Best value 3d printer reddit

Best 3D Printer Under 1000 Reddit : 3dPrintersMania

Best 3d printer under $1000 reddit on 2020-21.

• Best Overall: Prusa i3 MK3. reddit best 3d printer

• Best Value: Creality Ender 3.

• Best For Your Desk: Monoprice Maker Mini Pro.

• Best Value Delta: Monoprice Mini Delta.

• Best Value Resin: AnyCubic Photon. Best 3d printer under 1000 reddit

For Moe Details: https://3dprintersmania.com/

For the last five years we've invested in the 3D printing world, using as many printers as we can to see what is good and what is bad. We all know that printing can be expensive — there are machines out there that start at $3,000 and go up from there — so we want you to have some idea of what you can get for cheaper. When it comes to value and quality you can't beat the Prusa i3 MK3. While it isn't the cheapest of the machines on this list, it is easily the best quality in terms of build and print.

Best Overall:

Prusa i3 MK3

Best Value:

Creality Ender 3

Best For Your Desk:

Monoprice Maker Mini Pro

Best Value Delta:

Monoprice Mini Delta

Best Value Resin:

AnyCubic Photon

Best Overall: Prusa i3 Mk3

In the world of hobbyist 3D printing, there are few names as well known as Josef Prusa. His work in open source 3D printing has revolutionized what can be done at home and on a budget for those who want to create amazing prints. The Prusa i3 MK3 is the latest machine based on his open source design and is easily the most advanced printer in this list.

The Prusa has automatic bed leveling, making each print start the best it can, but it also corrects the print on-the-fly if anything happens to shift the bed. With a sensor in the extruder, the Prusa can tell when you run out of filament, pause the print, and alert you to add more, saving countless mistakes in the process. From the removable bed to easily being able to remove prints without breaking them to the excellent save function, which stops your prints being lost in a power cut, the Prusa goes out of its way to make every print work.

The listing is for the kit version of the i3 mk3 so you will be required to build it yourself. Prusa does supply a fully made one but it's $200 more when you add in the extra shipping. Which one you buy will depend on your preference, but we recommend getting the kit. Plus, it's actually a lot of fun learning to build one from scratch.

Pros:

Auto bed leveling

Excellent print quality

Open source

Active community

Save functionality

Cons:

Cheaper to buy the kit

Best Overall

Prusa i3 MK3

Fantastic quality

If you are just starting out in the 3D printing game and you want to start off with the best, then go for the Prusa MK3.

$750+ at Prusa Research

Best Value: Creality Ender 3

The Creality Ender 3 is a shining example of how a community can get together, take something cheap and flawed, and turn it into something special. The Ender 3 is not a printer for someone who wants quality prints straight of the box — you have to earn them. Sure, it's easy to get set up and it doesn't take much other to put together — just a few screws —but to get a print that you can be proud of takes effort.

The Ender 3, while being cheap, it is not configured well by Creality. The extruder setup is poor, as are a lot of the acceleration settings and because of that, it can take endless fine-tuning. Don't be dismayed though, there are people out there who are willing to help put you on track.

I never would have gotten the Ender 3 to the point of usability without the help of the Facebook and Twitter 3D printing communities, and I strongly urge you to look into those places if you intend to buy an Ender 3. Especially check out Filament Frenzy on Twitter. He can make the Ender 3 sing and dance like magic.

Of course, if you have the time to spend on it, $220 for a full-size printer that can make some fantastic prints is a bargain. If you have time to love it, it can be a great investment.

Pros:

Extremely cheap

Simple setup

Can create amazing prints

Cons:

Can take a lot of work to get right

Best Value

Creality Ender 3

Community favorite

The Ender 3 can be a real pain to get right, but when you do it can some amazing prints. Make sure you join some communities for help.

$230 at Amazon

Best For Your Desk: Monoprice Maker Mini Pro

If you are completely new to 3D printing and want something simple, reliable, and cheap, you can't do much better than Maker Mini Pro by Monoprice. The printer itself is small enough and quiet enough to sit on the desk in your office and allow you to make small, fun little projects fairly quickly. The Mini has several high-end features like Wi-Fi connectivity, along with the SD Card and direct PC connection that you normally get with larger printers.

