[KwartzLab] 3D printers: recommendations?

[Karl Williams]

A well built Mendel with generation 6 or higher electronics is an 
excellent tool.
I have been producing high quality prints now that I have a reliable 
makergear hotend.
Here's a picture of my setup with Gen6 electronics and a heated bed: 
http://www.thinkbotics.com/3d/reprap-mendel.jpg
Grippers printed on the Mendel: http://www.thinkbotics.com/3d/gripper1.jpg

The makergear M-series printer looks interesting: 
http://www.makergear.com/products/m-series-3d-printers

Karl

On 5/15/2012 7:24 PM, doug moen wrote:
> I would consider 3 models:
> - the replicator, for the two heads. Haven't seen it, but makerbot has 
> a good history and reputation. Two heads means either 2 colour output, 
> or removable support material (which enables prints that are otherwise 
> difficult or impossible). I still want to know if there is a problem 
> with drooling when you use two heads (anybody?)
> - the ultimaker, for very high resolution and super fast printing 
> (which is required at those resolutions). The high res print photos 
> are amazing.  HackLab.TO has one, and I'm planning to check it out. 
> About $2000 all in.
> - the printrbot, which is a good quality entry level printer at a 
> really good price. A friend in Toronto has one on order, I'm planning 
> to check it out. I've seen photos of some pretty good looking prints 
> from it (it can do 100 microns on the Z axis, but is painfully slow at 
> that resolution). The smaller model is $550 + shipping + duty.
>
> All of the above choices are open source and good value for the money, 
> based on my research.
>
> We have a Mendel. Do not get a Mendel unless your primary purpose for 
> having a 3D printer is fiddling with it to make it work better (as a 
> research project), as opposed to actually using it as a tool. Or if 
> you are attracted to the mythos of self replicating printers.
>
> I have no real insight into Cubify. It is built by 3D Systems, who 
> make professional and prosumer commercial 3D printers. It might be 
> okay, but one of the forums is warning vaguely of DRM-like 
> restrictions, overly expensive cartridges (not sure if they can be 
> manually refilled), and less than impressive print quality, so more 
> research is required. 
> http://cubify.com/images/cubified/image2_large.jpg doesn't look that 
> great to me, it's comparable to Mendel output after months of tuning.
>
> And please share your experiences! I want to get a new printer for 
> Kwartzlab.
>
> Doug Moen.
>
> On 15 May 2012 16:24, Tomasz Dysinski <oz at bunnybones.com 
> <mailto:oz at bunnybones.com>> wrote:
>
>     Hey guys,
>
>     I'm a bit of a lurker, but I thought I would inquire about 3D
>     printers. My office in Toronto (Jam3) has been getting into
>     installations and hardware, and during our last hack-day, while I
>     was hacksawing and drilling aluminum to create a cradle for an
>     arduino project, it dawned on me that we need a 3D printer. The
>     makerbot replicator with dual heads looks tantalizing. Does anyone
>     on this list have experience with this make/model? Is there
>     another make/model that you would recommend for an office, for
>     ease of use, precision, and good value?
>
>     The ones we've been considering:
>     http://cubify.com/cube/
>     http://reprap.org/wiki/Mendel
>     http://store.makerbot.com/replicator.html
>
>     Sidenote: I figure we can print a batch of Mendel parts (of which
>     I am a huge fan) as soon as we get any one machine first as I'd
>     love to have one at home.
>
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