Anyone make $$$ with their Robo 3D printers?

I mainly bought my 3D R1 with the intent of printing some R/C parts then selling them. The part seems to be selling quite well on eBay (from other sellers) so I've already begun the product production on my 3D R1. Each piece takes roughly five hours to print then I'm figuring another 30 minutes/piece for clean up and whatnot. My printer has been running non-stop for almost two days and so far each print has came out flawlessly.

So I'm wondering if these printers can take this kind of abuse? I do plan on removing the bottom cover and putting an 80mm fan on the main board just to make sure nothing important overheats.

What do you guys think? Are these printers capable of working this hard providing they are taken care of?

 

Well, the rule of the game is nothing is indestructible in the greater sense of the word. Personally, I would rate these machines in the hobby to medium-heavy use as opposed to heavy-industrial type use which can take a beating. There are a few things that you should always include during down-time for your Robo3D (sort of a common-sense thing).

Allow downtime to:

1) properly clean/oil/maintain the lead screws, smooth guide rods, the hob wheel for extruder, and ultimately the extruder hot-end itself.

2) inspection of loose wires, nuts/screws, and debris anywhere on, under, or around the Robo3D should be done to ensure a safe operating/working environment

3) Some parts may withstand a beating of continual use, but nearly all are subjected to eventual failure or reduction in capability -- for example: hot-ends may need to be replaced if they are worn from using abrasive type filaments, the hob wheel may eventually wear to no longer have traction on the filament, and the springs used to hold the wheel against the hob wheel may need to be replaced or adjusted.

I would never run the system in a 24/7 industrial mode without a planned downtime between large jobs/parts. Give the system a chance to "rest" and get checked over. Proper maintenance and operating procedures can make these things last for years.

While I have made money doing some 3D printing items, it was not with the Robo3D (yet) as I just got this last week Friday. Best of luck!

Cheers,
-Brian

 

Yup the robo3d is a great printer with a loving owner. Mine's been trucking along with no issues.

I've made a few bucks from 3dhubs.com but nothing major

 

So far I have produced 10 items that roughly took 5 hours per piece. I ran the printer for roughly 36 hours straight trying to get the 10 pieces finished. I made sure to use lightweight oil on any/all moving parts just to make sure my little factory is as comfy as possible. My goal is to make roughly $500 (after material cost) to pay for a big bulk of the printer's initial cost.

So far I'm half way there.

 

If your prints are smooth, things should last a long long long time

If you see the system absorb bumps, likely from warped ABS prints etc. that bumps stack up and get things loose

The heated print bed is also a weak link, don't push the heated bed ever, it breaks/cracks extremely easily

I'm curious about what you print, I would appreciate it if you could link them
I was extremely interested in RC a while ago, yet my interest didn't live long

3dhubs.com looks great btw, I was looking for something like that to buy some parts from in case the printer fails to print itself some replacement

 

wow that´s a lot Oo.... sadly i´m never really pleased with my print and do a lot of thinks that make the end result even worst.