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HOW HAS NOBODY SPOTTED THIS MASSIVE FLAW! - Kobra 3 V2 Review
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Jul 22, 2025
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View Video Transcript
0:00
So when I concluded my Cobra 3 review
0:02
almost a year ago, I said I hoped any
0:04
Cubic would support that machine for a
0:06
good amount of time before following the
0:08
trend of just releasing a new printer
0:10
every year. So I guess in lie of
0:12
releasing a Cobra 4 just 12 months after
0:15
the last, their latest iteration is the
0:17
Cobra 3 V2. So I wanted to come into
0:21
this saying well played any NEQ pick for
0:23
skirting around that naming convention
0:25
and just giving us a new printer anyway.
0:27
But what they've changed here, well,
0:29
it's interesting when we break down
0:30
their comparison images. So, let's get
0:33
on with it. Hi, Ross. Fun Hammer Videos.
0:36
You probably knew that. Let's move on.
0:38
So, before we begin, I think a few
0:39
people will have seen my previous Cobra
0:41
3 combo review. If you haven't, it's
0:43
worth a watch as this will serve more as
0:45
an update from that. But to crack
0:47
straight on with what's changed in this
0:49
new version before I cover the features,
0:51
I'll introduce this infographic from Any
0:53
Cubic. The Y-axis has been widened.
0:56
Okay, great. We've got some increased
0:57
stability here. Fantastic. It's got
1:00
upgraded SG15 bearings. Now, we don't
1:03
know how. Have they upgraded to better
1:05
material? Have they changed the
1:06
positioning for tighter tolerances? Or
1:08
have they just added more lubrication?
1:11
We don't know. And they've also now
1:12
added the flagship nozzle technology.
1:15
Basically, it's using the same nozzle
1:17
that they use on the Cobra S1. And I
1:19
don't mind this. I actually like it in a
1:21
way. A consistent set of hardware across
1:23
their range is helpful. It's especially
1:26
helpful that the nozzle can be removed
1:28
by just a clip and two cables. Yeah,
1:30
it's not the easiest on the market, but
1:32
still it's incredibly handy. But now
1:34
they've also advised a bigger print
1:36
space now at 255x 255x
1:40
260 mm, which is a small improvement for
1:44
the previous Cobra's 250x 250 area. But
1:47
the original Cobra can also benefit from
1:49
this with a firmware update. So, it's a
1:51
cool thing. It's just no longer an
1:54
advertisable difference. And yeah, you
1:56
get the camera as standard now, but just
1:58
to be aware, you do still need to 3D
2:00
print the casing for it and assemble it
2:02
yourself. And the files for this come on
2:04
the printer ready to go in PLA. But as I
2:07
said in my last review, I don't really
2:08
mind this. It is a cute way to get you
2:11
integrated with your machine. It's just
2:13
unfortunate that the camera image
2:15
quality still isn't great. And still,
2:18
almost a year after release, I can't
2:20
figure out for the life of me how to
2:22
generate time-lapse footage, despite
2:24
turning it on in both the slicer and
2:26
trying to turn it on in the UI. And yes,
2:29
I tried with the USB drive in so that it
2:31
had somewhere to save the files to. So,
2:34
this is a question to the audience.
2:35
Please, if you know how to get this
2:37
working, tell me in the comments because
2:39
it will help me and others who read the
2:42
comments for answers. But it's still a
2:43
handy device because you can use the Any
2:45
Cubic app to check on the progress of
2:47
prints remotely and you can see them
2:49
visually too. But moving on, whilst this
2:51
infographic and the website say it comes
2:54
ready to go for up to eight colors which
2:56
suggests to me you'll have the ability
2:58
to connect two Ace Pros as a standard
3:01
feature as they put it. My single combo
3:05
only came with the fourcolor hub. So I
3:07
expect the larger connector is actually
3:09
only available when you order the eight
3:11
color combo. It would have been nice if
3:13
that was a bit clearer. So, it's that or
3:15
they made a mistake on mine. So, again,
3:18
please let me know what you ordered and
3:19
what you ended up getting. I've just
3:21
I've kind of got this thing with any
3:22
cubic that things aren't always 100%
3:25
clear. It could have been a mistake. It
3:26
could be a misleading thing on the
3:28
website. Those things are part for the
3:29
course with this brand. But anyway,
3:31
those are the differences. So, it's not
3:33
a new printer. It is an upgraded Cobra
3:35
3. So, yeah, the name is rather apt. I'm
3:38
just curious how many people will see
3:39
this as an upgrade to be grateful for
3:42
versus those who are existing Cobra 3
3:44
users who might interpret their earlier
3:46
models as models that have a few
3:49
hardware defects. Again, comment
3:51
section, please. I don't know how you
3:53
feel, but I'm genuinely curious. And
3:55
besides those things, it is nice to see
3:57
that Any Cubic has been hard at work in
3:59
the exact places I hope they would be.
