Hi all, I want to buy my son a 3D printer for his 20th birthday. He is a third year computer science major, so has no issues with the software side. I have no idea where to start, or even what questions to ask. Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
I just setup an Elegoo Centauri Carbon yesterday. At $300 USD, it’s a lot of printer for the cost.
I’ve also built printers which is a different beast. If you think your son would enjoy assembling a kit, then there are several great options within your price range. The Voron line of open source printers is where I’d look.
It’s hard to go wrong with a Prusa, but I have a lot harder time justifying their prices these days. I had a MK3S for 5.5 years that served me well.
Thanks for the input. There is a lot to think about, and whilst $1,000 is ok, if I can get a good result for less, then I have no objections to that.
People here have given great advice, and have given me a good base to start my research. I have about seven weeks until his birthday, which gives me time to research and order.
Thanks to all who have weighed in
Not Creality. Ever.
May i ask why? Im planning on buying one in the coming months, and crealitys are available on my local second hand store page (like fb marketplace but dedicated site only for my country).
Id rather not get a bambu if they really are locking everything down, so not sure what else is left
They’re super sleazy. I bought a K1 on Black Friday thinking the hardware was… like… standard? I have a completely different printer, nothing for the K1 is compatible, and the nozzles are $20 EACH, instead of $30 for a pack of 10. Total bait and switch. And they won’t respond to my emails asking what parts are compatible.
Prusa is the obvious recommendation and have really god quality printers. Another option would be Qidi, they have some great value options (I heard the Q1 Pro is decent?) or recently Elegoo with their Centauri Carbon.
However, I would advise that you don’t get a Bambu Lab printer, as someone who owns the Bambu A1. They print fine, but Bambu is locking down on their ecosystem by blocking third party software and hardware (e.g. PandaTouch display), and it won’t be long until they go full Apple/HP-like (they already have RFID tags on their filament, what’s stopping them from dropping an update that blocks non-Bambu filament like HP did with ink?)
For filaments, PLA is the simple choice that works for most things as long as they aren’t in the sun for too long (e.g. decorative models, phone stand) but aren’t the best for outdoor stuff (think garden signs and such). Some people also like PETG, which is another good general purpose filament.
ABS/ASA are tough and strong, good for mechanical parts and things that require strength, but remember to have good ventilation since they can produce nasty fumes that are not very nice to breathe in. You’ve also got TPU, which is flexible (so phone cases and stuff), but you need to make sure it stays dry.
I have personally only used PLA since I don’t print too many things that need the strength of ABS/ASA or the flexibility of TPU.
Thanks for this, I’m impressed by Bambus’ quality but I’ve always been highly suspect of the true cost of their “turnkey” operation and appliance-like nature.
It was making me sad seeing people just recommending them left and right even though it seemed like a huge step backward from all the hackerspace community-spirit innovation we’ve been seeing with 3D printing.
I’m really glad to see people pushing against that and advising people to consider the ramifications. <3
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Thank you. Bambu has been the number one recommendation from people I know. Cursory research looked great, but there were some reservations from people whose opinions I value.
This is the clearest, most succinct evaluation. Much appreciated, and they are off the list.
Bambu has great marketing: they have given printers to a lot of well known makers who in turn now feature them on their YouTube and the like. If you just want a printer that prints standard stuff with standard work flows they are probably good. However they are in the long run likely to be expensive since they require their supplies (which are reportedly good, but expensive). If you want to print something and not think about the printer they are good enough. However if you want to hack a printer, save money, or experiment they are going to limit you.
Everyone recommends Prusa for a reason: most of the things that make printing good and easy were developed by Prusa and then the others used the open source license to put their own name on it. Some of the others have done some innovation, but the major hard work was done by Prusa and he should be supported for that.
However they are in the long run likely to be expensive since they require their supplies (which are reportedly good, but expensive)
They’re literally not expensive at all. You can get good quality PLA for as little as $13/KG if you buy in bulk (4 rolls or more) and all their replacement parts are dirt cheap. Bambu didnt take over because of great marketing, they took over because they build a great product at a great price as well as thinking about every little creature comfort one might want and including those too. I do think they’re going down the same road as Apple, but so will every other successful company, so you might as well enjoy it while it lasts.
If you want something to tinker and expirament with, you should build something like a Voron and not a premade commercial product.
+1 for the Q1 pro
It might be best to ask him. A 3d printer, when things go sideways, is like a needy pet.
Awesome. Another needy pet in the household!
For a compsci major is recommend something with klipper that’s easy to tinker with. Bambu is great for non tech people that need an appliance that just works (down vote me if you want, I’m not condoning their lockdown practices).
Qidi is good but their klipper is modified and not open source. Q1 pro is what I have and it’s great but modifying the firmware is, last I checked, is a whole project not supported by the company.
Elegoo and creality are good choices but I’m not very familiar with the printers personally.
Prusa is great but they are pricey and have been falling behind in innovation.
Bambu is good for tech savvy people too. I would rather have my 3D prints actually finish than spend my time repairing the same issues with the printer for the 47th time. I use that time to engage in other techy projects.
Yeah fair enough, my a1 mini is still a nice little workhorse, but I can fine tune like nothing on it and that bugs me
Even if still in preorder the Snapmaker U1 could be of interest
What’s the budget? There are many good ones in many price categories, so if you have a figure in mind, that helps narrow it down.
Personally I’m a big fan of my Prusa Core One. It’s fun to build and it hasn’t left me wanting, plus there are many upgrade options available. It’s also pretty open in terms of software, as opposed to certain other manufacturers which seem to be going for a walled garden approach.
Thanks, just looked at the Core One+. In budget and looks great. Appreciate the input!
By the way, I recommend going for the kit and not the preassembled one. Learning how everything fits together helps on the maintenance, plus the assembly instructions are really well written. Also, the kit is a little cheaper.
Took me three evenings to assemble everything.
Thank you. That was the plan. Looks like a fun project and it always amazes me how resourceful and thoughtful all of my kids are. It’s the sort of project that will make him think, and appreciate the finished product in a way that the preassembled one wouldn’t.
Three evenings is a good period of time for a serious, kit set project
Hi all, Thanks for the replies thus far. Budget is about AUD$1,000
Not sure about printing materials, I need help there. Plenty of space for the printer and any peripherals needed.
Fellow Aussie here - you can get an Anycubic Kobra S1 Combo for less than that. Excellent printer - I’ve had mine a few months and already have ~600 hours on it.
Thank you. My list keeps growing….
Happy to spend the money on the right printer, as long as it doesn’t become an expensive dust collector.$1k is ok, as long as it’s used, but I gotta say, the current special of $369 for the Kobra 3 v2 is pretty enticing!
First and best info would be, what does your budget for the printer look like?
Does he have much space to keep it and it’s peripherals?
Are you thinking an FDM printer that lays down many layers of hot material, or a resin printer that exposes liquid resin to a light source to set it in layers?
There are many good options at different price points, and I’m sure other people will know more than me but I hope this helps a little. Happy to provide more in-depth info.
Prusa. No question.
I have been mostly happy with my flashforge AD5X starting as a newbie. Its got a good range of material capabilities, but 95% of the time I’m printing PLA anyway. PLA is the most common filament by far.
I will say I have had two hot ends (the part the filiment comes out of) get covered in enough filament they broke during a misprint ($40 repair each).
I don’t really have experience with other makes/models but that is my loose endorsement of the AD5X. My only real complaint is how expensive the nozzles are compared to other brands.
Thank you. Added this to my comparison list. Bed self-leveling function looks useful
