I sadly have moved on from my Black Widow. I sold it off along with a ton of spares. The concept of the Black Widow was very good and it drew me in from the start. The problem was quality control and no real testing. I saw a lot of complaints from purchasers that parts were milled incorrectly. That almost all the heated beds were warped (they were very thin!) along with problems with the Z axis rods/blocks that bound up or were not straight. After all the changes and work I did to my Black Widow I could not get a good consistent repeatable output. One time I would print and would be 100% successful only to try another print right after and have nothing but problems and failed prints. I got so frustrated that I just boxed it back up and sold it to someone that wanted the headaches.
So what did I go to? I purchased a Lulzbot Mini and have not looked back. Straight out of the box it printed without issues.. HIPS, PLA, PLA+, ABS, and PETG all came out without any changes, tweaking, modifications or tinkering - It just worked! Yes the price was 3x what the Black Widow was, but I spent close to the price of the Lulzbot purchasing spares and parts to make the Black Widow perform properly.
I presently have been printing without issues since the purchase and have had 1 or 2 failed prints that were my fault as my AC unit was blowing on the printer while trying to print ABS. This was resolved with a enclosure from Printed Solid which kept the cool air off the print while printing the high temperature filaments.
With the Mini I have been able to print 95% of a TAZ 6 printed parts list. This will be my go to printer once completed. The Mini convinced me that the Lulzbot brand was a good product and I figured I would try to build my own (Hell I pretty much created my own Black Widow by the time I was done trying to make it work properly).

Well that is the updates so far.

Lulzbot Mini

Luzlbot Taz 6 Project that I am assembling

Starting the Blog

The Tevo Black Widow

I am starting this blog to gather all the changes and items I have made to my Tevo Black Widow 3d Printer. I started the journey in June 2016 and have been modifying and tinkering with my Black Widow since then.

So what is a Black Widow?

The Black Widow produced by Tevo is a DIY 3d Printer with a large bed (370 x 250 x 300) which is one of the larger bed size printers out there.  The Black Widow has 1 Geared Extruder, Single Hot End and Heated Bed. Comes with an external control box for your electronics. Has cable chains included to keep your wires clean.

There is only 1 option and that is to add the auto leveling Bltouch unit to the printer. When I ordered my printer there was a promotion that allowed me to get the Bltouch for free.

You can purchase this 3d Printer from:
Tevo Black Widow - Aliexpress

Is the Black Widow for me? 

The Black Widow is a DIY (Do it Yourself) printer kit. If you are good with putting rc cars or helicopters or mechanical projects together, assembly should not be difficult. The instructions are not the most detailed but there are friends that have made Youtube assembly Videos you can watch to get the printer together.
The electronics are the 2nd part of the puzzle on your journey. Please have an understanding of how voltage, amperage and wattage work please! Have a good multimeter handy as this will aid in diagnosing issues that come up with assembling the Widow.

The Art of 3d Printing Black Widow Videos

Now this is not to deter anyone or say that some people will not be able to build this kit but again this is a DIY. It will need a lot of tuning to get working properly. This is not a dump it out of the box and start printing in 30 minutes deal. I see this on the support forums all the time. If you are looking for something that you take out of the box and start printing in 20 minutes there are other options out there. If you want a lot of printer for a VERY reasonable price then the Widow is for you.

Bed Materials

Getting things to stick

 Most people use plain window or mirror glass on their bed. This makes sure that you have an ultra level and smooth surface to attach your prints to. This also protects the original bed and for the cost of the glass should be considered mandatory for your printer. I use tempered glass as borosilicate glass is very expensive.
A lot of people use glue stick, hair spray or blue painters tape on their glass to aid in adhesion to the bed. After using these solutions for a while on my original printer it got to be a real mess. So I decided to try some other products. These are products I have tried and there are many more options out there as well.

Wolfbite

I tried this product and was pleased with the results. The problem is you have to apply it and let it dry. I found applying 1 coat / drying / applying another coat / drying was the best solution. This worked great with PLA and ABS. I have not tried any of the other exotic filaments but I'm sure with those 2 tested filaments that the others should not pose a problem.
Bed temperature requirements were not large 30C for PLA and no less that 70C for ABS allowed for good adhesion. This product needs to be re-applied after 2 or 3 prints. Best to wash it clean and start fresh. The only issue I have is this product has a strong odor! Just a heads up it can stink up a room!

It can be purchased here: WolfBite

Printz Plate - Zebra Plate

 This is an impressive product. This is an entire plate that does not require glass. It has 2 sides to it and both can be used. This product has a metal plate sandwiched between the 2 adhesion materials, one side white the other side black - hence "Zebra Plate". It also allows some flex if your prints are really stuck. I have not really had that issue with mine so far. Key is the squish you use (the amount the 1st layer is squished onto the bed) The less squish the less adhesion (even though it is usually still good!) having 2 sides make it well worth the money as it lasts twice as long and gives you a backup if you drop your nozzle too close and damage the one side. Temps range from 0-30C for PLA to 90C for ABS. With the metal sheet in the middle it seems to keep the temp on the bed more stable that with just plain glass.

It can be purchased here: Printinz Plates

FilaFarm Filaprint

 

This is a product that adheres to your glass to improve your adhesion. It is a really good option although it is not flexible if things get really stuck (which I have not had a problem with). Usually just letting it cool down to room temperature will allow removal of the print. DO NOT use metal items on this product. Best to use an old print to push on the printed item as you don't want to scratch the surface. Best to keep fingers and hands away also as the oils and dirt on your fingers or hands will affect the Filaprint over time. Temps on this product need to be a bit high PLA 60C and ABS 100C as minimums. I have been very happy with this product also. It would be a good choice and from reviewers seems to last years so the average yearly cost of it is a lot lower than you think.

It can be purchased here: FilaFarm Filaprint
Or here Tevo Support