3D printer thread - what have you been printing? - Creationism Corner

This is not really a post about printers, but my dad got surgery last night and is OK :-). As I spent the night waiting for him to call me, I made the android software for my robot, and can now control it over wifi with my tablet, with realtime video stream :-) [t]http://imgur.com/APsFChp.jpg[/t]

That's pretty impressive. I think I'll do some robotics soon, I'm currently in the process of printing the [url=http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:6432]Bathtub U-Boat[/url]. Massive, massive print.

Whom here has a 3D printer of at least 8x8x8 work space and would be willing to print something I need? I'm decently competent in AutoDesk Inventor and can get you a drawing of what I'd like in that, I'll provide a better description if there's interest in helping- I'm working on a project and need a small plastic structure that would hold a glass bottle next to a bigger glass bottle. Neither are larger than 8 inches tall, and it would just be a skeleton frame type thing. I would, obviously, be willing to pay for time, materials, and shipping. Shooting me a PM would be best.

[url]http://www.zbrushcentral.com/showthread.php?177581-Bringing-back-an-old-friend&p=1068372[/url] [url]http://www.zbrushcentral.com/showthread.php?177581-Bringing-back-an-old-friend/page29[/url] woah that popeye print

Ok, so i need a recommendation. What is the best 3D-Printer i can get for the best price?

We need more specifications than that. What matters to you? (print quality, build quality of the printer, how difficult it is to use, etc.)

[QUOTE=joshjet;43865202]We need more specifications than that. What matters to you? (print quality, build quality of the printer, how difficult it is to use, etc.)[/QUOTE] I just want a generalized list of printers with sizable prints, decent print quality, that are somewhat easy to use, for the lowest price.

For something more on the hobbist side of the scale, you can build a [url=http://reprap.org/wiki/RepRap]reprap[/url]. Homebuilt, open source designs. Most models are dirt cheap, and can be built for ~400-500 USD. The point of the project was to make a 3D printer that could print parts for itself. They're fairly good, but they don't have the print quality of something more expensive. In my opinion, this is the cheapest option that would be worth it. I don't quite trust the looks of [url=http://printrbot.com/shop/printrbot-simple/]printrbots,[/url] they seem like the build quality would be really shoddy and prone to failures, but I've never owned one so I wouldn't know. They are pretty cheap though, especially for a baseline model. Moving up, I would look at the [url=http://www.solidoodle.com/]solidoodle[/url] line. Full disclosure, I bought one of these and had to replace a cable right off the bat, but it only took me under 20 minutes, and after that, the machine was working flawlessly. I have a solidoodle 3, (frozensoda has either a 2 or 3, I can't remember), and I love the thing. I paid ~900 USD with shipping and all, and the build quality of the printer (other than the faulty cable) is really good. The models it puts out are really nice too, it can go down to .1mm z layer height. With some sanding or a vapor treatment, models printed at that layer height are almost indiscernible as 3D printed parts. My printer is actually coming off of a 26 hour print right now, two U-Boat pieces done at a layer height of .1mm. The Solidoodle 2 has a print area of 6x6x6 inches, and the model with a heated bed (you want that, trust me) is around $600. The 3 has a build area of 8x8x8 in, but other than some redesigned parts, I can't see much difference between the 2 and the 3, I haven't really seen a 2 in real life though. The 4 is basically just the 3 with a nice enclosure, but I'm not sure if it would be worth the extra $200. If you really want to spend (too much) money, there's always the [url=http://store.makerbot.com/replicator2]replicator[/url] series from makerbot. They run about $2k though, and from the looks of it, their print quality is pretty much matched by a solidoodle 3. If you really want to buy a 3D printer for the cost of a decent used car though, that's up to you. There are a lot more than this, but these are the ones I know the most about. People in the thread will have other suggestions, I hope. Whatever you get though, you need to remember that tuning is the name of the game. You aren't going to get perfect models out of any hobbyist printer right off the bat, regardless of price. You're going to need to be able to put enough time into it to know what you're doing.

