One of Creality’s latest 3D printers is the powerful CR-5 Pro. 

Creality has been one of the more successful manufacturers of desktop 3D printers, having previously marketed several extremely popular devices, including the CR-10 and the Ender models. They seem to have figured out a way to produce high-quality machines at very affordable prices. 

Now as a follow-on for their popular CR-5 3D printer, they’ve launched the CR-5 Pro, a new device that has some interesting features. This is necessary, as there is tremendous competition in this area and features is the area where a company like Creality can differentiate its products from the competitors’ offerings. 

Creality CR-5 Pro

If you are passingly familiar with Creality’s products you might think the CR-5 might be another open-style gantry machine. But it is most definitely not. This is a device that includes a number of features that make it a very robust piece of equipment for any workshop. 

As you may have gathered from the images, the CR-5 Pro is an enclosed 3D printer, and that alone will dramatically increase the quality of prints and the reliability of 3D printing operations. Heat will be captured by the enclosure and lower the temperature gradient between the print and ambient air. Less warping, more confident dimensionality.

The other key factor for the CR-5 Pro is that it is a rather large machine. Its build volume is many times higher than typical 200 x 200 x 200 mm devices that are more frequently found on the 3D printer market. 

CR-5 Pro Specifications

Let’s take a look at the CR-5 Pro’s specs to understand a bit more about this interesting device. 

• 24V power means this machine is more powerful than typical 12V equipment

• 350W power supply, which can rapidly heat up the build surface to its 100C maximum temperature

• All-metal frame and enclosed chamber, which provides very good stability to reduce or eliminate wobbly prints

• Single nozzle machine with a “newly designed nozzle”

• Bowden-style filament mechanism with redesigned extruder

• Print temperatures up to 250C, making it able to handle PLA, ABS, ASA, PETG and more materials 

• Large print volume of 300 x 225 x 380 mm, for very tall and long-duration prints

• USB control or SD card for job input

• 4.3 inch color touchscreen control panel

• Filament runout sensor, also useful for long-duration prints

• Ability to resume 3D printing after an unexpected power failure

CR-5 Pro Key Features

One of the aspects Creality talks about in their material on the CR-5 Pro is that it provides “industrial accuracy”, and it seems they’ve included several features that make that happen.

One is, of course, the enclosed build chamber, which captures heat to reduce or eliminate warping. The build chamber is not explicitly heated, but instead collects heat generated by the print surface and the hot end. Creality says the print precision is up to 0.10mm. 

Cooling is critically important to achieving precision 3D prints, and Creality has redesigned the cooling system to more effectively freeze freshly extruded material in place.  

Another feature is the general robustness of the entire system. They have built a sheet metal body that resists wobbling, and even include belts made by Gates of the USA. The result of these changes means the motion system can achieve an XY axis accuracy of 0.012mm. 

The processor in the CR-5 Pro’s controller board is an ATMEGA 2560, which Creality says provides “smooth motion” and “precise voltage control” during print operations. 

The CR-5 Pro includes an unusual build surface. While many desktop 3D printers use a spring steel plate coated with PEI, Creality instead uses a flat, rigid carborundum glass plate. This plate has a microscopic porous structure to which the print securely binds during printing, even though to the eye it appears to be a perfectly flat surface. When the print cools it will snap off the plate easily because the microscopic bonds between the plate and glass will shift slightly during cooling. This makes for an easy-to-manage print adhesion solution. 

Finally, the CR-5 Pro is actually quite attractive in design. It’s light-colored frame distinguishes it significantly from many of Creality’s other machines, which tend to be black in color. 

The CR-5 Pro is available now at a price of US$1,199. 

Via Creality and Alibaba