Best Upgrades for the Bambu Lab A1 / A1 mini: Turbocharge Your 3D Printer
The Bambu Lab A1 is already an excellent 3D printer out of the box, but like any machine, there’s always room for improvement. Whether it’s for better performance, stability, or convenience, some simple upgrades can take the A1 to the next level. In this post, we’ve listed the best upgrades for the Bambu Lab A1, tested and approved by the community.
All product links are in the clickable images
1. High-Performance Hotend and Nozzles
The original A1 hotend is reliable, but replacing it can be expensive since the whole assembly is discarded. With that in mind, our Chinese friends developed screw-on nozzles that are easy and inexpensive to replace.
It’s a great investment, especially if you print with different nozzle diameters. We recommend buying more than one hotend set so you can leave one for each diameter, speeding up the nozzle swaps.
2. Extruder Motor Cooler
During long prints, the extruder motor of the A1 can heat up quite a bit, especially with demanding filaments. Installing a dedicated cooler on the extruder motor helps keep the temperature in check, prevents step loss, and improves extrusion consistency.
3. Lighting in the Print Area
For those who print at night or monitor prints with a camera, good lighting in the print area makes a huge difference. A simple and effective upgrade is installing a 24V LED strip (powered by the board itself or an external power supply) on the top frame of the A1.
You can use adhesive tapes, printed supports, or even magnets for mounting. Not only does it make it easier to see the print, but it also improves timelapse image quality and makes fine adjustments easier.
4. Display on the Print Head
This upgrade is one of the most stylish and functional. With a small display (like an OLED 128×64 I2C), you can install a screen on the A1’s print head to show real-time status: temperature, time remaining, file name, and more.
The integration can be done via an ESP32 or similar boards, with code available in the GitHub community. Besides being useful, it gives your A1 a modern, high-tech look.
5. Cold PEI Plate (Textured or Smooth)
The A1’s bed works well, but many users prefer to swap the plate for a cold PEI plate — especially in hotter environments. PEI plates have excellent cold adhesion and help with part removal after printing.
Conclusion
With these upgrades, your Bambu Lab A1 can improve in durability, performance, and convenience. Keep in mind that each modification should be done with attention to safety and compatibility. Test one upgrade at a time and see how your experience with the printer evolves.
Have you done any of these upgrades? Have any tips or favorite mods? Share them in the comments!
Let me know if you need any more adjustments!