3DPrint's 3D Printer Buyer's Guide

Those interested in purchasing a 3D printer, whether their first or their eighth, whether for home or business use, always want to make sure they're investing in the right machine for their needs. Sifting through the ever-growing options can be incredibly daunting--so some of the writers at 3DPrint.com got together to come up with a list of 3D printers you just can't go wrong with. Ordered based on specific criteria, there's no going wrong with any printers on this top 10 list. After looking through ratings and reviews from sources like 3D Hubs, Amazon.com, and other feedback, this week's list of 10 great printers is subject to change as more machines enter the scene. Among these are: LulzBot TAZ 5, MakerGear M2, Zortrax M200, Printrbot Metal Simple, Formlabs Form 1+, MakerBot Replicator Mini, Flashforge Dreamer, Ultimaker 2, Prusa i3 Hephestos, and Afinia H480. Read about why in the full article: https://3dprint.com/55890/buy-3d-printer-cheap/

http://3dprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/ppp.png

Moderator note: Link to article has been corrected

Where can I find the full article? The link provided is just an image.

Thanks

- Moderator note: Link in the original post has been corrected.

http://3dprint.com/55890/buy-3d-printer-cheap/

link here.

Curious why you went for the dreamer over the creator pro, which is generally considered to be the better machine.

I'm a newbie to 3d printing. I want to buy a kit. Please help. I want the best kit under 450$.

I'd like to see 3Dprint.com review the new Type A Machines Series 1 Pro. I've been hearing good things about it and would like to know whether they are true.

What I don't understand is why none of the printer kits are mentioned. If you are mechanically inclined, can solder and in general are a Maker/Hacker there are numerous rigs out there that are totally open source that you can either build from scratch using build lists and instructions or complete kits that come with everything in the box. I chose the middle and got a Rigidbot Regular. It came with everything except the Power Supply and Main Board, and I have been happily modifying it to meet my requirements while printing my tail off.
Just check out RepRap.org or the Google Groups under 3D printing to find different machines and designs, or come on over and check out the Rigidbot group (It is the largest and in my opinion, best documented and most helpful)

https://plus.google.com/communities/...16225488251038

I have purchased a print sample from Zortrax reseller, I have to say that it is really a good choice for high resolution printing!
But I did not buy it because of cost performance...

Here I recommend two printers for reference: UP! MINI and Mankati Fullscale XT Plus,
I have used UP! MINI for 1 year and Mankati Fullscale XT Plus for 5 months!

Actually UP! Plus 2 was my first choice at that time, but it was such a small printer with such a small build volume at a such high price!
So I choosed its simplified version, UP! MINI... 599 USD price makes it not a hard decision for me!
It came with a poor inner structure, that really worried me, the metal sheet is very thin and cut edge is rough...
But when it started print, I have to say, the print quality and stability satisfied me!
It is small on the desk, and always gives fine results!
Below are my experience about UP! MINI:
Good:
1. Low price at 599 USD.
2. Easy to use, easy to maintain, extruder is really easy to take apart.
3. High print success rate due to small volume.
4. Enclosed printer body.
Bad:
1. Not open source software, few parameters available for setting, cannot use 3rd party filament.
2. Print with only ABS, PLA filament is not provided by the manufacture.
3. Too many 3D printed parts in the printer...
4. Not so easy to remove the object, especially small and thin objects.

After several months printing with UP! MINI, I found the small build volume was a quite big problem to me, I cannot print some big parts.
Cut the object into pieces and splice them together is bad idea for smooth surface requirement...
I found Mankati Fullscale XT in 3D Hubs 3D printer guide, big enough, and vaule 9.2.
But in their online store, it was a upgraded model called Fullscale XT Plus.
It was a 1,499 USD printer, but I cannot find much comments about this brand and their product, it stucked me for almost 2 weeks...
When I received the printer, I was impressed about the solid printer frame and those quality CNC parts, but sadly the build glass was broken in transit...
Afte 4 days waiting I recevied the new glass from Mankati, and I spent a whole day to adapt to new printer structure and software, that was not a good exprience...
Luckily they provide detailed user manual, and online skype support also helped me a lot, the first run turned out that it is a great printer! Really high printing resolution and fine details!
Here are my opinion of Mankati Fullscale XT Plus：
Good:
1. High cost performance: one-piece full steel enclosed frame, 260*260*300 mm, dual E3D V6 extruders, 1499 USD !
2. Great filament compatibility due to the 300 ℃ hot ends.
3. High resolution performance.
4. Universal hot end mount, open source marlin firmware and Cura software.
5. Successful long time print over 50 hours !
Bad:
1. Bed calibration is a challenge for green hands.
2. Not a very quiet printer.
3. Need regular lubrication for XY rails.
4. Fan cover is not very solid and might crash the object.


