[Noisebridge-discuss] request for recommendation for 3-D printer

[jim]

Great list, Patrick, I'll check 'em out. 
Thanks! 



On Tue, 2013-07-02 at 10:18 -0700, pdbogen at cernu.us wrote:
> Howdy, Jim.
> 
> On Mon, Jul 01, 2013 at 09:51:40PM -0700, jim wrote:
> > 
> >     I'm considering getting a 3-D printer for some kids and I hope someone 
> > can recommend something that's good but in a relatively low price range (I 
> > don't know 3-D prices at all, nor would I feel comfy buying any 3-D printer 
> > regardless of its price--I want to buy one that works, is robust).
> 
> 	I have no personal experience with any of these, so caveat emptor. The 
> most affordable working-out-of-the-box 3D printer I've seen so far is the 
> Solidoodle 2nd gen, at about $500:
> 
> http://store.solidoodle.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=56
> 
> 	I personally would 'require' the Pro upgrade, which adds $100 or so, 
> but adds a heated build platform and upgrades some components (power supply, 
> spooler.) So, total $600, but that's still pretty affordable in the 3D printer 
> space right now.
> 
> 	I don't know of a better option short of building your own (a la 
> RepRap or something similar). You can probably do this in the low $200-$300 
> range, depending on how much effort you want to put in scavening parts vs 
> buying.
> 
> >     If there's some 3-D printer that's relatively expensive but is waaay 
> > good, I'd like to know of it, too.
> 
> 	RepRapPro is selling a "Tricolour Mendel" right now, which can print 
> in three different colors. Their website seems down right now; I don't know if 
> that's permanent or not. So that's cool. I noted this device to cost $1,100, if 
> it's still available.
> 
> 	The MakerBot Replicator 2X is a "ready to go" printer that has dual 
> extrusion, i.e. can produce prints in two colors. It's pricy, at around 
> $2,800.
> 
> 	The Form Labs Form 1 is pretty sexy; it's a stereolithography printer, 
> meaning it hardens very thin layers of epoxy using a laser. There's a lot of 
> shapes it can do that thermoplastic extrusion printers can't. It's the most 
> expensive in this e-mail, clocking in at $3,300. On top of that, it's a 
> pre-order, which isn't expected to ship until October of this year. (Though 
> that's getting increasingly close! So that's cool.)
> 
> 	Finally, a word towards quality- with the exception of the Form 1, all 
> of these printers should produce more or less identical prints. They have the 
> same extrusion head diameter (which determines the resolution in the XZ plane) 
> and the same layer height (which determines the resolution in the Y plane). 
> Mostly what you're paying for is build quality (i.e., actual physical quality 
> of the device), build volume, and in some cases, extra features like heated 
> build platforms (needed for certain types of plastic), multiple extruders, and 
> so on.
> 
> 	Hope this helps. If anyone has heard of anything else in this that 
> could extend the continuum- i.e., ready-to-print printers cheaper than the 
> $600 Solidoodle- I'd love to hear about it.
> --
>              .
> Patrick Bogen .
>             ...