It even comes with auto bed-leveling, which can be picky but is a great addition. There's also a heated bed for printing with multiple types of filament, something you'd expect on a more expensive printer, all wrapped in a sturdy metal body that reduces the "noise" often associated with cheaper printers. With a 4.75-inch print bed, the Mini is the smallest of the printers on this list, but if you are just starting out in 3D printing and only want to experiment, the small bed is more than enough.

With the Bowden extruder setup already a part of the Mini the results of printing are significantly better than I ever thought a $200 printer would produce. I helped my local youth room purchase three of these so the young people there can learn how to design and print in 3D and so far the only issue I have had is a blocked nozzle and an uneven print bed, both of which are the basic foibles of 3D printing and easily fixed by anybody.

Pros:

Auto bed leveling

Fits on your desk

Wi-Fi printing

Heated bed

Cons:

The print bed is really small

Best For Your Desk

Monoprice Maker Mini Pro

Teeny desk printing

Sometimes you just want a little fun at your desk. The Mini Pro is perfect for a desktop 3D printing setup.

$200 at Amazon

Best Value Delta: Monoprice Mini Delta

When I first used the Mini Delta I was ready to write it off from the start — $160 for a delta printer? It was obviously going to suck. Turns out, I was wrong. I like the Delta for a lot of reasons including its portability, it's build quality, as well as its great print quality. None of those things are as awesome as the price though. For just $160 you can have a 3D printer of your own that works as soon as you turn it on.

The interface on the Mini Delta is incredibly simple, making it perfect for youngsters and first-timers who aren't interested in taking things apart to make them work. The printer has three buttons and each one is self-explanatory, helping you get printing straight away. The nature of delta printers — delta printers use three constantly moving servo arms instead of rods and screws — means this mini model is dependable, even when being jostled. A delta, once dialed in, will give you great prints even under the worst of circumstances.

I was blown away by the print quality of this little machine and, even though it can only make really small models, it remains one of my favorites to have close by for small, quick jobs. The only issue I sometimes have is the auto-leveling is sometimes a little off and you will need to manually adjust or use a product like Magigoo to help keep it all stuck down.

Pros:

Solid as a rock

Great print quality

Simple interface

Portable

Cons:

Small

Bed leveling is janky

Best Value Delta

Monoprice Mini Delta

Mini dependability

The Mini Delta is an amazing little machine with some advanced features. The print quality is excellent and the portability is superb.

$160 at Amazon

Best Value Resin: AnyCubic Photon

Resin printing can be expensive. The machines themselves are normally high-priced and the resins can be even pricier. Resin printing differs from the other printers on this list because it uses a liquid plastic that is cured over a UV light or shot with a laser. It can be messy, difficult, and a little dangerous so it's best to know what you want before you buy.

Somehow Anycubic made an affordable resin printer that produces some of the best quality prints I've seen from a printer under $2,000. The prints from a resin printer are gorgeous and are often impossible to tell that they are 3D printed. They often look like injected molded models.

Using Chitubox — a slicer now used by a large number of 3D printer manufacturers — to slice the models is simple and effective and makes the entire process of printing models on the Photon a breeze. One word of warning though: make sure your supports are thick in Chitubox since they can be a little wimpy if you aren't careful.

Of all the resin printers that I have owned and used the Photon is the one I recommend to friends, and therefore to you, dear readers. It's dependable and accurate every time.

Pros:

Entry level price

Almost invisible layer lines

Simple to use

Excellent slicing

Cons:

Small build plate

Chitubox can be tricky

Best ender 3d printers on Reddit

Based on reviews from Reddit, amazon.com, all3dp.com, notebookcheck.net, aniwaa.com, serial-testeur.com, and more.

When comparing reviews for products on Reddit, these are the top things reviewers talk about:

• Reliability: 121 mentions
• Printer quality: 112 mentions
• Price/value ratio: 26 mentions
• Price: 24 mentions
• Build volume: 16 mentions
• Ease of use: 16 mentions
• Print speed: 9 mentions
• Cost of materials: 7 mentions
• Warranty: 2 mentions
• Range: 2 mentions

• Reliability: 121 mentions
• Printer quality: 112 mentions
• Price/value ratio: 26 mentions
• Price: 24 mentions
• Build volume: 16 mentions

• Ease of use: 16 mentions
• Print speed: 9 mentions
• Cost of materials: 7 mentions
• Warranty: 2 mentions
• Range: 2 mentions

Filter These Results

Based on 66 reviews

The Looria Grade (A - F) accounts for multiple factors, including sentiment, helpfulness, and more. Learn about our sources and ranking.

