I'm ready to buy my first 3d printer

The only one that honestly stands out to me is the Robo 3d. Not sure why I'm so drawn to it but at this stage seeing all the problems people are having not sure if it is a bad choice for me I have no problem with tinkering to get things ajusted right. But there's also a difference between tinkering and constantly fixing a broken piece of junk I just blew $800 on specially when my only resource for help is other customers who have gone through the same struggles rather than the company I just paid $800 to ( mind you my information comes from what little reading I've done on this forum) My budget is below 1000 I know at this price range of course I'm not expecting gold I just don't want to make the wrong choice because of my lack of knowledge Thank you.

 

Or am I Way off base?

 

Yeah that seems to be the feeling I was getting from everything Iv read. Dang I really would like this one though kinda felt like I was coming down to between this one and the flash forge. Ok thank you

 

I just bought mine a week ago when they were at Costco in Carlsbad, I've made aobut 10 parts since then. It really did run straight out of the box. So far so good, time will tell.

 

The new printers are leaps and bounds better than the old one. With that in mind almost ALL printers will require some user service sooner or later. Even if it's just removing a clog. They happen due to the nature of PDM printing.

Only issue I've seen with the new printers is some leaking out of loose hex and 25mm fans going kaput. They're improving QC on the first and going to a higher quality fan for the second.

 

I just called my local Costco and they do have it listed as a new item but he doesn't see them getting any. Yeah I know everything's going to need service the only other person I was looking at but I would realistically get is the flash forge which what little Iv seen on the forums people are way happier with them then I see here. I guess I'm just trying to figure out what's the best way to go weather Robo flash or some kit which might be way over my head. They say there in stock but if I buy one I wonder if I'ma get jerked around on shipping like I guess some are or the better fan something that I can easaly figure out if I call them rather than ordering online I guess

 

Their shipping times are very quick now. Usually it goes out next day.

I love my robo for the freedoms it provides me. I also find replicator clones to be ugly and cheap. Flashforge is ok but I don't think it's worth the price. I certainly wouldn't pick it first, especially considering the build volume.

 

That's about the boat that I am in that's why I'm trying to convince myself that Robo is the way to go. So then if I may ask you this if you could do it over again and if it was your $1000 of course I ask you because obviously you have vast more knowledge then I. Which way would you go as your first?

 

Me personally?

Well my general recommendations to new people trying to get a good printer for around 600 dollars is the Printrbot Simple Metal. I would never buy it myself because I have a thing about Gantry supported printers. I worry about creep making them useless. I also want ABS, which the simple metal doesn't come with and puts the price really close to the Robo.

The flashforge is more than I would like to spend. Also the build volume is pretty limited so if you have ambitions to print something large it's not a good option. That said 95% of the stuff you print will be under 100mm in any direction. But I'm the kind of person that wants that extra 5%.

I really don't have a better suggestion in the $1000 range. They're all a dime a dozen in there. Most all of them are replicator 1 clones, which has it's own set of issues. They're take up a lot of width on your workbench considering the build volume.

For the money and build volume I don't think there's really a competitor to the robo. Solidoodle comes close but those apparently haven't improved in design since the original, they just slap new skins on it and call it a day. No respect for that.

Now if we get to the $2000 range I have some suggestions, but most hobbyists don't want to pay that much.

 

Yeah you're right I'm going to end up ordering the Robo tonight although this does sound pretty tempting.

 

Oh man, if you're going for a replicator clone get the Flashforge Creator. Flashforge clones are even more notorious for having SERIOUS issues.

 

Yeah my wifes exact words were why would you get a clone of a cone lol.

 

Your wife sounds very wise

 

Indeed my friend. as far as filament I'll be using the printer mainly for RC parts I'm going to buy a spool of each abs and Pla I know there's a lot of cheap places stuff out there but is there a better brand or am I best sticking with what they sell on here?

 

Please forgive me for the 10000 questions by the way

 

If you do want Robo's filament, I suggest placing a separate order so they don't have any delays.

For RC parts you want really strong parts. Nylons are good as is the new ColorFabb_XT line. PLA is a little too brittle for making car parts and would shatter at the first impact. ABS is a little better but isn't the strongest out there. The carbon fiber versions of both are good options for strength. ABS handles higher heat than PLA as well.

Brands I'm not too sure on. I've always liked the robo filament but I haven't tried a whole bunch of others.

 

whoops I put in the order yesterday and everything was together. Right now it's just going to be scale accessories that won't bear any load but once I get better at it I'll shoot for the nylon. I haven't read enough into it but I thought nylon became rather toxic when heated

 

I've never heard that about nylon. Most of the fears are from ABS but really any plastic isn't super safe for you. PLA is closer to the realm of "less harmful"

It's not so much load bearing as impacts, a crash on the body or something. Granted the good thing is you can always print another

 

I backed a CraftBot on Indiegogo. A few VIP backers already received their CraftBots. Haven't received mine yet, but ETA should be around Thanksgiving next month.

There was some minor delay due to the communications between the controller board and the LCD display board. They reported they resolved the problem. So far, the communications from the creator has been great. They want to ensure that they ship out quality working printers to the backers.

One VIP backer reported the print quality is way ahead of his Replicator 2, but his Replicator 2 is old. Please note that the CraftWare slicer is still in beta stage and has bugs.

The printer should be able to use other slicers. You just need to enter your printer parameters in the setting and try to get the first layer to print properly.