3D Printing InfoPrinter comparison
Creality K2 Pro vs Rat Rig V-Core 4.1
Compare hardware, build volume, printing specifications, dated prices and sources.
2 selected · all documented properties
Open these two in the interactive comparisonMore Creality K2 Pro comparisonsMore Rat Rig V-Core 4.1 comparisons
| Property | Creality K2 ProCOREXY | Rat Rig V-Core 4.1COREXY |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | ||
| Brand | Creality | Rat Rig |
| Class | COREXY | COREXY |
| Identity & Market | ||
| Manufacturer & exact marketed model name (verify the exact product identity first) | Creality K2 Pro[1] | Rat Rig V-Core 4.1, described by Rat Rig as a large-format open CoreXY 3D printer kit[2] |
| Street price (USD; dated snapshot per entry) | $599.00 and $799.00 are the two variant prices listed on the Creality US store K2 Pro Combo page, Aug 2026 - the combo includes a CFS unit, so neither figure is a bare-printer price[3] | Not documented |
| Variants & sibling models — and how to tell them apart (spec-contamination risk) | Between the K2 (260 mm cube, no chamber heating, 100 C bed, 8 GB) and the K2 Plus (350 mm cube, 350 C nozzle, 120 C bed, 30000 mm/s2, dual filters, auto belt tensioning, 1080p camera, dual-band Wi-Fi). The K2 Pro shares the K2's 300 C nozzle and 70 W hotend but gets the chamber heater, RFID reader, Ethernet and 32 GB storage[1] | Three sizes, all at the same base-kit price. Acceleration is the size-dependent figure and the one most often mis-quoted: 15,000 mm/s2 at 300 mm, 12,000 at 400 mm, 8,000 at 500 mm. IDEX is a configuration option and changes the usable area per toolhead (copy mode 150x150x300 at the 300 size, mirror mode 95x95x300). Base kit excludes electronics. Rat Rig prices the base kit only in EUR (EUR 873.90 on sale from EUR 971.00, Aug 2026); no USD list price is published, so no USD street price is recorded here[2] |
| Market position: superseded? successor announced? | Not documented | Current revision, replacing the V-Core 4; Rat Rig sells a 4.1 upgrade kit for existing V-Core 4 machines[2] |
| Physical & Frame | ||
| Build volume X×Y×Z (mm) — advertised vs actually usable | 300 x 300 x 300 mm[1] | 300 x 300 x 300, 400 x 400 x 400 or 500 x 500 x 500 mm. Sortable value is the 300 mm kit[2] |
| Machine footprint (mm) & clearance needed (cable/spool overhang) | 445 x 477 x 573 mm[1] | 623.2 x 583 x 785 mm (300); 723.2 x 683 x 885 mm (400); 823.2 x 783 x 985 mm (500). Sortable value is the 300 mm kit[2] |
| Net weight (kg) | 23.7 kg[1] | Kit weight 35 kg (300), 45 kg (400), 55 kg (500)[2] |
| Frame construction & material | Not documented | 30-series aluminium extrusion; the 4.1 adds a steel X-axis gantry for rigidity[2] |
| Enclosure: open / enclosed; panel material; door/lid | Enclosed with chamber temperature control up to 60 C; one air filter[1] | Open frame in the base kit[2] |
| Passive chamber temperature reached (if enclosed; measured values preferred) | 60 C max chamber temperature (manufacturer figure)[1] | Not documented |
| Kinematics & Motion Hardware | ||
| Kinematics (bedslinger i3 / CoreXY / other) | CoreXY - Creality groups the K2 series with its CoreXY flagships and quotes 600 mm/s with step-servo motors on the X and Y axes[1] | CoreXY; Hybrid CoreXY and IDEX are configuration options[2] |
| Belts (type, width, e.g. Gates?) | Manual belt tensioning[1] | Not documented |
| Stepper motors (frame size, step angle, brand if known) | Step-servo motors on the X and Y axes and the extruder[1] | Not documented |
| Speed & Acceleration | ||
| Max print speed (claimed, mm/s) | 600 mm/s max printing speed (manufacturer claim)[1] | Not documented |
| Max acceleration (claimed, mm/s²) | 20000 mm/s2 max acceleration (manufacturer claim)[1] | Size-dependent: 15,000 mm/s2 at 300 mm, 12,000 at 400 mm, 8,000 at 500 mm (manufacturer claims)[2] |
| Extruder | ||
| Type (direct drive / bowden) & design name | Not documented | Full-metal skeleton toolhead, new in the 4.1[2] |
| Hotend & Nozzle | ||
| Max nozzle temp claimed AND firmware max temp limit (both values) | 300 C claimed max nozzle temperature[1] | 350 °C maximum nozzle temperature (manufacturer claim)[2] |
| Heater cartridge power (W) | 70 W rated hotend power[1] | Not documented |
