First 3D printer advice
First 3D printer advice
Hello, I am looking to buy my first filament 3D printer. Any printer or printer brand you recommend and why? What 3D modeling software is usually used to design? Any tips are welcome! (my budget would be 200-300€) I would like to eventually get into resin printing as well.
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3D modeling and 3D printing are 2 different hobies and both have one thing in common, THEY LEECH LOADS OF TIME 🤣 Just saying, it doesnt need to be bad, I like it! But if you are beginner maybe start with only one.
Why first fdm, then resin? If you want resin printer just go that path. Resin is good for miniatures while filaments are better for mechanical properties and bigger size. Fdm is faster, but still extremely slow. For 20x20x20 cm model you need like 1 day or more to complete. Get something that supports klipper firmware, like ender (probably most cheap printers) and expect extra cost on upgrades.
For 3D modeling software you can chose open source Blender if you want to create sculptures or art thingies. Blender can do much more, but for mechanical parts you need CAD. You can make simple objects in any free software, like fusion or freecad. If you want proper CAD get solidworks. Super expensive for home users unless you can get it for free somehow, but loads of guides everywhere since its kinda industry standard.
I know you are looking for exact 3D printer models (hopefully others will cover that), but you might find this useful. GL
Why first fdm, then resin? If you want resin printer just go that path. Resin is good for miniatures while filaments are better for mechanical properties and bigger size. Fdm is faster, but still extremely slow. For 20x20x20 cm model you need like 1 day or more to complete. Get something that supports klipper firmware, like ender (probably most cheap printers) and expect extra cost on upgrades.
^this, verbatim. My advice is, think about what it is you want to print and go from there. If you're going to try to make functional parts with the occasional "cute" gift for someone, chances are you'd want to go with FDM and Fusion 360, then it's dealers choice on which slicer you prefer. Then think about what you're using those parts for, and figure out what filament will be best for that part, whether it needs to sit in a hot car, for example, you'll be looking at ABS / ASA versus something that sits inside on a desk and doesn't need to support weight, where PLA is your cheap and generally easiest filament to use. Then, research what printers are capable of printing said filament, as not all 3d printers can handle higher temps, need enclosures, etc.
On the other hand, if you're going to make tabletop miniatures or need the properties of resin for whatever reason, you'll want to go with resin, and modeling software such as Blender as others have suggested
Thirding this, having a clearer idea of what kind of stuff you are going to print will help you a TON.
That's why I would suggest to dabble into modelling for a while first, see what kind of stuff you find more interesting/fun to make, and dial in your decisions from there. I say this, OP, because I was in your position of thinking about doing both resin for miniatures and FDM for buildings/dioramas/useful things... But I ended up doing mostly miniatures, because that's what I found most fun to do. So I would have been better served investing the FDM money in a bigger and better resin printer.
For software, since you mention that you may get a resin printer, I assume you are considering eventually making miniatures, characters, monsters, etc. If so, you will want to look into software that has sculpting tools. Blender has them, Fusion 360 as well, there are many others. I use ZBrush but a lot of people find it weird to use. Blender would probably be the best starting point because it is free, extremely well documented and has everything you need.
As a last note, if you are not familiar with this world, you should know that even with the best of printers, you should expect to spend a lot of time tinkering, troubleshooting and tuning. If your expectations are to assemble it and immediately start printing cool stuff, you will need to adjust them. It is a really fun hobby, but requires you to be willing to deal with days in which your prints suddenly come out wrong and have to spend the whole day debugging the issue instead of having fun.
Why klipper? Firmware’s are a bit more advanced and most printers come with marlin as stock. If your printer still uses a 16bit board… sure, klipper has advantages, but on the modern 32bit boards… needing a pi is a big problem and marlin is competitive.
Marlin + octoprint is extremely powerful. I would suggest the only real advantage is the editable confit files- but seriously, how often are you changing settings?
Thanks for the response! My understanding is that the procedure/handling of resin is more complicated and that it is simpler to start with fdm.
Its easier to learn snowboarding for people who know how to ski. It doesnt mean every snowboarder should start skiing first, but its not wrong if you enjoy it.
Its more about what you want to print and where. If you want to print tiny, high detail miniatures your FDM will suck. If you want to print in your living room better get FDM and print PLA, cuz for resin you need proper ventilation.
Have fun!
I'm not sure if I would even recommend starting with fdm if your goal is resin. So little that you learn about fdm actually transfers to resin, they really are that different. If your end goal is resin because you want to make miniatures, you're just wasting money getting an fdm printer.