Looking to purchase my first 3d printer sometime in the future

Naer

Diamond Member

Nov 28, 2013

3,408

175

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• Thursday at 8:01 AM

• #1

Sorta want to do some projects I've never attempted before.

Want to design and develop gaming handhelds and drones at home. 3d print the hand held case, and drone frames and other parts then learn about soldering and electronics in parralel to getting the printer. It's going to take some time before I acquire what is needed but I am not in a rush. This will be purely hobby at first. May stay that way, we'll see.

Added these things to my Amazon

The software that was recomended to me is Fusion 360 for CAD and Cura for slicing

The most expensive thing is the printer

May focus on print designing before even attempting to learn about arduino boards or soldering

Not sure how successful I'll be in this. It's way out side my usual thing. I've only really made shitty beats on DAW software.

Thoughts?

 

Naer

Diamond Member

Nov 28, 2013

3,408

175

106

• Thursday at 8:11 AM

• #2

AI has told me what to get and which software to learn in terms of the 3d printing aspect. These things are obviously mass produced in factories so this endevour will just be hobbyist things I guess.

 

G

Greenman

Lifer

Oct 15, 1999

21,855

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• Thursday at 8:38 AM

• #3

I'd start with a less expensive printer. You can get one that's plenty good enough for half the cost of the one you have listed. You might also look at Tinker Cad, it's supposed to be very easy to learn and it's free.

 

nakedfrog

No Lifer

Apr 3, 2001

61,512

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• Thursday at 11:29 AM

• #4

You live in a city, maybe check into accessing a 3D printer at a local library or makerspace before making this kind of commitment.

 

bba-tcg

Senior member

Apr 8, 2010

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computerguyonline.net

• Thursday at 9:23 PM

• #5

Something along the lines of this one works fairly well for a beginner and is much less expensive than the one above. Whatever you choose, I highly recommend a self/auto leveling bed.

Pardon Our Interruption...

 

Gizmo j

Golden Member

Nov 9, 2013

1,419

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• Thursday at 9:43 PM

• #6

This is the one I have, you have to assemble alot of 3D printers but this one is pre-assembled.

The only negative is that it's pretty small.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FB2JZCR5/?coliid=I3GIWJV00DLPQE&colid=9KRE6O2JE6FJ&psc=1&ref_=list_c_wl_ys_dp_it

 

G

Greenman

Lifer

Oct 15, 1999

21,855

6,237

136

• Friday at 9:09 AM

• #7

bba-tcg said:

Something along the lines of this one works fairly well for a beginner and is much less expensive than the one above. Whatever you choose, I highly recommend a self/auto leveling bed.

Pardon Our Interruption...

Click to expand...

I don't like Creality printers because I need spreadsheet to figure out witch one I'm buying. I have no idea how many variations of the Ender 3 there are, but it's to many. I gave up trying to figure it out and I don't bother looking at their products anymore because of that.

 

Fenixgoon

Lifer

Jun 30, 2003

32,941

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• Friday at 10:58 AM

• #8

I have Anycubic FDM printers and I've been pretty happy with them. They're older models so the print speed is relatively slow compared to modern printers. I think Elegoo is probably a bit better. Bambu is currently the best, especially when it comes to the "just works" factor.

I use the Cura slicer with good success. I'm more of a casual hobbyist than someone who will optimize absolutely every parameter in the print. If it prints with good quality, then I'm happy.

Currently I have a clog in the heat pipe or nozzle though. Gotta fix that.

 

Naer

Diamond Member

Nov 28, 2013

3,408

175

106

• Friday at 12:03 PM

• #9

Are the cheaper ones "easier" to use?

I do not want to be troubleshooting a lot.

Unsure if there's even a guarantee I am not going to want a better one after getting the budget one.Why not just wait to get the better one?

 

Fenixgoon

Lifer

Jun 30, 2003

32,941

12,279

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• Friday at 12:13 PM

• #10

Naer said:

Are the cheaper ones "easier" to use?

I do not want to be troubleshooting a lot.

Unsure if there's even a guarantee I am not going to want a better one after getting the budget one.Why not just wait to get the better one?

Click to expand...

They're all about the same IMO.

 

G

Greenman

Lifer

Oct 15, 1999

21,855

6,237

136

• Friday at 12:35 PM

• #11

Naer said:

Are the cheaper ones "easier" to use?

I do not want to be troubleshooting a lot.

Unsure if there's even a guarantee I am not going to want a better one after getting the budget one.Why not just wait to get the better one?

Click to expand...

Bamboo labs and Prusa seem to have the best reputation for working without much fuss. But run of the mill printers appear to be pretty solid overall.
Most of them are almost commodities at this point. I regularly see 2 year old used printers on marketplace that cost more than the current list price as manufacturers dump old product.

 

bba-tcg

Senior member

Apr 8, 2010

802

430

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computerguyonline.net

• Friday at 4:20 PM

• #12

Greenman said:

I don't like Creality printers because I need spreadsheet to figure out witch one I'm buying. I have no idea how many variations of the Ender 3 there are, but it's to many. I gave up trying to figure it out and I don't bother looking at their products anymore because of that.

Click to expand...

Okay.

 

lxskllr

No Lifer

Nov 30, 2004

59,233

9,730

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• Friday at 5:44 PM

• #13

I'm not in this at all, but from what I read, Bambu printers are super easy to use, but highly proprietary. The HP printers of 3D printing. Part 1 of 2 article. Worth reading both, and worth reading the comments...

What I learned from my first few months with a Bambu Lab A1 3D printer, part 1

One neophyte’s first steps into the wide world of 3D printing.

arstechnica.com

 

Kaido

Elite Member & Kitchen Overlord

Feb 14, 2004

50,421

6,570

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• Friday at 7:19 PM

• #14

lxskllr said:

I'm not in this at all, but from what I read, Bambu printers are super easy to use, but highly proprietary. The HP printers of 3D printing. Part 1 of 2 article. Worth reading both, and worth reading the comments...

What I learned from my first few months with a Bambu Lab A1 3D printer, part 1

One neophyte’s first steps into the wide world of 3D printing.

arstechnica.com

Click to expand...

Dog years, old news. $300 Elegoo Carbon comes out in August, same ultra-reliable tech:

https://us.elegoo.com/products/centauri-carbon

It's cheaper because it's single-color printing upon release. Multi-color being released Q3 of this year. Auto-calibration, camera, enclosure, etc. Like 95% as good as the proprietary Bambu X1:

Bambu Lab X1 Series | Desktop 3D Printer | X1C | Bambu Lab US

Bambu Lab X1 series are state-of-the-art desktop 3D printers with CoreXY high speed and multi-color capabilities, built for both beginners and professionals.

bambulab.com

Just hop on here & start reading:

All3DP.com

The leading magazine for 3D printing, with compelling content on additive manufacturing, 3D scanning, CAD, laser cutting & engraving, CNC, SBCs, and more.

all3dp.com

Check Tiktok for the latest news, tech, and ideas. Soooo many fun projects:

Multiboard

www.multiboard.io

Thread Boards - The World's Most Practical 3D Print: ThreadBoards | STL Files for 3D Printing

Thread Boards: The 3D printable pegboard for everyone. Organize practically anything with our library of thousands of STL files, specifically designed for easy 3D printing.

www.threadboards.com

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gridfinity.xyz