PRODUCT DETAILS
Designed as a drop-in replacement for the Ender 3, Ender 5 and Pro model 3D Printers, this 235x235mm heated bed kit is a direct upgrade to the official Creality PCB beds. It includes a high quality CNC milled aluminum build plate and 200W Silicone Heater for faster warm-up times.
As the Creality 3D Printers are often shipped with a defective build plate, the warped bed and deformed surfaces can be uneven and difficult to use, making it nearly impossible to achieve a perfectly leveled bed. Traditional 4-point bed leveling can even exacerbate the problem, further skewing the surface over time.
Our aluminum build plate is precision machined from 6061-T6 aluminum. It provides a flat and leveled print bed, with tight flatness tolerances of +/- 0.2mm during manufacturing. Combined with a high powered silicone heater, it can also reach 90° C in less than 60 seconds under ideal operating conditions.
Aluminum Plate Features
- 3mm thick anodized aluminum
- Better flatness tolerances over stock beds
- Scratch and fingerprint resistant due to anodizing
- Countersunk M4 Mounting Holes
- Strain relief
Silicone Heater Features
- Voltage: 24V
- Wattage: 200 Watts (3.2W per square inch)
- Wire Length: 750mm Cable
- Mounting: 3M Adhesive Backing
- Size: 235mm
- Thermistor: 100k NTC 3950
CONTENTS
Package Contents
- (1) Aluminum Build Plate 235 x 235 x 3mm
- (1) 24V Silicone Bed Heater w/ 3M Adhesive Backing
- (1) 1/2 inch PET wire sleeve 650mm long
- (4) Zip ties
COMPATIBILITY
Compatible 3D Printers
- Creality Ender 3
- Creality Ender 3 Pro
- Creality Ender 3 V2
- Creality Ender 5
- Creality Ender 5 Pro
REVIEWS
This is my third review of a Gulfcoast Robotics product, but I swear I’m not a shill. My Ender 3 v2’s bed wasn’t especially warped (the glass was), but it was very slow to warm up and I wanted to give three-point leveling a try, so I took a chance and bought the whole kit.
As others have said, the aluminum plate is a really flat and well-machined piece of aluminum. It’s also lightweight, I think I have pictures, I’ll try to remember to add them later.
The silicon heater pad is a big improvement over the wimpy Ender 3 v2 heater. With GCR’s 4mm borosilicate glass plate, the temperature comes up very quickly and with a PID recalibration, it holds a precise temperature. Much more stable than +/-1°, more like +/-0.05°. Going from 25-50°C takes less than a minute, and its PWM at about 20% active to hold that temperature. I have pictures of the temperature curve too, it made me pretty happy.
And like any good heater bed, it takes an annoyingly long time for this bed to cool back down to ambient temperature, especially with a glass plate.
This bed is worth buying just for 3-point leveling with GCR’s carriage, but it’s a worthwhile upgrade to the Ender 3 v2 just as a heater bed.
For anyone wondering, the fully assembled y-carriage with the heater bed, 4mm glass build plate, 3 bed leveling wheels, pulleys, etc. is just under 1.4Kg, which is about 100g less than the stock setup on the Ender 3 v2, if I’m not mistaken.
I do think some stickers would be a nice inclusion.
Item as described.
+ Really flat aluminum
+ no sharp edges
+ heating pad heats up much faster than stock.
+ fast shipping - not that they have much control, but they dropped it off to the carrier the next day.
- No stickers included. Almost took away a star for this (not really). Most other 3d printer upgrades that I ordered came with a sticker. The Gulf Coast Robotics logo is really neat and deserves a sticker at the very least. I spent a good five min double checking the packaging :)
While not 100% perfectly flat, it is much flatter than the stock Creality bed and it heats up a lot faster. It also appears to have much better heat coverage vs the stock heating element.
I checked this bed with a straight edge and there was a very small amount of light that would appear under it in a few spots. I could not slide paper under it and I honestly do not think a .001 flat feeler gauge would slide under the gap. Checking it with a glass bed, the glass bed no longer had a problem laying flat on the surface without rocking a small amount. This was satisfying for me as my stock bed was pretty high in the center and ended that issue all together. The amount of light gap under the straight edge is so minimal I am not going to bother with scraping the bed flat.
