Simple Creality CR-10 Mini Review – Worth Buying or Not?
ByMichael DwamenaReading Time: 8 minutes
Whether you are a beginner or own several 3D printers, the CR-10 Mini should definitely be something you should consider when adding a 3D printer to your home.
Considering the price, features, benefits and current reviews of real users, we can see just how great this 3D printer is, all at a very competitive price.
You can expect this 3D printer to work flawlessly straight out the box, but some upgrades are definitely worth implementing.
There have been times when people have bought very expensive machines and seen some terrible results, with bad customer service and just an all-round bad experience.
Creality is a company which is the total opposite, with some real credibility and trustworthiness behind their name.
Taking this in mind, let’s dive deeper into some useful details about the CR-10 Mini 3D printer (Amazon) and really review if it’s worth buying or not.
Features
Quick Installation
Resume Print Feature
Industrial-Grade PCB Mainboard
Linear Bearing System
Aviation Grade Fast Connector
All-Aluminum Frame
Large Printing Size
Supports Many Materials
Quick Installation
Installation is quick and easy, only taking around 5 minutes. Assembly is simple and suitable for DIY customers. It comes in three pre-assembled parts so there’s not too many parts to get confused with.
Resume Print Feature
The new upgraded control board enables the capacity to resumes printing after changing filament, power outage, or any other unexpected stoppage.
Industrial-Grade PCB Main Board
The industrial-grade PCB can easily print for 200 hours continuously, as well as having developed printing technology and stable performance.
Linear Bearing System
The CR-10 Mini frame uses the new V slot for higher accuracy and lower noise during the printing process.
Aviation Grade Fast Connector
The wiring for this 3D printer is simple, durable and reliable.
All-Aluminum Frame
The all-aluminum frame provides the CR-10 Mini with a solid foundation which will last you several years. It also has ‘Triangle Slot’ wheels for great dimensional stability, even when printing for long periods of time.
Rather than having metal-on-metal steel rods, this design reduces noise drastically.
Large Printing Size
Even though it’s called a mini, it has a fairly large printing size for what you get at 300 x 220 x 300mm.
Supports Many Materials
The hotbed and nozzle gets to high enough temperatures to be able to print several types of filament. These include: PLA, ABS, TPU, Copper, Wood, Carbon Fiber, Gradient Color and many more.
Benefits
Easy to set up and works flawlessly straight out of the box
Great quality prints
Includes everything you need to start printing
Larger print size than the Ender 3
Amazing support group on Facebook and other forums
Great printer for the price in terms of quality, features and build size.
Downsides
Can be a pain to get the SD card in and out, so you can get an SD card extension
Instructions aren’t the most useful, but you can definitely get through with them
A little bit noisy but you can upgrade to reduce the sounds
Bed has been reported to not be totally flat in some cases, but quite rare
Doesn’t have a filament run-out sensor
There were some reports of the 3D printer not working after a short time, but these are mostly due to bad assembly. The usual experience with the CR-10 Mini is a smooth one that prints great quality from the start.
I would advise following YouTube video tutorials for assembly instructions because it’s easy to miss something out that can come back to bite you.
One person didn’t actually receive the whole toolkit for some reason, but I’m sure with the level of customer support that Creality has, this was quickly fixed.
Specifications
Printing Size: 300 x 220 x 300mm
Printing Accuracy: ±0.1mm
Layer Thickness: 0.1-0.4mm (Adjustable)
Nozzle Diameter: Standard 0.4mm
Extruder Quantity: 1
Printing Speed: Normal: 60mm/s, Max.: 100mm/s
Printing Method: TF card (offline), PC via USB (online)
3D printers don’t come with all the best upgrades and gadgets in order to keep the price down, and give people the freedom to make customizations. There are a quick list of upgrades that I recommend you implement after purchasing the CR-10 Mini.
Upgrade the Bowden tube to a Capricorn PTFE tube
Upgrade the nozzle to a higher quality brass or hardened steel nozzle
Purchase an all-metal extruder for a smoother filament extrusion
BL Touch upgrade for auto-leveling
You can opt-in for a dual Z-axis setup but it requires some DIY skills
CR-10 Mini Vs Ender 3
When it comes to the CR-10 Mini, for the most part it is a smaller version of the CR-10 for people who didn’t want such a large 3D printer. When we compare the features and the price of the CR-10 Mini to the Ender 3, I’d have to put the Ender 3 in front.
The Ender 3 is almost half the price of the CR-10 Mini, all while being able to keep up with the quality and most features. The main difference between these two 3D printers is the build volume.
The CR-10 Mini comes in at 300 x 220 x 300mm, while the Ender 3 measures up to 235 x 235 x 250mm. The Ender 3 also has a 24V power supply while the CR-10 Mini has a 12V power supply, making it less upgradable.
For beginners the CR-10 Mini is a lot more friendly in terms of assembly, operation and maintenance, so I wouldn’t totally take it out of the ideal choice.
They both use the same steppers, extruder and hotend, with the main differences being the build volume and controller board.
The video below by Chuck from CHEP goes into some great detail between these two machines so definitely check that out if you are deciding.
You can get yourself the Ender 3 from Amazon for a great price.
You can also check out my quick review of the Ender 3 Pro which is a slightly upgraded version of the Ender 3.
Customer Reviews
The Creality CR-10 Mini is rated 4.0/5.0 at time of writing on Amazon which is a pretty good rating. This may not be so representative of most people because other e-commerce websites have much higher ratings.
BangGood gave it a massing rating of 4.82/5.0 which absolutely blows the Amazon rating out the water, so maybe the lesser rating was due to a bad seller or poor delivery team.
You can get the CR-10 Mini from BangGood at a much cheaper price, but shipping is usually longer.
Now let’s get into what people are actually saying about this 3D printer.
One user had a great experience with the CR-10 Mini which arrived well-packaged and undamaged. The set up experience was very easy, where the online videos helped up a lot.
After setting up the printer, you simply insert the SD card with the test files on it, which should come out flawlessly straight out the box. He hasn’t had any prints fail so far and each one printed out nicely.
The glass bed had some slight warping, but it didn’t affect his ability to print. He advises to tighten all the screws to make sure things are stable, but not too hard.
Also make sure that the guide wheels are adjusted with no play and has good contact with the tracks.
He mentions that it’s a great 3D printer of much value, especially for the price range and loves that there is a large community to always help out.
Another user really recommends it for beginners since things are very easy to get going.
One user had a problem with the plastic extruder got cut by the filament somehow, but a metal extruder upgrade corrected this problem with ease.
After having the CR-10 Mini for a month one owner highly recommends it, given the price, build volume and many other benefits. Replacing the glass bed is something that he done, along with tuning the aluminum heated bed which didn’t come so flat.
What you can do is put some masking tape or sticky notes in the lower areas to balance out the level. Check out my article I wrote about leveling a warped 3D print bed which has helped many users out.
Leveling can be a bit of a pain and take some time, but this is the usual with many 3D printers. Once you understand the main processes behind your 3D printer, things become a lot easier to handle.
The Facebook groups, even some specially made for the CR-10 series was a massive help in understanding certain things and troubleshooting for the 3D printer.
Verdict
If you have been looking around for a 3D printer that will be reliable in the long term and have plenty of support, then the CR-10 Mini might just be perfect for you.
From easy assembly to high quality prints, this is a great choice for anyone looking to get a fresh 3D printer in their possession.
Many people mentioned that after using several types of 3D printers this is the best one yet. It’s great knowing that when you start a print, you know that it’s going to come out successfully when your printer is nice and tuned.
I would personally recommend getting the CR-10 Mini from Amazon today.
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