Hi im looking to get a good 3d printer but i dont want to

3D Printing
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Hi im looking to get a good 3d printer but i dont want to spend too much. What is the best printer out there for around or preferrably under $500.

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I would highly recommend the @Printrbot Simple (http://printrbot.com/shop/printrbot-simple/).

I really suggest buying the kit. It allows you to better understand how the printer works and helps you troubleshoot/adjust it way better. Yes it takes about 3 to 4 hours to assemble it, but well worth it.

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For 100 responses, you’ll probably get 150 answers, but I am partial to Printrbot. They have one assembled printer for under $500 that does PLA which I have no experience with. I have an early Printrbot plus that I built from a kit. No matter which printer you end up with, know that anything close to your budget (and I mean within 5x your budget), be prepared to tinker and calibrate and adjust to get decent prints.

I would think about your intended use and decide on what your build volume needs to be and if you plan to print with ABS which will require a heated print bed (and even then, long ABS prints are difficult to complete without warping). Even with an 8x8x8" print volume, I’ve ran into occasions where I wish I had a larger printer. The simple has about a 4x4x4" print volume.

Good luck on your choice and let us know what you pick!

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I was looking at that but was unsure of the quality and also the print size. I am looking for something large enough to print out models and actual pieces for different projects i have. I have used and tinkered with 3 different 3d printers at my school before so i understand how they work and have had to troubleshoot them before. i was leaning towards this one ( http://www.xyzprinting.com/en/product ) but want to make sure im getting the best one for my money.

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The +Printrbot Simple has a print volume of 100mm x 100mm x 100mm but you can go up to 185mm x 100mm x165mm with the XL Upgrade.

Since this printer is 100% open-source there are also some axis upgrades you can do yourself.

For me having a printer that was open-source was a must and so far I do not regret my choice at all.

As for quality. We have an Afinia H at the office and frankly result are pretty much comparable.

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A PrintrBot Simple with the XL Volume Expansion kit will give you an 8x4x8 build volume, for under $500. Buy the kit and build it yourself so you understand how they work - plus, it’s fun! And, there’s a heated bed coming, so you won’t always be limited to PLA.

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I didnt know the printrbot was so open to upgrade it sounds like i will probably go with that. I used the afinia H printers last year and was impressed with the quality of the print so if it matches that it should fit my needs.
Im glad to hear there’s a heated bed coming; ive used both abs and pla and im partial to the abs just because in my experience it has been a bit more rigid and durable.

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For the printrbots i know they are kits that need to be assembled but do they come precoded or would i have to program it as well?

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All preprogrammed. Assemble, install the software, load a test calibration file and start to print and calibrate.

Took me about 3-4 hours to assemble (with kids you have to do it 15min a time…). Count an other 2h for the calibration.

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ok good thanks for all the info

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I’m a big fan of my http://makerfarm.com kit. Great support and fantastic instructional videos made the build very easy. You can get the 6" for 500 or the 8" for 590. The 8 inch will put out some pretty large stuff.

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If you can, i would hold out for a few more weeks, @Brook_Drumm mentioned that a metal printrbot simple may be on the near horizon (at least a demo version) I have no idea what the price point will be, but the Simple is nice and his ALU extruder look beautiful. (my biggest complaint is that his constant updates make my wallet frown)

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i looked into it and they already have the option to buy the “2014 model” with the alu extruder and alu print bed as well thats the one i would be buying and then getting the xl kit so i can print up to 8 inch pieces

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Thanks I was looking for the same, first printer, same budget.
Does the operating system on the computer has something to do with 3d printing, I am pretty proficient in Linux, Mac and win, but if I could skip win it would ease up my mind.

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I’m running on a Mac here and no problem with Repetier. Also try out @OctoPrint running on it now and it’s great.

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Hey i just got my simple assembled and running any suggestions on the ideal settings? im keeping the hot end at about 195 right now but im a little unsure on things like layer height and extrude speed. etc any help is greatly appreciated i want to make the highest quality pieces ( both structurally and aesthetically) as i can the print time doesn’t matter