Several years ago I leapt enthusiastically into the realm of 3D printing by buying a massive, expensive delta-type printer. I had to put it together myself, which was fun, but after that I struggled to get it to print well. Even simply trying to get the prints to stick to the bed were difficult, leading me to add huge brims to all my parts which were a pain to cut off afterward. Eventually I gave up fiddling with it and it’s been gathering dust ever since.
I know that a lot of you treat the hobby as an opportunity for endless tinkering and optimization, which is great, but I think I’ve realized that what I’d prefer is something that just works out of the box with a minimum of adjustment.
Low-cost and no-hassle kind of work against each other here. Which is more important?
I’d say no-hassle is more important, in that case. I just don’t want to go spending $1000 on a printer again
What kind of printing (material, use-case etc.) do you think you’ll be doing, and what size do you want to be able to print?
Mostly little gadgets, mechanical things, or small figures or terrain pieces for wargaming, so I’d like a high level of detail (I’m fully aware that it won’t be nearly as good as a resin printer). I’d like to be able to print with PLA, ABS, ASA, and PETG, and envelope doesn’t need to be huge, probably about 10” at most.
I think my experience is roughly parallel to yours. I bit the bullet and got an X1C and with a couple of exceptions (mostly my own mistakes) it has been largely hassle-free. Having a reliable printer is actually allowing me to tackle the project of rebuilding my Anycubic Predator into the machine I always wished it was. That massive build volume will be great, but I have something I don’t have to fiddle with to make the parts.
As for the Bambu/Chinese paranoia, I think it’s overstated considering most people here are probably typing their replies on a device thoroughly infiltrated by Apple or Google or both. Do a few prints to make sure everything works properly and switch to Orca Slicer and local network mode if you’re concerned.
YM (and your fear of China) MV
Bambu A1
I recently got into this and picked up the A1 with AMS. It’s been a lot of fun to play with and other than the routine maintenance like cleaning the bed and lubing the rails, it’s been zero trouble.
How much of a difference does the AMS make in terms of a general printing? If someone wasn’t planning to do multi color prints often or at all would it still be worth it?
I think Prusa is a good brand to go with
Second hand though would help, wouldn’t be surprised if we see a bunch of mk3s and maybe even some mk4 with their new printer coming out. I still use my mk3s pretty frequently, made a bunch of mods to it, still chugs along.
made a bunch of mods to it, still chugs along.
Ooh, that’s a good point. I had a similar experience. Specifically, I didn’t really know what I needed when I bought my Prusa, so I didn’t get all the features. I was pleased to be able to buy/print and mod in a few of the features I was missing in my initial purchase.
I’d personally look for a used Prusa i3 MK3[S[+]]. Part of that is personal bias, it’s what I still print with (specifically the MK3S variant, I haven’t bothered to upgrade it to +), but in all the years I’ve had it it’s been an absolute workhorse and has very much thrived on the copious amount of neglect I’ve given it. The only things I’ve ever done to it are install firmware updates and occasionally smear some grease on the smooth rods with a finger. Still, every time I print with it, it just works.
Prusa just announced a new printer so there might be a little wave of them being put up for sale.
Edit: You mentioned that you want to print ASA, which AFAIK requires an enclosure. The MK3 is annoying to put in an enclosure because you have to move the power supply outside the enclosure. Though the printer that Prusa just announced is enclosed and is < $1000 (just) if that puts it in the “low-cost” category for you. https://www.prusa3d.com/product/prusa-core-one-kit-2/
The implication is that if you want something of quality you are going to expect to pay for that quality.
If it’s cheap then corners were cut. Several years ago the tech was just as you described. Not perfect. I bought an ender 3 pro and it wasn’t perfect. I sank a lot of money into it to get an “acceptable” result. It sounds like you selected hard-mode and chose a Delta. I can’t imagine what you went through. I hope you’re ok.
I recently got back into the hobby, and decided to spend more for a better quality printer. Prusa was the Cadillac back when I was toiling in Ender upgrades. What I have found is that newer printers and and slicer software have made a drastic leap forward. Things are markedly better all around.
I chose Prusa, but it was a tough choice. I probably would have been just as happy with Bambu, but I would have paid more.
Based on my journey I suggest you spend more for quality. Right now that’s Bambu lab and prusa. Prusa is behind, but the customer service is there. Bambu is going through some legal troubles, so that is something to consider.
I think because it’s been a a minute since you’ve dabbled you’ll find things have improved. Maybe don’t buy a delta. The Prusa MK4s bed slinger is the fastest bed slinger. The Bambu core XY is faster and comes with an enclosure. Prusa just announced a Core XY but it wont ship for months and it has smaller in build dimensions.
As far as budget printers go, I haven’t wasted any time looking into them. I wasn’t gonna mess around and find out this time. Maybe there is something out there that would make you happy, but I’m not going to gamble and suggest one.
That’s a fair assessment, and based on the responses and some of my own research I think I’ll be going for a Prusa, maybe second hand.
The only reason I chose the delta was because the place I was working at the time had one for prototyping, and I was familiar with it so I thought I could get it to work well at home. I didn’t realize it would be “hard mode” until too late, haha.
