Creality Ender 5 Ultimate Upgrade

[@TH3DStudio]

Thanks for giving the EZBoard a shout out! We spent a lot of time making the board as stable, reliable, and easy to use as it can be. Just wanted to give some feedback on the points mentioned in the video. 1. The EZfirmware site and passwords - We had accounts and usernames setup but people kept losing them all the time which took up many support hours to reset them and people getting frustrated with not being able to login due to lost passwords. There is nothing in the config files that is confidential. The closest thing that would be is if you set a custom printer name and even that wouldn't contain anything other than a name for someone’s printer. 2. We do carry 1GB cards for those that do not have small ones that are pre-formatted to FAT format and work great for the firmware and even Gcode files. The max Marlin supports is 32GB so you can use a 32GB card if not flashing for your Gcode files. It’s always recommended to use a high-quality card from us or known vendors (like Sandisk, Kingston, Patriot, or Samsung). 3. For the speed you can play with your jerk and acceleration settings to uncap to faster speeds. We have them set pretty conservatively so print quality is good. You can access those from the LCD to increase them. One thing that is great is copper nozzles to improve heat transfer. E3D makes them and we also have our own brand (EZFlow Nozzles). Our MK8 EZFlow Nozzles fit the Microswiss hotend and stock Creality hotend. 4. We will be keeping our firmware branch for the EZBoard up to date quite rapidly as Marlin 2.0 puts out new versions and adds new features. As Marlin grows the EZBoard will grow with new features since we have the large LPC1769 CPU. The EZBoard is also supported in the standard Marlin 2.0 firmware as well so if you do not want to use our easy to use firmware you can use standard Marlin 2.0. 5. Comment on your Ender 5 VS a Prusa MK3. We have both the Ender 5 and the MK3. In my opinion (this is Tim btw) I would take a fully loaded Ender 5 over the MK3 any day. Our MK3 has a lot of artifacting on the surface that are not present on the Creality (or most other Chinese machines). Happy New Year!

[@MakeWithTech]

Thanks for sharing and keep producing solid products at TH3D.

[@dinosoarskill17]

ily tim & th3d

[@danielprivett6155]

I really appreciate your channel. I got a stock Ender 5 for Christmas from a relative that purchased it ages ago but never opened it up. All the support online is assuming I'm using a Pro or Plus model so your channel has been invaluable to help me get the specific help I need and answer my questions, sometimes before I even ask them. I'll probably end up with a similar setup but for now the board upgrade is my next step I've been researching. Thanks again!

[@roliks]

I too have replaced the extruder, print bed, supports, Bowden tube, firmware, hot end, and board with the TH3d EZboard. Love the TH3D Ez board is awesome and SUPER QUIET!! Love my Ender Non Ender 5. Next will be dual Z screws for better stability.

[@MakeWithTech]

Is it still and Ender 5 :-)

[@MakeWithTech]

Is it still and Ender 5 :-)

[@roliks]

@@MakeWithTech To a purist I would say no... So I will just call it a Franken 5... or ED (Ender Derivative)

[@RichPedro]

DrVax. Like you I also have an Engineering degree and like you (and many other users) when I update electronics I hesitate and expect to release the magic smoke. In my experiences I've done that a few times. My most recent experience happened when I followed another youtuber and bought into the 32bit upgrade bug and purchase a few other brand boards to learn & tinker on my printers. While waiting for my pre-ordered board from TH3D. Well;= the lack of information (aside from the youtube guide) and lack documentation resulted in me not only smoking two 32bit boards but I killed one of those boards twice with the addition of smoking my high end laptop. Since then I've had my laptop repaired and recieved my EZBoards. That has been one of the greatest comsumer/hobbiest experiences I have had in a long time. All my printers are running EZBoards now. except my Delta. Keep up the good work and I look forward to seeing more as you discover what the EZBoard can do. PS - if you upgrade to the EZABL Pro,, you can enable the superfast probing... what a time saver!

[@MakeWithTech]

Thanks for sharing. This supports my position that sometimes trying to save a few dollars in fact costs you more then you may save.

