3d printers

[Bidwell]

I haven't tried one yet, but I have professional and hobby experience in 3d printers. Bambu sounds like the best plug-n-play option. Especially with kids, you want something that will just work with the most minimal of tinkering. That said, 3d printing is sort of an inherently finicky process so be prepared for some shenanigans. I think the bambu will reduce that significantly, and another noted that they use one and its just plug and print, which is amazing. The resin printers are neat too, extremely high resolution, but not the best for kids to use. I should also note that to really take advantage of 3d printing, having some experience in 3d modeling is a huge plus. If you don't, then your just printing stuff you find online and it may be frustrating that you can't customize or build your own toys/tools. But, it could be the catalyst for that interest and it's easier than ever to pickup some basic modeling skills.

 

[Davyalabama]

Hmm, more projects.

 

[IdGoldHunter]

I’ve got two 3d printers an Elegoo Neptune 3 pro and an creality cr-10 smart pro. Both are pretty capable in different ways. I’ve built my kids all sorts of cool toys and even built myself some functional tools. If you start looking into the multi filament machines they are pretty cool but a lot of the consumer reviews say they waste more filament than they use but I have no first hand experiences.

 

[BasicUtahrd95]

I own the Bambu Labs P1S and use the X1C and the A1 at work. I have used a fair amount of other printers and the bambu labs are the most plug and play machines out there. Most require some amount of fine tuning/trouble shooting. Bambu labs is the easy button.

 

[HuntHarder]

Bumping this back up. My kids are begging for a 3d printer to mess with. I started looking and it seems Bambu is the easy button. Is this still the case. I am looking for the "Tikka" of printers. Cost is a huge factor. Anything sub $1,000 sounds reasonable. Any suggestions? Are all filaments created equal?

 

[Seth]

We just started down this road with my son. Bambu Labs a1 mini. It’s been solid and print quality is great. Tons of designs already available on the app. This one can print multiple colors. There are differences in filament with some more brittle and some more pliable. It’s quite the rabbit hole and he’s not playing video games!

 

[BasicUtahrd95]

Bumping this back up. My kids are begging for a 3d printer to mess with. I started looking and it seems Bambu is the easy button. Is this still the case. I am looking for the "Tikka" of printers. Cost is a huge factor. Anything sub $1,000 sounds reasonable. Any suggestions? Are all filaments created equal?

As far as desktop 3D printers go, I have been using the Bambu labs A1, P1, and X1 series printers extensively over the past few years. They are as plug n' play as it gets and extremely reliable. There are cheaper options with similar features. I have no first hand experience with them, but Bambu is the standard. Any consumable/ replaceable parts are readily available, with tutorials on installation. My only issue with them, is if you want to get a hold of an actual person that works for them, there is quite a delay and they haven't ben very helpful. However, it is unlikely you will ever need to reach out. At $799 the Bambu P2S combo is an incredible value. Out of the box it can print anything that isn't carbon or glass fiber filled. If needed, its a simple and cheap upgrade to the nozzle and extruder gear to be able to use any filament on their website. All filaments are not created equal, but if you aren't trying to create functional parts then the differences won't matter to you. If the focus is printing random 3D models off the internet, you are fine sticking with PLA and PETG. In that case, just keep it simple and get the A1.

 

[HuntHarder]

Great info! I am sure 75% of it's use will be my kids, but I do think it would be fun to build some case holders or other small shooting accessories. I envision making all kinds of little accessories at some point.

 

[sierracharlie338]

I’m going down this rabbit hole currently and prob about to snag an A1. Ironic timing

 

[HuntHarder]

I'm leaning toward the P2S combo. Seems like it will do what I want and probably more. Do these ever go on sale? I saw earlier in the thread someone talk about an annual sale.

 

[MO-CHSPKE]

I fell down the rabbit hole in January. Got a Flashforge 5M Adventurer Pro. It's an enclosed single-color printer. I started printing some stuff and sold a few items and got a huge demand and ended up buying another. So currently, I'm running two of them most hours of the day. I've printed with PLA, PETG, PCTG, TPU and ABS. Depending on what you're wanting out of the end product will determine which filament you want. I'm making a bunch of archery related stuff and use a ton of PETG and starting to use more PCTG. The PCTG has more UV resistance and is a little stronger and pliable than PETG. TPU, ABS and ASA need an enclosed printer for air filtration and temperature regulation to prevent warping. I've learned a ton over the past few months, and I haven't even scratched the surface. It's quite fun.

