What is the cheapest 3D printer currently that actually works?

[bmminc]

Looking to start making some small things around the house and looking for something cheap. I have a lot of ideas in mind
Kinda like this smaller things on this list: http://www.discoveryindemand.com/wha...printers-make/
Not like the bike or anything huge, but like the smaller stuff like that skull.

[curious aardvark]

well you can get a flashforge creator for £420 in the uk.

There isn't really anything much out there, built and working out the box - for anything much less.

You can get a delta kit for £350 and when the model-t is ready for retail sale it'll be under $300.
Not sure you can go much lower than that and expect it to actually work.

Although geoff can strip down an old photocopier and build a printer from the bits. That'd be real cheap :-)

[Feign]

And Tony Stark can make a 3D printer our of scrap in a cave... But we're not Tony Stark.

Anyway, the cheapest depends on where you are. The Printrbot Simple Metal is $599 USD (that converts to around £380) fully assembled ($60 cheaper for the kit, and only $349 for the wood-bodied kit rather than the metal one), though it's not as fast or big as a Flashforge, I've seen some very good quality out of them. Also worth noting, it has the option to upgrade to a heated bed and larger print area, which is pretty cool.

But yeah, if you're willing to wait till next Spring/Summer, don't mind the lack of a heated bed option, and don't have the (admittedly reasonable) fear of pre-ordering, it doesn't get cheaper than New Matter's MOD-t in the FFF format.

Technically, if you're willing to wait even longer (and pay for photoresin as a build material), the Peachy Printer is $99 (Plus about $20-$40 of structure you have to provide, plus lots of assembly)