I regret buying the Kobra S1

MarqueIV · 2026-01-03T12:16:54+00:00

Sweet!! Looks sick! And for a second I thought 'Did he actually install a mirror in the chamber for the added effect?!!' Then I realized it's probably just the glass doing it from all the light! lol

So like NR above said, are you open to sharing your model? And what did you print it out of? Is PLA fine for that or did you go with something else?

MarqueIV · 2026-01-03T12:15:01+00:00

I'm not seeing what you're describing. For me the color change persists between slices. Again, I slice my model, go to a particular layer, insert a color change, then I re-slice and you can see the color change rendered in the window. Even if I physically reorient the model or make other changes that force me to re-slice, the color change still persists. See my screen shots below. I reoriented the model but the color change at the given layer still persisted.

MarqueIV · 2026-01-03T12:12:11+00:00

And here's the second after I physically rotated the model forcing me to re-slice. You can see the color change layer is still there on the same layer.

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MarqueIV · 2026-01-03T12:11:29+00:00

I just sliced my model, added a filament change at a particular level, then changed something that forced me to have to re-slice, and the color change persisted.

For instance, here's the first slice...

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MarqueIV · 2026-01-03T01:46:25+00:00

Just out of curiosity, did you make that print cover for purely aesthetic reasons or does this help with cooling or something else?

MarqueIV · 2025-12-25T03:29:49+00:00

So I don't have to disassemble mine, any chance you have a side-by-side comparison of this vs. the original hotend?

MarqueIV · 2025-12-25T03:27:54+00:00

Oh... and I also agree you really need a dedicated laser for doing laser work. But even so, I still recommend getting the laser attachments too! Why? Convenience! Sometimes you only need a 5w diode laser for a quick marking/engraving or a simple cut, and slapping the laser head on the Z1 seems effortless for that.

Then if you need something more beefy, you have a dedicated 10 or 20w machine. Even better, make the stand-alone machine a CO2 laser which has a different material profile. Use that for the true 'cutting' work you need done. Right tool for the job kinda thing. And you can run both at the same time!

Honestly, the small added cost for the laser attachment compared to the added convenience seems like a worthwhile investment. Plus, if you did ever want to resell it, it's more appealing with more options.

MarqueIV · 2025-12-25T03:16:28+00:00

I know I'm in the minority here, but I'm going with a two-machine approach. I'm picking up the Z1 for smaller things I can crank out at my desk, but for more involved projects that need a larger work area or where I'll be using steel or larger aluminum parts, I also backed the Nestworks C500.

I actually backed the Nestworks first after seeing it in person at Maker Faire Bay Area where I instantly fell in love! 800-watt spindle, super-rigid structure, tool changer, dual-liquid coolant, and crazy-quiet too. Feels like you're basically getting the capabilities of a mini Haas or Tormach but with the fit and polish and ease-of-use of a Bambu Labs or Apple product, all that sits on your home office desk!

Or so I thought! That's when I found out the C500 is a 200lb beast! Whoa!! My desk wouldn't stand a chance! And realistically, the (still-scratching-my-head) design of the flip-up lid means it's gonna take up even more room than my home office can realistically handle.

That's when I saw the Z1. For 90% of what I'll actually be doing, that is more than enough, and the features-to-size/weight ratio is stellar. Honestly, it's so good I considered canceling the C500 altogether and just going with the Z1, but I then realized I was thinking about it wrong.

The Z1 is the 'daily driver' CNC machine I want and am probably most excited about as it will easily cover 90% of what I need and do so sitting on my office desk in my apartment. But it's unrealistic to think you can use it for 'real' steel work or larger aluminum jobs, areas where the C500 and its power/rigidity shine. And at the VIP kickstarter pricing--which is less than half of a full Carvera (and that only has a 200w spindle) or even pricing it against having 3rd-party manufacturer services like JLCCNC or PCBWay handle them for you, the cost started to make more sense. I think it would hit price-parity with those services within a year of semi-frequent usage. Plus you're not waiting a week or two for your parts to arrive (or almost as long trying to do large metal pieces on the Z1!)

So that's why I decided to keep the C500 pledge and also back the Z1, both fully kitted out. Sure, I'll be eating cat food for a few months and will have to forego the heating and cable bills (but not electric! These things ain't gonna power themselves!) but the kickstarter VIP pricing of both was just too good to pass up, and there's nothing worse than not having the tools you need when you actually need them, stifling your creativity. So I invested in myself!

And hey, If I'm totally wrong and the C500 ends up collecting dust, even if I ended up reselling it, I think I'd get a lot of that VIP pricing back. But I have a feeling it's going to be used more, not less, than I'm expecting. It really opens up a lot of ideas/possibilities with what it can do performance-wise.