#1 most mentioned

Reddit · r/3Dprinting

• Great for beginners
• Easy to assemble
• Large print volume
• Comes with a glass bed
• Silent board

Purchase Advice Megathread - November

Leaning toward Creality Ender-3 Max 3D Printer. I think I'd like the option to print something a little larger that the standard size.

Positive

IceManJim

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

Best “cheap” “large bed” printer? And why, if you think you have the answer.

I knew nothing about 3D printing or anything to do with it, I saw a YouTube vid and was like yeah I’m boutta do that. I personally love my ender 3 max with that said I have 0 experience with the others. But now 8 months later with maybe no more that another $200 more invested into it I’m printing nylon, and PC material almost flawlessly. It was easy to learn on and build a skill on I knew nothing about, but I imagine everyone of these printers only work as well as the operator, being the case with most things tho.

Positive

BigSacZak

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

Purchase Advice Megathread: What To Buy, Who To Buy It From, And More, In April 2021

Cr 20 pro: This printer my mom currently uses, I love that they added the bltouch and the design looks quite nice, Problem that i found with the design is that its a bit harder to place upgrade on the frame,. Ender 3 v2, Nice upgrade of the ender 3, Looks quite nice visually aswell and i like the fact of the colour screen and the the power supply is at the bottem. Ender 3 max: Bigger build volume, pretty nice updates with the added yellow springs and metal extruder/filament sensor. screen is ok but i dont really like that the power supply is in on the printer and not out of side, But i should be able to change that right?.

Positive

Lastunamed

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

More Reviews

Based on 89 reviews

The Looria Grade (A - F) accounts for multiple factors, including sentiment, helpfulness, and more. Learn about our sources and ranking.

#3 most mentioned

Reddit · r/3Dprinting

Best 3D Printer Overall

tom's Hardware · Best 3D Printers 2022: FDM, Resin and Sub-$250 Models

• Made for beginners
• Outstanding print quality that rivals much more expensive printers
• Strong, growing community
• Directions are very hard to follow
• Fantastic 3D printer for an extremely reasonable price

I wanted my first 3d Printer to "just work" right out of the box. Prusa did not disappoint.

Well in fairness my ender 3 pro did work out of the box. Then it stopped working. Then I fixed it. Then it stopped working again. Then I fixed it. This pattern continues.

Neutral

keymodneverdies

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

[3D Printer] Creality Ender 3 Pro - $99 after coupon (in store only)

This is a screaming deal for a home-use machine. I moved from an ancient Prusa i3 to an Ender 5 plus (at four times the price of this Ender 3 Pro) and have been very, very happy with it.

Positive

cocowtown

reddit.com/r/buildapcsales

Read more

Best 3d printer for linux?

All of the usual ones work. Creality Ender 3 Pro is a popular device among the low-cost ones and it is fairly easy to get started. Software wise they all work the same or almost the same. You can either put the GCODE in an SD card and let the machine run by itself, or attach it to a computer and feed the GCODE over serial port.

Positive

hesapmakinesi

reddit.com/r/linuxhardware

Read more

More Reviews

Based on 122 reviews

The Looria Grade (A - F) accounts for multiple factors, including sentiment, helpfulness, and more. Learn about our sources and ranking.

#2 most mentioned

Reddit · r/3Dprinting

• Made for beginners
• Easy to assemble
• Great stability
• Learning curve
• Good value

I want an inexpensive 3d printer and have narrowed it down to these two. Help me decide.

Do yourself a favor and spend a little more to get the ender 3 V2, just with how quiet it is it’s worth it over the ender 3 pro,. The pro is very annoying, you can upgrade to silent steppers but it’s easier to just get them factory like on the v2. But if you must I like creality brand over vox, I never had a vox printer but my buddy does and he doesn’t like it.

Positive

MindlessExplorer7871

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

When you get up to look at the moon and it finished!

This is my white whale. The first time I tried printing it, it literally killed my Ender 3 V2; fried the board about halfway through printing and even after replacing the board and the vast majority of the electronics it still won't print well. About 6 months later I tried it on my Prusa, but I had a filament tangle that ruined it(literally one of two failed prints on the Prusa, both tangled filament).

