Intro: Overwhelmed non-tech redneck seeking multiple answers/starting points etc.

[inventadude]

Hi, I will make this as short as possible to get the general idea out. I am 45, spent several years working construction. I had a bad accident and I can't do that type stuff anymore. Or should I say I can do it but not at a speed that interests employers much. So needless to say after spending almost the last 20 years beating on stuff with a hammer and drinking beer-- technology has left me in it's dust. Now i'm just kinda stuck here if that makes sense. I recently took a bunch of career tests at a physical rehabilitation center and everything points towards tech, engineering etc. I am going to do what I want to do because I am in a position to do so so the age/career issue isn't really something I care to discuss. It's what interests me and I think because of that all the pieces will fall into place and that's the plan i'm sticking with.

Long story short I have fabrication experience, welding, some light lathe work etc and I actually build certain items in my shop and sell them to make ends meet.

I became fascinated with 3d printers just a short time ago. I never even heard of one until like a year ago maybe.

I seem to be overwhelmed with the amount of info, different printers etc and it seems like everytime I turn around something new is popping up. I joined this forum hoping for some kind of structure and making a few friends vs. web search after web search of different topics etc it just seems like a huge unorganized mess to me that has left me baffled to say the least.

Excited at one time to see a printer a year ago that's saying it's going to hit the market a year later for $500 and then a year later there's a gazillion of them etc.

I guess this is just growing by leaps and bounds so maybe I just need to find a starting point because there's just entirely too much info.

So..........I like building things so without asking specifics where do I turn for that? I am not a tech guy but I understand mechanics very well so I can learn as I go. Of course now it looks like there's some pretty cool printers for $500 so I think other than learning how to build one and how it works that money isn't really something to be concerned with?

I want to get involved and learn as much as I can as fast as I can. I live near Kansas City and have recently joined a mailing list of some makers group but that's as far as it's got. I don't know anyone with a 3d printer.

I just thought I would share a short intro from someone that doesn't know anything about this stuff and what it seems like to someone on the outside looking in. It just seems there are bits and pieces everywhere and nothing really concrete that I can grab hold of. So like I mentioned I am looking for a starting point, say really good and detailed info on building a printer and using it, and stop overwhelming myself with everything all at once.

I hope what i'm trying to say here is making sense lol. Thanks for any input!

[PhotoSteve]

I'm in the same position. I would start with software and not worry about the printer just yet. Get to know CAD software of your choice and practice, practice, and practice even more. Lots of freeware I’m learning Blender myself. Then decide what you want to specialize in then start to define the kind of printer and types of material that will work for your use. Printers come online every week with something new and improved. Prices aren’t going to change much but what they will be able to do will get better aka build size, material and speed.
PhotoSteve

[Roxy]

So..........I like building things so without asking specifics where do I turn for that? I am not a tech guy but I understand mechanics very well so I can learn as I go. Of course now it looks like there's some pretty cool printers for $500 so I think other than learning how to build one and how it works that money isn't really something to be concerned with?

I want to get involved and learn as much as I can as fast as I can. I live near Kansas City and have recently joined a mailing list of some makers group but that's as far as it's got. I don't know anyone with a 3d printer.

So... opinions are certainly going to vary. And I sound like a broken record (I've never actually heard a real one of those!!!). Here are my thoughts:

The 3D-Printing hobby is so large, nobody can master all aspects of it. There are very knowledgeable people here with very deep expertise in many areas. But it is easy to find topics where these people are not as knowledgeable as other people here. You will never master all aspects of the 3D-Printing arena. With that said, it is important that you have exposure and struggle through the various topics that form the foundation.

Because of this, I think a person that is interested in the hobby would be wise to consider building their first printer from a kit. You will automatically get a deeper understanding of things and get used to struggling with different types of problems associate with 3D-Printing. That is part of the mind set and you need to 'master' that so you can become proficient in the areas of 3D-Printing that interest you and are important to you.

