Need expertise before buying a first low cost 3d printer

[alphabravo27]

Hi guys,
seems like there's a lot of 3d printers fans here.

I'd like to take the step and buy one. As I don't plan to make any professional uses of it, I will most likely be satisfied with a cheap one.
I've been digging through forums and webstores and concluded that the I3 Prusa model is the one that meets my curiosity and basic requirements(quality, price, building size). In addition, the design is open source which is a good thing as there sure will be an active community around.

Now, I need your help to pick one from the various implementations of the design available on the internet.

Two models drew my attention and are sold on the famous and very controversial Aliexpress :

That first one : I saw a guy on youtube who recommended it, looks good and to be of quality :
http://aliexpress.com/item/3d-printe...OrigTitle=true

That other one that has a lot of positive votes and is way cheaper :
http://aliexpress.com/item/Black-Fac...OrigTitle=true

My question is : have any of you bought one of those two models and / or can gimme advises or suggest any better option ?

I'm aware those are kits and need minimal skills to get assembled, but that should not be an issue.

Besides, I'm a Linux user (Debian), are there any specific troubles I should expect ? Otherwise, I will manage to get an extra computer with some Wincrap installed.

Thanks for reading

Edit : I could read it's possible to upgrade the printer with 3d printed parts to make it more robust.

[LuckyImperial]

AlphaBravo,

Welcome to 3DprintBoard. You can find hundreds of threads similar to yours with gobs of information on cost, customer support, and quality of entry level 3D printers.

A typical and mandatory word of warning:

The Prusa i3 is a RepRap printer and will require that you be comfortable with Arduino scripts, compiling/uploading Arduino scripts with Arduino IDE, Marlin/Repetier firmware (nearly all ship with Marlin), and basic mechanical/electrical intuition. IE, you will need to know how to use a multimeter, you will need to know how to solder, and you will need to be comfortable with wiring diagrams. Considering you use Linux I bet you check all of those boxes haha.

With that said...I have no experience with those exact kits. It seems like everyone under the sun sells Prusa kits and they are all very similar. Because of this I can only offer some general pieces of advice:

Acrylic is a cheap and very typical material to construct with, but is not as rigid as steel or aluminum. A well constructed acrylic kit will work just fine, but if you're ever wanting to push the limits of speed, a steel frame is advised.
The rails, linear bearings, and lead screws are usually the most cost sensitive parts of a Prusa. The higher quality they are the less slop you have in the printer. You can narrow down kits just by targeting ones that advertise quality linear bearings and lead screws.

Also, you should check out this thread:

http://3dprintboard.com/showthread.p...ing-a-Prusa-i3

PS: If you're a RapRap owner you can install all sorts of garbage/upgrades onto your printer. LED rings, High end Hot Ends, Actual 3D Printer Controller Boards (no arduino mega), Printed parts or whatever. It's open source. Mod that thign.

[3dex ltd]

alphabravo27,

You won't regret taking the step to buy a 3D printer. They are great fun and really useful.

There are many printers out there so if, in light of LuckyImperial's warning on the i3, you don't want to go with a Prusa you will definitely be able to find something that you like.

If you're looking for something cheap then Hobbyking sell many printers:
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s..._Printers.html

They do not require much advanced understanding of code etc but probably do require assembly and some setting up. Banggood also offer some printers and accessories.

However, it might be worth spending some more money on a printer and going for an established printer such as an Ulitmaker or a Makerbot as these are good quality printers.

Whatever you decide to buy there will always be people out there to help you such as those on this forum so don't worry too much.

I hope this helps

[alphabravo27]

Thank you to both of you for answering me so quickly !

AlphaBravo,
The Prusa i3 is a RepRap printer and will require that you be comfortable with Arduino scripts, compiling/uploading Arduino scripts with Arduino IDE, Marlin/Repetier firmware (nearly all ship with Marlin), and basic mechanical/electrical intuition. IE, you will need to know how to use a multimeter, you will need to know how to solder, and you will need to be comfortable with wiring diagrams. Considering you use Linux I bet you check all of those boxes haha.

You got me
I'm quite familiar with development languages so the scripting part shouldn't be the tricky one for me even though I have no experience with Arduino. Soldering won't be a problem either.

Acrylic is a cheap and very typical material to construct with, but is not as rigid as steel or aluminum. A well constructed acrylic kit will work just fine, but if you're ever wanting to push the limits of speed, a steel frame is advised.

Yes, the acrylic structure is apparently not the best suited material for 3d printers, but as you mentioned it, that's why they can make it so cheap.
I took a look at the URL you gave and what that guy is doing looks quite impressive, however, I need to understand the basics of 3d printing before i can build my own printer from scratch. It gave me inspiration on the way I could upgrade a cheaper printer though.

You won't regret taking the step to buy a 3D printer. They are great fun and really useful.

I thought so even if I still have no concrete idea of what I will use it for ^^
But on an impulse, I bought the model from Aliexpress yesterday evening.

I'm glad to know there is such a forum where I can find help and will certainly keep that topic updated when I receive my 3d printer!

[curious aardvark]

one thing to bear in mind is that you are buying direct from a chinese bargain basement shop.
So don't expect any backup. ie: if it goes wrong make sure you'll be happy fixing it yourself.

Personally I'd buy one of these: http://wanhaousa.com/products/duplicator-i3-steel-frame

Still dirt cheap - but much better build quality than pretty much all the kits I've seen. Plus they've been around for a year or so now and they've ironed out all the initial issues.
uk shop selling same thing: http://creative3d.co.uk/wanhao-dupli...cysaAp-e8P8HAQ

[alphabravo27]

Hmm, looks like I hurried a little,
those are still twice the price I paid but the quality looks pretty good for the price on both links you provided.

But, to be honest, I expect things to go wrong at some point when assembling or using the printer I bought for two reasons : first one is Murphy's law pretty obvious
second one is : when you are in trouble, you learn things

One sure thing, it will be my first printer, that's why I don't wanna spend too much money on it. My next one will certainly be more sophisticated.

One question which has nothing to do with the main topic : beneath my nickname, I'm reported as beeing a student ^^ How can I edit that ?
I think I did something wrong when I registered and I can't find how to edit it.

[Sebastian Finke]

One question which has nothing to do with the main topic : beneath my nickname, I'm reported as beeing a student ^^ How can I edit that ?
I think I did something wrong when I registered and I can't find how to edit it.

That's an indication of your post count, young grasshopper. Post more to become a technician, engineer and so on

[alphabravo27]

That's an indication of your post count, young grasshopper. Post more to become a technician, engineer and so on

what a stupid question, wasn't it...? ^^

[Sebastian Finke]

what a stupid question, wasn't it...? ^^

Anything for an extra post, right?

[UltiFix]

one thing to bear in mind is that you are buying direct from a chinese bargain basement shop.
So don't expect any backup. ie: if it goes wrong make sure you'll be happy fixing it yourself.

Personally I'd buy one of these: http://wanhaousa.com/products/duplicator-i3-steel-frame

Still dirt cheap - but much better build quality than pretty much all the kits I've seen. Plus they've been around for a year or so now and they've ironed out all the initial issues.
uk shop selling same thing: http://creative3d.co.uk/wanhao-dupli...cysaAp-e8P8HAQ

Don't wanna hijack this thread, but how much exerpeince do you think it takes to setup a prusa 3? I have good soldering skills and I have done arduino a little bit, and html. And a bit of scripting, think thats enough? A friend gave me on old Prusa 2, could I use any parts off of that one as a backup on a prusa 3?

Thanks!
Sam