Negative

Hell0-7here

reddit. com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

Would you pay $750 for the pictured printer and filament? Owner said he bought it to get in to printing but didn't have time once he realized how involved it can be, less than a roll has been printed on it.

Oh heck no. At that price a prusa would be far superior.

Heck even a $200 creality ender 3 is better than that.

Negative

newenglandpolarbear

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

More Reviews

Based on 70 reviews

The Looria Grade (A - F) accounts for multiple factors, including sentiment, helpfulness, and more. Learn about our sources and ranking.

#6 most mentioned

Reddit · r/3Dprinting

• Great for beginners
• Easy to assemble
• Good quality control
• Supports multiple filament types
• Includes a spool holder

Would you pay $750 for the pictured printer and filament? Owner said he bought it to get in to printing but didn't have time once he realized how involved it can be, less than a roll has been printed on it.

Oh heck no. At that price a prusa would be far superior.

Heck even a $200 creality ender 3 is better than that.

Negative

newenglandpolarbear

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

The mailman came past, and now I guess I've got something to do today! :D

Nice! I love my ender 5. Waiting for my cr10 in the mail today.

Positive

Ok-Actuator3498

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

My first print on my first printer

I just got my first printer a Creality Ender 5 Plus and after setting it up today and getting the bed level did my first print with the filament that was in the box.

Positive

a5tra3a

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

More Reviews

Based on 75 reviews

The Looria Grade (A - F) accounts for multiple factors, including sentiment, helpfulness, and more. Learn about our sources and ranking.

#9 most mentioned

Reddit · r/3Dprinting

• Made for beginners
• Good speeds
• Strong filament compatibility
• Intuitive assembly
• Software is not good

The big boy is finished.

Was having trouble with this filament on another print so I thought I’d try it on the slug. Worked out perfectly. And it was a good test for the Ender 5 plus. I recently moved it and had to recalibrate everything.

Positive

62rambler

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

Would you pay $750 for the pictured printer and filament? Owner said he bought it to get in to printing but didn't have time once he realized how involved it can be, less than a roll has been printed on it.

Oh heck no. At that price a prusa would be far superior.

Heck even a $200 creality ender 3 is better than that.

Negative

newenglandpolarbear

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

My first print on my first printer

I just got my first printer a Creality Ender 5 Plus and after setting it up today and getting the bed level did my first print with the filament that was in the box.

Positive

a5tra3a

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

More Reviews

Based on 73 reviews

The Looria Grade (A - F) accounts for multiple factors, including sentiment, helpfulness, and more. Learn about our sources and ranking.

• Great for beginners or those on a budget
• Takes some time to assemble
• Includes helpful videos
• Some complaints about quality control
• Overall, a good product

What are some accessories that have improved your board gaming quality of life?

You can get a solid printer (I personally recommend the Creality Ender 3) for under $200 and it's tons of fun and so rewarding. Most people vastly overestimate the cost of purchasing and using a 3d printer. Highly recommend!.

Positive

coppertablet

reddit.com/r/boardgames

Read more

Bought Creality Ender 3 V2 for a nephew. We never got it to work properly, even after sending it for repairs once. Just a nightmare of work and testing, probably killed my interest for doing 3D printing, already tired of it.

Negative

mandathor

reddit.com/r/prusa3d

Read more

Best 3d printer for linux?

All of the usual ones work. Creality Ender 3 Pro is a popular device among the low-cost ones and it is fairly easy to get started. Software wise they all work the same or almost the same. You can either put the GCODE in an SD card and let the machine run by itself, or attach it to a computer and feed the GCODE over serial port.

Positive

hesapmakinesi

reddit.com/r/linuxhardware

Read more

More Reviews

Based on 71 reviews

The Looria Grade (A - F) accounts for multiple factors, including sentiment, helpfulness, and more. Learn about our sources and ranking.

• Great for beginners or those on a budget
• Takes some assembly
• Good print quality for the price
• Comes with a few extra pieces
• Some people have had issues with it

What are some accessories that have improved your board gaming quality of life?

A 3d printer is the perfect companion for collecting board games. Is so satisfying to design and print a storage solution that fits just perfectly in the box. You can get a solid printer (I personally recommend the Creality Ender 3) for under $200 and it's tons of fun and so rewarding. Most people vastly overestimate the cost of purchasing and using a 3d printer.

