Hi all, I want to buy my son a 3D printer for his 20th birthday. He is a third year computer science major, so has no issues with the software side. I have no idea where to start, or even what questions to ask. Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
What’s the budget? There are many good ones in many price categories, so if you have a figure in mind, that helps narrow it down.
Personally I’m a big fan of my Prusa Core One. It’s fun to build and it hasn’t left me wanting, plus there are many upgrade options available. It’s also pretty open in terms of software, as opposed to certain other manufacturers which seem to be going for a walled garden approach.
Thanks, just looked at the Core One+. In budget and looks great. Appreciate the input!
By the way, I recommend going for the kit and not the preassembled one. Learning how everything fits together helps on the maintenance, plus the assembly instructions are really well written. Also, the kit is a little cheaper.
Took me three evenings to assemble everything.
Thank you. That was the plan. Looks like a fun project and it always amazes me how resourceful and thoughtful all of my kids are. It’s the sort of project that will make him think, and appreciate the finished product in a way that the preassembled one wouldn’t.
Three evenings is a good period of time for a serious, kit set project
Prusa is the obvious recommendation and have really god quality printers. Another option would be Qidi, they have some great value options (I heard the Q1 Pro is decent?) or recently Elegoo with their Centauri Carbon.
However, I would advise that you don’t get a Bambu Lab printer, as someone who owns the Bambu A1. They print fine, but Bambu is locking down on their ecosystem by blocking third party software and hardware (e.g. PandaTouch display), and it won’t be long until they go full Apple/HP-like (they already have RFID tags on their filament, what’s stopping them from dropping an update that blocks non-Bambu filament like HP did with ink?)
For filaments, PLA is the simple choice that works for most things as long as they aren’t in the sun for too long (e.g. decorative models, phone stand) but aren’t the best for outdoor stuff (think garden signs and such). Some people also like PETG, which is another good general purpose filament.
ABS/ASA are tough and strong, good for mechanical parts and things that require strength, but remember to have good ventilation since they can produce nasty fumes that are not very nice to breathe in. You’ve also got TPU, which is flexible (so phone cases and stuff), but you need to make sure it stays dry.
I have personally only used PLA since I don’t print too many things that need the strength of ABS/ASA or the flexibility of TPU.
