Help me choose
Hello, everyone!
Please advise me which printer to choose for a beginner. I'm going to use it to make some small parts for children's toys, it's not industrial scale, but I plan to use it quite often. The dimensions of the device are also of great importance. I watched some videos and read about different options and their characteristics. But I would like to know the opinion of people who use them.
I would be grateful for your help.
RE: Help me choose
... which printer to choose for a beginner. I'm going to use it to make some small parts for children's toys, ...
If "small" means that it can be printed in 18cm×18cm×18cm volume, then I would propose a Prusa MINI+ semiassembled:
https://www.prusa3d.com/product/original-prusa-mini-semi-assembled-3d-printer-4/
I bought MINI+ semiassembled in 12/2021 as my first 3Dprinter; until that time I 3Dprinted for 2 months on Ender 3Dprinter of younger son.
Semiassembled, because I was up at 3Dprintimg after only 1 hour, and there were no steps that I could do wrong easily.
MINI+ is really cool, first projects were Octopi and Raspberry camera holder, make Ikea lack desks stackable, 2nd USB borescope camera in addition to Raspberry v1 scene camera, find the links in my profile. Just today I posted stepper_pan/manual_tilt Raspberry camera holder. I had no experience with 3Dprinting before 10/2021, and it was really fast to get up to speed (freecad or OpenScad to construct, PrusaSlicer to produce gcode and OctoPrint to 3Dprint stuff). This is my current 3Dprint setup with MINI+:
RE: Help me choose
Thank you for your response!
I hope I can learn how to use it too! I have no experience with 3Dprinters, but I think it's worth a try.
RE:
@silv
I recommend the Original Prusa I3 MK3.
Since you wish to learn to use a 3d printer, it's a solid machine, of course this entails set up and learning to use a machine on a mechanical level, the Mk3 i3 is a direct drive and I recommend it over a bowden style for first experience. Since the machine is solid, once it's set up properly, you can move forward from there knowing that the things you learn after the point of being properly set up, will be correct and you start to understand about the machine and it's many configurations, as well as the difference in filaments, and the difference between small features, and larger features. Then you can start to learn about moisture in your filaments, and how it effects the material types your using, as well as the features of the models you choose to print. You can learn about the effects of cooling and material type, as well as extruder tension and material type, oh and heat relative to material type.
Your going to have fun.
Oh! i forgot about Cadd software, your going to want to pick up and learn one of those, the Slicing software is a whole other deal you will have to learn.
It's all worth it.
Enjoy
RE: Help me choose
Thank you for your response! I will try to understand all the nuances.
RE:
I second HermannS. The Mini+ are very reliable machines, quiet and with small footprint and exceptional print quality. IMHO the semi assembled variant is perfect entry level 3D printer. It is ready to print almost out of the box. Very well tuned and trough PrusaSlicer with support for a large number of filaments. Don’t be fooled with the cheap Chinese products - you’ll never get what you think.
Wish you good luck and happy printing!
Cheers, G.
RE: Help me choose
small parts for children's toys
There are A LOT of regulations for the security of toys in the EU ! Be very careful.
This german site lists some, maybe translate it with google...
Especially, parts may not be so small that they can be swallowed!
https://www.vis.bayern.de/produkte_energie/marktueberwachung/spielzeug_gesetz_vorgaben.htm
RE: Help me choose
After reading the mini responses here I would be remiss If i didn't mention why I recommend the MK3 over the mini. The MK3 is capable of printing all the filament types you will progress to in a relatively short period of time without modifying the machine. Make no mistake, the MK3 is superior to the mini and worth the money. You have been warned.
RE: Help me choose
@rd
No one question the supremacy of the Prusa MK3 line over the Mini+. We recommend the Mini+ variant as an “entry level” 3D printer. No doubt - the MK3S+ is the better choice and I agree with all that you wrote, but it isn’t entry level machine (especially the kit) and at a double price.
RE: Help me choose
I thought about the Bambu Lab P1P, but it isn’t in mass production, so I don’t think it should be recommended.
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"I thought about the Bambu Lab P1P, but it isn’t in mass production, so I don’t think it should be recommended."
Let me just say that even if it was, and I think it is, you need to know what you want and what your doing before you order a printer that just does everything for you. the Bambu printers have limitations that you are not yet aware of, and you will suffer for this. Don't go that direction for starters, learn and then advance, start with a prusa mk3, you have a lot to learn, more then you can possibly know. Look seriously at the MK3 as I have recommended, Ive been printing for decades, you have once gain been warned. I'm done.
It's worth exploring previous user posts to see what they know and who they are.
It's on now you.
RE: Help me choose
I fully second this.
"I thought about the Bambu Lab P1P, but it isn’t in mass production, so I don’t think it should be recommended."
Let me just say that even if it was, and I think it is, you need to know what you want and what your doing before you order a printer that just does everything for you. the Bambu printers have limitations that you are not yet aware of, and you will suffer for this. Don't go that direction for starters, learn and then advance, start with a prusa mk3, you have a lot to learn, more then you can possibly know. Look seriously at the MK3 as I have recommended, Ive been printing for decades, you have once gain been warned. I'm done.
It's worth exploring previous user posts to see what they know and who they are.
It's on now you.