I'm thinking about building my first 3D printer. What would you do?
zakqwy wrote 05/12/2015 at 19:50 • 1 pointI'm comfortable with electronics and 3D modeling. It's long past time for a 3D printer. I've used Shapeways for a few projects but it's fairly expensive and (much worse) quite time-consuming. As ya'll know, shorter lead times = $$$.
I don't need a huge build area--maybe 8x8x8 or less. I like the idea of ABS, PLA, and other options upfront. Auto-leveling and a heated bed seem like good features to build in from day one. I'm also into the delta design, if for no other reason then they seem a bit more forgiving (might not be true) and they're cool to watch.
Thoughts? What would you do? Journey > destination etc etc--as in, I don't want to buy one (or even a kit).
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Thanks a ton for the advice, friends. I started acquiring parts to build a Wilson TS. I'm working with Marty (thanks to @Chris Gammell for the suggestion) for some of the bits (and scrounging others from my workbench) and will likely include a full temp e3d v6 from the start.
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You should have a look at and wait for the recently kickstarted TIKO deltaprinter for $180 plus shipping. Astounishing features and mass market pricing
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Its a piece and will fail, cheap parts cheaper gimmicks and way too small build volume. Davinci 1.0 is being sold by newegg on ebay for 380 shipped http://www.ebay.com/itm/XYZprinting-daVinci-1-0-3D-Printer/301380777265?_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D30987%26meid%3D320dfa0cf8114a2593401a8a4ee79fac%26pid%3D100011%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D6%26mehot%3Dpp%2...
This is an excellent printer if you really want someone else to build it for you.
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nice, but newegg doesn't ship to my countr
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I would go for a Prusa i3. I build a few 3d printers (deltas, coreXY and prusa) but the simple design of the Prusa makes it an ideal printer for starters. Don't start with a delta they're a pain to get working properly. You can also start with a Ramps 1.4, is basically the same as Rambo but cheaper. And you can even scratch build it.
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Good advice on the delta. I'm leaning more and more towards a Prusa i3 to get started--seems like a solid design.
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make sure you use a RAMBo for the electronics or a RAMBo mini if you don't need two nozzles.
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My first 3D printer was a (wooden) printrbot simple, a super cool entry level gadget, not expensive and some decent results after a lot of fiddling. You immediately look for updates and upgrades on thingiverse, as soon as you've printed some parts. With this one you could only print PLA. Printing was an adventure at many times.
My second printer is a zortrax m200, very close to an ultimaker2 or a newer makerbot in terms of quality. ABS, Z-Ultrat, HIPS and Z-Glass are supported, but support it self sucks. I'm totally fine leaving it alone over night etc.
IMHO - get a decent one and print your parts for a delta printer with it, if you really want one (someday). The big ones are still an adventure in itself, don't add inventing from scratch to that :) or at least do it only when you think no one has ever done it before.
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I saw a review on the Printrbot Simple--lots of ingenious features, and it seems like they made an effort to keep the price down which is great. The M200 also seems _awesome_, but... might be a bit spendy for a first rig. I'm leaning towards the Folger Tech Prusa i3 @LloydTCannonIII suggested; it seems like a sturdy RepRap version with a great price point.
I actually had a great conversation with my wife about this tonight; her comment was, "Well.. do you want to make designing and constructing a 3D printer into a project, or do you want to get a 3D printer and use the parts it produces in other projects"?
It was a great point. Either way, I need to spend more time around 3D printers to actually know what I want.
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At a recent Hackathon in Portland, Scott Hanselman talked about when he got his first 3D printer, a Printrbot Simple Metal. He found it so amazing that he could just download and make all these enhancements to the printer and its environment, and when he was trying to impress his wife with the new stuff, her reply was something like "I fail to see how this solves any of *my* problems".
I laughed at the time, but I realized that we geeks often like new technology just for the wonder of it, but it really is an important philosophical but practical question to ask oneself: "What am I ultimately trying to do?"
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I agree in some respects, but 3D printing seems like one of those unique tools that opens up a lot of possibilities. I've spent most of my life designing and building various things based on extremely limiting physical constraints; I end up spending hours coming up with little brackets and mounting hardware and stuff that I can fabricate by bending together mending straps and screwing them onto scrap wood frames. I feel like once I start to get my hands around the inherent constraints of FDM printing (no/minimal overhang, limited resolution, low strength relative to most preformed materials, long print time, general frustration with heated beds and alignment, etc etc etc) it will open up possibilities that I couldn't dream of today.
I hesitated to push forward on 3D printing for years, mostly for the reason you outlined--I thought of a 3D printer like a specialized tool that I need to use for solving certain problems, just like most of the other tools I own. My PEX crimper. for example, is pretty worthless for anything other than terminating 1/2" and 3/4" water supply piping, but it's paid for itself many times in home plumbing projects.
Nowadays I'm starting to think of 3D printing more like a drawing tool of some kind. Even if pens and pencils cost $300, they'd still be worth it because you can draw _so many different things_. Make sense?
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My buddy Marty has a reprap variant that does some of the most consistent prints I've ever seen: http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/231557229513?lpid=82&chn=ps
I've been thinking about building one as well and this seems like a good option, especially for making an extensible printer (he modded one to have a 3X build size).
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I really like the look of this reprap, its a little expensive but definitely a very clean beautiful machine.
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If you do get this printer search youtube for a how to on assembly, there is an Indian guy who has a great guide. Ultimately you will want to print out a greg wade extruder with herringbone gears, or any other extruder. The stock extruder will cost you too much z-height with an e3d hotend. However the direct drive extruder (no gears between extruder stepper and hob bolt) seems to work really well for alot of people, I will post up some pictures of my printer soon, it is a prusa I3 and with a .2 mm nozzle the parts come out excellent in detail and very smooth. I normally print with a .3mm nozzle as its is a bit faster with .2mm layer height. You can buy cheap chinese nozzles for the e3d off of ebay and they work just as well as the genuine product.
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Nice, that's great info. I'll probably hold off on the e3d for now as I can probably make do with PLA and ABS; I just want to be sure I can upgrade down the road.
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But yah the hotend provided with it will suffice but eventually if you want to print nylon you will want to get an e3d v6
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The e3d seems like a pretty slick bit of kit. What are your thoughts on deltas? I'm still kinda tempted to do a scratch-build, but I also don't really need another super intensive project (as fun as it would be). Probably not a great idea for my first printer, either..
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For the controller, I'd go with the Rambo or the Rambo mini if it's out now. e3d hotend, and just about everyone has the 8x8 heat bed.
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Get a folger tech prusa i3 kit here http://www.ebay.com/itm/Folger-Tech-Prusa-i3-RepRap-Full-3D-Printer-Kit-w-Clear-Acrylic-Frame-/231301357105?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35daa29e31 for 300 bucks, then order a e3d hotend from filastruder... Then you will need some nozzles, and extra heatbreaks, and some plastic and you will be good to go for around 450 total.
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Seems like a good option. Any concerns about the acrylic frame softening with heat (as mentioned here: http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2344393)? Do you have one of these units?
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Yeh if you heated your print bed to 100C it might, Use hairspray the "aqua net brand" on the borosilicate glass print surface and adhesion is top notch and you wont have to heat your bed over 65C
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I try to avoid keeping too much aqua net around as I already have a readily available stash of PVC pipe and potatoes on hand, but that's a great tip.
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I had one of those eventually the PVC softened from the hairspray, acetone, etc. i used for fuel and it blew up in my hands.
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A good cautionary note, for sure. My last rig used metered MAPP gas which burned clean but smelled terrible.
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