[QUOTE=joshjet;43866123]Information.[/QUOTE] Thanks alot, i'm really interested in the Solidoodle 2 pro, and it's looking like something i can afford.

joshjet though your post is really informative, I think its a shame that you state that repraps have lower print quality than commercial printers (Most printers are somewhat based on reprap, including solidoodle) A 400$ reprap kit cant be compared to a solidoodle of course, but still a few cheap upgrades can make your prints comparable to the commercial printers. Also, please show the U-boat when its done :-) That thing looks awesome.

[QUOTE=reeferdk;43872788]joshjet though your post is really informative, I think its a shame that you state that repraps have lower print quality than commercial printers (Most printers are somewhat based on reprap, including solidoodle) A 400$ reprap kit cant be compared to a solidoodle of course, but still a few cheap upgrades can make your prints comparable to the commercial printers. Also, please show the U-boat when its done :-) That thing looks awesome.[/QUOTE] Agreed, if you're willing to tinker with the build you can do all sorts of things and people are continuously designing new improved replacement parts to print. 0.1mm layer height is also relatively easily achievable.

Does anyone have a building guide for a RepRap? i want to try to make one, but i have no idea where to start.

[QUOTE=ZnT00;43873951]Does anyone have a building guide for a RepRap? i want to try to make one, but i have no idea where to start.[/QUOTE] [url]http://reprap.org/wiki/Build_A_RepRap[/url]

[QUOTE=metallics;43874219][url]http://reprap.org/wiki/Build_A_RepRap[/url][/QUOTE] I haven't found anyone in the US on the RepRap buyers guide that actually sells the Prusa i3 or the kit for it, i've never delved into the realm of hardware/software making before, so i need some serious counsel.

I definitely don't doubt that the repraps can reach solidoodle 3 quality or above, but I tend to be cautious about saying things I don't have proof for. The project in and of itself is pretty amazing, but the only reprap I've had experience with is a school built one that has been poorly maintained, to say the least. I haven't seen amazing quality from it, so that's why I said what I said. If you want a cheap 3D printer, I would definitely say build a reprap. Nothing else seems to be worth it. They can be a bit finicky at times though. [editline]12th February 2014[/editline] [QUOTE=ZnT00;43875762]I haven't found anyone in the US on the RepRap buyers guide that actually sells the Prusa i3 or the kit for it, i've never delved into the realm of hardware/software making before, so i need some serious counsel.[/QUOTE] This is the guy my school bought our Prusa V2 from: [url]http://www.makerfarm.com/index.php/prusa-8-i3-kit.html/[/url]

After my dad came back from the hospital he has been really occupied with making his own filament extruder: [video=youtube;9qaIDoLRYeI]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qaIDoLRYeI[/video]

[QUOTE=reeferdk;43894101]After my dad came back from the hospital he has been really occupied with making his own filament extruder: [/QUOTE] I really need to get one of these going myself. I'll probably just get one of these kits from elmoret tho [url]http://www.soliforum.com/forum/18/filastruder/[/url] [t]http://thingiverse-production.s3.amazonaws.com/renders/8e/a1/bb/33/04/WP_20130525_007_display_large.jpg[/t]

I printed a mushroom cloud ([url]http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:19478[/url]) the other day with clear PLA and no infill and put an RGB LED inside it and a neat little plug at the bottom for connecting it to an Arduino or something. [t]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/62766551/3D%20Printing/P2120142.jpg[/t] [t]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/62766551/3D%20Printing/P2120146.jpg[/t] [t]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/62766551/3D%20Printing/P2120149.jpg[/t] [editline]13th February 2014[/editline] I'm also starting to print an RC motorglider ([url]http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:56147[/url]) It will be my first multi part print and I'm excited to just see how it will turn out. Just got done printing one part of the wing as a test and it came out surprisingly strong. Much heavier than a foam equivalent would be but it should still easily provide enough lift to function well. [t]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/62766551/3D%20Printing/P2130187.jpg[/t] It's also my first print using the white PLA I bought a couple of months back and I really regret not using it sooner. This stuff is beautiful.

