Cheap 3D Printer Recommendation

[Boyan Silyavski]

The Raise3D pack a lot of tech in a very well priced package and prints like a dream. Most of the larger machines will allow you to remove the printer bed, all you need to do then is stick it in the freezer for a few minutes and the print pops off.

Agree with that. What i said was a simplification of the facts. Its handy to have a couple of top plates to change. Furthermore i remember somebody proved that the glass on top of aluminum is not a problem and will not lead to losses and cold spots. Still, if one forgets or learns,prints flat PETG part - could trash the glass. Also plate could be PEI, which will eliminate said problem, but will be more expensive to have a couple of them so thick.

[magicniner]

I've ordered a kit from a UK supplier, it's a 6mm aluminium frame rather than acrylic so hopefully it should be at least a decent starting point :D

- Nick

[m_c]

Nick, what kit have you ordered?

I'm in a similar situation. I'd like a 3D printer, as it would be handy for a few odds and ends, but I don't really have the time to research/build/learn/tweak a 3D printer.

[magicniner]

It's the one from Factory 3D in Newcastle-upon-Tyne ( http://factory3d.co.uk/ ). I'm sure there will be bits that I re-make, replace or re-engineer as I go along but I really like the idea of an aluminium main frame and a UK manufactured kit.

- Nick

[m_c]

That looks like quite a good kit. It'll be good to see how you get on with it, and what you mod along the way.

[Desertboy]

I finally got my Graber I3 frame from Ukraine took about a month to arrive. I'm going to beef it up with metal corner brackets and modify it to take 8mm lead screws for the z axis instead of 5mm threaded bar.



Anyone with access to a cnc could easily make their own Prusa style frame from ply, mdf or aluminium.

I am upgrading a reprap mendal, will have to cut 4 of the smooth rods to fit. Not looking forward to cutting the stainless steel z axis rods.

I need to get an lcd for my ramps at some point but the cnc build is killing me financially so it can wait it's no hassle to print from my laptop.

One thing if using windows you have to make sure automatic updates are off, power saving and anything that might put the pc to sleep or reboot it must be disabled. In Linux this is not so much an issue but you can configure a windows pc fine. I use a windows pc for timelapse that's been on for months with no issues.

I'm going to plug the printer into a 1kw UPS (Just because I have one spare) so will have a little extra protection but not essential.

[magicniner]

I'm going to beef it up with metal corner brackets .

Would you be better with more traditional methods for a wood frame?
Wood corner braces bonded in place with Cascamite, or even Gorilla Glue might provide more rigid triangulation over a larger area than metal brackets.
Pinned and glued is almost always superior to metal brackets and bolts and screws with structural wood projects.

- Nick

[magicniner]

That looks like quite a good kit. It'll be good to see how you get on with it, and what you mod along the way.

Shipping from Factory 3D was quick, I ordered on Friday and it was delivered at lunch time today.
Packing is very good with plenty of padding where required and individually packed sets of parts for each assembly stage covered in the instructions.
The instructions are clear and easy to follow and everything goes together with little drama.
I've finished the build but won't have chance for power up and testing until later in the week,



- Nick

[Desertboy]

Looks a nice Prusa, wondered what was going on with the extruder until I realised it was a mirror lol.

You have the mk2 heated bed it takes ages to heat up for ABS but for PLA it's pretty quick. I recommend getting some cork board to insulate under the heated bed, this will really help with heating up times. Another solution is to change to the mk3 aluminium heated bed and power it with 24v but this is more hassle as if you send 24v to the ramps board without modifying the ramps first it will fry the arduino but there are a few ways around this.

If you use the mk3 and 24v heat up times to 110c are ~ 2minutes, if you use the mk3 at 12v you will see no difference in heat up times at all. The Mk3 also has the advantage that being aluminium you can use a cheap inductive sensor. But I bet you already have autoleveling.