Positive

coppertablet

reddit.com/r/boardgames

Read more

Bought Creality Ender 3 V2 for a nephew. We never got it to work properly, even after sending it for repairs once. Just a nightmare of work and testing, probably killed my interest for doing 3D printing, already tired of it.

Negative

mandathor

reddit.com/r/prusa3d

Read more

Does Ender Pro 3 v2 good enough for printing Corne like cases?

Have in mind that as you start printing, you will probably start printing more and more, bigger and bigger. A slightly bigger printer might be what you want in the end (like cr10, or go crazy and get obe of those new 45degree printers), but the ender 3 is a solid coice.

Positive

qwelyt

reddit.com/r/ErgoMechKeyboards

Read more

More Reviews

Based on 22 reviews

The Looria Grade (A - F) accounts for multiple factors, including sentiment, helpfulness, and more. Learn about our sources and ranking.

#24 most mentioned

Reddit · r/3Dprinting

• Great for beginners
• No USB port for PC control
• Comes with no spool holders
• Print quality is not the best

Would you pay $750 for the pictured printer and filament? Owner said he bought it to get in to printing but didn't have time once he realized how involved it can be, less than a roll has been printed on it.

Oh heck no. At that price a prusa would be far superior.

Heck even a $200 creality ender 3 is better than that.

Negative

newenglandpolarbear

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

Purchase Advice Megathread: What To Buy, Who To Buy It From, And More, In January 2021

Not sure if I'll have space enough for the Ender 6, though , as a mechanical engineer, the corexy system of the Ender 6 and Sapphire pro speak to me. The sapphire seems to have a lot of issues , though I've seen a lot of positive comments. The Ender 6 is a tad expensive and I don't know whether it's worth the extra money. The Ender 3 V2 , although looking great, seems a bit basic.

Positive

Paulospanmos

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

After 5 long weeks, it has finally arrived!!!!

And by the way, I also own the Creality CR-6 which has been an absolute pleasure to deal with, the prints come out damn near flawless. I bought the MK3 because I kept hearing it one of the best, but ill be dammed to say that the CR-6 already near perfect prints, not sure how the $600 price difference will be justified, but we will see. Either way, I can say I own a Prusa now :D.

Positive

3Dwitha4Kface

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

More Reviews

Based on 101 reviews

The Looria Grade (A - F) accounts for multiple factors, including sentiment, helpfulness, and more. Learn about our sources and ranking.

#11 most mentioned

Reddit · r/3Dprinting

• Great for beginners
• Easy to assemble
• Supports multiple filament types
• Comes with a spool of PLA
• Takes about 3 hours to build

Would you pay $750 for the pictured printer and filament? Owner said he bought it to get in to printing but didn't have time once he realized how involved it can be, less than a roll has been printed on it.

Oh heck no. At that price a prusa would be far superior.

Heck even a $200 creality ender 3 is better than that.

Negative

newenglandpolarbear

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

BL Touch

Now, I rarely relevel at all and it's been working almost flawlessly for probably over a hundred hours at least. (Ender 5 Pro, BLTouch from the Creality site).

Positive

rduken

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

I have recently purchased an ender 5 pro on Amazon. I was all excited because its my first 3d printer. I followed all instructions but I had problem printing. The first thing is that when I click the option to preheat PLA, the screen just blacks out and restarts.

Negative

tony323410632

reddit.com/r/3Dprinting

Read more

More Reviews

More ender 3d printers

Building a home 3D printer with your own hands: recommendations from personal experience

3D printing and assembly of 3D printers is my hobby and passion. Here I will not share detailed diagrams and drawings, there are more than enough of them on specialized resources. The main goal of this material is to tell you where to start, where to dig and how to avoid mistakes in the process of assembling a home 3D printer. Perhaps one of the readers will be inspired by applied engineering achievements.

Why do you need a 3D printer? Use cases

I first came across the idea of ​​3D printing back in the 90s when I was watching the Star Trek series. I remember how impressed I was by the moment when the heroes of the cult series printed the things they needed during their journey right on board their starship. They printed anything: from shoes to tools. I thought it would be great someday to have such a thing too. Then it all seemed something incredible. Outside the window are the gloomy 90s, and the Nokia with a monochrome screen was the pinnacle of progress, accessible only to a select few.