[QUOTE=HiddenMyst;43895160] I'm also starting to print an RC motorglider ([url]http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:56147[/url]) It will be my first multi part print and I'm excited to just see how it will turn out. Just got done printing one part of the wing as a test and it came out surprisingly strong. Much heavier than a foam equivalent would be but it should still easily provide enough lift to function well. [t]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/62766551/3D%20Printing/P2130187.jpg[/t] It's also my first print using the white PLA I bought a couple of months back and I really regret not using it sooner. This stuff is beautiful.[/QUOTE] Good luck with that, lab I'm at tried to make a printable plane from pla, it's just not the right material. one too heavy, two warps in the sun. try nylon if you can get that filament to work.

[QUOTE=Ithon;43901000]Good luck with that, lab I'm at tried to make a printable plane from pla, it's just not the right material. one too heavy, two warps in the sun. try nylon if you can get that filament to work.[/QUOTE] Maybe you could print a thin frame and then try and cover it with something lighter, a la canvas and wood ww2 planes?

[QUOTE=metallics;43901419]Maybe you could print a thin frame and then try and cover it with something lighter, a la canvas and wood ww2 planes?[/QUOTE] By all means go ahead and have fun exploring this space, I haven't found the white paper on this (or at least I didn't notice I found it), but they printed the frame into the plane and used nylon powder to print it. [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRDg4UB9Ajg[/media] so maybe if you can find the frame the video above is based on, one could print such a frame then cover it with canvas. Depending on what you know about rc planes, mechanics, and printing I'll pm you the white paper on the 3d printed plane from my lab. I don't want to confuse or overload you with information.

There's also this: [url]http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:56147[/url] and this: [url]http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:86982[/url] The second one they actually have videos of it flying.

The one I'm printing is that first one but I forgot that the second one even existed. I've seen that video before.

Coworker's extruder came in, its quite impressive. Since he's gonna get his working first, looks like he's gonna print a ton of my parts.

I went ahead and made [URL="https://www.dropbox.com/s/uyfymgrul00lfew/Zach%27s%203DS%20Cartridge%20Holder.stl"]this[/URL], if any 3DS users could see if it functions for me, i'd really appreciate it.

Uploaded my first thing to thingiverse today. Kind of cool to know that it will probably be printed by someone at some point! [URL]http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:254019[/URL] :v:

I've been working hard on printing my keyboard case and it's finally at a point where I've been able to get functional results [t]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/62766551/Norseboard/P2190194.jpg[/t] I revised the above design to angle the keys forward slightly (mainly to get more internal space) and I fitted my Raspi in there, minus a couple of unneeded components [t]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/62766551/Norseboard/P2210205.jpg[/t] [editline]21st February 2014[/editline] One unfortunate problem however is that I don't have enough black PLA left, so I can't print the rest for a week or 2. At least I can work on making sure it's all ready to go though.

Got referred by a [URL="http://facepunch.com/member.php?u=258809"]friend[/URL] here so I'm just gonna dump some pictures of stuff I've printed the last two days with my [URL="http://k8200.eu"]Velleman K8200[/URL] RepRap based printer kit. After some problems with the axises not moving as much as they should and also a leaky extruder which resulted in prints like these: [t]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/41041550/Pictures/3d_printer/2014-02-22%2013.52.14.jpg[/t] I fixed all of the major problems and now I get pretty good prints: [t]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/41041550/Pictures/3d_printer/20140224-20140224-DSC_1319.JPG[/t] (About 1.8 cm across) [t]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/41041550/Pictures/3d_printer/20140224-20140224-DSC_1321.JPG[/t] (Companion cube is about 5 cm in all axises) [t]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/41041550/Pictures/3d_printer/2014-02-23%2019.16.54.jpg[/t] (The towers got messy :/ ) [t]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/41041550/Pictures/3d_printer/2014-02-23%2019.17.00.jpg[/t] Anyone else out there with the same printer kit?

Looks like solidoodle came out with [url=http://solidoodles.com/] Their own version of Thingyverse[/url]

Even coming from a solidoodle fanboy's perspective, that website is ugly as shit.