[@DeputatKaktus]

I just recently stumbled across your channel and am still working my way through the back catalog of videos. This one stuck out to me because on my journey I also have modified my printer (only have one due to space constraints) so heavily that it no longer resembles at all what I started out with. A friend said to me once that some 3D printers are a little bit like a "poor man's classic car" - there is always something you can tinker with, tweak, improve and rework. He is not wrong, I have to say. In my case, the journey started some 6-ish years ago with the infamous Anet A8, which was at the time one of the more common and at 150 Euros shipped, I think, most budget friendly beginner kits but is also not that great in terms of build quality and the results it produces. And BOY is that thing loud. After fiddling with it for a few months and printing all sorts of "silencing" upgrades with very mixed results as well as a MOSFET upgrade almost causing a fire, it went to the shelf. You know...that place where you store all those things that say "I don't feel like working on that right now, but I will definitely come back to it at one point...maybe", a.k.a. where projects usually go to die after gathering some dust. I should mention that while I have a conversational level of knowledge in the field, I have no background whatsoever in engineering, electronics, coding or manufacturing. I also was (and sometimes still am) very impatient. Those are not great traits to have when entering the realm of 3D printing. Oh and re: that MOSFET ugrade: it must have been a bad part because I sent detailed pictures of the smouldering remains to a friend who is an electrical engineer and he was also completely stumped - all the wiring was done correctly. It had produced a lot of magic smoke that stunk up the place but nothing that opening the windows and airing out the place would not solve. Flash forward about 2 years or so and I was browsing some sites about 3D printing when I saw a pretty flashy "mod" for my almost forgotten printer that immediately screamed at me "You want to build this!". I say "mod" in quotes because in my opinion it is not so much as a mod but a complete rebuild that reuses some original parts. But this did not occur to me until I was way into the project already. So over the course of a few months I ordered new parts, printed other parts (Oh, the NOISE!), soldered a lot, spent hours fiddling with Marlin configuration files, had several occasions where the entire machine came very close to a spontaneous defenestration, and I was swearing a LOT. I was basically jumping in at the deep end. It is not impossible, but probably not for everyone. I started out with the stock A8, and ended up replacing the creaky and wobbly acrylic frame with a very stiff aluminium frame, put Hiwin-style linear rails on all axes, replaced the hot end, put in a Bowden style extruder, a 32bit controller board and Trinamic stepper drivers, a different heat bed and I replaced the entire wiring harness. So at this point the only parts that remain of the Anet A8 are the stepper motors and the power supply. BTW, the "mod" I did is called "AM8 / BLVmgn12". So basically every aspect of the printer has changed dramatically. The one change that said "This is definitely not an Anet A8 anymore" was replacing the frame and the board, I would say. The frame is already a pretty major step up already. The frame of the A8 is - in my view - one of the worst frames around, maybe marginally less flexible than mild cheese. Was this a budget friendly mod? Probably not. Is this a project that I would recommend to a complete beginner with zero experience? Most definitely not - unless you like frustration, reading a lot and cussing yourself and the entire project out half the time. Was it a real teaching experience? You bet it was. I know a ton more now than I did at the beginning of the project. And I am still learning. While I am typing this, the printer is chugging along nicely behind me, printing a part that I designed in Fusion (another thing that I just got into recently, but that is another story) - the loudest part being the parts fan. This is something completely different and I love it.

[@siryoneyal]

Again and again you keep on amaze me with a very detailed video on one hand but easy to understand on the other. I think the upgrades are worth it as long as you are a maker.

[@MakeWithTech]

Yep. And most makers love to tinker.

[@jamesgumm2231]

I need to come to this channel before making purchases. Thanks the the great videos. I have learned a great deal about 3D printing from you.

[@coreymac2381]

Great video. I enjoy upgrading printers. The only printers I have not modified are my prusas. I bought an ezboard but haven’t installed it yet. You have motivated me to install it soon. Thanks for making such quality videos.

[@MakeWithTech]

Your welcome.

[@oleurgast730]

While the th3d-board and online configurator is quite nice and beginner friendly, if you already did some upgrades you are also already knowing how to config and compile Marlin anyway - so normaly you do not need the comfortable online configurator. The SKR e3 mini is a quarter of the cost, also 32bit, using TMC2209. The firmware.bin for stock ender 5 is at github, also of course the source, so as long as you know how to compile Marlin, it is easy to make the changes you need. Also there are ready2use firmware.bin for some ALB-solutions (EZ-ABL and BL-Touch) available on different sources. Also simply copy the firmware.bin to SD. So with a little more research you practicly get the same result at a quarter of the cost. To get best results on an Ender 5 with as low cost as possible I recommend folowing upgrades: - Lead Srew with 2mm lead and POM-nut (about 10€ on Aliexpress) - SKR e3 mini (about 23€) - PEI powder coated spring steel (about 23€ on Aliexpress/Energtic 3d shop - or use original Prusa one 35€+shipping) - Inductive probe 5V (about 6€ on Aliexpress/Trianglelab) So about 62€ (about 70$) (+some plastic parts) for upgrading the Ender 5 (without Extruder) to a nearly optimal state. For the extruder there are several solutions to upgrade them with a Bondtech or Titan (or clone) and a plastc part from thingiverse to direct extruder. For printing mostly PLA/PET-G, you can get a direct extruder for about 20€ (titan-clone + pencake stepper). So altogether less than $100 to make an Ender 5 direct extruder, quite, 32bit, ABL and print-quality and speed very near the original Prusa, enough for most users. Of course you might also change the hotend/extruder completly to an Hemera and even beat the Prusa in quality.

