At the Rapid + TCT show in Texas, Tiertime shone a light on not one but three new 3D printers. One sees an upgrade to a familiar face — the company’s popular Up Mini 2 — while the other two are all-new, including a 12-print-bed toting beast.
The Rapid + TCT show is a veritable wonderland of 3D printing and additive manufacturing tech. So it stands to good reason that there are a few curtains raises on eye-catching new 3D printers and products.
One company looking to make a splash at the show is Tiertime. Self-proclaimed as China’s first 3D printer manufacturer, the company has used the show to debut three new 3D printers.
Dubbed the UP Mini 2 ES, UP300 and X5, the printers each cater to differing 3D printing needs. The two UP machines appear to be the more consumer-oriented of the three, with the X5 taking a small-business/low-volume manufacturing route with an interesting print bed automation feature we’ll detail below.
Taking aim at three different use cases, the UP Mini 2 ES, UP300 and X5 all share a few commonalities that are new to the Tiertime ecosystem. In addition to being FDM filament-based 3D printers, they all feature what the company calls an “advanced touchscreen” for user interface, plus dedicated USB memory stick ports, Ethernet port and integration with the new Tiertime Print Queue software.
Three New 3D Printers from Tiertime
The UP Mini 2 ES is an upgrade over the company’s established UP Mini 2. We credit the UP Mini 2 as a top 3D printer for beginners, so it’s nice to see some fresh upgrades find their way to the machine.
Like its predecessor, the UP Mini 2 ES features a HEPA filtration system to remove ultra fine particles (UFPs) from the emissions released when printing. We’ve yet to see a specification breakdown of the UP Mini 2 ES, but would surmise it to be mostly identical to the existing UP Mini 2.
In addition to the beginner friendly UP Mini 2 ES, Tiertime revealed the UP300. A 3D printer that is “more industrial” than the company’s previous machines, it’s clear that Tiertime mean business with the all-new printers it has announced.
Featuring a 205 x 255 x 225mm print area and HEPA and Carbon air filters, the UP300 also debuts a couple of company-firsts: double-sided removable print plates and three material specific print heads.
The three prints heads are custom-designed to specifically handle the printing of 1.75mm PLA, ABS and TPU filaments. Meanwhile, for print adhesion the removable print bed is glass on one side with an adhesion-friendly perforation on the other. Other quality of life features include automatic bed-leveling and calibration, filament run out detection and blackout-foiling print resume functionality.
Tiertime X5, a Short-Run Workhorse
Capping off a producterific Rapid + TCT for Tiertime is the X5 3D printer. A decidedly more robust offering positioned as a “short-run workhorse”, the TierTime X5 boasts one particularly cool party trick in its print job automation.
To complement the new print queuing ability Tiertime is adding to its machines with the Tiertime Print Queue software, the X5 has the physical capability to automatically eject a completed print on its print plate, load in a fresh one from its internal magazine and continue straight on to the next print.
The X5 can accommodate 12 print beds at once and, best of all, print beds that have been cleaned of completed prints can simply be loaded back into the system from the other side. This should add up to virtually endless printing with minimal intervention require on the user’s part.
At 180 x 230 x 200mm, the X5’s print area doesn’t quite match up to the UP300, but it does retain the quality of life features and air filtration system of the aforementioned printers.
No word yet on pricing or release dates, but we’ll provide further coverage as we learn more.
Source: Tiertime
Website: LINK
