Anyone have a recommendation for a decent print-farm printer? I need 3 to 4 printers - something reliable and shipping now. A resin printer in addition to a few plastic extrusion (ABS, PETT, PC, Nylon) printers is the approximate goal. About $3000 a printer is my limit - they will be run by a single moderately experienced user (me, 1.5 years) producing a variety of parts, sometimes large but all developmental in nature. They would be designed to conform to print limitations appropriately.
Lead time would be the most influential deciding factor - who out there is shipping?
A printer that is easily modifiable would be great - especially with @Sanjay_Mortimer 's Kracken out. I was considering the Lulzbot Taz 2 but don’t like the direct drive 2mm filament or the nozzle much.
I considered building @Tim_Rastall 's Tauntilus, or something similar to it, but don’t have the time to invest in that build process…
Ultimaker 2 might be the only good option, but the ship date looks a little distant, similar to a Form 1. I’d like to have something by the end of January at the latest.
I don’t have much experience with delta-bots, but am not opposed to them. I’d like to compare a part or two from whatever likely option for strength and treat-ability before purchasing though. @ThantiK , care to comment there? If assembly is quick and divisible ( I’m looking at the awesome job @nop_head did on the Mendel 90 in that respect - group building friendly to a large degree) then a kit would be fine.
If someone suggests a triangle framed printer, I would be inclined to hit them. A 200mm cube build area is the ideal minimum.
And while reprap resin printing is awesome, and I follow those efforts eagerly, I don’t think it is yet proven enough for me to stake this sort of investment in.
tl;dr
Need 3 printers, 3k a pop by end of January. 200mm cube build volume, bowden fed, resin likely need not apply. Well designed kit could be an option. Have access to well tuned Mendel90 to produce parts if absolutely necessary.
Thanks for whatever feedback anyone cares to share!
I’d get another set of Mendel90s - there’s no doubt they work well and you’re already experienced with the 90. You can always get the kits without a hotend and add bowden E3D (or Kraken) to it.
Agree with @Thomas_Sanladerer
May be worth getting an off the shelf extruder too, like the seemecnc ezstruder. I’ve heard people say good things about the ordbot and that may prove more reliable as it’s all metal.
I’d buy a bare bones kit then stick azteeg electronics, ezstruder and e3d hot-end on it. http://www.reprapdiscount.com/mechanical-plattforms/9-ordbot-hadron.html
Thanks guys! A barebone kit/more mendel 90s is appealing - has anyone seen a reliable standalone 1.75mm bowden extruder design? That and a bunch of E3d nozzles and I think either option could even be made to support the Kraken eventually…
For running a bot farm as a business the DeltaMaker might be a good way to go. They cost more than a DIY solution of course, but for running a business it’s probably worth paying more to:
Have octoprint (and a RaspberryPi) built in, so you can manage them via the web, so you can ship jobs to the printers and monitor them, etc., from one browser.
Are self-calibrating (love that about Delta bots) which eliminates the main pain point for 3D printing
Are very solid and precise, which gives repeatable, high quality output.
The only drawback that I see is that they’re a new company, and have tons of orders, so you’d need to check with them about lead time. That and they don’t have a heated build platform, so you’d be printing in PLA or Taulman filament, not ABS.
I don’t own one, but I’ve met the founder a few times (he lives nearby) and we’ve both been running 3D printers for days at local Maker Faires, where I’ve been very impressed.
I would say most resin printers are not well developed yet. However, the Muve 3D http://www.muve3d.net/press/ looks pretty well developed. If I were to buy another open source resin printer (I have an OpenSL -the software and electronics for which are still being developed) that would be it. The Muve 3D look well thought out, there are a few small things I think I would do the the z-axis to make it stiffer but I have no hands on experience.
the b9creator kit is $2990: http://dawsondistributions.com/ http://b9creator.com
Open source resin printer, its downside is the build volume:
“At the 100 micron x/y pixels setting, the build area is 102.4 mm (4.03″) x 76.8 mm (3.02″) x 206.4 mm (8.125″).
At the 75 micron x/y pixels setting, the build area is 76.8 mm (3.02″) x 57.6 mm (2.27″) x 206.4 mm (8.125″).
At the 50 micron x/y pixels setting, the build area is 51.2 mm (2.02″) x 38.4 mm (1.52″) x 206.4 mm (8.125″).”