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Thread: 3D Printer Suggestions

  1. #1
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    3D Printer Suggestions

    (Not sure if this is the right forum...feel free to move it if necessary. "Off-Topic" maybe?)

    In any case, I'm considering a FDM 3D printer to augment my CO2 laser. 6"x6"x6" workspace is probably big enough, but a little bigger wouldn't be out of order if the physical footprint doesn't get out of hand. I'd like to stay under $500, but can go higher if there's a compelling reason.

    Within those limits, I think I've found most of the usual suspects, but the reviews I'm reading seem (1) wildly differing and (2) not altogether trustworthy, so I'd love to hear any hands-on recommendations from the folks here.
    Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
    "Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
    We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
    The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
    The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
    You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.

  2. #2
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lee DeRaud View Post
    (Not sure if this is the right forum...feel free to move it if necessary. "Off-Topic" maybe?)

    In any case, I'm considering a FDM 3D printer to augment my CO2 laser. 6"x6"x6" workspace is probably big enough, but a little bigger wouldn't be out of order if the physical footprint doesn't get out of hand. I'd like to stay under $500, but can go higher if there's a compelling reason.

    Within those limits, I think I've found most of the usual suspects, but the reviews I'm reading seem (1) wildly differing and (2) not altogether trustworthy, so I'd love to hear any hands-on recommendations from the folks here.
    My oldest son and I both bought Prusa kits, the Original Prusa MK3s. A little more than your $500 (a big savings from an assembled printer) but the quality and support is outstanding.
    https://www.prusa3d.com/?gclid=CjwKC...hoCxucQAvD_BwE
    The kits went together without a hitch. We both built enclosures to help stabilize the temperature and keep away dust and such.

    first-print.jpg enclosure.jpg

    One big advantage of building it from a kit is you get a very good understanding of the internals and working of the printer. If the need for maintenance comes up you already know how things go together.

    JKJ

  3. #3
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    Those look interesting. I built a CNC router some years back, so the 'kit' aspect doesn't bother me a bit.

    What's the overall footprint of yours with the enclosure? I see the dimensions on their website, but I'm not clear how "XxYxZ" maps to "WxHxD"...

    The Mini, even with some add-ons) is well within my price range, and still decent size at 7x7x7. It might be a better fit to my bench...

    [EDIT] Oddly, the fully-assembled units have a much shorter lead time than the kits.
    Last edited by Lee DeRaud; 01-18-2022 at 9:46 PM.
    Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
    "Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
    We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
    The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
    The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
    You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.

  4. #4
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    Lee - I've got one if these Monoprice Voxel printers, have had it for over two years now, and it works great. Fully enclosed with heated build plate. Very quite, high quality prints, and super easy to use. I use Fusion 360 to create my 3d solid models to print. I have printed nuts and bolts that thread together very nicely, as well as many other prototype items for my various projects. This printer is actually manufactured by FlashForge and rebranded as Voxel for Monoprice. Flashforge offers the exact same printer (with different colors scheme for the printer) at the same price. I most definitely recommend this printer.

    I also have a Flashforge Creator 3 with dual independent extruders which allows for two different filaments at the same time. The cost was about $3200 and it is a nice printer, but I still use the Voxel for many prints and the print quality of both printers is very comparable. In fact, if I printed the same part with both printers, you would be hard pressed to see any differences between the two copies - pretty much identical.

    David

    https://www.amazon.com/Monoprice-133820-Voxel-Printer-Removable/dp/B07GV5GLLC/ref=sr_1_3?gclid=CjwKCAiA55mPBhBOEiwANmzoQtdDOy4ju m5BQViquLnCcofx8QcvOZllz9mmYgnu5WRKKrdjTnsGoBoCgfQ QAvD_BwE&hvadid=557420572543&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9030 244&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=17083682614236427726&h vtargid=kwd-886261323837&hydadcr=17732_13446995&keywords=3d%2B printer%2Bvoxel&qid=1642574868&sr=8-3&th=1Monoprice Voxel 3D printer.jpg

  5. #5
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    Every time this comes up, the Prusa seems to get a healthy recommendation from other SMC'ers.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  6. #6
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    Anyone have experience with a Creality printer? They seem to be recommended as a lower cost but quality printer.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by David Buchhauser View Post
    Lee - I've got one if these Monoprice Voxel printers, have had it for over two years now, and it works great. Fully enclosed with heated build plate. Very quite, high quality prints, and super easy to use. I use Fusion 360 to create my 3d solid models to print. I have printed nuts and bolts that thread together very nicely, as well as many other prototype items for my various projects. This printer is actually manufactured by FlashForge and rebranded as Voxel for Monoprice. Flashforge offers the exact same printer (with different colors scheme for the printer) at the same price. I most definitely recommend this printer.
    The Voxel (or its Flashforge equivalent) is on my short list. I like the dimensions and the full-enclosure, since it will have to live in the garage.