Overall, there was a noticeable improvement on the first first layer and lines went down much cleaner. My ABL grid no longer has a big bump in the center of the bed. For me this was worth the money to not fight with leveling issues. I opted to stay with a 4 point system.
4 stars only because the packaging was pretty sad. Lets just say there was none. Luck was in play here as it survived shipping but lack of any real packaging makes it questionable on how flat yours may arrive of the carrier mishandles it.
I put this on over the weekend, and I've been really impressed. I don't have an auto leveler, so I use Mesh Bed leveling on my printer. This new build plate is really an improvement over the original Creality plate. Obviously, it's relative to how well I get the corners tuned in, but when I mesh level, I'm usually within about .1mm overall on the bed....-05 here, +.025 there. What impresses me the most is that when I get it dialed in, it gives me some amazing finish on my prints. I didn't think things could be so good!
The heater is fast, and it maintains temp +/- 1C most of the time I'm watching it. It's fast, and very even. I added a cork sheet under the heater to help 'trap' the heat and prevent drafting.
Great investment if you're doing 'commercial grade' parts on your printers. Also good for hobbyists, and if you're just getting started, this will remove some of the variables that can cause failed prints.
I was having a lot of leveling issues with my original Ender 3 Pro bed. I ran Bed Level Visualizer, on my original bed with a BLTouch and found that the bed was severely dipped in the middle and just plain horrible. So I bit the bullet and decided to upgrade my bed with this kit along with the silicone heating element. What a night and day difference! I added a Wham Bam Flex kit as well, once I performed the Bed Level Visualizer in Octoprint using an BLTouch, this was a huge improvement! Bed was flatter and hardly any dips and just had to use a small tiny strip of a sticky note to get the whole bed within the same range, that's it. I used stiff bed mounts, so this helped as well to get things stored and keep the same mesh for every print. I also paired this with the three point leveling carriage but didn't use the three points, instead I'm using 4 points. Only reason why I used the Gulf coast carriage is due to being lighter than the stock carriage.
Now all my prints stick and no more leveling issues! My temps are much more consistent using PID auto-tune. Just make sure to change your Marline code to use the correct thermal device!
Thanks for saving my printer! Very pleased!
SHIPPING & RETURNS
Shipping
Gulfcoast Robotics ships Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. The shipping cut-off time is 11 A.M. Eastern Standard. Orders placed after the cut-off time will be shipped the following business day. All orders are fulfilled by our warehouse located in North Port, Florida (US).
Domestic Orders
Domestic orders are shipped via USPS using the service selected at checkout. Parcels that exceed the First Class weight limit of 15.9 oz will automatically use Priority Mail. Once your package has been processed, a Tracking Number will be provided. The Shipping Confirmation is sent via e-mail and/or SMS alerts, depending on the contact information specified at checkout.
International Orders
All orders shipped to a destination outside of the United States are subject to the import duties, fees and taxes of the destination country. Delays in delivery may occur if your package is randomly selected by the Customs Department for inspection. We have no control over the process or additional charges associated with the delivery and important of your package into your country. We do not benefit in anyway from these charges and work closely with our carriers to ensure as few delays as possible. We are not responsible for any duties, fees, or taxes that are incurred during the delivery of your order/package.
3-Point Heated Bed Upgrade for Creality Ender 3 5 and Pro 3D Printers
This is my third review of a Gulfcoast Robotics product, but I swear I’m not a shill. My Ender 3 v2’s bed wasn’t especially warped (the glass was), but it was very slow to warm up and I wanted to give three-point leveling a try, so I took a chance and bought the whole kit.
As others have said, the aluminum plate is a really flat and well-machined piece of aluminum. It’s also lightweight, I think I have pictures, I’ll try to remember to add them later.
