Last January, Creality released another 3D printer, which we will look into in this Creality K1C Review. The K1C is an upgraded version of the K1. It features some vital optimisations that improve the printing efficiencies and capabilities of the K1.
The C in K1C indicates its upgrades for printing carbon fibre filaments. It also denotes including an AI camera on the 3D printer.
The focus on its carbon fibre is in its updated extruder, which now features an all-metal hotend. This revamped element allows the product to withstand the abrasiveness of carbon fibre filaments. So, it guarantees reliability and longevity when printing.
In our Creality K1C Review, we will discuss its specifications and features. We will also look into its design, functionalities, and how it fares when we put it to the test.
Creality K1C Packaging
Like previous products, Creality shipped the K1C in a standard cardboard box. Although the package does not showcase designs like the product image and branding, it provides adequate protection for the 3D printer.
When we opened the box, we saw the K1C protected by laser-cut foam and cardboard on all sides. Since it is pre-assembled, you only need to attach a few parts before using it.
Aside from the 3D printer, you will find the following tools, accessories, and documentation:
- Touch screen
- Filament
- Wrench
- Screwdriver
- 2mm nozzle cleaner
- Door handle assembly
- Material rack screws
- Material barrel
- Power cable
- Blade
- USB flash drive
- Cutting pliers
- M6 socket spanner
- Air filter cartridge assembly
- After-sales services card
- Quick start guide
Creality K1C Review – Design and Functionality
As mentioned in our Creality K1C Review, Creality made improvements on the K1C by addressing the issues of its predecessor. You will not notice the differences immediately when looking at the K1C and K1 side by side.
One of the primary differentiators of the K1C is its nozzle. It can print carbon-fibre-infused filaments like PLA-CF and PETG-CF. Also, the K1 can handle PC, ASA, and filaments requiring higher temperatures.
In addition, it has a more rigid frame that can withstand fast 3D printing speeds. Creality designed its electronics with safety in mind, making it user-friendly for beginners.
The K1C also has an enclosed layout, making it ideal for maintaining stable temperatures. It is a beneficial feature when printing warp and crack-prone materials due to fluctuating temperatures.
Unicorn Tri-Metal Nozzle
The K1C uses a unicorn tri-metal nozzle. It incorporates copper for efficient thermal conductivity, a titanium heat break, and a steel tip for increased durability. This design resembles the Revo nozzles, making removal easy.
Stepper Motor
Creality used a more conventional-sized pulley as a stepper motor for the K1C. It has smaller diameter pulley gears with around 20 teeth per revolution. It has a decreased size compared to the 40 teeth per revolution used in the K1 and K1 Max.
The older models have more sizeable pulley gears to achieve maximum speed. However, this approach caused issues with VFAs (visible fine artefacts), which were problematic on smaller parts of prints. These problems were evident on the textured surface of prints.
Using more conventional stepper motors in the K1C solved this issue in printing.
Creality K1C AI Camera
Unlike the K1, the K1C has an AI camera as a standard, allowing you to monitor print progress. Plus, you can record time-lapse videos, which you can save and share after your printing project.
Aside from recording, this AI camera can spot foreign objects on the build plate. It can also detect if a print fails during the process or if a filament forms a load of spaghetti. Also, it can determine if you left the previous model on the build plate.
This AI camera has the same quality as the one in the K1 Max. It may have some flaws, like failing to send alerts when there are failed prints, but its detection is accurate.
Front Door and Hinge
One thing we immediately noticed while unboxing the 3D printer for this Creality K1C Review was its front door.
Some users reported the minor design flaw of the K1 and K1 Max was its loose door hinge. According to those people, it caused the door to swing open and potentially break.
Creality addressed this issue by making the door of the K1C sturdier than the older models. The door of this new model has a magnetic closure to increase its durability. Plus, it has enhanced friction on the hinges, allowing you to keep the door fixed at your desired angle.
In addition, Creality added an anti-shatter film on the glass to keep it safer and more protected. Aside from preventing door breakage, the film adds a premium feel and appearance to the 3D printer.