| Stock nozzle size & sizes included in box | Not documented | 0.4 mm hardened steel and 0.6 mm included[2] |
| Heated Bed & Surface | ||
| Max bed temp claimed AND firmware limit | 110 C max heatbed temperature[1] | 120 °C maximum heatbed temperature (manufacturer claim). The 400 and 500 sizes get 8 mm thick beds in the 4.1[2] |
| Leveling & Z-Offset | ||
| Auto bed leveling: probe technology (inductive / strain gauge / load cell / touch probe) | Smart auto levelling, plus automatic flow-rate calibration using a nozzle AI camera[1] | Not documented |
| Cooling & Air Handling | ||
| Part-cooling fan(s): count, size, ducting design | One auxiliary cooling fan and one air filter[1] | Improved part cooling, listed by Rat Rig as one of the 4.1 changes[2] |
| Firmware & Openness | ||
| Firmware base & current version (Klipper fork / Marlin fork / proprietary) | Creality OS, a Klipper derivative. Creality publishes the K2 firmware source as CrealityOfficial/K2_Series_Klipper on GitHub under GPL-3.0, last pushed March 2026[4][5][1] | RatOS 2.1 (Rat Rig's Klipper distribution)[2] |
| Connectivity, UI & Camera | ||
| Display: size, type, touch? | 4-inch touchscreen[1] | Not documented |
| On-device UI capabilities (model preview, per-object controls, etc.) | Touch UI with alarm sounds and a built-in RFID reader for automatic filament identification (needs Creality RFID filament)[1] | Not documented |
| WiFi (band/standard), Ethernet, USB ports, SD/flash-drive | Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz, RJ45 Ethernet, USB drive and a Creality 485 port; 32 GB eMMC[1] | Not documented |
| Camera: built-in / optional? Resolution & framerate (verify — marketing often omits real fps) | One chamber camera at 720p 30 fps, plus a separate nozzle AI camera used for flow calibration[1] | Not documented |
| Calibration Routines & QoL | ||
| Assembly level & time from unbox to first print | Not documented | Self-assembly kit; the 4.1 ships pre-made cables that need no crimping, with rewritten step-by-step build documentation[2] |
| Materials Support | ||
| Officially supported filament list | PLA, PETG, PET, ABS, ASA, PLA-CF, PA-CF, PPA-CF[1] | PLA, PETG, ABS, ASA, TPU, PET, PA, PC, PVA, PLA-CF, PETG-CF, ABS-GF, ASA-CF, PA6-CF, PA6-GF, PAHT-CF, PPA-CF, PET-CF[2] |
| Safety | ||
| Thermal runaway protection (verify in firmware source if at all possible) | Not verified directly. Creality publishes the K2-series firmware as CrealityOfficial/K2_Series_Klipper (GPL-3.0); upstream Klipper ships the verify_heater thermal-runaway check, but whether the stock configuration enables it was not checked here[4][5] | Not documented |
| Reliability, Support & Ecosystem | ||
| Warranty length & support reputation (evidence, not vibes) | Creality's US store states "Up to 12-Month Warranty", a 14-day return and refund window and "Lifetime Customer Support" on its printer product pages. The "up to" wording means the term is not uniform across parts[6] | Not documented |
Manufacturer claims, independent measurements, packages and test conditions retain their source wording. FDM linear speed and resin vertical speed use different units and are not directly comparable. Unknown values are marked “Not documented”. Prices and source dates remain historical snapshots; check the linked guide for product details. Differences highlight text, not a universal winner.
Sources for this comparison
- Creality K2 series product page, including the Compare K2 Series table (K2 / K2 Pro / K2 Plus) creality.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Rat Rig V-Core 4.1 product page ratrig.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Creality US store - K2 Pro Combo 3D Printer product page (live prices for the variants) store.creality.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- GitHub API - CrealityOfficial/K2_Series_Klipper repository metadata (GPL-3.0, last push Mar 2026) api.github.com · 2026-08 · doc
- GitHub - CrealityOfficial organisation repositories (per-model firmware sources) github.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Creality US store - K1 3D Printer product page (live price, warranty and returns banner) store.creality.com · 2026-08 · vendor