[@MakeWithTech]

Thanks for sharing. Many of my viewers are quite new to technology so firmware upgrades are quite intimidating. In addition I believe the quality of the components, the 4 layer board, and testing performed at TH3D is worth a premium price. You are correct you can improve the ender for less money if you have the skills.

[@oleurgast730]

@@MakeWithTech As I said: Ender 3. 3pro and 5 firmware.bin are provided by Bigtreetech (also versions for BL-Touch) and the formfactor also is same as original board (o.k. Thermistor connector for bed and hotend swapped their position), so it is as beginner friendly as the th3d. Simply choose the one of 6 firmware.bin (Ender 3 w/wo BL-Touch, Ender 3 pro w/wo BL-Touch or Ender 5 w/wo BL-TTouch), put it onto micro-SD, put microSD into printer and turn it on. Only with heavily modified printers you have to compile yourself. As eeprom is enabled, modifications like different leadscrew or extruder do not need new compilled firmware, as you can set steps/mm on display and store it into eeprom. With the quality you are right, that may worth it, if you live in the US. I am german, so I have to take shipping and taxes into account. While 23€ for the SKR e3 mini include shipping and is legaly free of import dutys for private customers (german customs do not charge you with tax, if it would be less than 5€, as their efford for doing all neccesary forms would be to much compared to the tax (19%) they get; so everything up to 26.28€ is taxfree), for th3d-board international shipping and tax has to be added. All that considering, the price of the th3d-board is 5-6 times as high as the SKR e3 mini for a german user. As the e3 mini works very well, the higher quality of the TH3d-board might not matter in practical use - and hey, we are upgrading a cheap chinese printer anyway - would you install golden toilets in a blockhouse ? ;-) Actually I use the SKR e3 mini not only for Creality printers with one z-axis, but also for the better design with two z-axis. Simply an adapter for serial connection for the two z-motors. My Sovol SV01 works perfectly that way. Any board with soldered stepper drivers is a good choise for beginners - as configuring the stepper drivers is a big challange (some stepper modules you have to solder some bridges to get them to the right mode). Both SKR e3 mini and TH3d share the same main advantage: The stepper drivers are soldered in and already configured correctly. So anything to do is to insert the correct mecanical settings in the configs, maybe choose ABL, Lin.Advance and s-curve for improved print quality.

[@MakeWithTech]

Thanks for taking the time to continue the dialog. That helps create a community around the channel. I completely understand your point of view. The gold toilet analogy is quite funny. My only comment would be that you may underestimate the difficulty of tasks you perform easily. Complex tasks are not complex solely because of the steps involved. Complexity is also a function of experience. On the DrVax channel I attempt to simplify complex tasks to make tasks new to my viewers approachable. Thanks again. Irv

[@oleurgast730]

@@MakeWithTech I like your way of easy explaining basics. I whish they were there 1 1/2 year ago, when I started to get into 3d printing. For the skr e3 mini to upgrade an Ender (3/3pro/5) with or without BL-Touch its even more easy to simple get the firmware.bin, so I would call it the more beginner friendly solution. With EZ-ABL or other Mods or other printers, I am totaly with you - the most begginer-friendly upgrade is the th3d board. I like your efford to make everything understandable for beginners. Sometimes there are some thinks a little bit to easy and some nearly as easy but cheaper alternatives - but for that is the comment funktion. I like your approach of "lets lern something together". By the way: Have you upgraded the leadscrew to a lead of 2mm and POM-nut to get rid of bed falling down? An quite easy and cheap upgrade I did on many printers with much effect (it also increases the fullstep resolution in z to 0.01mm/fullstep, so you can forget about "magic layerhights")

[@jclosed2516]