Hope it's useful to you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gsg7c0UsLgU

it's actually the wanhao i3 machine.
by all accounts a decent bit of kit.

http://MOBIOUS.ORG Home of the sE1X Large dual extruder 3d printer! Go big without going broke!

Is there any update to thicj sticky?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/QIDI-TECHNOL...item4d31797182


Maybe everyone can think about qidi 3d printer .

Agreed, I have one and really like it. Easy to use, great support and lots of other people using them to network with.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Emilypeng

http://www.ebay.com/itm/QIDI-TECHNOL...item4d31797182


Maybe everyone can think about qidi 3d printer .

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So a printerbot simple metal costs the same as an Up Mini 2? I know which one I'm buying...

Interesting, where to get more info?

Did 3dprint.com make test & review for these printers?

https://he3d.aliexpress.com/store/822821
or
http://www.reprapmall.com/
Maybe you can consider HE3D printer

If you are interested, you can look at the printer about BIQU. As far as I know, their printers are of high cost performance. https://www.biqu.equipment/

Hello everyone. this is Chen from Flashforge. Now we rank the 3 in the world for desktop printer.Please contact me by skype shakiradido

In my opnion Zortrax M200 is the best purchase. Maybe it doesnt cost 400$ but it's totally worth the price. I just don't need to worry about printing quality and wasted filament. At the end its all about good print. And it's really easy to use, even for beginners. I highly recommend!

Hello! I have used 3d printers in my education but am wanting to purchase one for recreational use. After some research I have decided the most important features to me are high compatibility across the different types of printing materials, large printing area, and dual extruder. Does a printer with these specification exist?

yep - have a look at the t-rex: http://www.formbot3d.com/formbot-lar...ize_p0013.html

I know this Thread is started in 2015, but does anyone consider update the list with new models from 2018.
the price has dropped dramatically sense 2015, I think that one of the hottest printers in 2018 (at a low pricepoint) will be the Creality 3D Ender 3, for danish people we can get it with one day shipping from eg. 3DStore.dk (https://3dstore.dk/shop/3d-printer/creality-3d-ender-3/)
also the Zortrax M200 Plus in the highend printer market looking very interesting, and especially the fact that they have added a PLA fan, so that the printer will do a much better job printing either Z-PLA or 3party vendor PLA.

well if it's not even launched on a kickstarter then you've got at least 2 years to wait until you get anything.
So probably best to buy something else - that, you know, you can use :-)

what is the minimum cost of 3d printer with the whole kit

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Giswin

I'm a newbie to 3d printing. I want to buy a kit. Please help. I want the best kit under 450$.

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I suggest you can get one end 3 , it is for beginner machine, it can easier eaiser to install, I remember they are only around $300

Hello Ethanhaw, $300 minimum, you may find some 3d printer under that price from Amazon or Ebay, but the quality of machine is pretty poor, you will have mega issue after you purchase that.

What I don't understand is why none of the printer kits are mentioned. If you are mechanically inclined, can solder and in general are a Maker/Hacker there are numerous rigs out there that are totally open source that you can either build from scratch using build lists and instructions or complete kits that come with everything in the box. I chose the middle and got a Rigidbot Regular. It came with everything except the Power Supply and Main Board, and I have been happily modifying it to meet my requirements while printing my tail off.
Just check out RepRap.org or the Google Groups under 3D printing to find different machines and designs, or come on over and check out the Rigidbot group (It is the largest and in my opinion, best documented and most helpful)

maybe there should be two lists.
1) for machines that come as kits or machines that are only ever going to be any good after extensive modification (most of creality's)
2) machines that need no or minimal modification and just work :-)

And there are a LOT more of the second category around than most people think.