Higher Cable Chain
The cable chain used in the K1C is higher than the K1. Creality increased its height to address the issue of cable chain rubbing and facilitate smoother movement. Also, it minimises possible pinch points for the Bowden tube.
Touchscreen
Creality retained the 11cm colour touchscreen on the K1 and K1 Max but made various improvements to its interface. One of these includes allowing the adjustment of print speeds on the fly.
The touchscreen interface is user-friendly and intuitive, making navigation of menus and settings easy. Also, it was highly responsive and did not have lags when we pressed the available options and commands.
Key Features of the Creality K1C
The K1C is an updated and improved version of the K1. But what makes it an excellent investment? Learn more as we discuss its primary features in our Creality K1C Review.
Robust Extruder, Enhanced Reliability
The K1C has a robust extruder with a ball plunger and bolster spring. It grips on filament tightly to ensure accuracy and reliability when printing.
Unicorn Nozzle
Another nozzle on the K1C is the Unicorn, built-in with a heat break. It blocks the heat to prevent increasing temperatures on the 3D printer. Plus, you can swap it with one hand when necessary.
This nozzle has a hardened steel tip, allowing it to handle carbon fibre filaments like PETG-CF and PLA-CF. These two materials have superior mechanical strength and stability, making them the best choices in industrial printing.
Dynamically Balanced Printhead Fans
Creality enhanced the cooling system of the K1C by keeping the hot end and part cooling fans dynamically balanced. It prevents the 3D printer from wobbling, ghosting, and ringing.
Plug-and-Play Without Letdowns
Creality pre-assembled the K1C to make it a plug-and-play 3D printer. Its boot-up guide operates like activating a new smartphone. Auto-calibration performs bed levelling and other procedures to eliminate steps like paper tests.
The K1C also offers an enjoyable printing experience that you can optimise. You can switch to silent mode for quiet operation where the fan noise will be lower than 45 dB.
This 3D printer also has an integrated carbon filter that purifies particles and compounds from molten filaments. As a result, you can ensure safety when working with the K1C.
Streamlined Operation from Start to Finish
The K1C is a highly automated 3D printer requiring a few taps. Creality simplified its use to make it beginner-friendly.
Monitoring and Recording With the AI Camera
The built-in AI camera allows you to monitor the printing remotely. You can also receive notifications when an error occurs and save time-lapse films to share after printing.
High-speed Printing with the Creality K1C
The K1C adopts the lightweight and agile CoreXY system used on the K1. It has superior printing speeds that do not compromise print quality. With this 3D printer, you can guarantee fast and high-quality prints.
Solid Frame Made of Die Cast Parts
The K1C has a solid frame constructed by integrated die casting, making it highly durable. It has fewer seams, looks neat, and also offers unparalleled stability.
Skip Partial Failures
When batch-printing, you cannot avoid the chances of individual prints failing. Fortunately, you can exclude it from the batch and continue the rest.
Aside from excluding failed prints, the K1C is also more secure with its pre-installed damping pads and damper hinge. It is a highly reliable 3D printer that makes it worth the investment.
Superior Hardware Quality & Intuitive Software
The K1C has many optional accessories to maximise its features and enhance its functions. It has high-quality and durable hardware and runs on open-source software. We enjoyed using all these features while testing the product for this Creality K1C Review.
Creality OS and Creality Print slicer allow you to use advanced functions. You can access intelligent cooling, slim tree supports, optimal retraction, and other features. You can also efficiently manage a print farm while connected via LAN.
With Creality Cloud, you can enjoy many free 3D models and cloud printing.
