3D Printers, Makers, DIY hacks, solutions and post printing tools

We picked up a Fusion3 F410 and it is a solid performer. I've had sucess with ABS, PLA, ALLOY 910 (Nylon), as well as Fire Retardant ABS (smelly though). the Machine has performed flawlessly so far. I've got probably 300+hrs print time on it. I would highly recommend this printer to any small business and it's price is really reasonable. It will extrude any thing that is under 300 deg C and comes with all hardened steel extruder that will handle all fiber reinforced filaments. You won't find a lot of reviews on this printer online, but it's a good one. Mark

Thank you for taking the time to write this up.

I have been working with Leapfrog HS 3d printer (now discontinued) and it has been mostly a pain in the a! However since i had no previous knowledge in 3d printing it has at least made me familiar with many of the problems one can face when working with a 3d printer.

I am now thinking of taking a better leap :) and buying a 3d printer that could actually help me and have been hesitant on what printer to buy. Unfortunately Covid has taken a bite at my budget.

Would you guys have any suggestions? i believe the maximum i could spend at this time would be somewhere around 4-5k usd? Should i wait until better times? the Fusion3 F410 seems to be just around that price tag.

Thanks!

I build my own models, not happy with what they sell, limited options and improving possibilityes on them, mine at a tenth of what they charge perform twice as better, that is without considering the worth of my R&D work, if I add that at regular market prices, than mine are damn more expensive, still performing better thou.

well... you either build your own at that budget, trust me is worth the headache, you are going to read milions of forum pages, github pages and see thousands of videos on how to sort shit out one way or another, but you will absolutelly learn your field like no university can teach you ever.

Or you double the money, send them to me, and I make you a machine as i like it to work, for myself, hence better than whatever you could by at 10K anywhere in the world.

Usually that level might cost you between 50K to 120K (because property software, copyrights, profit margin, and some dodgy guarantees and online support granted by contract.)

I still use Marlin, Repetier and other open source codes to move mine, hence the price is lower, I also do not offer 24/7 support or guarantees (I lseep at night) but I do respond to my clients as soon as I can when they have a glitch (usually due to something stupid they did without realising even that they are doing something)

Of course if what they did ruined the machine or if what they want is some real personalized work on the macine to serve a purpose that it was not originally designed for, I quote them, if they go for it, i sort them out.

Just a note highly percision CNC delta style machine were built in the 80's, Ingersoll Milling Machine Co.  "Octahedral Hexapod." Lived in Rockford IL, in the late 80's and saw one at the company. Sandia National Laboritory tested one in 2001 wrote, "In a demonstration earlier this month in Rockford, Ill., using Ingersoll's developmental horizontal-axis hexapod milling machine, the new Smart Spindle Unit (SSU) allowed the machine to cut deeper and faster, removing metal at more than five times its original rate. This is not as stiff a copy, LinuxCNC (EMC2) controlled 6-axis hexapod." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_UmhUjZhNo

Accuracy is not just driven by the belts, but the stiffness of the structure, belt is one component. Stiffness gained by a ball screw must be balanced against the higher mass that must accelerate. Accelerate stretch of the belt and mass could be taken into account by great code in the motor drive, however; to do this the mass must be known. Quad and delta machines have known mass. Less mass means smaller motors, belts, and power drawn. Quad drive prints in basically 2D while a delta prints in 3D. Delta mass being moved is small and the same in the three directions. The negative of a delta is the higher level of calculations and higher perversion needed for the same final accuracy.

the Fusion3 F410 is USA made and has a 2 year warranty. Lifetime phone support and those are also things to consider. it has many features and is modifiable as well (some mods will of course void the warranty) It just works. it also has programmed a huge list of materials that they have tested and certified for their machine saving literally hundreds to thousands of hours of tinkering to get a material to print right... Bang for Buck it is this or maybe a Funmat HT, but you don't get any warranty and support or certified materials with the funmat....

Thank you Mark and Emil for your answers. I will continue to evaluate my options, including building one as proposed by Emil. I would be happy to improve on my currently limited knowledge.

Much appreciated.

it does not matter if for the future, for the real deal, you intend to buy or make your machine, what really matters is you should know thy demons, and face them, hence buy the crappy thing and make it print like you want each time, changing materials, diameters of the nozzle, settings etc.

That should teach you a lot in the field, so when you will make a decision, it will be based on solid foundations of knowledge.

My 2 cents.