Is reprap difficult for non engineers?

Hey guys,

I was wondering whether building a reprap from scratch, using instructions, is too hard for a non technical person to do?

What kind of skills do I need to make a reprap from scratch by myself?

Can you build it? Sure. But be prepared for a longer road than if you built something from a Kit first.

You could start with something like a full Prusa Kit from maker Gear or something similar, or a makerbot or a ultimachine or something. In my experience, that is a quicker way to get up and running as they've already sourced all the parts and usually have their own good directions.

The visual directions that I think Gary Hodgeson (I probably got his name wrong) did are great if you are building a Prusa too.

I personally started with a makerbot and got it running in about 4 long evenings after work. After it was done I immediately started printing parts for a Prusa and sourcing parts. So many options for each item (Different electronics, firmware, motors, extruders (hot and cold end), etc) that it took much longer to get my Prusa nearly completed as every couple days I'd realize I needed something else I haven't ordered yet.

I am somewhat of a Techie as I have an engineering background, but I firmly believe just about anyone can build a Prusa if they have enough patience. It's just quicker to build the first one from a Kit, no matter what kit that may be in my opinion. Less decisions to make along the way and all the parts in a single order will save you a ton of time.

I found the sourcing (reliable suppliers) and the electronics (I choose a DIY kit...) to be the more tricky parts.

I have pretty much zero engineering experience (I've tinkered with lego, k'nex and meccano but thats about it).

Looking back if I had all the tools, parts and pre-assembled electronics I needed from the start I could have gotten by build to print stage within about 4 evenings or 1 weekend.

The physical build itself is, if you follow Visual Guides, is like building something with lego, k'nex or meccano. Just follow the steps and you can't go to wrong.

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My Reprap blog

jds-reprap.blogspot.com

Sourcing your own parts and imagining the build is almost as much fun as putting it together IMHO.

You'll learn valuable knowledge along the way. When it actually comes time to print and calibrate you won't be flooding the forum with questions.

You can put one together for less $$$.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/29/2011 07:29AM by jkomp316.

I became interested in building a Mendel about a year ago. Ordering parts from all over the world, I can't tell you how much fun it was to get home from work every nite to see what new stuff had arrived (note: and what stuff I bought that I didn't need or was wrong). After more trials and tests than I care to admit ( I think I built 10 to 15 hot ends before I finally broke down and bought one that worked immediately), I printed my first pieces last week. I wouldn't trade this experience for anything. In short, in my opinion, if you goal is to be making stuff immediatly, I would suggest buying a kit. The advantages here are all the stuff fits together and just works. In addition, I think if you're not sure what you're doing, it's probably a lot cheaper to buy a kit the first time around. If instead your goal is the journey then I would suggest making as much of one of these as you can.
My background is as a natural scientist and computer guy who has always been interested in not just programming a computer but having it do something. This project certainly fills that bill. The forums are just great for getting help. People in here just won't give up on you. Now that I am printing, my goal is to build a Prusa and get it to work with a solar panel. Hopefully taking this around to farmers markets and energy fairs will generate interest (and maybe some work) in my next new endeavor alternate energy. The ideal would be to have a hopper filled with recycled material, extruding filament used by the reprap and powered by the sun. Now that's a statement!! Good luck in your reprap adventure.

I've built an Original Mendel from a kit and made several Prusa from scratch printing my own parts. I taught myself CAD so I could re design a couple of parts. I'm no engineer but I am a carpenter which helps I think as I am quite good at visualising things

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Experimenting in 3D in New Zealand

I am a software developer, so pretty technical I guess. But I didn't had much experience with electronics or building robots when I started. It was a long road, but mostly due to me wanting it to take it step by step. I don't think it is really hard to build a reprap, it will take a lot of time an aptience though.

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reprapworld.com
PLA, ABS, PETG multiple colors (3 and 1.75 mm) €16,49 / kg
Megatronics 3.0 €79.99 / Minitronics €37,19

Its difficult even for engineers! :-)

Your best bet, if you find it daunting is to buy a kit, that will cut your research time by a whole lot. I am a mechanical engineer and I find it easy to build one but the difficult part is to mix and match what goes into the build when you start buying parts. Electronics, bushings, linear bearings, hotends, extruders, SAE or Metric, endstops, firmware, etc etc.

All this talk about kits makes me think I should start selling them...

Jkomp316, if you decide to do this and make it a sub $300 kit that can be easily modified later, I can sell a bunch of them for you. lol

I am a software developer by profession, and I decided to go the scratch build route. I enjoyed hunting down the parts and watching all of the packages arrive. I made some mistakes - yes - but ultimately am certain that I took the right approach. It''s not for everyone, but it was extremely satisfying for me.

Exactly, its not the destination but the journey!

As someone who is designing and building my very first printer, and from scratch, I can tell you not to fear the complexity. The process of working out the details for your self with the help of the people on this forum is one that can result in you ending up with your own creation that A. no one else has made, and B. you understand more thoroughly than if you had gotten it any other way. Now to be sure it is far more time consuming to be sure and you will need to place as many as 35 or more orders for parts and materials before you have what you need. You may make mistakes. You will have to do a lot more research, and not every last detail may even be posted. It will force you to learn about programming and electronics, as well as engineering. In the end, you will have more than a thing. You will gain a much deeper understanding of how it works.

You can do it!

Just take one thing at a time, note also that there are only a few key things to construction;

* You need Printed parts, check out E-bay for those; technically if you have the parts you have a machine.
* You need hardware from the hardware store, also known as "Vitamins".
* You need electronics, for most people this is one of the more tricky things to figure out, hence why I state that you just need to take on things as you get to them, the printed circuit boards like "Sanguinololu" or "RAMPS" even have writing on them to help you wire things properly.

you will need to troubleshoot the odd thing but there's lots of support online, and it's not easier for an engineer to build, they have/ had to learn how too.

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[whatisacnc.com]

i have 0 engineering background, ive always been good at taking things apart, vcr's and whatnot, i worked as an assembly tech to build tensile testers for half a year, and now i work for a cable company as a tech.

i jumped right in after drooling over 3d videos on youtube and pretty much taught myself over a period of 6 months.

you can do it! stick to it, its not impossible to learn but it is a craft of love