Specifications
- Printing Technology: FDM
- Levelling Mode: Hands-free auto levelling
- Build Volume: 220 x 220 x 250mm
- Product Dimensions: 355 x 355 x 482mm
- Net Weight: 12.4kg
- File Transfer: USB drive, WiFi
- Display Screen: 11cm colour touchscreen
- Printing Speed: 600mm/s
- Printing Accuracy: 100±0.1mm
- Acceleration: 20000mm/s²
- Layer Height: 0.1-0.35mm
- Extruder: Dual-gear direct drive extruder
- Rated Voltage: 100-120V~, 200-240V~, 50/60Hz
- Filament Diameter: 1.75mm
- Supported Filaments: PLA, ABS, PET, PETG, TPU, PA, ASA, PC, PA-CF, PET-CF, PLA-CF
- Nozzle Diameter: 0.4mm
- Nozzle Temperature: 300°C
- Heatbed Temperature: 100°C
- Rated Power: 350V
- Printable File Format: G-Code
- Slicing Software: Creality Print and the Cura 5.0 (or later)
- Build Plate: PEI flexible build plate
- File Formats for Slicing: STL, 3MF, OBJ
- UI Languages: English, German, Italian, French, Russian, Spanish, Portuguese, Turkish, Chinese, Japanese
Hands-on with the Creality K1C
This section in our Creality K1C Review is all about our experience with the 3D printer. We will discuss how it worked during our printing tests, how easy or difficult it was to assemble, and more.
One of the best things about the K1C is its quick installation and assembly. Creality ships this 3D printer pre-assembled, so you only need to attach a few parts. After unboxing, you must connect the screen, door handle, filter, and filament roller.
After switching it on, select your preferred language and connect to your WiFi network. It will start a self-check wizard, including fan testing, heating bed, nozzle, and input shaper calibration. The 3D printer will also perform an automatic bed levelling.
Once the K1C completes the self-check, it loads the filament from the rear to the direct extruder. The filament sensor and tube aid the filament loading.
The K1C uses the Klipper-based Creality operating system since it can access root from the touchscreen. This operating system provides users with full control over their 3D printer, unlocking its full potential.
Creality OS allows the K1C to activate advanced functions like linear advance. It lets you adjust certain functions, communicate over LAN, and transfer files via a USB flash drive.
We tested the K1C by printing the stock benchy Creality included in the USB flash drive. We were impressed with this 3D printer since its printing was fast and finished in less than 15 minutes. Aside from the speed, the final result was a high-quality print.
Through a series of prints, we found the K1C to consistently deliver exceptional results without any noticeable defects. Each print emerged with smooth surfaces, capturing intricate details with remarkable accuracy. What truly impressed us was the printer’s ability to maintain such high-quality output even at increased speeds.
Despite pushing the limits of print speed, the K1C upheld the print quality, ensuring that every layer printed precisely to the designs specifications. This seamless balance between speed and quality showcases the K1C’s prowess as a reliable and efficient 3D printing solution.
Whether tasked with rapid prototyping or producing end-use parts, the K1C demonstrates its versatility and reliability, making it a standout choice for professionals and enthusiasts alike.
We used carbon fibre-filled filaments like PA-CF and PLA-CF when we tested the K1C. This 3D printer also impressed us with its thermal conductivity since its printing was flawless when using any filament and speed.
3D printing with carbon fibre filament offers a great approach to manufacturing, providing strength, durability, and lightweight characteristics. Components produced with carbon fibre filament possess exceptional stiffness and resistance to deformation, making them ideal for applications where structural integrity is paramount.
Overall, the K1C from Creality is an excellent 3D printer worth considering. It performs adequately, has notable features, and includes upgrades, making printing tasks more convenient and enjoyable.
Creality K1C Review Summary
The K1C is a high-quality 3D printer offering many improvements over its predecessor. It delivers noticeable enhancements in print quality with different filament types. Also, it balances speed and quality.
This 3D printer addresses the issues of the previous model, making it a compelling option. Creality added a hardened nozzle, an AI camera, and an improved extruder. These features are excellent for those who often use carbon filament or require remote monitoring of prints.
Aside from the new and improved features and parts, this 3D printer requires minimal assembly and installation. It is a versatile and beginner-friendly product that offers excellent value for money. Also, it is a reliable product that delivers high-quality prints when operating at high speeds.
Visit the official product page of Creality to learn more about the K1C.