Makergear M2 or stick with another Robo

Hey, i currently have 2 Robo 3d printers and need to add more capacity. Can't decide between sticking with what i know and getting another Robo or trying something new and better and getting a Makergear M2.

I'm leaning towards the M2 even though it is twice the price.

Any suggestions? Anyone own an M2?

 

I haven't bought a Makergear M2 yet, but they're pretty well known as being absolute beast machines.

They get glowing reviews on Amazon, too.

https://www.amazon.com/MakerGear-M2...mmary?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1&sortBy=helpful

 

And since Brexit...the BB and Ultimakers are a bit cheaper for us yanks than they were a few months ago. I personally agree that having the build plate just going up or down is far better than the inertia of having the bed weight pushed back and forth. Now the Robo R2 is going to be like the BB and Ultimaker...whenever that comes to market. But in today's reality if you want to go to a motion design like an ultimaker than the BB and ultimaker (or some clone) make a great option. I fight buying another brand printer. I think just building one is my next step.

 

Yeah you have a good point. Well now that i've waited this long i pretty much need something ASAP. No time to build or really time to wait on a Big Box. Ultimaker 2 might be a good idea though. Larger build volume would be nice though.

 

It all depends on build quality.

I mean, that printer I have now that I keep bringing up as being better than the Robo for a lower price is nowhere near the build quality of the Makergear, and I have zero issues with resonance/ringing like people constantly run into on the Robo.

The Makergear M2, meanwhile, is supposed to be the best possible build for the axis setup we're talking about.

 

Well a refurbished R1+ is only $499 right now from Robo's site...if you wanted to stick with a Robo for your 3rd. Just saying...not actually suggesting.

https://robo3d.com/r1-original-personal-3d-printer/

 

Nah, get one of these.

http://www.monoprice.com/Product?p_id=15840

Then you have a truly hypnotic-to-watch 3d printer with a stationary build plate.

 

Daang $500... That's almost too good to pass up..

 

Friend of mine has a Maker Gear M2, its a great machine he has had it for years.

I don't know if they updated them but his had what looked like a really old J Head hotend ( mostly plastic ), he couldn't print PETG even with it because it can't go hot enough i think its temp max was around 230.

He upgraded to a Prometheus hotend and loves it.

 

Yeah they had a $200 off code for a new one through the weekend, but this is $100 less than that. I think the refurbished ones are done by Robo so the QC is better. My refurbished R1 came working out of the box.

 

They've been steadily upgrading it and supporting current owners if they've kept up with the news posts about development.

I think they're currently on Revision E and have the hotend at V4, capable of extruding at 300C as of sometime in 2015.

 

Well that's a horse of a different color...haha. I'd love to get a delta. I hear they can be a bit of a learning curve for getting calibrated compared to what we are used to.

 

@Nathanfish see how we like to spend your money?

 

The key bit is "all other things being equal" not being equal between the printers being discussed.

The Robo uses the same belts, bearings, rods and motors to try and control a build plate with much more mass than the printer I've compared it to in this thread (my Monoprice printer).

I can't speak as clearly to the Makergear M2 since I don't own one, but the on-paper specs and the images/reviews various people have posted on Youtube and 3d printing blogs where they've taken one apart indicate a build quality that is really far beyond what Robo3D does.

My Monoprice printer? It uses a much lighter aluminum chassis and heated bed plate, mounted to a steel frame, than the massive glass plate the Robo uses mounted to an acrylic frame. Of course the Monoprice printer it is going to be more accurate and reliable at the same printing speeds.

The Makergear M2? It uses honest-to-god linear guide rails (the primary reason it's build is so much more expensive, as you know if you've priced them, and as @toymaker can no doubt verify) *and* a lighter build plate *and* a solid steel frame. If you make the guide system rigid enough, there are a lot fewer ways for inertia to overpower the stepper motors at high speed the way the stock Robo settings so often fail.

I'm not saying that a comparably priced CoreXY/H-bot printer should be ignored, but the OP asked about the Makergear M2.

Of course I'm going to say the Makergear M2 is a far better printer than the Robo3D. Unless you're confusing Makergear with Makerbot, I don't know why you're arguing against this.

The word "better" may not be a quantitative measure of value, but that's irrelevant since what was asked was literally whether there was a qualitative difference between the machines.

Is the Makergear M2 a better printer than the Robo3d that justifies the price difference? Yes.

Literally any printer in that price range will outperform the Robo3D. The style of the design is less important than the quality of the components once you start talking about multi-thousand-dollar printers.

A better comparison would be the Original Prusa i3 MK2. Similar price point to the Robo3D, but still a machine that outperforms the Robo in every way that matters to a 3d printing hobbyist.