Years passed, everything changed. Around 2010, the first working models of 3D printers began to appear on sale. Yesterday's fantasy has become a reality. However, the cost of such solutions, to put it mildly, discouraged. But the IT industry would not be itself without an inquisitive community, where there is an active exchange of knowledge and experience and who just let them dig into the brains and giblets of new hardware and software. So, drawings and diagrams of printers began to surface more and more often on the Web. Today, the most informative and voluminous resource on the topic of assembling 3D printers is RepRap - this is a huge knowledge base that contains detailed guides for creating a wide variety of models of these machines.

I assembled the first printer about five years ago. My personal motivation to build my own device is quite prosaic and based on several factors. Firstly, there was an opportunity to try to realize the old dream of having your own device, inspired by a fantasy series. The second factor is that sometimes it was necessary to repair some household items (for example, a baby stroller, car elements, household appliances and other small things), but the necessary parts could not be found. Well, the third aspect of the application is "near-working". On the printer, I make cases for various IoT devices that I assemble at home.

Agree, it is better to place your device based on Raspberry Pi or Arduino in an aesthetically pleasing "body", which is not a shame to put in an apartment or take to the office, than to organize components, for example, in a plastic bowl for food. And yes, you can print parts to build other printers :)

There are a lot of scenarios for using 3D printers. I think everyone can find something of their own.

A complex part in terms of drawing that I printed on my printer. Yes, it's just a figurine, but it has many small elements

Ready solution vs custom assembly

When a technology has been tested, its value in the market decreases markedly. The same thing happened in the world of 3D printers. If earlier a ready-made solution cost simply sky-high money, then today acquiring such a machine is more humane for the wallet, but nevertheless not the most affordable for an enthusiast. There are a number of solutions already assembled and ready for home use on the market, their price range ranges from $500-700 (not the best options) to infinity (adequate solutions start from a price tag of about $1000). Yes, there are options for $150, but we, for understandable, I hope, reasons, will not dwell on them.

In short, there are three cases to consider a finished assembly:

• when you plan to print not much and rarely;
• when print accuracy is critical;
• you need to print molds for mass production of parts.

There are several obvious advantages to self-assembly. The first and most important is cost. Buying all the necessary components will cost you a maximum of a couple of hundred dollars. In return, you will receive a complete 3D printing solution with the quality of manufactured products acceptable for domestic needs. The second advantage is that by assembling the printer yourself, you will understand the principles of its design and operation. Believe me, this knowledge will be useful to you during the operation of even an expensive ready-made solution - any 3D printer needs to be serviced regularly, and it can be difficult to do this without understanding the basics.

The main disadvantage of assembly is the need for a large amount of time. I spent about 150 hours on my first build.

What you need to assemble the printer yourself

The most important thing here is the presence of desire. As for any special skills, then, by and large, in order to assemble your first printer, the ability to solder or write code is not critical. Of course, understanding the basics of radio electronics and basic skills in the field of mechanics (that is, "straight hands") will greatly simplify the task and reduce the amount of time that needs to be spent on assembly.

Also, to start we need a mandatory set of parts:

• Extruder is the element that is directly responsible for printing, the print head. There are many options on the market, but for a budget build, I recommend the MK8. Of the minuses: it will not be possible to print with plastics that require high temperatures, there is noticeable overheating during intensive work, which can damage the element. If the budget allows, then you can look at MK10 - all the minuses are taken into account there.
• Processor board. The familiar Arduino Mega is well suited. I didn't notice any downsides to this solution, but you can spend a couple of dollars more and get something more powerful, with a reserve for the future.
• Control board. I'm using RAMPS 1.4 which works great with the Arduino Mega. A more expensive but more reliable board is Shield, which already combines a processor board and a control board. In modern realities, I recommend paying attention to it. In addition to it, you need to purchase at least 5 microstep stepper motor controllers, for example - A4988. And it's better to have a couple of these in stock for replacement.
• Heated table. This is the part where the printed element will be located. Heating is necessary due to the fact that most plastics will not adhere to a cold surface. For example, for printing with PLA plastic, the required surface temperature of the table is 60-80°C, for ABS - 110-130°C, and for polycarbonate it will be even higher
  There are also two options for choosing a table - cheaper and more expensive. Cheaper options are essentially printed circuit boards with preheated wiring. To operate on this type of table, you will need to put borosilicate glass, which will scratch and crack during operation. Therefore, the best solution is an aluminum table.
• Stepper motors. Most models, including the i2 and i3, use NEMA 17 size motors, two for the Z axis and one each for the X and Y axes. Finished extruders usually come with their own stepper motor. It is better to take powerful motors with a current in the motor winding of 1A or more, so that there is enough power to lift the extruder and print without skipping steps at high speed.
• Basic set of plastic fasteners.
• Belt and gears to drive it.