4:02
So, let's have a look at what's actually
4:03
changed and what I've learned since the
4:05
Cobra 3 originally came out. Well, first
4:07
of all, setup is the same. This comes in
4:09
a large box, so there's no frame
4:11
assembly to do. You will need to uncip
4:13
some cable ties and install some
4:15
components. You'll need to install the
4:17
hotend unit, for example. And this is
4:19
easy cuz if you add just two screws in
4:21
initially, you can hook it in over the
4:23
retaining plate and then secure it in
4:25
place with four extra screws. Then, you
4:27
just need to plug in and secure the USBC
4:29
cable in the top. The filament holder
4:31
will also slide into place on the back
4:34
and the screen that also needs
4:36
installing which is a little awkward but
4:38
also straightforward. It was however a
4:41
little disconcerting that by the end of
4:43
my using it for review just the
4:45
vibrations from the machine itself had
4:47
wiggled one of the screws loose. And you
4:49
also need to install the filament boot
4:51
for kicking plastic poop off the edge of
4:53
the machine whilst it's purging. There's
4:55
also the guide block for the filament
4:56
PTFE tubes on the left hand side. Now,
4:59
I'll come back to the multiffilament
5:01
feed and the Ace Pro later, but for now,
5:04
without this, you connect a single
5:05
filament tube from this guide block to
5:07
the hotend and you feed your filament
5:09
through that. And you can't actually
5:11
install the camera until you've printed
5:12
the enclosure for it. So, at this point,
5:14
just boot up the machine and it does its
5:16
own autoc calibration for you. Now, once
5:18
you do install the camera, you plug it
5:20
into the front and tuck the cable
5:22
underneath the printer and then it
5:23
sticks out the side. Now, I've said
5:25
before in my last review, this isn't a
5:27
tidy solution. Once you plug in the Ace
5:30
Pro 2, you do end up with a bit of a
5:32
nest of cables. The PEI plate is
5:34
double-sided and it's guided into place
5:36
by the notch on the back corner. And
5:38
that's also where the machine houses a
5:40
handy nozzle wiper. And I have to say
5:43
immediately from the first print, I saw
5:44
improvements from the last model. And I
5:46
expect this is more from improvements to
5:48
the material profiles because first
5:50
layer adhesion was solid across the
5:52
plate with only a slight defect. I
5:55
needed to really flex the printed sheet
5:57
in order to actually see it. The onboard
5:59
15-minute benchie test came out just
6:01
fine for a bed slinger. Honestly,
6:03
overall print quality on this has been
6:05
fairly solid for the most part.
6:07
Although, I did have one part fail on
6:09
the plate during a print and I came down
6:11
to string the next morning and the
6:13
machine was still printing. So, that
6:15
suggests the AI detection did all.
6:18
Unfortunately, I don't have a clip of
6:20
this because I didn't record it
6:22
expecting the time-lapse would be fine.
6:25
But still, as I said, can't get this
6:27
thing to make time-lapses. Now, the UI
6:29
is so ridiculously simple, but it is a
6:32
mild improvement when compared to what
6:34
it was when I originally tested the
6:36
Cobra 3. Yet, I simply cannot get over
6:39
the use of alpha numeric keyboards on
6:41
any modern hardware. Slicer wise, we've
6:44
got any Cubix's version of Orca, which
6:46
is any cubic slicer. Next. Now, this is
6:50
fine. It's essentially the same as Orca,
6:51
but it doesn't have as many upto-date
6:53
settings, and the front page exists to
6:55
promote Maker Online, which as any Cubix
6:57
storefront for models, and it's just not
7:00
as neatly curated as other online
7:03
platforms. But look, the slicer works.
7:05
For someone just looking to have a
7:07
workable slicer and a workable printer,
7:09
this will do that. And I want to say
7:11
that here because that's what this is.
7:14
It's a working printer. any cubic aren't
7:17
leading the way in FDM. Far from it. I
7:19
don't think anyone's accusing them of
7:21
that. They're creating products that do
7:24
the job. And I would have thought the
7:26
goal is a lower cost because that's the
7:30
target audience here, the the more
7:33
budget conscious consumer. And there's
7:35
nothing wrong with that. Look, here's a
7:37
good analogy. I think if you're going to
7:39
buy a power drill, you're going to go to
7:40
a hardware store. And many people out
7:42
there are going to swear by Milwaukee or
7:44
Makita and those sort of things being
7:47
the best. But in relative terms, this is
7:50
a Black & Decka and that's okay. They
7:53
exist. They sell. They work. Are they as
7:56
good quality? No. But people still buy
7:59
them. That's what you get in here. The
8:02
bit I really need to talk about is the
8:04
Ace Pro, the Any Cubic Color Engine Pro.