The silicon heater pad is a big improvement over the wimpy Ender 3 v2 heater. With GCR’s 4mm borosilicate glass plate, the temperature comes up very quickly and with a PID recalibration, it holds a precise temperature. Much more stable than +/-1°, more like +/-0.05°. Going from 25-50°C takes less than a minute, and its PWM at about 20% active to hold that temperature. I have pictures of the temperature curve too, it made me pretty happy.
And like any good heater bed, it takes an annoyingly long time for this bed to cool back down to ambient temperature, especially with a glass plate.
This bed is worth buying just for 3-point leveling with GCR’s carriage, but it’s a worthwhile upgrade to the Ender 3 v2 just as a heater bed.
For anyone wondering, the fully assembled y-carriage with the heater bed, 4mm glass build plate, 3 bed leveling wheels, pulleys, etc. is just under 1.4Kg, which is about 100g less than the stock setup on the Ender 3 v2, if I’m not mistaken.
I do think some stickers would be a nice inclusion.
Item as described.
+ Really flat aluminum
+ no sharp edges
+ heating pad heats up much faster than stock.
+ fast shipping - not that they have much control, but they dropped it off to the carrier the next day.
- No stickers included. Almost took away a star for this (not really). Most other 3d printer upgrades that I ordered came with a sticker. The Gulf Coast Robotics logo is really neat and deserves a sticker at the very least. I spent a good five min double checking the packaging :)
While not 100% perfectly flat, it is much flatter than the stock Creality bed and it heats up a lot faster. It also appears to have much better heat coverage vs the stock heating element.
I checked this bed with a straight edge and there was a very small amount of light that would appear under it in a few spots. I could not slide paper under it and I honestly do not think a .001 flat feeler gauge would slide under the gap. Checking it with a glass bed, the glass bed no longer had a problem laying flat on the surface without rocking a small amount. This was satisfying for me as my stock bed was pretty high in the center and ended that issue all together. The amount of light gap under the straight edge is so minimal I am not going to bother with scraping the bed flat.
Overall, there was a noticeable improvement on the first first layer and lines went down much cleaner. My ABL grid no longer has a big bump in the center of the bed. For me this was worth the money to not fight with leveling issues. I opted to stay with a 4 point system.
4 stars only because the packaging was pretty sad. Lets just say there was none. Luck was in play here as it survived shipping but lack of any real packaging makes it questionable on how flat yours may arrive of the carrier mishandles it.
I put this on over the weekend, and I've been really impressed. I don't have an auto leveler, so I use Mesh Bed leveling on my printer. This new build plate is really an improvement over the original Creality plate. Obviously, it's relative to how well I get the corners tuned in, but when I mesh level, I'm usually within about .1mm overall on the bed....-05 here, +.025 there. What impresses me the most is that when I get it dialed in, it gives me some amazing finish on my prints. I didn't think things could be so good!
The heater is fast, and it maintains temp +/- 1C most of the time I'm watching it. It's fast, and very even. I added a cork sheet under the heater to help 'trap' the heat and prevent drafting.
Great investment if you're doing 'commercial grade' parts on your printers. Also good for hobbyists, and if you're just getting started, this will remove some of the variables that can cause failed prints.
I was having a lot of leveling issues with my original Ender 3 Pro bed. I ran Bed Level Visualizer, on my original bed with a BLTouch and found that the bed was severely dipped in the middle and just plain horrible. So I bit the bullet and decided to upgrade my bed with this kit along with the silicone heating element. What a night and day difference! I added a Wham Bam Flex kit as well, once I performed the Bed Level Visualizer in Octoprint using an BLTouch, this was a huge improvement! Bed was flatter and hardly any dips and just had to use a small tiny strip of a sticky note to get the whole bed within the same range, that's it. I used stiff bed mounts, so this helped as well to get things stored and keep the same mesh for every print. I also paired this with the three point leveling carriage but didn't use the three points, instead I'm using 4 points. Only reason why I used the Gulf coast carriage is due to being lighter than the stock carriage.
Now all my prints stick and no more leveling issues! My temps are much more consistent using PID auto-tune. Just make sure to change your Marline code to use the correct thermal device!
Thanks for saving my printer! Very pleased!