Hey,
Has anyone bought any of the ~ $200 3D printers available on gearbest etc?
I'd like to be able to print really small parts (max about 10cm x 10cm x 10cm), I am aware of 3D printing services but I have around $200 worth of printing to do so If I can spend a tad more and get a reasonable printer I'd rather do that.
From my searching the monoprice seems like a good option at this price point but delivery to Australia is a killer.
Thanks
Thanks, looks like the Wanhao can be had a bit cheaper than the monoprice.
Do you know if Monoprice do anything other than rebadge them?
Any other brands I should look at if I wanted to spend less?
Wanhao also ships direct (free) from China. I bought the Duplicator i3 V2.1 from https://ultimate3dprintingstore.com/. I don't know if Wanhao does direct retail.
I believe Monoprice Maker Select V2 is a straight rebadge.
These are all 'clones' of the open-source Prusa i3 RepRap: https://reprap.org/wiki/Prusa_i3. The original/official Prusa is much better (as I understand it, better build quality, sturdier, better hotend, better build plate, etc.), but costs a lot more.
There are cheaper ones. I chose the Wanhao/Monoprice because it was pre-assembled (easier) and generally well-reviewed as a cheap starter printer. It was also rebadged by ALDI for their some Cocoon Create models.
The Anet A8 is much cheaper but has a plastic frame and comes as parts. The TEVO Tarantula is alright (needs a mod or two), and cheaper than the Wanhao Duplicator, but again comes as parts. The Creality CR-10 is supposed to be a fair bit better, but costs more.
What kind of parts are you printing? That will also impact your decision.
Thanks, I'll setup some price alerts on these.
Mostly I want to print parts for home automation type things. Stuff like this: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2400658
@No:
Ah, those are probably fine. Not particularly complex nor high-strength - PLA would probably work for them. If you really want cheap, you could also look at the Mini printers. If printing speed is a concern (i.e. you want faster speeds/movement), consider an all-metal hotend and a larger nozzle size - the limiting factor is how quickly the hotend can heat the plastic.
The only mod I would recommend as an absolute must (with cheap printers that have a heated bed) is the MOSFET mod. Basically, buy a board with a MOSFET on it off eBay, print a mount, and use it to control the bed's heating element so the majority of the current is not flowing though the control board/connector.
@elusive: There are so many printers it does my head in! A mini printer sounds good for what I am doing. Is there a popular mini printer I can look up? I'll google the MOSFET before I hit buy, thanks!
@No: Unfortunately, I'm not very familiar with the mini ones. I think I looked at them and decided against it on the off chance I'd want to print something larger - or print multiple objects in one go. The mini ones seem more niche.
Whichever you choose, I recommend you search around and make sure it's reasonably popular. Especially if people have created mods for it, etc.. It really helps when you're trying to troubleshoot and other people have been there before.
@elusive: Can you recommend which filament I should buy ? I assume I need something decent rather than the cheapest on aliexpress. Thanks!
@No: To be honest, I just use the cheap stuff (PLA and ABS) from HobbyKing and it works okay. Some people will recommend better brands, but I can't help you there; it's been a while since I last looked (still got a pretty big box to go through!).
Just make sure you have the right material and the right diameter for your printer (1.75mm is most common). You might want to print a temperature calibration tower to figure out the best print temperature for the filament.
You might also want to do some research on filament storage. It boils down to keeping it dry (they absorb moisture from the air) or using it quickly (within 3 weeks if you don't have good dry storage, silica gel in a ziplock or vacuum sealed).
Anet a8 has a bad rep at the moment due to one burning up and taking a laptop with it recently !! The aldi cocoon create touch are great printers with 200mmx200mmx180mm height … But would be a hard time finding one in stock and the prices can vary from $200 - $500 … Most printers in that range would need tinkering to get it to print good … All I had to do was level the also printer and the prints turned out pretty good
Apparently the Cocoon Create Touch is a rebadged Wanhao Duplicator i3 Plus. Main difference between Plus and non-Plus is the Plus integrates the control box under the build plate with a touchscreen instead of the control wheel (and costs more).
Back when I got the non-Plus i3 I decided to avoid the Plus because it uses the space under the build plate, limiting some mods. And it costs more. That said, it's a decent unit.
Oh, and whichever one you get - you should look into the MOSFET mod/upgrade. Makes the heated bed safer to use (otherwise the power eventually burns out the connector on the control board). The issue with the A8 that caught fire was the bed's heating element coming loose… not sure what you can really do about that, maybe make sure the cables don't snag/rub as the plate moves…
Ender 3. By Creality. Best 3d printer in that price bracket. Extremely sturdy and great print quality.
Ooh, is that a new model? It looks nice, especially if it can keep Creality quality at that price.
I'm of the opinion that the sub $500AUD printer market is filled with barely adequate printers, that have really the absolute minimum required to get started, with little thought to long term reliability or overall experience. If you're looking for something cheap to hopefully be adequate for a few printer, for sure you can get away with an Ender 3, they are good value and you'll learn a lot along the way. But if you're looking at the difference between a cheap chinese printer, and a well engineered printer from elsewhere, there are many areas:
Many of the cheaper chinese printer really over promise, and are built to a price, rather than to a standard. Some manufacturers are better than others, for sure, but there are not many I can recommend without some reservation.
AnyCubic i3 Mega is a good printer to look into. They have also just launched their Chiron printer which delivers amazing prints out of the box.
I second the recommendations for the Wanhao duplicator i3 touch - perhaps look for a second hand unit which often will have many of the upgrades already done to it.
I understand that one approach is to but the cheapest tool you can, and then upgrade down the track - just don't have your expectations too high and you'll be fine.
Thanks all, managed to grab the Ender 3 for USD $179.87 from gearbest.
10cm cubed is actually pretty big for printing. Expect prints to take many hours, and have warping issues if you use ABS.
If you like Monoprice, look at Wanhao. They are the ones Monoprice rebadge.