The Bambu Lab A1 3D Printer is Back!
Image link to the new A1 3D Printer from Bambu Lab webshop (affiliate link).
The Bambu Lab A1 3D Printer is finally back after being recalled earlier this year. The faulty power cable design caused a full recall where users are recommended to not use their Bambu Lab A1 3D Printers.
The way Bambu Lab handled the situation is very good and they are actively warning users who still run their machines to not leave them unattended. Among Bambu Lab suggested options, you could also get a full refund if you wanted to return your A1 3D Printer. With that option you’d also get a $60 gift card so you could either spend more money on a P1S 3D Printer or just have more cash for filament.
If you instead choose to receive the updated part and do the upgrade yourself, you could even score a $120 gift card for compensation on your time and hard work swapping the cable!
A facebook users new replacement heated bed. Notice the bumper in a plastic bag on the right.
What happens now?
The new design has finished testing and certification and is currently being shipped out to users and resellers. There’s many examples in the facebook groups about users who have the updated heated bed and cables already installed. Note that there’s a full new heated plate with the cables, and a special “bump protection” to minimize the risk of pinching the wire if you push the machine towards a wall.
If you’ve received your plate, please be sure you follow the replacement wiki guide to the letter!
Update 2024-04-29 - The A1 3D Printer and Combo with AMS can now be ordered again!
EU Regulations that may cost extra
Bambu Lab have since the first statements and recall obviously done their homework on the procedures of electronic safety, and such the’’ve learnt how the European Union have strong regulations on what you can and cannot do on your electrical equipment.
Here, the EU EN50678, which is a procedure for verifying the effectiveness of protective measures of electronics equipment after repairs, may cause you headaches.
For EU users, this basically means that for the heatbed power wires, wire insulation, grounding wire are correctly connected, Bambu Lab have to do what they can do ensure this repair is performed correctly. This is why they as you to document (take photos) of the process.
The “problem” is that this also has to tested/verified by an electrically skilled person in EU, meaning an electrician has to “sign off” on the repair. This inspection isn’t free and we’re still waiting for a full confirmation how Bambu Lab will cover this cost. They have stated on Twitter/X that they are dedicated to covering the costs for the repairs.
Form provided to a Swedish user who received his/her replacement bed.
Why you should consider the A1 again
The A1 platform has proven to work very well despite being a bed slinger. The results of the A1 Mini is incredible and for those who don’t need the powerful materials that works better in the P1S/P1P, the build size and multi-material capabilities of the A1 is superb for the price!
I recommend you to read my comparison guide of Bambu Lab A1 vs Bambu Lab P1S 3D Printer here to better understand which of these machines you should get next, as they are very similar, but still different.
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