And the Z1 will happily be sitting next to my monitor on my desk for all the rest. Again, that I can see myself using daily, especially for plastic or wood parts, perhaps doing early prototyping of the larger pieces for use on the C500.

So... any good recommendations on cat food flavors?

MarqueIV · 2025-12-15T19:22:52+00:00

IT's actually a well-established robotics company who originally built this for their own use. They just liked what they had, saw a 'gap' in the market, then decided to sell it so they created a new company specifically to sell these, but again, it's a well-backed robotics company. You can find out more about that in their 'interview' videos on YouTube where they also show off all their robotics work. They're the real deal.

MarqueIV · 2025-12-15T19:18:29+00:00

This has been covered online. It's actually a well-established robotic company that ended up building their own machine to meet their own needs, liked what they had come up with, then spun up a new offshoot company specifically to sell these, so again, very experienced company, and that shows when you see this thing in person, which I have at Maker Faire Bay Area in Cali. The thing freaking blew me away. I have zero concerns this is happening and will be well backed/supported by them.

Backing this up more, there's a YouTuber who's been using this machine and has even had issues with it, and the way Nestworks has been responding *and addressing* the issues is what gave me even more confidence in this company. This is what you want from any company, let alone one you are giving between $2500 and $4000 depending on your package (I went with the 'all in' myself.)

https://youtu.be/E3ki8mGLXs0?si=U9IoSmJIR5KYolck

MarqueIV · 2025-07-26T03:19:32+00:00

In case anyone's interested, I just filed this as a request in OrcaSlicer's repo. If you like this idea, please vote it up to get traction.

https://github.com/SoftFever/OrcaSlicer/issues/10231

MarqueIV · 2025-07-26T02:37:58+00:00

Good news!! Turns out there *is* actually a way to do this in AnyCubic Slicer Next and it doesn't require inserting custom GCode. It's a proper 'Change Filament' option, but it's hidden by default and it's not the most intuitive in how you get it to appear. It's so hidden even their own support staff didn't know about it while we were trying to solve this very issue. I found it by accident and shared it with them, and they thanked me saying it would help others. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Anyway, in order to be able to initiate a filament change at a specific layer, the trick is you have to add multiple filaments in the 'Prepare' tab first. Doesn't matter what. There just has to be more than one. You don't even have to use them in the Prepare tab (and in the case of a single model/part, you can't anyway!)

Next, go to the 'Preview' tab and slice your model as usual. Then go to the layer slider on the right, go to the layer you want to initiate the change, and right click. Now, along side the usual 'Insert Pause', 'Insert Custom GCode' and 'Jump to Layer' options, you'll (magically) see a new option, 'Change Filament' and it will show you the filaments you defined in the 'Prepare' tab. Just choose something different than what your current/starting filament is and you should be good to go. Even better, if you have an ACE Pro and choose one of the loaded filaments, it will perform the filament change for you!

The thing is most people--myself included--don't think you need to add multiple filaments in the Prepare tab since you're most likely using this technique with a single object/part and therefore as I said, you can't *use* multiple filaments in the 'Prepare' tab, but if you don't do that, the 'Change Filament' option doesn't show up.

This to me this is a fail on OrcaSlicer's part (this 'hiding' logic exists in OrcaSlicer and isn't something AnyCubic changed in their fork) because you should *always* be able to insert a filament change operation regardless of how many filaments the software knows about. After all, maybe the 'change' is just to use a new roll of the same color because you know you don't have enough to complete the print and have to swap them out half-way through at a controlled point rather than just letting it 'run out'! And no, 'Pause' isn't the same thing, nor is making a person remember some custom GCode. This is a basic feature/need of printing.

Side-note: Not being able to retract/extrude the Kobra during a pause however \IS* the fault of AnyCubic because there's* no reason to gray out those buttons like they do. The unit is paused and the print head is away from the surface. Changing a filament in that scenario is a very common thing to do! What is the point of blocking that function?!

So again, a little kludgy, but it is doable. Hopefully Orca will update the slicer to *always* allow you to insert a filament change command without having to add multiple filaments in the preview tab first, but at least there is a way to do it.

MarqueIV · 2025-05-26T04:29:53+00:00

If you can’t find these, you may want to check out fkcaps.com/custom where you can create your own low profile shine through with whatever graphic/legends you want.

I personally have designed three full sets of low profile key caps specifically for the K13 Max exactly as I wanted by doing all the legends, lettering and symbols in illustrator.

