Shopping around

Hi all,

I'm going to receive a pretty large pay soon so I think I'll make myself a present that will make more presents :)

I looked at the reviews, some printers look nice, others are expensive. I do like repraps because they seem easy to update and upgrade. I'm about to commit on the Prusa i3 with an optional 3 extruders head kit, although I would have preferred a mixing extruder instead. I don't mind building a kit, however I'm not fond of soldering.

I just have a few questions:
If I want to make the build/print area bigger, can I just put larger posts on each side and adjust the firmware accordingly?
Is upgrading the extruders just a matter of taking off the old one and putting a new one, or is there some reprogramming to do?
As I understand it, future materials might need hotter parts, so that would also be possible with a easily updateable setup, right?
How is the fumes/noise bothering level? Is pvc printing hot enough to set off smoke alarms? Do you do your printing in a basement or in a shed? I'm not lucky enough to own a garage, yet :P

Thanks!
philwire

Hi Philwire. I'm sure you are really excited bout getting into this. A quick word of advice warning though...buying your first printer can open the flood gates of negative cash flow...lol. It is a truly addictive hobby.

The i3 would be a great printer to start with. The folks on these forums have nothing but great things to say about the MakerFarm version (great support!). Buying a kit will help you learn how everything works and operates together. I'd hold off on any of the dual/triple/mixing extruders until you get your feet wet though. One is hard enough and multi-color printing is a bit new so support may be hard to find.

Size is always the 'big' issue for folks, especially new folks. There are inherent issues with going big not the least of which is print time. Big prints take a long time to complete. A 20cm3 print can easily take a day or more to complete and the chance of problems occurring during the print goes way up. IMO best to start small and then modify your printer to go big if you still want to once you get it all figured out.

Hi KDog, Thanks for the good tips.

For now I'm pretty much dreaming of all the things I could print around the house from thingiverse :) I think my first big project will be to upgrade my paintball gun - I think it's something I could customize myself instead of buying expensive upgrades.

I understand what you mean by getting used to the printer with a single extruder, however my budget is balanced like a corporation's finance departement - money is unlocked once per year for a project, so better spend more now than being stuck single-color for the next 4 years :D

I've been watching the Tricolor i3 variant from He3D for a while now, it seems to have a nice bed, multicolor capable (I'll start by one at a time at the beginning), and I think it'll be pretty good for a few years until something comes out in the color mixing area. The Kraken-quad also seems pretty impressive, so I'll keep it as a future upgrade.

Now my next batch of questions:
I heard some people having problems with the X-axis that bends over time under the weight of the nozzle-extruder assembly, is that a common trouble? wouldn't upgrading the X-axis rod to a bigger one fix that? because I might as well upgrade it right away beforehand.

What's a Wade/Greg extrusion gear?

What are the most common upgrades made by enthusiasts after they get used to their printers?

Besides the i3, is there another printer that is as user-friendly and future proof?

How solid can the creations be? I don't see anyone building something as big as, say, a patio table or a gazebo. Is it because of costs or rigidity? How well can a creation stand in -40° temperatures?

Thanks!
philwire

As I understand from upgreadable options on a few websites, the y-axis is pretty much endless upgradeable, right? the printbed could be as long as the street, for what I can see