8:07
This is Any Cubic's version of a
8:09
multimaterial unit. So, you can print
8:11
with multiple colors or materials with
8:13
one nozzle on the printer. And as I said
8:15
at the beginning of the video, there's a
8:17
hub in the top of the print head. And
8:19
I've got the four tube hub because I
8:21
have one ACE in this combo. I presume
8:23
the 28 combo comes with the eight hole
8:26
hub. Now, as I said before, this plugs
8:28
in at the front. The PTFE tubes come out
8:30
the back of the Ace Pro into the holder
8:33
in the side of the printer, then go
8:34
straight up and over into the print head
8:36
with a clip holding them all neatly
8:38
together. And then you just mount your
8:40
reels in. The ACE will automatically
8:42
then feed them to the print head. And if
8:44
you've got any of the new or any cubic
8:46
filaments, it'll even read the RFID tag
8:48
and tell the printer what filaments
8:50
installed. If you don't have the new
8:52
stuff or you're using third party
8:53
materials, you can just use the UI to
8:56
tell it manually, which is handy because
8:58
then in the slicer, you can synchronize
9:00
those materials with the slicer and then
9:03
automatically color things in or tell it
9:05
what you want printed in what material.
9:08
But that only works if you've got an Ace
9:10
Pro connected. If you're just using a
9:11
single reel of filament, you don't have
9:13
access to this function, which I think
9:15
is a bit unfortunate because that would
9:17
still be handy even if you're only using
9:19
one reel. Now, I've got to say, I love
9:21
these units in general. I love that I
9:24
don't have to manually fiddle to install
9:26
filament by heating the nozzle, hand
9:28
balling it in and out, and so on. This
9:31
does it for me. And I'm also happy to
9:33
see that despite the bug I had in my S1
9:35
review here, if you do run out of a reel
9:38
of filament halfway through a print or
9:40
snip it to pretend you did, the printer
9:42
will continue printing by just moving on
9:45
to the next reel automatically so long
9:47
as you've got two listed as the same
9:49
material on the printer. But this is the
9:52
bit I'm going to have to say. I'm I need
9:54
your help with this as a community
9:56
because I've only got mine that I can
9:58
test. The callout feature of the Ace Pro
10:01
is that it's got an integrated heater
10:03
which runs off its own dedicated power
10:05
supply. And the idea of this heater is
10:07
that it will heat your filament to help
10:09
dry it out, which that's exactly what I
10:11
said in my Cobra 3 review. But here, I
10:14
actually printed out this little add-on
10:16
so I could insert a hydrometer and
10:17
monitor the humidity change. Oh, and I
10:20
also learned it's hyrometer with a G.
10:23
I've been calling these things
10:24
hydrometers with a D for ages. But
10:26
again, I never claimed to be a
10:28
professional, just a hobbyist. Anyway,
10:30
after taking some old filaments and
10:32
leaving the heater on overnight for 8
10:34
hours, I expected to come down the next
10:36
morning and see how much it had dropped
10:37
by. And um it went up. Now, in fairness
10:42
to a point, we are in the middle of a
10:44
very humid summer here in the UK, but
10:46
but still, this shouldn't go up. Now,
10:49
what I've learned or more inferred from
10:52
this is something that actually makes a
10:54
lot of sense in retrospect because
10:57
heating alone doesn't mean drying. Now,
11:00
yeah, heating may cause the water or
11:03
liquid or hydrationess to come out of
11:06
the plastic, but this is still a pretty
11:09
sealed chamber. So, the humidity mostly
11:13
stays in the chamber, which could
11:15
actually be partially why my hyrometer
11:17
went up. if more of that moisture is in
11:20
the air. That's the word, moisture. But
11:22
either way, unless I'm crazy or I've got
11:24
a faulty one, if this is right, this
11:27
device kind of slightly completely fails
11:31
at the specific function it should
11:32
perform or again, have I got a dodgy
11:34
one? I mean, I know it's heating up
11:37
because I could feel it on the chamber.
11:39
I mean, I guess at least it's got space
11:41
in the bottom for some desicant and you
11:43
can print out some boxes. There's
11:45
numerous designs online so you can add
11:47
more and that'll dry out the chamber a
11:50
bit. But I'm genuinely sat here
11:52
wondering now if this is the case and
11:54
it's not actually drying the filament.