For people living in Europe there is another serious reason to purchase the SKR e3 mini. While I certainly will acknowledge the Th3D board is good quality, there is also the costs involved. Not only us people here in Europe have to pay an 21% VAT (or BTW as it's called in my country) on top of the original price making the board far more expensive (about $121 in stead of $99.99). But whe'r not there yet. There is also the problem of the shipping costs. The cost to ship that board to Europe is really, really high. All these costs combined makes the Th3D board extremely expensive compared to the SKR e3 mini. In other words - I can buy a multitude of SKR e3 mini boards and simply throw a few away if they fail, and in the end still loose far less money than buy only one single TH3D EZboard. It's that expensive. Sure - I say it again. The EZboard is good quality... But... Yeah- It would be great value if we could pay the price as advertised on the website, but for us here in Europe it's far more expensive than that, and it's not very attractive to buy one.

[@roliks]

Also just a FYI there is a dip switch that will allow you to power the board via USB. I was able to flash the firmware with the board outside of the printer. Just make sure to flip the switch back.

[@MakeWithTech]

Wow. I saw the switch and was not sure at first why I would want to use it in the USB position. Now I get it. Thank you for sharing so we can learn together. All the best. Irv

[@tinfore]

17:22 WOW! I had that exact dB meter many many years ago! The thing just quit working one day so I threw it out. It's amazing how much those things have came down in price since then.

[@MakeWithTech]

I tend to keep stuff around until it breaks. Meter still works.

[@tinfore]

@@MakeWithTech I sure miss radio shack. Not the cell phone store it turned out to be in the end though.

[@antoniovarela6713]

Loved the video. Thank you for the info and the passion. The db drop was impressive from just a simple plug and play board.

[@MakeWithTech]

It is even more impressive in person. To be fair any upgraded controller board with the TMC 2208/2209 driver chips will be quieter. What impressed me the most was how much quieter the Ender 5 was than my Prusa i3 Mk3. The Prusa LM8UU bearings are on the steel rods, specifically below the print bed which is the Y-axis. The Prusa arrangement does produce great quality but with more noise.

[@Nick-vc3gv]

Thanks for the explanation. You speak very clearly. With my knowledge of English, it helps a lot to understand.

[@gregd393]

I wait in anticipation for the prusa vs ender 5 test.

[@MakeWithTech]

Me too.

[@blueridgewarden2838]

Your printer might be twice as expensive but now it's twice as nice. Very choice options on this build.

[@wordreet]

I like the sound, heh, (or rather, the lack of it) of these mods Irv. 👍 Though I am partly deaf, I did think the Ender 5 was pretty noisy when I first started using it if I have my H/aids in. Ironically though, it was the hot end cooling fan that was super noisy. So I replaced that with a "quiet" fan and it was way better. I added stepper motor dampers to X and Y, and now, for me at least, it's quiet. But yes, I would like to do the other mods too.The bed supports won't fit across the print bed, so I'll have to print them standing vertically one of these weekends.

[@TALKCalgary]

Again you've nailed it with one of the most informative tutorials on KZbin. Only question I've got after watching this is why not just save a lot of time doing all this and simply buy a Prusa?

[@MakeWithTech]

That is an ongoing discussion in the 3d printing community. I really like my Prusa printer, but it is very hard to upgrade in any way and was really hard to assemble. I do like the excellent SW and Firmware support from Prusa. I guess you have to ask why you are purchasing a 3d printer. As a hobby I would go with an Ender 5 and do the upgrades. For a production business I would purchase fully assembled Prusa i3 Mk3 if my team was not comfortable with build what ends up being a custom printer. Another plus of the Ender is the square frame would make it much easier to enclose for high temperature prints. And finally with the upgrade it is quieter than the Prusa.

[@EsotericArctos]

Not sure that the Configuration.h file has any personally identification information in it so it likely doesn't need to be protected heavily. I don't use TH3D so not sure what they grab, but the sample files that Marlin supply directly I have never seen anything personally identifiable :). ** Does the TH3D board support Linear Advance? You are right that once you do so many upgrades it is no longer an "Ender 5" but it becomes personalised. Your one is an Irv Ender 5 instead of a Creality Ender 5. :) Thanks again for the great videos

[@scottwarrick]

Nice video. Were you able to print faster and good quality? I apologize if you already have a video on that. I looked but didn’t see one. Any experience putting one of these on an Ender 5 Plus?

