HICTOP Ender 3 v2 Upgrades Flexible Build Plate PEI Steel Sheet 235x235mm Works for Ender 3/Ender 3 Pro/Ender 5 3D Printers

The first few prints were great. They were larger items printed with PLA filament, and the adhesion was pretty good and they released just fine. After about 10 prints however, the build plate lost all its adhesion properties and now nothing sticks. Ive tried PLA and PETG filament. Ive tried adjusting the bed temp from 20 degrees to 70 degrees with stops at 5 degree increments. Ive printed with hotter filament temps and then tried on the lower side of the filament temperature range. The filament flows, then starts to glob around the nozzle because its not sticking to the print surface. When I switch back to my glass bed I can print just fine with the proper filament nozzle and bed temps. I even tried replacing my nozzle thinking it might be a nozzle clogging issue. But no, its entirely a problem with the print bed.

I installed it and ran pid and re-calibrated the z axis with bl touch it works wonderful, prints pop right off after cooling for just a little bit

It was a little tricky dialing everything in, but once done, there are fewer problems with adhesion, and in most cases, the object printed comes off after simply cooling in place. The effect of plate temperature on adhesion seems a little more sensitive than other types of beds, but once dialed in there are few issues.

Good performance. Works exactly as expected. Very easy to remove anything from bed. The only downside is that it had as rough texture that it will impart on the first layer.

This is one of those purchases that you wish you had picked up much earlier. I didnt think much of the hype around PEI beds until I started printing on mine, but wow does it make a huge difference in bed adhesion. And you dont even have to remove parts once the bed cools, you can just pick it right up. The flexible nature of the spring steel also helps with removal immediately right after a print. The higher price for a textured bed like this one is also well worth it, not only does it give the first layer a great texture, but it also gives it much more surface area for the plastic to stick. Its also much more forgiving about the accuracy of your z-offset due to the uneven nature of the texture. Beware of accidental nozzle scraps and scratches on the surface though! I accidentally set a print too low and part of the first layer left a noticeable imprint from the nozzle being too close. It leaves a slight mark on prints, but is barely noticeable since it was barely too low.

I liked the smooth side better.

Great product. Glad I switched my Ender bed from glass to this. Been using it 6 months. No cleaning

Couldnt get anything to stick to this out of the box. Had it covered in masking tape for a while, but masking tape isnt itself flexible once taped down, so that sort of defeated the purpose. Carefully wiped the whole thing down with 100% isopropyl (automotive dry gas) and now it works as advertised. Can only assume there was some kind of manufacturing or shipping residue. Maybe this is an obvious step for others, but this is my first printer and I put the build plate on starting with my second print. Have about 30 hours of printing done since and still working perfectly. The magnet is strong enough that alignment can be a little challenging if youre planning to use the full print bed, but thats better than the alternative and overall not a big deal.

This bed works great on my Ender 3 V2 with a couple cavets. 1.) The printed parts have a rougher texture than Im used to. On larger parts, like the cell phone case pictured, the texture is kind of nice, but on smaller parts, like the disk pictured, the rough surface looks out of place. 2.) The magnetic base does not have holes cut for removing the bed leveling screws. Although it is rare, if you ever have to remove these screws, you will either have to cut holes in the magnetic material or remove the magnetic base completely which could be difficult as the adhesive is pretty strong! My suggestion is to punch access holes in the magnetic base before mounting it to the heated bed. Other than those two things, which really arent a big deal, the PEI bed works fantastic. It does require a bit more squish for the first layer, but once you have dialed in your first layer thickness, the prints stick very well when the bed is hot and literally fall off the bed once it cools down! I would recommend it as an upgrade to the stock bed on any printer that does not already have a PEI build surface.

I plan on buying at least 2 more. I have 2 printers. This way I’ll always have one ready to go while I’m wait for it to cool down bc when it does the print just falls off. It’s great. Tip: sit it on top of granite countertop or on concrete/metal for faster cooling. Fan helps too!