Printer for Around £200

[asimmd]

Hi All
First post so go easy on me.

As usual I don't have a clue which printer to get.
I have just watched a review on youtube for the Prusa i3 Original Mk2
but I don't want to spend that much for me first foray.

I will use it for things like R/C car parts wheel rims etc probably
plant pots for the wife and generaly anything that looks nice.

I have been looking at the Anet A8 but your thoughts on this would be appreciated.

Recommendations would be helpful.

Thanks in adavance.

Alan

[iDig3Dprinting]

You are not going to get much quality for £200.

The Prusa i3 is a very good design so anything based on that will work well. The main difference between the prusa i3 printers available is the quality of the components. If you are going to use it for RC components you are going to want to get a printer with a good heated bed. Ideally you want one that can print Carbon fibre filaments like Colorfabb XT-cf20, or at the very least one that prints ABS well, preferably one with an enclosed build chamber.

[asimmd]

Thanks for the reply.
From what you say it looks like I need to increase my budget.
I'll have another look.

Alan

[iDig3Dprinting]

Hi Alan,

I think if you want to print functional parts for RC you should probably consider it. The other option is to buy cheap, play around with it and see if it is for you and then think about investing. Certainly a decent machine is not in the £200 price bracket.

Have a look at our website, this will give you a good idea of what is about, we have no specific Prusa i3, although a lot of printers are based on this design, for example the XYZ printing Mini is essentially a Prusa i3 in disguise.

[asimmd]

Thank you for the info.
Its difficult being new and not knowing what's what.

I have also looked at;

Creality CR-10

Anycubic i3

I was considering your suggestion about buying cheap to see if I like it but that
would be say £200 I could put towards a decent machine.

From what I read and watch on youtube there are good and bad points for most printers
so a bit of inside info from people who have been there before is very useful.

Alan

[iDig3Dprinting]

I don't know the machines your are talking about. they are all versions of the i3 and probably as good as any other entry level i3. You will have to google other peoples experiences. for example there is a forum on thingiverse for the anycubic ( https://www.thingiverse.com/groups/anyc ... ega/page:1 ) . Its main issues are no manufacturer support and the firmware is a closed system.

an i3 will work if you make sure that you get a heated bed. You may find that you will have to get another ATX power unit to power it separately in order to reach good bed temperatures or at least explore some sort of insulation to maintain temperatures. The advantage is that you can print most things on it if you have a decent hot end.

ideally you want to be able to get upto 260-280C for the hot end and, to print ABS, to be able to get the bed upto 110C.

There are so many people designing parts for different models of printers and upgrades that you could probably improve on what you have.

Bear in mind that these models are going to be exactly plug'n play, for that you are going to need a system with it's own bundled proprietary software generally.

You could try something like the Da Vinci Pro, This is plug'n play but is also open filament so you can use different filament materials and makes. Although the results you get will vary with make and material and you would have to experiment with the settings.

[asimmd]

Thank you.
I have been watching YouTube all afternoon and just about all the machines
benefit from upgrades including the CR-10.

To be honest a lot of users of the Anet A8 have been very pleased with their machines
and again improvements are possible with the updates available on Thingiverse.

It seems that a lot of the fun of having a 3D printer is tinkering about
with it and doing the upgrades.

I have still not decided which way to Anet or CR-10

Alan

[iDig3Dprinting]

If you are than way inclined it is good fun tinkering with the machine. We build our own printers, there is a guide on the website derived from our experiences.

If you do have that mindset then I think an i3 kit will work for you as you can just upgrade it. There are so many upgrades. But saying that if the you do want to be able to get access to the firmware if you are planning on upgrading otherwise you will have problems down the line.

[asimmd]

Thanks again
I build R/C scale model cars that can sometimes require tinkering and a
lot of the appeal of the kit is to take something that has the potential to be
really good and make it better.

I have looked at sites such as Thingiverse and seen the upgrades that are available.
It all looks very interesting.

**** Well I have just found out that 3D printers give off toxic fumes and I have cronic
Asthma so any obnoxious odour will cause me breathing difficulties so sadly I wont
be getting a 3D printer.*****

Alan

[iDig3Dprinting]

There are printers out there fitted with HEPA air filters, for example the UP MINI 2 , and although out of your price bracket, The UPBOX. I realise the UPBOX is probably no where near the price you wanted to pay but it is probably mor functional for you.

I obviously cannot say for sure that this would allow you to do 3D printing but the air filter should greatly reduce any impact.