[Savage GT]

Hi Guys,
Having seen these now getting to around the £300 mark, I wondered if you experienced 3D printer guys would think of the above named ?
Is it going to be something I can get my head round and will it produce reliable and quality results ?

It is a chunk of money still, but at that price it may make a reasonable investment if its not going to cost any more to get working right and/or give me more grief than its worth !

Primarily I would be looking to use it as a tool to make things like slot car chassis and simple model railway items (fences , walls etc).
I don't want to get into is as a hobby per se, just use it as a tool to benefit my current hobbies.
Or am I better off just waiting for what I want to be available from others with experience to make items for me ?

[CMOTD]

Model Railways and 3DP Tel? Slot cars are a deep enough rabbit hole for me without looking for more to fall down.

[Kevan]

First off I wouldn't consider buying a 3D printer until I knew a lot more about them, what the process is, watch a lot of youtube, read a lot of interweb reviews and lessons, download a slicer and 3D software, have a go without the printer...then decide.

It's not just a tool to do the job you need, it's a lot to learn, a lot to know how to not get it wrong, a lot to learn how to get what you want.

Advice is one thing but you already need to be on that path towards being a '3D maker'

I spent a few months digesting and learning and trying 3D CADware before deciding on a printer.

Everywhere I looked people said 'get a Prusa' but I went with the crowd and got an Ender3 just before lockdown #1 and opened the box whilst on furlough...the rabbit holes followed

I'd already done a lot of CAD in the past and just as I suspected this 3D printing malarkey was addictive...now I had two full time hobbies 

I sold the Ender and got a bigger Qidi then my first resin printer.

After a year I realised the Qidi wasn't the 'tool' I wanted, it would print but needed babying like the Ender so I bit the bullet and got a Prusa and everything changed, 3D printing was meant to be much easier and the Prusa made it so.

I realised after getting the Prusa that I'd wasted the best part of £1000 and should have listened to the advice two years earlier.

[KensRedZed]

Thanks Kevan,

I'm still in observation mode. Useful advice.

[Kevan]

I'm hoping some of the early adopters post in this thread, JS, Amato, Alexis...

[Scuderia_Turini]

Hello Tel,
I have a Creality CR10S that I bought early on. After much frustration it went up to my loft for almost a year.
Its generally accepted that having a 3D printer is a hobby in itself so if you do not have much free time, think carefully. Today I mastered being able to embed text into a flat surface so am learning the design side slowly (Tinkercad). Anything with  varying curves is way far in the future for me. Downloading files from Thingiverse and 3DPrintables can work but gives variable results as you are dependant upon the originator's skills. Slot_Car wise HRW seems to be where the 3D action is but mostly in relation to Can-Am cars.
Not sure but Ender 3 print-bed may be quite small for 1:32 car bodies.

Leo

[MrFlippant]

Any Ender will be plenty large for 1/32 and 1/24 slot car chassis and bodies. It's the low end resin printers that tend to be small for that stuff. Low end (other than crappy toys) FFF (filament) printers tend to be at least big enough for those things. 

When I was in the market back in late 2017, I was also told to get a Prusa. Fortunately, I had gotten a bonus at work, and was able to cover that cost. If I hadn't, I might have gone down the Creality route, and there's no telling if I would have stuck with it or not. Even with the Prusa, there's a bit of learning to be done before you can hit print and be reasonably confident in the end result. That aside, once I got past that learning curve, it's been a blast ever since, and getting into the modeling side has been really rewarding. I still recommend Prusa printers, in spite of the plethora of much cheaper printers that claim to have the same set of features.

The new hotness is the Bambu Labs printers. They're in the same price range as Prusa, but with some important differences, such as being considerably faster, and doing it's own calibration of things. That said, it's a closed system, and repair and maintenance is something worth considering. Open source machines like Prusa (and Creality, et al) are generally cheaper to repair, and easier to some degree, depending on what needs repairing.

What I have yet to see is a true "newbie" impression of the Bambu Labs machine(s). Everything I've seen to date has been someone already familiar with FFF printing, so they know what to watch out for and correct before things go horribly wrong.

[Savage GT]

What I am gleaning from all of your replies is its not plug and play even if you already knew your way round the software stuff, and Prusa are better than the Creality.
Discouraging, but ultimately giving me the answer I need ! 
I have just spotted one at £160 though, which opens a whole new can of worms   (yes I get it, cheap is not good  )

[Fluff]

Hi Tel ,been seriously thinking along the same lines ,just hesitating before the jump . Got some examples of figures and car bodies ,chassis etc ,done by a mate in Scotland on an Ender , I'll show you them next Wed ,might help in your decision but knowing you ,you'll have one by then

[JMay]

3dp printers are like cars, you can drive a Mercedes, Ford or a Trabant. Creality printers are Fords, Prusa is a Merc, and there are Trabants out there. I have 3 off Creality printers, 2 off CR Minis and a large CR10s the oldest is 4 years old and still going strong. These are predominately used for printing chassis’ for which having 3 printers for the price of one Prusa is an advantage.


In terms of reliability and quality the CR printers are not spotless but none of my printers have broken, and like a car, regular servicing and replacing worn out parts (i.e. print head nozzles that squirt the filament) keeps them going. Spares like parts for Fords are everywhere so keenly priced, and there is forum support etc.


My advice is generally if you want less hassle, the ability to print a wide range of filaments and more it works from the box then veer to the Prusa level printers, on the other hand if your budget constrains you and are prepared to devote time to learning 3dp then the Creality printers are value for money starting with the Ender 3 at sub £200. My sister has this printer and so far after 1 year no issues.


My 2p's worth.


Cheers
JMay