Budget starter 3D printer recommendations

[JOEPRO]

Thinking of a 3d printer for some very occasional projects in my garage.

Max budget around £200 ideally.

Is something like this any good? https://amzn.eu/d/9EBLSqF

Do you have to buy draughting software on top or is it generally free with the printers?

 

[ajlelectronics]

Slicer software is generally no charge. Your choice of CAD software will depend on your needs. There are free packages available and we all have our favourites. I have been using Fusion 360 which I still don't like, but it suits what I do better than others I have tried.

Buy the best printer you can afford and grow into, rather than out of it.

 

[EBME2]

Be prepared to go down a rabbit hole! If you want to design your own 3D models you will 3D CAD software it won’t come with any but there are open source e.g. FreeCAD or commercial with a free version e.g. Fusion, there are a few have a play with them see what you like. I use Fusion but only because it is what I have used so far.

You will need a slicer that converts your 3D model into commands your printer understands. Many use Cura or Prussa slicer or variants of these, these are free. You will need a slicer even if printing models off the Internet.

3D printing isn’t like printing a document, I bought a cheap 3D printer 6 years ago and spent more time modifying and fixing than printing, with probably 50% failure rate. I bought a Bambu P1S earlier this year and really pleased with and night and day from my old one in speed, quality and failure rate. It isn’t perfect I probably still get 10% failure but most in the first few minutes. Bambu have a locked down product so not one you can tinker with too much instead they concentrate on usability.

I have no experience of the printer you linked but do your homework read the reviews and see what others have. Not sure how much patience you have but cheap might frustrate you and put you off, these days I don’t want to take my machine to bits and modify it I just want it to work.

The rabbit hole is when you start with different filaments PLA, PETG, TPU, ABS, ASA and many others. Different colours and multi colour printing add to the fun, along with different nozzle sizes and build plates costs start to rise.

It is fun but have a think what you want to do, you can always download the CAD program(s) first have a play see if it is for you.

 

[Jack_K]

The cheap printers now are so much better than when I got started and bought a cheap one. Even the expensive ones used to require mods for reliability. You should now be able to plug them in and print without modifying the printer. Modifications may improve the printer but aren't necessary.

It would be good to make sure whatever you get has a heated bed, cheap ones used to not.

I use free software.

 

[Turbo]

If you can stretch your budget there's one for sale on here!

https://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/creality-k1-max-for-sale.143665/#post-2591323

 

[Misterg]

I got an Elegoo Neptune 3 and am very pleased with it. Seems that only the Neptune 4 is available now. Generally it just works.

ELEGOO Neptune 4 FDM 3D Printer

ELEGOO Neptune 4 FDM 3D Printer with Up to 500mm/s High-Speed, 121-Point Auto Bed Leveling, 300℃ Dual-Gear Direct Extruder, Printing Size of 225x225x265mm³ /8.85x8.85x10.43 Inches

uk.elegoo.com

Creating the models and printing the models are two widely different disciplines, each with a decent learning curve!

Creating the models requires 3D modelling or 3D CAD (I use Fusion360) software.

Printing a model requires slicer software (I use Orca) configured for your specific printer / filament choice.

ETA: Seems the Neptune 3 Pro is still available, but I'd go for the 4 for the integrated wifi.

ELEGOO Neptune 3 Pro FDM 3D Printer

Overview of Neptune 3 Pro: 225*225*280mm market mainstream printing size can meet the needs of most users. With an STM32 motherboard, all axes of ELEGOO Neptune 3 Pro are driven by silent stepper motors for quieter and more precise movement during printing, which reduces the noise as low as...

uk.elegoo.com

 

[Prajna]

I have a Creality Ender 3 V3KE, it was around €250. It's very fast and accurate for a cheap printer, you can send models to it via WiFi. It was the best printer by far for the price. So far it has been excellent. I took the precaution to check all the screws were tight after (easy) assembly (Creality are not known for their quality control but their support is reasonable). I use FreeCAD and Orca.

 

[JOEPRO]

Thanks for the helpful advice! I'm still not sure what im doing but I went ahead and ordered one of these which seems to be a great offer at present of £194 delivered on ebay with coupon code:

Pardon our interruption...

I think this should do all I need it to do! Assuming I can get onto using it properly. I'm really interested in some first "off the shelf" wall storage or other mini projects if anyone has good links please?

I'm assuming the supplied filament will get me started. If I should buy some more now or other items please let me know. And for anyone interested ill share my feedback here of how a total 3D printer newbie gets on

 

[JOEPRO]

For example this looks really cool, ill see if I can figure that out how to get the files

 

[Misterg]

I think this should do all I need it to do! Assuming I can get onto using it properly. I'm really interested in some first "off the shelf" wall storage or other mini projects if anyone has good links please?

I'm assuming the supplied filament will get me started.

Looks like you only get 50g of filament with it so you will probably want a reel of filament almost immediately (PLA in the colour of your choice).

You might be interested in the 'Gridfinity' storage system (hundreds of youchoob videos).

Otherwise, there are libraries of all manner of useful stuff (and tat - lots and lots of tat):

Thingiverse - Digital Designs for Physical Objects

Download millions of 3D models and files for your 3D printer, laser cutter, or CNC. From custom parts to unique designs, you can find them on Thingive

www.thingiverse.com

Free CAD Designs, Files & 3D Models | The GrabCAD Community Library

The GrabCAD Library offers millions of free CAD designs, CAD files, and 3D models. Join the GrabCAD Community today to gain access and download!

grabcad.com

Cults・Download free 3D printer models・STL, OBJ, 3MF, CAD

World’s leading independent website for 3D printer files・Download the best objects for 3D printing・Share your designs on Cults3D the biggest DIY community.

cults3d.com

3D models database | Printables.com

Community site for 3D printer users. Discover thousands of great printable 3D models, download them for free and read interesting articles about 3D printing.

www.printables.com

 

[EBME2]

As @Misterg has said get yourself a roll of PLA easy to print with to start. If you want something a bit stronger try PETG but isn’t quite so easy to print with. PLA is cheap enough to play with. One tip keep your reels dry though PLA isn’t too bad they do absorb moisture which affects print quality, large zip lock bags and desiccant helps.

