printing gear so the sub-boxes are better compartmentalized. That one small change already makes everything easier to find and easier to put away.

Unboxing and Setup

Unboxing was straightforward. The parts were packed well, easy to remove, and easy to lay out for final assembly.

At one point I stepped away from the build, and my wife surprised me by taking over and knocking out a big chunk of assembly. It was a joy to come back and finish the build together.

The sealed Elegoo Centauri Carbon 2 Combo box before unboxing
Day one: the Centauri Carbon 2 box before we opened it up.
Consumables and supplies organized in a separate vertical storage box
Consumables and supplies split into their own sub-box for easier organization.

Finding a Home for the Printer

We went back and forth on where to put the printer. My wife graciously suggested we keep it indoors instead of in the garage. She also had a great idea to reuse an adjustable desk one of our sons no longer needed.

We ran into plenty of friction with screw alignment, shelf clearances, and height combinations that were just slightly off. After several iterations, we landed on a setup that holds the printer, tools, and filament cleanly in one footprint.

You can see the paper bag on the left in the setup photo already filling up with failed prints. It is humbling, but also cool to work through the printer's limitations and behaviors and get more consistent results over time.

Front view of the printer on a compact indoor rolling stand with filament and tools stored underneath
Final indoor setup: compact, organized, and close enough to use daily.
Printer running in a darker room while actively printing
Print-in-progress during an evening low-light check.

First Prints and First Impressions

Of course, Benchy was first. The printer came with the file already loaded, and the print quality was miles ahead of our old Benchys. Seeing it come out in multicolor was especially cool.

Next up was another preloaded sample print: the twirly white vase. It came out clean and gave us quick confidence that the machine was dialed in enough to keep exploring.

First print: Benchy. Great quality and a noticeably cleaner finish than our previous printer.
Front view during a print run.
Close-up noise test while printing.

Overall first impressions are very positive. More than anything, I genuinely appreciate my wife supporting and actively participating in my hobbies in her own way. Building together made this whole phase better.

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