11:57
How has nobody noticed this before? Why
11:59
why does it seem like nobody else is
12:01
talking about it and and going a bit
12:03
crazy about it? Which is why I think I I
12:06
must be wrong here. And to test it, I
12:09
even pulled out another Ace Pro and
12:11
tested it again overnight. And I had the
12:13
same issue. Without Desicant, this
12:16
wouldn't be any drier after 8 hours of
12:19
heating. So, I've got no choice. I have
12:21
to ask you to share your feedback. And I
12:24
will, please, if you're watching this
12:25
thinking, "Oh, that's terrible." I
12:27
haven't concluded on it yet. I will
12:29
update the video description if I can
12:31
figure out what the hell is happening to
12:33
me here. Or am I right? I genuinely
12:37
don't know. I need your feedback.
12:39
Without desicant in here, does this
12:42
actually dry filament out? If so, how?
12:47
But anyway, regardless of that, this is
12:49
still a working machine. And with it, I
12:51
printed the first of these hammer props
12:53
you're going to see a lot of in my
12:54
videos going forward. These are from the
12:56
Eternal Forge on Kickstarter. And I
12:59
pledged for these myself. This isn't
13:00
sponsored. And what I love about these,
13:03
the reason I want to talk about them
13:04
more than most other models, is not only
13:06
the look, which I think is cool and how
13:08
sturdy they are, but also how well the
13:11
design has actually been considered by
13:13
the creator because each part will print
13:15
on a 150x 150 mm printer and without any
13:20
supports at all. You even put it
13:23
together without any screws, bolts,
13:24
fixings, or plastic welding. The screws,
13:27
threads, and clips are all part of the
13:29
model. And I think when creators put
13:31
this much effort into a design, yeah,
13:34
I'm going to champion the heck out of
13:35
them because, let's be fair, nobody
13:38
enjoys plastic welding. And I'll leave a
13:40
link in the description. This is one of
13:42
nine designs and I think they're all
13:44
amazing. Again, not sponsored, just
13:47
cool, right? This printer. Look, I think
13:50
we all know this. This isn't a hot take.
13:52
Any Cubic is a budget brand when it
13:55
comes to FDM, as I've said. I know many
13:57
of you watching this will have one. and
13:59
you'll love it. But I also know many of
14:01
you will have had one and hate it so
14:03
much you'll never touch an any cubic
14:05
machine again. And here's the thing, you
14:08
you're both right. Now, unfortunately,
14:10
when I say a budget brand, the price
14:13
here doesn't quite reflect that because
14:15
there are what I would consider to be
14:17
better built machines on the market at a
14:20
similar price and cheaper. And never
14:22
before have I actually had a live
14:24
example of why other than Yeah. Like
14:27
here, the movement of the machine
14:29
started to rattle a screw out. So when I
14:32
say budget, I guess I really mean cheap,
14:35
but at the same time, it's not cheap.
14:38
That's what this is. The printer works,
14:41
prints fine. But anyway, look, I want to
14:43
know how existing Cobra 3 users feel
14:46
about this release, too. Because when I
14:47
said in my last Cobra 3 video, I hope we
14:49
don't see a Cobra 4 in a few months,
14:52
well, I did kind of mean this, too. I
14:54
hoped the Cobra 3 would be supported for
14:56
a while, and it has been. The software
14:57
and profile updates have been nice. But
15:00
with the change to this new nozzle
15:02
style, does that mean we expect the old
15:04
ones to just become abandonware before
15:07
long? Because that is what past FDM any
15:09
cubic has kind of taught us they'll do.
15:12
I just don't know. So, whilst yeah, it's
15:14
great to see improvements. And this is a
15:16
working machine with prints that well
15:19
they're not as good but they are still
15:21
comparable to much much more expensive
15:23
Corxy printers I've tested at least it
15:26
was when it was new out of the box. This
15:28
also feels like a bit of a oops the
15:31
Cobra 3 hardware wasn't great. So we
15:33
fixed some of it. Yet on the software
15:35
side there's still a bit of a way to go.
15:38
If somebody asked me to rate this out of
15:39
10 I'd say yeah it's all right. So again
15:43
if you have one do you think? Do you
15:45
have a Cobra 3? How are you getting on
15:47
with it? Please let me know in the
15:49
comments because new users will use your
15:52
real user feedback probably more than
15:54
mine in order to help them decide either
15:56
way. If you do decide to get this
15:58
printer and if the video or the
16:00
community and the comment section helped
16:02
you learn what to expect, I would
16:04
appreciate you using my affiliate links
16:05
in the description before you make a
16:08
purchase. And yes, I'll make a
16:09
commission. That's at no further cost to
16:11
you. I want to say thanks for watching
16:13
with a huge thanks going to our members
16:15
who are on screen now. Please consider
16:17
joining them to get your name in lights
16:18
along with early access and exclusive
16:21
videos. Until next time, just when I
16:23
thought I was out, they pull me back in.
16:26
Faux hammer in. Out.
16:34
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