[@DavideFoschi]

Hi bought an Anycubic (I3 mega S) some times ago for 250€ in the past months I've added mosfet ~30€ and changed the stepper driver ~30, added a raspberry and a webcam (for octoprint) ~100, bought ball bearings and printed belt tensioner ~20, start to build the ikea table trick to had an enclosure ~25. next steps would include change the firmware and buy the new hemera to switch from bowden to a direct setup (with of course, new hotend and extruder), plus i'm really interested in the nozzle-X For a total of ~180 250+ 30+ 30+ 100+ 20+ 25+ 180= -------------- >600€ Dunno if it worth the money, but for sure I know how it works and as I want

[@MakeWithTech]

I you have the skills and time, there is no better way to learn about 3d printing, and about your specific printer than to take it apart, put it back together and upgrade a bunch of components. Sound like great fun. All the best. Irv

[@CraftedChannel]

Isn't it ever 3 db is a 100% increase in sound power? That is different from perception of sound of course.

[@ryandowney8743]

Thank you for the help. I used the EZConfig to choose the options for my firmware. And now I have downloaded the firmware.bin and Configuration.h file that it made. What I don't get is, what am I supposed to do with the Configuration.h file? The firmware.bin file is all I need to put the Marlin 2.0 on my new board, right?

[@MakeWithTech]

The dot h file is used in the software compilation process. Once your “build” the firmware you no longer need the dot h file.

[@ryandowney8743]

@@MakeWithTech Thank you.

[@ryandowney8743]

@@MakeWithTech How long is it supposed to take to flash the firmware? I put the firmware.bin file on the SD card (removed other files) and turned the machine on with it in. It has been a blank screen for over ten minutes. I don't dare turn it off. I know the new board works because I turned it on and it was fine, it just thought the machine was an Ender 3 by default. And I made sure to switch all the connections one at a time to the new board so I got all the wire correct.

[@BlueprintDK]

Did you pay for the board out of own pocket or is the a sponsor video? Have you seen Bigtreetech has come out with the skr 1.4 turbo and the GTR is on the way.

[@MakeWithTech]

I paid retail for it.

[@trialnterror]

Would you do a video on dual Z upgraded from eBay on the ender 5?

[@frogmandave1]

Great video Doc! I am running the new updated 1.1.5 board from Creality and you are absolutely correct, the noise decrease is almost scary. When I first installed the board it was somehow kind of creepy because I couldn't hear the motors running. I have gotten used to that now after a few months, but it is amazing how everything smooths out with the new drivers.

[@MakeWithTech]

Yep. The disadvantage of the Creality board is the limited memory and 8bit processor. Any board with the upgraded stepper motor drivers will make an Ender very quite.

[@michaelplaczek9385]

I had a BTT SKR mini E3 1.2 and shorted it. Is this more resistant to shorts?

[@MakeWithTech]

Don't know. P.S. I have started a new discussion forum at forum.drvax.com where we can all have more elaborate discussions and share pictures on our prints and printers. Check it out. Irv

[@avejst]

Great walk through Thanks for sharing :-)

[@primemover84]

Thanks for your informative and easy to understand videos. I have a Monoprice MP Delta Mini printer and I'm looking to get something with a larger build area and the potential for upgrades in the future. My budget is around $250, but I'd be willing to spend more if it's worth it. Should I go for the Ender 3, Ender 5 or Sovol SV01? Or possibly something else that I haven't listed.

[@MakeWithTech]

I have not experience with the Sovol SV01. Either of the Ender printers would be an excellent choice. I am also hearing good things about the GeeeTech printers but have not used them yet. I expect to order on and try it later in the year.

[@primemover84]

@@MakeWithTech I saw CHEP's video from a couple days ago and GeeTech are becoming a strong contender. If I end up getting a Sovol SV01 I'll share my thoughts with you on it.

[@brandoneich2412]

Is this better than the silent board from creality? (Creality v1.1.5)

[@MakeWithTech]

It is a true 32 bit board. The Creality board is the standard Creality control board with upgraded stepper motor drivers. That said I have not noticed a big difference.

[@msmax3172]

DrVax, an error message I'm getting on my Ender 5: E1 heating failed Please Reset (extruder temp -15° C not heating). How do I go about "resetting"?

[@seancrain1747]

For a rank beginner would you recommend this or the Monoprice Ultimate 2? I like the idea of being able to print with exotics and flexibles, but I don't have a specific use case other than tinkering.

[@CraftedChannel]

Do Core XY mod next. Then it will be most easily enclosable.

