New to 3d printing and in need of some hardware advice.

[Xoxiao]

Hi guys,

I am (as the title says) new to this world but i am very keen and interested in the idea. I simply need some real world expertise advice on a reliable (preferably fast) 3d printer to buy, my budget is up to about $900.

I ideally want a printer that can use different plastics (ABS is a must, polymers would be great too) that has a some what large production size capability as possible and is generally well known for reliability and a great finished product quality (this is a must!)

I know this is no doubt vague and i apologise for that, but google and reviews/videos are not giving me as much confidence as personal opinion from you guys!

Thank you for reading and i look forward to being a regular contributor to the other production sections of this forum !

- Karl.

[lroger01]

While it costs a little bit more than your budget, an Orion Delta-style printer from SeeMeCNC at $1299 might be an option. I just bought one a few weeks ago. I was up and running within 2 hours and have printed my brains out since then without the slightest issue. The thing just works! I love the delta style and believe the fewer moving parts will mean fewer issues down the road. The machines are well made and have a great support community. The company itself has been easy to work with. They are professionals with many years of experience in commercial production. Oh, and the machines print in a wide variety of materials: ABS, PLA, Nylon, T-Glass...with more to come.

[3DPBuser]

I have always wondered about the delta's... The math seems much harder to deal with if you need to make gcode changes.

[JohnA136]

Wouldn't the math just be worked out in the software and machine settings?

[Roxy]

Wouldn't the math just be worked out in the software and machine settings?

I would agree with that. And in the case of Marlin's support for Delta printers... The bulk of the math to convert from Cartesian coordinates to Delta coordinates (is there such a thing???) are handled in these lines in Marlin_main.cpp. It really isn't that much math. And its not complicated.


#ifdef DELTA
float delta[3] = {0.0, 0.0, 0.0};
#define SIN_60 0.8660254037844386
#define COS_60 0.5
// these are the default values, can be overriden with M665
float delta_radius= DELTA_RADIUS;
float delta_tower1_x= -SIN_60*delta_radius; // front left tower
float delta_tower1_y= -COS_60*delta_radius;
float delta_tower2_x= SIN_60*delta_radius; // front right tower
float delta_tower2_y= -COS_60*delta_radius;
float delta_tower3_x= 0.0; // back middle tower
float delta_tower3_y= delta_radius;
float delta_diagonal_rod= DELTA_DIAGONAL_ROD;
float delta_diagonal_rod_2= sq(delta_diagonal_rod);
float delta_segments_per_second= DELTA_SEGMENTS_PER_SECOND;
#endif

[Davo]

Delta coordinates (is there such a thing???)

Polar coordinates.