Quote Originally Posted by old man emu View Post
You are asking a question that is very hard to answer objectively because most of us love the particular make and model of printer we own. Here is a really good description of the building of a mendel Prusa design: http://3dprintboard.com/shortbread?3461-MakerFarm-8-quot-i3v-Prusa-build-by-Printbus

These printers cost $850 plus P/H.

Read through the various model threads to help you make your decision. I agree with you that building your own is the best way to learn about the mechanicals of printers. Don't forget to study the Arduino board as this is the most common type of controller hardware and you will be updating its firmware over time.

OME
I appreciate the responses guys, so I guess a more directed question would be to ask what I need to study on. So I get whatever kit, doesn't matter on that, in the end they all come down to an arduino and some computer software. I can figure the little things out later on. So I guess a more directed question would be, what should I research over the next month? As for the cad program I plan to watch video lessons to learn SolidWorks, let me know if there's anything else you would recommend. As for learning, I've seen stuff about open source.... I don't know code but I could maybe learn..? What would I need to learn?

As for anything else could you just send me some useful threads or any personal favorite videos that really helped you out? I'd really appreciate it, I don't want to be spoonfed everything but I need a good starting point!


As for a printer... What would be the best match between printing area and quality and speed for under or close to $1000...? Just curious as to what you guys think.

Thanks
-Mathew