Good morning,


I have a question about my recent purchase. Let me start by saying this will be my first 3d printer but I have built (designed and constructed) two CNC milling machines with ball screws and servo drives, so I am familiar with some of the terms, and at least familiar with milling machine motion controls.


I was leaning towards a Prusa Mini but the lead time is September so I opted for the Prusa i3. The lead time was advertised 3-4 weeks, unfortunately, I am sitting at 38 days with no order update.


I am a bit concerned that I may be paying a premium for outdated control hardware and/or software, 8 bit vs 32 bit, and a touch screen. So my question to the group is this:
Given my budget of $800 to $1,000 (I'd rather spend less), what would you suggest I do? Wait on the Prusa or cancel the order and move on to a printer that is cheaper, available, and possibly more advanced?


What will I print:


I'm not exactly sure so I would like a direct feed extruder and a machine capable of printing a wide variety of materials. I do sell a few items for O scale trains at my shop, but those are all CNC milled at the moment. I may be able to replace one part that I currently make from fiberglass with a printed part. I am sure to print items for my HO scale railroad, however, I understand the limits of detail with such small items.


Thank you for your help.