 

[sierracharlie338]

I fell down the rabbit hole in January. Got a Flashforge 5M Adventurer Pro. It's an enclosed single-color printer. I started printing some stuff and sold a few items and got a huge demand and ended up buying another. So currently, I'm running two of them most hours of the day. I've printed with PLA, PETG, PCTG, TPU and ABS. Depending on what you're wanting out of the end product will determine which filament you want. I'm making a bunch of archery related stuff and use a ton of PETG and starting to use more PCTG. The PCTG has more UV resistance and is a little stronger and pliable than PETG. TPU, ABS and ASA need an enclosed printer for air filtration and temperature regulation to prevent warping. I've learned a ton over the past few months, and I haven't even scratched the surface. It's quite fun.

Where does pla fall? Need filtration or no? Is it usable for most typical projects or just the cheaper looking type stuff.

 

[Boreal838]

This thread is perfect timing. My son is asking about them a lot.

They are on sale now. https://ca.store.bambulab.com/products/a1-mini

The combo shows the spools for the filament. Wouldn't you have to buy the combo to get the filament spools to feed the printer?

 

[BasicUtahrd95]

Where does pla fall? Need filtration or no? Is it usable for most typical projects or just the cheaper looking type stuff.

PLA and PETG don’t need an enclosure and print great on the A1. You can play with the # of wall loops, infill percentage, and print orientation to get the strength you need for most applications. They are definitely more prone to breakdown/bend/warp under load than other more advanced materials. I use a wide variety of filaments for different projects, but I print with PLA way more than anything else.

 

[MO-CHSPKE]

Where does pla fall? Need filtration or no? Is it usable for most typical projects or just the cheaper looking type stuff.

PLA is great for indoor and low usage products. Extremely easy to use. Doesn’t require anything special. It lacks in UV resistance for outdoor stuff.

Enclosure is needed for ABS due to fumes it creates during the extrusion and it needs to cool slowly or it will warp. TPU needs an enclosure to help with adhesion while cooling. ASA will warp if cooled too quickly as well, although I have not used that filament so I can’t speak from personal experience.

PLA and PETG are both extremely user friendly. Both cheap, PLA a little cheaper.


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[Titan]

I have been running the A1 for a few months. Been a great printer. Ended up having a use to print out a few thousand of an item which will save me multiple thousands of dollars so I upgraded to the H2D for the dual nozzle. They just came out the with X2D (under $1k) but I needed the larger build plate.

Been buying 10kg of filament off aliexpress for $6-7 per roll.

Absolutely get the AMS. Without that, it's too tedious to babysit and change colors manually.

 

[HuntHarder]

Looks like only the A1 is on sale. I think i'm going P2S combo

 

[Titan]

Looks like only the A1 is on sale. I think i'm going P2S combo

For only $100 extra, you can get the new X2D and gain the whole extra nozzle. From what I researched, it's main use is supports, but can be used as a regular 2nd color nozzle saving tons of time and wasted filament.

 

[HuntHarder]

For only $100 extra, you can get the new X2D and gain the whole extra nozzle. From what I researched, it's main use is supports, but can be used as a regular 2nd color nozzle saving tons of time and wasted filament.

Interesting. So the extra nozzle is worth it?

 

[Titan]

Interesting. So the extra nozzle is worth it?

I would say that it really depends on what you plan on printing. Anything with dual colors will probably same you 50% printing time. Anything large with supports will also be nice. For $100, I think it's worth it. Even if you sell the printer in a year, you will get $50 of that back.

The only item I don't know is if you lose any print area with the dual nozzle. The larger H2D loses a little left and right print area because the opposing nozzle takes up a little room

edited- there were quite a few people who were frustrated that they just received their P2S and then the X2D came out with such a low price tag. I also looked up print area - it says full print area on the single main nozzle and you lose 20mm width with the secondary nozzle.

I suggest watching a couple of the comparison videos on youtube before buying to see if its worth the $100 for your purpose.