Mods to make a Monoprice Maker Select V2 Work Properly

The Monoprice Maker Select V2 (A Wanhao Duplicator i3 clone) is a printer that comes with a Melzi mainboard that is seemingly designed to die 💀 and try to take your house down with it in flames🔥 but before that it will make some mediocre prints while the Z-axis wobbles about and the hotend never prints at the advertised speeds.

When I bought this printer (March 2018) it seemed like a good deal as I was able to find it refurbished at a discount ($199.99 at the time) and it was even recommended by TheWireCutter.com making it look like a good buy.

Since then I have learned a LOT about 3D Printing the hard way and also learned that this printer is a dumpster fire 🗑️🔥. Today there are much better printers you can buy that work decently out of the box and thankfully you can’t buy this printer anymore but if you find one that someone is getting rid of and you’re feeling like you want to take a deep dive into modifying a printer here’s some upgrades I’ve made over the years to make this printer work properly.

A word of caution: these mods will require experience with soldering electronics, crimping JST and Dupont connectors, working with 120V lines on the input, and compiling a custom Marlin printer Firmware but there are tons of Youtube videos to get you going on these subjects. Teching Tech is a great place to start: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbgBDBrwsikmtoLqtpc59Bw. Additionally if you make the same exact mods listed here you can reach out to me for a custom Marlin firmware config file to get you started. Last but not least with this printer make sure you double check every bolt and set screw. When mine arrived it was supposed to be ready to go out of the box and embarrassingly it was over a year later when I realized some badly set screws were causing layer shifts (among other things).

BIGTREETECH SKR Mini E3 V3.0 Control Board + TFT35 E3 V3 Touch Screen

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09LCKPV4G

BTT TFT35-E3 V3.0 – Free Standing Case Print
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4514252

JST & Dupont Connector and Crimp Kit (for proper rewiring)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B094XSF2GK

eTopxizu 12v 30a Power Supply
(No more flickering LED lights when printing)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00D7CWSCG

Bigtreetech Dual Gear Extruder

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08D9CNHVN

Bowden Extruder Mount Print for Dual Gear Extruder
(only used Step_motor_holder_frame_v.1.1.stl & Step_motor_clamp_v1.0.stl) https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1483921

Spool Riser Print
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4894235

NeoPixel Lighting

This one doesn’t affect print quality but it is fun and allows you to light up the work space for remote viewing from a webcam
https://www.adafruit.com/product/1376?length=1

120mm Fan Grill Print

https://www.printables.com/model/117333-120mm-fan-grill/files

Wanhao Duplicator i3 120mm PSU Cover
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1590987

Spring Cups
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1374667

e3D V6 Bowden mount for Wanhao Duplicator i3 Plus
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2408424

Bed Level Thumb Wheel M3 Nut
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2872900

DiiiCooler for Wanhao Duplicator i3 / Maker Select
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1025471

[Gulfcoast Robotics] Z-Brace Frame Support Kit for Wanhao Duplicator i3 and Maker Select V1, V2 and V2.1 3D Printers
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07B3X1XH8/

Borosilicate Glass Plate
https://www.amazon.com/220x220x3mm-Borosilicate-Polished-Duplicator-Printers/dp/B07FRV28XQ

E3D V6 Hotend Kit
https://www.amazon.com/Wangdd22-1-75mm-Printer-Extruder-Accessories/dp/B06XBXDJY3/