This is sort of relevant: Just yesterday somebody was asking for help on picking out a 3D-Printer kit. The person was getting the information he needed and was asking good questions so he could make an intelligent choice. Towards the bottom of the thread (as things stand right now) he offered a link to what looked like a very nice printer. He wanted to know if he could add a heated bed to the printer and I told him he didn't have to. It all ready had one. And I told him it looked like a very nice printer. I thought he would be happy with it. One of the experts here that knows a lot about printer kits jumped in and cautioned the person about the printer because it used an acrylic frame and was likely to crack. I had no idea this was a problem! It would be good to read this entire thread and drill down on all the links in it! Please check out:

http://3dprintboard.com/showthread.p...se-some-advice

This topic is so broad and expanding so quickly, you will never master it. What you need to master is the ability to handle what ever problem you have at the moment. You will never run out of things you want to do with it. If you do build a kit to get your first printer... You will want to change things and that will result in you designing new parts for your printer and using the printer to make the parts. You will struggle with the 3D Design software and the various issues as you work through each version of your idea.

If money is tight... I guarantee you can spend days and days and days working on an idea and printing evolving pieces of it before you use up a $30 spool of plastic!

[JohnA136]

The learning curve is steep and not for the timid. If you are not a patient person. If you do not like to tinker. If you do not like to get into the mechanism and do upgrades , updates and modifications, I do not think 3D Printing is a good hobby for you. So many people get into it and get so frustrated in a month or so that they become door stops.

[inventadude]

The learning curve is steep and not for the timid. If you are not a patient person. If you do not like to tinker. If you do not like to get into the mechanism and do upgrades , updates and modifications, I do not think 3D Printing is a good hobby for you. So many people get into it and get so frustrated in a month or so that they become door stops.

I don't think I will have any of those problems....I am a tinkerer and spend a lot of time in my shop building things some of which require a lot of patience and are anything but brainless I build fully automated rock cutting machines but they are more of mechanical nature and not digital.

I'm going to go ahead and press forward. My thing though is I don't have much interests in trinkets.........figurines and such. While of course I would do some just to learn the printing aspect I am more interested in mechanical parts.

While not available to someone like me my real interests would obviously be metal 3d printing. One thing that I am thinking for now is to make detailed molds that I can cast since I do aluminum parts castings. I think I can make some really cool stuff this way. Time is on my side and i'm not well off so to say but I do have more than enough resources to get into all of this.

So start listing kits that you like lol. And thanks for the brutal honesty I much prefer that.

[inventadude]

Thanks Roxy,

As far as the frame cracking..........while I may not be a tech guy that's more of a mechanical issue and I would probably just redesign it and make one out of metal if I had to. I'm thinking knowing what I do about actual fabrication that if I could learn this too I could have an advantage esp over many students that are just book smart where i've been a foreman of multi-million dollar projects over the years. Granted time is not on my side lol but I never said I was planning on having unrealistic expectations of success it's just that i'm going to spend the rest of my time doing something that I actually want to do.

[inventadude]

Here is something i'm looking at:

http://mixshop.com/index.php?main_pa...products_id=94

[Mjolinor]

There is no need for you to go with a kit. The most important thing is rigidity. Make the box yourself and buy the bearings, shafts, steppers, gears and belts. Do not go with screwed axis, use toothed belts. Z can be screwed if you prefer but X and Y need to be toothed belts.

If you have reasonable metal working abilities then you can make a frame that will be better than the reprap type open frame devices.

As far as the electronics go just buy that as a complete kit. However you make the XYZ part of your machine doesn't change anything as far as electronics goes.

If you are thinking big or small or tall or fast or very accurate or anything way out of the standard footprint/design then it's best to ask specifically what people would recommend in terms of stepper size, gearing ratios and so on.

[inventadude]

There is no need for you to go with a kit. The most important thing is rigidity. Make the box yourself and buy the bearings, shafts, steppers, gears and belts. Do not go with screwed axis, use toothed belts. Z can be screwed if you prefer but X and Y need to be toothed belts.

If you have reasonable metal working abilities then you can make a frame that will be better than the reprap type open frame devices.

As far as the electronics go just buy that as a complete kit. However you make the XYZ part of your machine doesn't change anything as far as electronics goes.

If you are thinking big or small or tall or fast or very accurate or anything way out of the standard footprint/design then it's best to ask specifically what people would recommend in terms of stepper size, gearing ratios and so on.

That would be ideal and a cool project but I would definitely have to collaborate on that one. It will be nice when I can find some people in my own area that are into this stuff.

[Mjolinor]

That would be ideal and a cool project but I would definitely have to collaborate on that one. It will be nice when I can find some people in my own area that are into this stuff.

That's what the forum is for.