About 2 weeks ago I received a 3D printer kit that I bought for $190. It took 7 hours to assemble and several days to dial in the print settings. Here is a brief overview of my latest obsession.
The Build
I bought an FLSUN i3 kit from ebay for $190 for this project. I’ve been wanting a 3D printer for a while, and I felt that ~$200 was a pretty good price point to jump in. The kit was very well packaged, and arrived without any damaged parts. The included instructions were very thorough, with images for each step. The software I was sent was a bit outdated, but easy enough to update.
This kit features a 200x200x220mm printing volume, with a heated aluminum print bed, and an auto-leveling sensor. Two small rolls of PLA filament were also included with this kit. For the most part, the printer works surprisingly well with just the stock parts from the kit. Of course, one of the main advantages of a 3D printer is the ability to print modifications and improvements for the machine.
The build was incredibly straightforward. It may seem a bit overwhelming at first, but everything fits as it should, and there isn’t anything too complicated to put together. If you’ve got the time to invest, don’t be afraid of going for a kit like this instead of a pre-made machine.
Printing
The first things I printed were modifications to improve the quality of the printer. Results from the stock printer weren’t bad at all, but you could visibly see improvements in each subsequent print after an upgrade. I began with Z-axis braces, and printing a Raspberry Pi case that would hold an RPi running OctoPrint. I added a sheet of PEI (polyetherimide) to the print bed which significantly aids in adhesion and clean removal of prints. A few other parts were added for convenience or to tidy up the printer’s appearance, including aluminum extrusion endcaps and a mounted spool holder.
I very quickly used up the included PLA and had to order a new spool within the first week. By the time I’ve finished printing one object, I’ve found five more to add to the queue.
While printing at 0.1mm results in incredibly high quality prints, it drastically increases the print time. I mostly print at 0.2mm, which still looks great for most objects. PLA is a fantastic material–surprisingly strong, lightweight, and very easy to print.
From household objects to highly-customized components for electronics projects, there really is no limit to what can be 3D printed. The greatest moment for me was when it finally clicked that if I needed something–anything–I could just print it. I needed a chip clip at one point, and a few minutes later I had one.
Conclusion
I’ll add some more specific projects I’ve been working on recently with the assistance of my new 3D printer soon. I hope this post encourages some of you who are curious about 3D printing to dive in and get started. If you have any questions, feel free to email or message me.
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