I've seen a lot of cool 3D printed items on here, but I don't own a 3D printer. Is there an affordable & reliable place to order one-of printed items? Or is it better to just buy a low-end printer myself? Ideally I'd like to avoid buying one since it'd just take up space most of the time. Thanks in advance!

My two cents is that the very inexpensive printers aren't a good idea for people who are new to 3D printing. They seem to be fussy and require some knowledge to get working properly. If you can expand your budget, the Prusa Mini for $349 (or $399 fully assembled) is an excellent way to get into the hobby as it's very beginner-friendly, high quality, and quite capable. That's the route I went and while I don't print things very often, I don't regret buying it. But if you wouldn't get $349 worth of prints out of it, then it wouldn't make sense to buy.

As for printing services, I used to use 3DHubs but they seem to have pivoted to commercial/industrial customers. I know Shapeways is a popular option, but haven't used their service. What might be best is if you can find a 3D printing community local to you; it's likely there are members who would be happy to take on an occasional print for a small fee.

>> This Does Not Compute said:

What might be best is if you can find a 3D printing community local to you; Click to expand...

100%. Almost every city has a maker community or makerspace you can connect with, and most libraries these days have 3D printers you can use (and people around to help). Seeing that you're in Madison, WI, you could look into The Bodgery (https://www.thebodgery.org/) or the makerspace at UWM (https://making.engr.wisc.edu/)

Yeah, I went the cheap route and bought a off brand printer, and while I have got it to where I can print relatively reliably, it still takes a lot of tweaking, in addition to me adding things like a BL touch for bed leveling , a new print surface, and a Raspberry Pi running OctoPi.

On the plus side, I've learned a lot about 3d printing (and even done some custom "modelling", although it's mostly taking existing designs and tweaking). Also, I have a larger print area than what would have gotten with something like the Prusa Mini. It's come in handy for printing parts for old machines, like mounting brackets for SCSI2SD / BlueSCSI boards in an SE, External enclosures for my RaSCSI, SSD adapter sleds for old machines that expect full size HDs, a new back plate for my Mystic upgraded Color Classic.

Of course, it's also why I'm hoping we get enough people to get some platinum colored PLA for 3d printing: https://tinkerdifferent.com/threads/platinum-pla-for-macs-and-apple-s.561/

I'm not sure I've paid for the 3d printer (and all the extra parts, filament, hair spray, Ikea lack tables for an enclosure, etc), but I'd probably do it again.

Thanks for the suggestions! I've actually been the The Bodgery before, unfortunately you have to be a member to use their printer and they aren't accepting new applications due to COVID. Additionally I believe UW's space is only for students. I will check out Shapeways though!

In my opinion there are two ways you can go about getting 3d prints done.


The First is to find a Service that does it at a price and quality you are happy with. I would also say you want to check their reviews and really drill down to see if they are going to be the kind of service you want.

Next and personally I Think this is the best solution. That is to get an Creality Ender 3, Voxelab Aquila 3D Printer(not the C2, X2), Sovol Sv01. Each of these can be bought for a relatively cheap price, and very importantly have a good support community. I see people say here oh beginners shouldn't get 3d printers blah blah blah. 3d printers have come along way from industrial mess printers , Or crap printers like the monoprice 3d printers.

The thing is everything will take work and cost something. If it is finding a service that will work for you and pay for the prints, or buying the printer and adjusting all of the belts and concentric nuts and trouble shooting your own printer. Keep that in mind and buy what you feel comfortable with . The 3d printers in the long run will be cheaper for sure, however for just a few prints here and there the services will likely be better.

One important thing for all beginners is this right here ... No matter how well you have dialed in your printer you should still get an auto leveling system like a BLtouch. You also have to remember you do have to maintain the printer and re adjust things as needed over time and replace parts.

As for resin printing I would say do that as a service as those are toxic to work with and it is better to leave it to a professional.


EDIT: Keep in mind this comes from someone who owns and runs a 3d print farm of about 20 some Sovol Sv01 printers before they were ender 3 printers.

Your local library may have free 3D printing or cheap.

>> rjkucia said:

I've seen a lot of cool 3D printed items on here, but I don't own a 3D printer. Is there an affordable & reliable place to order one-of printed items? Or is it better to just buy a low-end printer myself? Ideally I'd like to avoid buying one since it'd just take up space most of the time. Thanks in advance! Click to expand...

I have one don't mind making something for ya, if you ever need something made PM me

I use https://craftcloud3d.com

Incredibly affordable, choice of manufacturer, plastic, color, infil... I have had great luck with them.

You can also search for a hackerspace or a fablab near you, you can usually use the machines by the hour after some learning.

Thanks all, I actually found a local guy to get the print I needed. Unfortunately he passed away recently. I don't need any prints in the near future, but the organization he was a part of (The Bodgery) is generally very helpful with this sort of thing.