Looking to get into 3D Printing

[SilicateWielder]

Hey guys,

 

So I'm looking to get into 3D printing, with a modest budget of around $250. I'm honestly not looking for something really fancy as I'm just a novice, having only printed using my school's 3D printer a couple years ago. Being really into DIY, it's not unlikely that I might even go about building my own 3D printer at some point.

 

So, if anyone has any recommendations for a printer this cheap, I'd like to hear them.

 

I also live in a building old enough to not have central heat, and most areas of the house are cold during the winter, if you kept an area clean enough you could literally store food out on the counter and it wouldn't spoil. I don't know how these cold temperatures would affect 3D printing, so in the event that I can't find an area warm enough or on a breaker that has some wiggle room for plugging stuff in (Because of space heaters), what would you guys recommend I keep in mind when printing?

[RUWO_builder]

When room temp is below 18 c, you cant print without an enclosure, and a heated bed. None of these features come on a printer that price. I know its a Bit over budget, but an anet e10 is a good choice, and its easy to just build a plywood box around it for containing the heat. If your prints dont stick to the build plate, you will need to buy a heated bed to put on it, but as long as your printing pla in an enclosure, it should be fine

[makersmuse]

You don't need a heated bed to print PLA, but it does help. $250 won't buy you much beyond the most basic of kits like the TronXY X1. You'll spend more money in future on upgrades. If you can save to $350 get the Cetus, it's ready to run, simple and in my experience perfect for a first printer. It just pumps out PLA parts.

[Dopey89]

Monoprice Maker Select 3D Printer v2 is what I got. It was on sale for $250, or you can buy a refurbished one for $250 if you aren't willing to wait for a sale. This is the best printer you can buy for under $300; it has a heated bed, and its fully assembled. Also, there is a big community around this printer so it's easy to troubleshoot problems and you can find a ton of printable mods to improve it. I've had great results with Monoprice's customer support, so don't be afraid to get the refurb one.

You could also go for the Mini Select for $220, or $180 (refurbished). I would get the Maker Select, though, just for the bigger build area. Here is a link to the refurbished one https://www.monoprice.com/product?c_id=107&cp_id=10724&cs_id=1072403&p_id=21864&seq=1&format=2

 

Good luck! and if you need anything else just ask.

[Hackentosher]

@manikyath has good experience with making cheap machines work, but I will always recommend stretching your budget a little bit to get a higher quality machine. 

[manikyath]

i'd recommend to aim above that budget, before mentioned monoprice maker select v2 is a rebrand of a wanhao printer, which is a VERY solid base, if you're willing to invest the time into setting it up.

 

mine's been collecting dust for about a month now because i need to calibrate thermals after replacing some parts, and i've just not bothered to yet. that said, since then there's been quality 3D printers pooring out of every hole in all the walls.

I'd suggest looking at some recent-ish reviews from "the 3D printing nerd" on youtube to get a bit of a taste of what the market has to offer.

 

as for enclosure-wise.. i'd suggest not picking based on that, but rather just DIY-ing your own box around the printer, and heating/cooling that appropriately. that also allows you to keep the smell of 3D printing from taking over your house. with PLA it's not too bad if you like the smell of cupcakes, but stuff like ABS, or my favourite NGEN_FLEX which essentially smells like chemical megadeath .