We recommend doing this change only if you have a specific need where the entire 256x256x256mm³ printing volume is mandatory. Otherwise, we recommend keeping the machine stock.
We found a few reports online where people were concerned about the build volume of the X1 3D Printer. We understand your concerns, and we want to address that by sharing some information about why this happens, and also want to provide a solution.
¶ Why is the build volume smaller than the advertised 256x256x256mm³?
The build volume of the X1 is 256x256x256mm³. This is the travel capability of the printer on all three XYZ axis. In Bambu Studio, we limit the toolhead position to avoid it traveling to certain areas in order to enable certain functions like the filament cutting procedure, Z-hop, and brim.
Having the Z-hop motion is important when printing, to avoid dragging the nozzle over the print, so having a small printing volume buffer helps us avoid the bed hitting any leftover debris that might be present on the bottom of the heated chamber, while also allowing the use of Z-hop.
As you know, the Bambu Lab X1 is equipped with a mechanical filament cutter which is used during the unloading procedure when used with the AMS. For that filament cutter to work, a collapsible stopper is present on the front left side of the printer where the cutter lever mechanically presses on it to perform the filament cutting operation.
When the tool head moves into the front-left corner with a right-to-left motion, the lever of the cutter is pressed against the stopper, so we also added a visual representation of the area in Bambu Studio to know about this limitation and avoid issues during printing. The lost print volume is 18x28mm² for the front left corner.
¶ How to print using the full build volume?
We have a solution to the issue described above, but the following points need to be understood before doing this modification:
- The full print volume is only accessible when the AMS system is NOT used.
- The bottom of the heated chamber needs to be clean and free from any debris.
- The filament cutter cannot be used when unloading filament, while this fix is used.
We recommend doing this change only if you have a specific need where the entire 256x256x256mm³ printing volume is mandatory. Otherwise, we recommend keeping the machine stock.
¶ Hardware change for the mechanical stopper
The solution is to collapse the lever stopper and fix it in place using a small printed model that will keep it tucked away during printing, to allow the print head to travel to the previously inaccessible position.
We recommend printing this model with a higher-temperature material, like PETG/ABS to ensure it does not fail during printing. This will also allow you to print higher temperature materials with a higher temperature inside the chamber.
¶ Bambu Studio changes for using the full print volume
Besides the hardware modification, we also need to update the following settings in Bambu Studio:
1. Update Bambu Studio to the latest version available.
2. Clear the "Excluded bed area" in Printer settings, and change the printable height from the default 250mm to 256mm. This step is to disable filament cutter protection.
3. Set the Z-hop when retracting option in Printer settings -> Extruder 1 to 0mm
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4. Set the Z-hop when retracting override in Filament settings -> Slicing Overrides to 0mm
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