 

[My Old Landy]

It's a great asset for your workshop. I have two core x-y printers and they run most days.
I use them for prototyping and small run production.
Things like brackets etc are easy to custom design and build your skills.
The journey starts now!
I buy pla and petg in bulk (I get through a lot!) and usually there are deals on Amazon etc.
I mainly use Sunlu but I urge you to try different manufacturers to find a filament that suits your printer.
Have fun

 

[ajlelectronics]

so you will probably want a reel of filament almost immediately (PLA in the colour of your choice).

From being a beginner, I regret starting with PLA as I now have lots of it with no practical purpose. It is fine for ornamental stuff but not much else. There is not much point even buying it for test prints because it is no cheaper than PETg. My advice is to start with PETg, it really is no more difficult to print and is far more practical.

My other piece of advice is to get a filament dryer and use that to dispense the filament, as well as drying the filament when required. Damp filament will cause you all sorts of frustrations which you can't tune out.

 

[JOEPRO]

From being a beginner, I regret starting with PLA as I now have lots of it with no practical purpose. It is fine for ornamental stuff but not much else. There is not much point even buying it for test prints because it is no cheaper than PETg. My advice is to start with PETg, it really is no more difficult to print and is far more practical.

My other piece of advice is to get a filament dryer and use that to dispense the filament, as well as drying the filament when required. Damp filament will cause you all sorts of frustrations which you can't tune out.

Thanks for that, I went ahead and ordered 1kg spool of the flashforge black PETg filament and also one of these driers to start out with least chance of problems hopefully!



Ill have this and a filament tomorrow. And the printer itself on Friday.

The pdf instructions say to use Orca slicer or their own Flash print 5 slicer software. I'll likely start with the orca slicer which may be more of a learning curve but reads as being more capable perhaps.

I am an autocad nut. So really id prefer to draw stuff in 2d then convert into 3D at the end before taking towards 3D printer. So ill see what other software is best for me in that regard of a beginner being able to covert 2d cad designs into a 3d extrusion for 3d printing in parts or as a whole item

 

[Misterg]

From being a beginner, I regret starting with PLA as I now have lots of it with no practical purpose.

He only needs to buy one reel

FWIW I found PLA less fussy than PETG, and it produces nicer looking parts. Might have eased the learning curve. Not much good for anything that needs to be durable, though.

However, the die is cast, so we will see what happens…

 

[fizzy]

I got an Elegoo Neptune 3 and am very pleased with it. Seems that only the Neptune 4 is available now. Generally it just works.

ELEGOO Neptune 4 FDM 3D Printer

ELEGOO Neptune 4 FDM 3D Printer with Up to 500mm/s High-Speed, 121-Point Auto Bed Leveling, 300℃ Dual-Gear Direct Extruder, Printing Size of 225x225x265mm³ /8.85x8.85x10.43 Inches

uk.elegoo.com

Creating the models and printing the models are two widely different disciplines, each with a decent learning curve!

Creating the models requires 3D modelling or 3D CAD (I use Fusion360) software.

Printing a model requires slicer software (I use Orca) configured for your specific printer / filament choice.

ETA: Seems the Neptune 3 Pro is still available, but I'd go for the 4 for the integrated wifi.

ELEGOO Neptune 3 Pro FDM 3D Printer

Overview of Neptune 3 Pro: 225*225*280mm market mainstream printing size can meet the needs of most users. With an STM32 motherboard, all axes of ELEGOO Neptune 3 Pro are driven by silent stepper motors for quieter and more precise movement during printing, which reduces the noise as low as...

uk.elegoo.com

I have the Neptune 3d Max. It's huge and incredibly accurate. Within 0.01mm

It is really easy to use and very reliable - I suspect their other products just as good. I also have the Saturn resin printer.

 

[fizzy]

From being a beginner, I regret starting with PLA as I now have lots of it with no practical purpose. It is fine for ornamental stuff but not much else. There is not much point even buying it for test prints because it is no cheaper than PETg. My advice is to start with PETg, it really is no more difficult to print and is far more practical.

My other piece of advice is to get a filament dryer and use that to dispense the filament, as well as drying the filament when required. Damp filament will cause you all sorts of frustrations which you can't tune out.

I hang my filament near the AGA. Works great. Even older rolls that have been open for years! I have used PETG and PLA - I don't find much of a difference. Even strength seems pretty much the same. Seen tests online as well. I suspect the quality of PLA varies quite a bit. From nasty to strong. I don't buy expensive filament either.

 

[JOEPRO]

I had mentioned revit above as I already have it. But I am no good on it, I am used to CAD only- need to get onto 3D drawing now.

Sketchup seems like the one to use albeit ill need a paid subscription to import CAD files. At least for the first while until I hopefully get onto using sketchup fully. So a steep learning curve ahead!!

 

[ajlelectronics]

I don't find much of a difference. Even strength seems pretty much the same.

The main difference is in it's temperature capability. Print something for the car and the first sunny day will produce modifications that you hadn't expected!

 

[fizzy]

The main difference is in it's temperature capability. Print something for the car and the first sunny day will produce modifications that you hadn't expected!

I am glad you mentioned this. Was going to do some bits for my trailer - could get warm in the sun even though they will be shielded by aluminium sheet.!