    Odd bit is, there's a big price gap at the moment, at least on Amazon: Voxel is $413, FP is $329. The reviews claim they're identical, but the descriptions are enough different to make me wonder. What's up with that?
    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GV5GLLC
    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07ZR467YR
    Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
    "Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
    We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
    The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
    The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
    You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bob Falk View Post
    Anyone have experience with a Creality printer? They seem to be recommended as a lower cost but quality printer.
    I've got a friend who has one and likes it...unfortunately too far away for me to get any hands-on time. I'm not thrilled with the enclosure options though.
    Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
    "Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
    We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
    The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
    The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
    You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Becker View Post
    Every time this comes up, the Prusa seems to get a healthy recommendation from other SMC'ers.
    It looks pretty good, but the lead-time thing is putting me off. Most of the others are in-stock, but the Prusa's long lead makes me suspect they're waiting for parts. I don't really need 2-day delivery, but I can see that 10-12 weeks turning into 5-6 months in the current environment. (There's a rock tumbler GF wanted for her birthday last August, still unavailable.)
    Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
    "Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
    We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
    The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
    The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
    You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lee DeRaud View Post
    The Voxel (or its Flashforge equivalent) is on my short list. I like the dimensions and the full-enclosure, since it will have to live in the garage.

    Odd bit is, there's a big price gap at the moment, at least on Amazon: Voxel is $413, FP is $329. The reviews claim they're identical, but the descriptions are enough different to make me wonder. What's up with that?
    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GV5GLLC
    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07ZR467YR
    Lee - I'm pretty sure they are identical. The beauty of Amazon is the no-hassle free returns. I would be tempted to order the Flashforge version and try it out. If you don't like it then you are not out anything but your time. I have the Voxel MP3 and I love it. I personally have no interest in building a kit to learn about how it works, even though I am an Electrical Engineer. I basically already know how it works, and have more interested in using it.
    David

  11. #11
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    Lee, a lot of tech gear has wait times right now...
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Becker View Post
    Lee, a lot of tech gear has wait times right now...
    Yeah, I know, but that doesn't seem to be true for 3D printers...except for the Prusa.

    Of course, with my luck, I'll buy one and trigger "The Great Filament Famine Of 2022".
    Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
    "Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
    We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
    The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
    The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
    You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.

  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by David Buchhauser View Post
    I personally have no interest in building a kit to learn about how it works, even though I am an Electrical Engineer. I basically already know how it works, and have more interested in using it.
    Then again, there's the reason I don't have a CNC router anymore: it was way more fun to design/build than it was to use.
    Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
    "Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
    We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
    The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
    The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
    You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.

  14. #14
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    If you are prioritizing minimum enclosed footprint it might be best to focus on Core XY style printers, like the Voxel/Flash Forge you're looking at. A bed slinger needs a lot of space fore and aft to handle the bed travel.

    Quote Originally Posted by Lee DeRaud View Post
    Then again, there's the reason I don't have a CNC router anymore: it was way more fun to design/build than it was to use.
    In that case I'd suggest you at least take a look at Rat Rig and Voron. A bit out of your price range and perhaps more effort than you want, but I thought you should be aware of them.
    Beranek's Law:

    It has been remarked that if one selects his own components, builds his own enclosure, and is convinced he has made a wise choice of design, then his own loudspeaker sounds better to him than does anyone else's loudspeaker. In this case, the frequency response of the loudspeaker seems to play only a minor part in forming a person's opinion.
    L.L. Beranek, Acoustics (McGraw-Hill, New York, 1954), p.208.

  15. #15
    I run a Creality CR10-s and it's a nice printer, mine is old, probably 5 or 6 year now and I use it a lot. Doesn't have bed leveling and it's a flimsy bed, but once set it stays ok until I whack it out of level for some reason. Got my son an Ender 3 for Xmas last year(2020) and he has had good luck with it as well and it was only a $230 printer.
    Brian Lamb
    Lamb Tool Works, Custom tools for woodworkers
    Equipment: Felder KF700 and AD741, Milltronics CNC Mill, Universal Laser X-600

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