Examples of elements appearance: 1) MK8 extruder; 2) Arduino processor board; 3) RAMPS control board; 4) motor controllers; 5) aluminum heated table; 6) NEMA 17 stepper motor; 7) a set of plastic fasteners; 8) drive gears; 9) drive belt

This is a list of items to be purchased. Hardcore users can assemble some of them themselves, but for beginners, I strongly recommend purchasing ready-made solutions.

Yes, you will also need various small things (studs, bearings, nuts, bolts, washers ...) to assemble the case. In practice, it turned out that using a standard m8 stud leads to low printing accuracy on the Z axis. I would recommend immediately replacing it with a trapezoid of the same size.

M8 trapezoid stud for Z axis, which will save you a lot of time and nerves. Available for order on all major online platforms

You also need to purchase customized plastic parts for the X axis, such as these from the MendelMax retrofit kit.

Most parts available at your local hardware store. On RepRap you can find a complete list of necessary little things with all sizes and patterns. The kit you need will depend on the choice of platform (we'll talk about platforms later).

What's the price

Before delving into some aspects of the assembly, let's figure out how much such entertainment will cost for your wallet. Below is a list of parts required for purchase with an average price.

Platform selection

The community has already developed a number of different platforms for assembling printers - the most optimal case designs and the location of the main elements, so you do not have to reinvent the wheel.

i2 and i3 are key platforms for self-assembly printer enclosures. There are also many modifications of them with various improvements, but for beginners, these two classic platforms should be considered, since they do not require special skills and fine-tuning.

Actually, illustration of platforms: 1) i2 platform; 2) i3 platform

On the plus side of i2: it has a more reliable and stable design, although it is a little more difficult to assemble; more opportunities for further customization.

The i3 variant requires more special plastic parts to be purchased separately and has a slow print speed. However, it is easier to assemble and maintain, and has a more aesthetically pleasing appearance. You will have to pay for simplicity with the quality of printed parts - the body has less stability than i2, which can affect print accuracy.

Personally, I started my experiments in assembling printers from the i2 platform. She will be discussed further.

Assembly steps, challenges and improvements

In this block, I will only touch on the key assembly steps using the i2 platform as an example. Full step by step instructions can be found here.

The general scheme of all the main components looks something like this. There is nothing particularly complicated here:

I also recommend adding a display to your design. Yes, you can easily do without this element when performing operations on a PC, but it will be much more convenient to work with the printer this way.

Understanding how all components will be connected, let's move on to the mechanical part, where we have two main elements - a frame and a coordinate machine.

Assembling the frame

Detailed frame assembly instructions are available on RepRap. Of the important nuances - you will need a set of plastic parts (I already talked about this above, but I'd better repeat it), which you can either purchase separately or ask your comrades who already have a 3D printer to print.

The frame of the i2 is quite stable thanks to its trapezoid shape.

This is how the frame looks like with parts already partially installed. For greater rigidity, I reinforced the structure with plywood sheets

Coordinate machine

An extruder is attached to this part. The stepper motors shown in the diagram above are responsible for its movement. After installation, calibration is required along all major axes.

Important - you will need to purchase (or make your own) a carriage for moving the extruder and a mount for the drive belt. Drive belt I recommend GT2.

The carriage printed by the printer from the previous picture after it has been assembled. The part already has LM8UU bearings for guides and belt mount (top)

Calibration and adjustment

So, we completed the assembly process (as I said, it took me 150 hours) - the frame was assembled, the machine was installed. Now another important step is the calibration of this very machine and extruder. Here, too, there are small subtleties.

Setting up the machine

I recommend calibrating the machine with an electronic caliper. Do not be stingy with its purchase - you will save a lot of time and nerves in the process.

The screenshot below shows the correct constants for the Marlin firmware, which must be selected in order to set the correct number of steps per unit of measure. We calculate the coefficient, multiply it, substitute it into the firmware, and then upload it to the board.

Marlin 9 firmware constants0022