[@ashlavelle]

is this board plug an play for ender 5 pro?

[@emanuelcalderon]

WILL THIS WORK ON THE SKR1.4 BOARD?

[@MakeWithTech]

The installation of each control board is different.

[@kathyzieger6207]

I have a problem with my Ender 5 Pro, test sticks to bed but anything else will not, what am I doing wrong.

[@burmy1552]

You need to learn the basics of 3d printing such as how to set z offset. There are many resources on youtube alone to learn that.

[@MrRider2012]

Does anyone sell a motherboard that is really plug and play for Ender 5? I don't want to mess with the firmware upgrade.

[@FSV3D]

I'm still amazed of those guys that STILL gives thumb down to your videos!!!! Goihms!!

[@MakeWithTech]

Thanks for your support. You cannot please everyone. I just do my best.

[@FSV3D]

@@MakeWithTech You have a msg on your fb page!

[@emanuelcalderon]

WILL THIS WORK ON THE SKR BOARD?

[@MakeWithTech]

No. The setup will be different.

[@emanuelcalderon]

@@MakeWithTech do you have a messenger I can ask you questions DrVax?

[@timd9430]

@DrVax Hello DrVax! Hope all is well with you! GREAT VIDEOS!!!! ; ) I am guessing you have replaced the substandard Landy (or LIAN LI DA) PSU on your Ender 5? I am also changing out with 24V MEAN WELL. I noticed in one of your videos, it looks like you took off that ugly top sticker cover that has the white instructions etc printed on it. Did you have to do that in order to get to the PSU mounting screws? Are they in the same mounting places? EDIT: feeling the indents under the sticker. Seems they may be the same mounts. I may just cut circular holes with x-acto knife to get to the screw heads. EDIT2: from your Ender 5 unboxing video, it looks like your machine did not have that large printed sticker on the power supply/control box. I'll prob just pull that sticker off or cut access holes to the screw head mounts of the PSU. kzbin.info/www/bejne/rpCaoJeDfJVpY7c Thank you for your wonderful help! Have a good one!

[@MakeWithTech]

Thanks for the comment. There is little left of my original Ender 5. I recently assembled an Ender 3 V2 -- looks like an impressive machine. P.S. I have started a new discussion forum at forum.drvax.com where we can all have more elaborate discussions and share pictures on our prints and printers. Check it out. Irv

[@cseale61]

So really, what you have now, is a Creality Ender 5-E (enhanced) :)

[@barnowl012001]

So you made an Ender 5 pro...

[@MakeWithTech]

Yep almost. One of the things I like the most about Creality printers is how hackable they are.

[@woodwaker1]

Another GREAT video!! I think I may have you beat on mods and costs. I have done all of the upgrades that you did except for the bed surface, but I have since replaced the Micro Swiss and SeeMeCNC with a Hermera hot end/ extruder. I have also converted to linear rails and removed the control box and have a new mount. I really enjoy modifying the printer, it is more fun than printing and I learn something new every day. TH3D has a fantastic support system and is constantly developing new products and upgrading their software. People either love or hate Tim, but he is very passionate about providing the best products. A shot of my Ender 5 with all of the mods kzbin.info/www/bejne/o4SslHmZppqSjdk

[@MakeWithTech]

I agree. The creality printers are a pleasure to work on.

[@MrSocko-bh1jb]

Answer: As soon as it start working, it is technically no longer an Ender 5 (plus) Ask the 500€ Paperweight sitting next to me.

[@philiphart6688]

As you can imagine, the Ancient Greeks have already given this some thought - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ship_of_Theseus

[@MakeWithTech]

I am a fan of thought experiments. Thanks for the comment.

[@tymz-r-achangin]

Doesnt make sense to put several hundred dollars, lots of extra time, and a bit of extra work into something that already costs several hundred dollars. Just buy something that already has the upgrades incorporated into it even if it costs the same amount of having spent on doing upgrades. After having to cut my wife's hair cause she accidentally bent over to look at the printing and her hair got sucked into the belt drive, the safety covers that I put on all of the belt drives cost me days n days of searching, researching, and reprinting them before I had ones that were worthy of putting on my printer. Then I had numerous other upgrades that were more of a NECESSITY than a mere convenience such as the support arms to stabilize the print bed in the manner which should of been done by the manufacture! Keep in mind everyone, these are MEGA MILLION dollar companies who can CERTAINLY afford to provide its customers with more appropriate products for the SAME cost!