by "shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
Published 03/15/2017 at 14:20
by "shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
Published 03/15/2017 at 14:20
Tags: 3D printing
STARS: 1
Small child playing with Tonkas for your time.
I know we have some 3D printer users here. I’ve got a couple Makerbot Replicator 2 printers at school that have been OK, but I’m not thrilled with and certainly don’t want to give them any more money. Speaking of money my district has some of it to equip our three middle schools with additional printers. I’ve got at the absolute most $8k we can spend, preferably closer to $7k, to equip all three schools with another printer or two.
We use PLA, and make lots of small parts. Reliability is the most important factor to me, followed by quickness of printing. There are two I’m looking at based on recommendations of other teachers.
First are these Orions . They’ve had these for 4 or 5 years at the high school in our district and have been pretty happy with them. They’re cheap enough that I could get two for each of our schools and still have money to make a nice big PLA order. The design of them seems a bit weird to me, and the build plate is rather small. While we really don’t make big things, I do often like to make a bunch of small things at once.
The other is an Ultimaker 2. My old high school shop/CAD teacher got one of these recently, and has been pretty happy with it. They’re a lot more expensive though, so we could only get one each. He hasn’t had it a long time either, so I don’t really know about it’s overall reliability.
Does anybody have any input on either of these machines, or have a different machine to recommend?
"random001" (random001)
03/15/2017 at 14:43, STARS: 2
I would look at the Fusion3 printers, they look great, and seem to have great results for a really acceptable price, and most importantly open source materials, but the price is higher. They’re really great people though, so I would still contact them and see if they have an education discount or something.
https://www.fusion3design.com/
Avoid Airwolf3d like the plague.
I’ve had a Monoprice printer for a while, and it’s been really nice. Their higher end one gets decent reviews, and parts are available quickly from them.
https://www.monoprice.com/product?c_id=107&cp_id=10724&cs_id=1072403&p_id=15710&seq=1&format=2
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
03/15/2017 at 15:03, STARS: 0
Thanks! I will check both of those out, and definitely avoid Airwolf3D.
"benjrblant" (benjblant)
03/15/2017 at 15:06, STARS: 1
Lulzbot is pretty great. The company is 100% open source- their server is updated to the website every 15 minutes and they only use open source software. You can download and print any hardware updates for your machine. They’re easily serviceable and well built with a sizable print capacity and dozens of compatible materials. Downside is that they can be quite technical, upside is great customer support.
Avoid the big names- Makerbot, Dremel, 3D Systems. They’re generally harder to service and use proprietary parts.
I’ve worked at several 3D printing companies and have experience with numerous machines.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
03/15/2017 at 15:07, STARS: 0
Thanks!
"tromoly" (tromoly)
03/15/2017 at 15:10, STARS: 1
Monoprice mini,
here’s a review from Hackaday
.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
03/15/2017 at 15:40, STARS: 0
You’re the second to recommend Monoprice. It’s hard to believe printers this cheap can be any good, but the reviews are making me take them as a serious option.
"tromoly" (tromoly)
03/15/2017 at 16:09, STARS: 0
The folks at Hackaday know their 3D printers, for them to give it a good review it has to be decent. I havven’t picked one up because I need a larger print volume, I’ve been tempted at that price though.
"Spoon II" (Spoon_II)
03/15/2017 at 16:45, STARS: 0
I was going to recommend the same one. I actually own one, and while I’ve modded it slightly with a glass bed, the print quality is actually very impressive. The only concern for you might be that the print bed is pretty tiny. But, I’ve also heard good things about the higher up models in the Monoprice line. Could be worth a look.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
03/15/2017 at 17:47, STARS: 1
If we get a Monoprice, we’ll get the bigger version.
"AestheticsInMotion" (aestheticsinmotion)
03/15/2017 at 20:30, STARS: 1
Let me first say that I’ve never used one, so no personal experience. However Adam, the dude who writes the blog I linked to (and is by far the most well-known and respected Miata DIY guru of the last 10 years) has steered me right many other times with tool and car part recommendations. He’s the kind of dude to research products religiously before taking the plunge.
Looks like he went with a Prussia I3 mk2. Whatever you decide, be sure to post about it! Might finally convince some of us folk on the fence to buy a 3d printer
http://revlimiter.net/blog/2017/03/3d-printer-ramblings/
"Fusion3" (fusion3)
03/16/2017 at 06:46, STARS: 1
Yes, Fusion3 has a 5% discount for all education users (students, schools, teachers) and additional volume discounts when outfitting schools, makerspaces and labs.
"random001" (random001)
03/16/2017 at 07:28, STARS: 0
Hah! That you, Chip?
"random001" (random001)
03/16/2017 at 07:38, STARS: 0
I’ve been using the middle tier one from Monoprice (though I only have the V2, not the plus, that’s new) as my primary printer for a while now. It’s a rebranded Wanaho (maybe?) like all their printers, but they do tweak a few things on them. It’s been really great. I need a little more spring on my bed for leveling force, but other than that, it’s been awesome.
I made this for my boy, all printed in single layer thickness.
"random001" (random001)
03/16/2017 at 07:39, STARS: 0
Oh, also, for PLA, look into microcenter . I now use their materials exclusively. Less than $20 a Kg, most are $15, and I’ve had really great results.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
03/16/2017 at 11:23, STARS: 0
WOW! That light fixture is amazing!
You got me thinking, I wonder if it’s possible to put stronger springs under the bed of my Makerbots. The outer quadrants of that table are completely useless because it goes out of level.
We’re strongly considering the higher end Monoprice. The other two teachers and I have to decide Monday what we’re going to buy.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
03/16/2017 at 11:24, STARS: 0
Whoa! That’s cheap! They even have an actual location nearby.
"random001" (random001)
03/16/2017 at 11:53, STARS: 1
Thanks! I am pretty happy with how it turned out.
You can get either stronger springs or longer springs. I need longer one’s, since one corner extends the spring all the way out before it’s QUITE level on all four, so it’s just sitting at minimal tension.
I know the build volume isn’t massive, but I’ve heard really good things about it. Also contact them, they do bulk pricing and likely also have an education discount. I love me some monoprice.
"random001" (random001)
03/16/2017 at 11:53, STARS: 1
Pop in, their stores usually have a bunch of 3D printers on display as well.
"random001" (random001)
03/20/2017 at 15:17, STARS: 0
You guys make a decision??