Need help deciding if I should get this printer!

Hello! I've been eyeing 3D printing for a couple years now and I'm ready to get one. Expect for that I'm on a budget, which is why I need help. XD

I really want to get this 3D printer, expecially because of its 210mm build volume. But it's also chinese, and it's a DIY kit with no instructions.

First of all, does anyone have any idea where I can find instructions to build this thing? Is there an official name for it?

Thanks!

This is the printer: [www.ebay.com]

There aren't that difficult to put together, but you need to ask the seller for a manual.

Don't expect too much for that printer, but it might be a good starting point.

I would avoid anything with an acrylic frame. It won't be rigid and that will result in print quality problems.

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Ultra MegaMax Dominator 3D printer: [drmrehorst.blogspot.com]

Thanks. I asked the seller, Maybe he'll have something. Probably not though.

I think the acrylic should be ok for now. Maybe I can print some reinforcements.

So, if I don't get this, what's the best thing I can get for under $300, with at least 200mm of building space? And no experience in building electronics?

You will need to gain some experience with the printer electronics, get that one or any other one that have a building manual. Don't worry about the print quality just get to understand how they work and once you know you will be able to built your own using most of the hardware from that printer.

Best advice though will be changing extruder and hotend ASAP.

So, I've learned that ALL of those exact 3d printers (the one on ebay) come with Zero instructions. Also, Who knows when it comes to finding instructions for such a generic printer?

Would I be better off getting a more common printer, like a GeeeTech ( [www.ebay.com]) , that has instructions, and a little less build space?

It's hard to answer the question without knowing you, your skills, and your tools and equipment. What works for someone with a lot of experience might be miserable for someone who doesn't. Only you can determine your level of comfort with a particular task. If the thought of assembling something successfully without a step by step guide, a troubleshooting section and a support staff ready to answer questions makes you think twice, the simple answer is that you will not find it at that budget level.
Regardless of the model printer you do eventually choose you also need to learn how to print and slice, possibly design your own objects. Each of these has it's own challenges, and will add to the learning curve of a new machine. You might consider looking for a local user group or maker space if you have one handy. Many libraries around here also have them, you may be able to find someone knowledgeable this way and they may be able to recommend a model that they have built and might be able to help you with.

There is a world of knowledge online, you can watch all the videos about assembling a prusa i3 and apply it to that printer. Then main thing is to finished without leftover parts.........

If you want to go that direction,

And if you want a prusa i3 i would advice you this one, i know it's more expensive than the one you showed, but it's worth it, you would definitely regret buying the acrylic sooner or later. (377 us dollars) : [www.ebay.com]

It's full metal, much more stable and it has no printed parts, which is a good thing trust me.
And other then that , it just looks better

To make it work quite well you will have to change some thing's, like a different hot-end ( e3d v6 or v6 lite), quite possible the extruder (or new drive gear in any case).

After that i would definitely buy new controller's, because you are on a budget i suggest : Arduino mega + Ramps 1.4 + drv8825, (33 us dollars total) [www.ebay.com]

As for the manual, this printer should be more straightforward to assemble than the original one, take a manual from some "random" prusa i3 seller and some pictures of you's assembled, and you should be fine.

Edited 6 time(s). Last edit at 05/25/2016 09:34PM by Govahnator.

Is this an updated CTC Euroway? The advertisement looks very similar to CTC's advertisement on eBay of the Euroway including the eagle. If it is a CTC Euroway or any CTC printer, stay away. My Euroway went bad piece by piece. It came with a bad GT2560 clone, thermistor, and LCD display. The company that sold it to me sent me another GT2560 clone board and it burnt out along with the heaterplate. I never got a replacement for the second GT2560 clone and the thermistor, LCD display and heater plate I just bought on my own. The printer was flimsy and printed with a lot of Z-axis wobble. I tried to put the remainder of the "usable" parts on a P3Steel frame but found that the 3d printer head carriage had cracked through and was only held together by the x-axis smooth rods. I decided to put the thing back together and try to return it.

May I suggest that you look at the Geeetech Aluminum Prusa I3 3D Printer kit. Though I do not have one, it has the main feature I look for....a metal frame. Though it is aluminum and not steel, it should work well. My present printer on the P3Steel frame has many Geeetech parts, including the x-axis parts (which are made of stamped steel and not 3d printed plastic), stepper motors, the MK8 extruder, the Iduino (Geeetech brand of Arduino compatable Mega board) and RAMPS board. which seem to be holding up well. I like the Iduino board/RAMPS 1.4 board over the GT2560 board and other boards Geeetech puts out for 3d printing in that I find the Induino/RAMPS 1.4 combination is more expandable.

Geeetech also provides good instructions. Sometimes with a little Chinglish, but still usable.

Geeetech's website is www.Geeetech.com but you can find this printer often on e-Bay a little cheaper. The list price is $298 on Geeetech's website.
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Stuart

P.S. Attached is a picture of my Prusa I3 with P3Steel frame and Geeetech parts.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/26/2016 12:44AM by Lymphomaniac1.

Thanks guys!

I'm very mechanical. While I'm really good at building things such as go karts, I have no understanding of motherboards or drivers. However, I've repaired drones and I've taken apart and reassembled undress of electronics as a kid, so that may give you an idea of my experience level.

Sounds like acrylic is crap, so I think a Geeetech aluminum printer would work fine. However, I'm about to buy a dji phantom 3, so you might not hear from me for a bit.

(I'm just a teenager, by the way. May give you a better idea of my situation)

My main concern is instructions, but if I can find some decent instructions, I can do it.

Thanks you guys!

Although, this is interesting:

" My acrylic frame is just fine. I mounted to a piece of particle board, with zip ties holding down the frame to the board and zip ties holding the threaded rods of the build plate frame. I've had NO problems. My longest print is 13hours and no skips, misaligned layers or artifacts. " - Found on this forum

That's the joy of the internet, you can find a myriad different opinions. I would tend to agree that plexi isn't an ideal frame material, but clearly some people manage ok with it. At least for a while. Same with the mk8 style extruders/hotends that most of these clones ship with. A lot of people don't like them, but I found them quite reliable if you stick to 1.75mm filament. I switched for a combination of bloody mindedness and the somewhat dumb idea of being able to print both 1.75 and 3mm filament.

The dji sounds like fun. Have you seen the printable drones on Thingiverse? I couldn't believe the videos with [www.thingiverse.com] - I had no idea that DIY drones had that level of speed and manoeuvrability!