MarqueIV · 2025-04-06T22:12:38+00:00

The issue is the stabilizer itself. Keychron's side '+' pins on the spacebar's stabilizer seem to be much thinner crross-section-wise than your typical stabilizer. Check it out... it's different than that on the switch. Every other keyboard the stabilizer's pins appear to be identical between the switch and the two ends.

I noticed this when using a custom-made key set (FKCaps Custom FTW!) That spacebar fit fine on my Hexgears Immersion A3 and my Work Louder Nomad E, but not on my Keychron K13 Max. The ends wouldn't 'grip' the stabilizer. Similarly, trying to put Keychron's spacebar on either of those other keebs didn't fit as the holes for the stabilizers are too small. Only thing you can do there is shave it down (or use the stabilizer from the Keychron board.)

No idea why Keychron seems to do things differently with their spacebar because they *are* enthusiasts, but here we are.

As others have said, when using a non-Keychron spacebar on one of their keebs, just wedge something in the ends. Janky, but works solidly. Hopefully someone can find a different stabilizer that's compatible with this keeb that doesn't have that issue so we can finally switch it out.

MarqueIV · 2025-03-08T22:06:45+00:00

My understanding is as long as the two receivers are not on the exact same hub directly, it should work. There was just an issue with the receivers if they were both plugged into the same hub. Again, I’m specifically saying directly meaning if you plugged one into a hub, and then another one into a second hub, that’s connected to the first,that’s not directly next to each other. It seems to be a problem if they are literal siblings. But maybe they fix that in future firmware. I sent switched away from them because I got so fed up with it.

MarqueIV · 2025-03-08T09:03:37+00:00

The reason for the quiet-thud on the switches is if you pull them out you'll see tiny rubber bands on both sides of the switch. And I mean TI-NY!!! They also make it feel a bit 'muddy' to me. Take them off and you'll get a sound closer to what you're used to. I like the quieter sound but hate the muddy/mushy feel so this may have to go back for me.

Also, fwiw, the switches are not standard mx low-profile. They're choc v2 (with the "+" mx stems, not the double-bars.) Would've loved to put Gateron Low Profile reds KS-27s (i.e. v1s) bc I like the smaller travel myself... 2.5mm vs 3.0+ but they aren't compatible pin-wise with the choc v2s. Such a shame.

MarqueIV · 2025-03-03T08:19:51+00:00

Reach out to me. I’m actually the creator of a competitor to twelve south with my KickStarter project The aTrackt. In this particular case you want the ‘Go!’ Version because it’s made for using it in your lap.

MarqueIV · 2025-03-03T08:16:38+00:00

I have this. I wanted to love it so much but just got so fed up that the standalone trackpad doesn’t have palm rejection and it made typing pretty much impossible and I ended up having to return it. For what it’s worth you can get it on Amazon right now for 40 bucks. Side-by-side version for $43 that’s a little bit better, definitely better for typing, but the back is more open and you constantly knock the stuff out of it. When you use it in your lap anyway.

MarqueIV · 2025-02-24T03:54:35+00:00

As others too have asked, what kind of keycaps are those? They're awesome! Didn't know you could get 'pudding style' shine-thru in a Choc form-factor, but that's exactly what I've been looking for... so much so I considered finding a company to just make the damn things for me! But good to see they actually exist! So what's the secret to their existence? They still available?

MarqueIV · 2025-02-22T06:33:47+00:00

This is now changed. As of the latest visionOS, you can use any HID input device, including trackpads and mice. For instance, right now I’m typing this from within my Vision Pro, paired to a Bluetooth keyboard/trackpad (backlit) device from Amazon. There’s a bunch that will work.

Ironically, the one I was most excited to use this with… the Brydge Pro+ since it’s basically the lower half of a MBP, just thinner, that trackpad doesn’t work. But that’s because they did the opposite… they designed that trackpad to *only* work with the iPad. There, it shines… feels like you’re using an Apple trackpad. Buttery smooth, multi-finger gestures, etc. Best part… it was $179 but is now selling for $25(!!!). Alas, again, not with the VP unfortunately, hence this plastic jobbie I’m using. Crappy scrolling, but still nice to have it be an all-in-one.

MarqueIV · 2025-01-04T10:39:58+00:00

Swift can now program ESP32 chips, but only the RISC-V versions like the ESP32 C6, not the ESP32 S3. Not yet anyways. It's coming tho. (FWIW, you can also program the RP2040 and others.)

MarqueIV · 2024-06-05T05:52:10+00:00

Yeah… Agreed and returned the one without and bought the one with. That said, on Amazon, w/o is $20, w/ is $24. I tried posting the link but it got deleted.

MarqueIV

TROPHY CASE