Prusa I3: Ready to Buy

Well, after as much investigation as i've been able to do, I'm keener than ever to make the move and purchase a 3-D printer, but unhappily I'm still on hold. After some research and a lot of questions I've decided the unit should be:

• A RepRap Prusa I3 design.
• In kit form. Ideally I'd like to purchase a fully assembled unit, but I can probably only afford a kit.
• Aluminium frame. Quite a few people have recommended aluminium for stability over the other alternatives.

But I'm still on hold because I can't find a RepRap Prusa I3 Kit with Aluminium Frame *WITH A GOOD REPUTATION* that is either available from within Australia or where international freight is free or quite inexpensive.

If you know of a RepRap Prusa I3 Kit with Aluminium Frame *WITH A GOOD REPUTATION* I would be very glad to hear of it, especially if the supplier is in Australia or offers free freight to Australia.

Any and all suggestions MOST WELCOME.

Thanks,
- Bill

I am getting a replikeo in a steel frame (they also sell aluminum frames) so, if you wait a bit I can let you know how it turns out...


they had a mediocre reputation, but it seems to be improving...

Thanks for the response. I took a look at this one here:

To my novice eyes it reads fairly good. Unfortunately, due to recent falls in the value of the Australian dollar against the US, shipping costs to Australia will be AUD$114.54, bringing the total cost to AUD$538.86. Still, that's bearable if the quality and attention to detail is there.

I found a number of user reviews from about a year ago, claiming mixed results. Common problems were poor packaging resulting in some damage contents, which inevitably leads to long delays waiting for replacements. Poor/inadequate assembly instructions were also mentioned by a few people. Instructions written in Japlish or Chinglish are always a problem regardless of the product.

Where are you, how long ago did you order, and is tracking available?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/11/2015 11:36PM by Anonymouse.

Hi,

On the prusa i3 you want ACME threaded shaft Nema17 motors.
On the Replikeo I dislike cable management, endstops management,
and the full M8 theaded rods Y chassis which makes sqaring problematic.
There's no tensioning system for the X belt, and I don't like the simple bearings as idler pulleys.
There's no screen, no card reader.
The Replikeo have a wade and an aluminium frame, but it's still a basic kit.

++JM

The screen is available for 15usd more..


As far as the rest of the post, most of us here would benefit from you elaborating more (this will be my first build).


I saw a mod on YouTube to fix the y axis problem... I mean, I think with almost any kit il your going to have to buy it, then make upgrades as you go.... at least that is the impression I got from reading around.

Hi again,

Well it's the usual way...
because people don't make the right choices first.
They buy a good price, not a good kit.

There's two different ways to see the journey.
One, you think fails are always positive,
and experiencing is more important to you.
Seccond, you like using a proper tool,
not spending time and money to wish for proper prints.

++JM

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/12/2015 12:56PM by J-Max.

J-Max, I think a lot of us would like to use a proper tool but also have budgets that aren't unlimited. If I read you right, the Replikeo is a lower-end or basic kit with two better features - the extruder and the frame. Is it possible to buy a kit that has ACME threaded shaft Nema17 motors, better cable management, a screen, etc? Or would we be more likely to get a quality product by sourcing the parts individually? I'm new, and I'm sketching out a set of ideal features for the Prusa....

Quote
prispin
J-Max, I think a lot of us would like to use a proper tool but also have budgets that aren't unlimited. If I read you right, the Replikeo is a lower-end or basic kit with two better features - the extruder and the frame. Is it possible to buy a kit that has ACME threaded shaft Nema17 motors, better cable management, a screen, etc? Or would we be more likely to get a quality product by sourcing the parts individually? I'm new, and I'm sketching out a set of ideal features for the Prusa....

QFT, but i doubt you get a straight answer. 3D printing is a "smallish" community, so most of the "advice" you get is from people trying to sell you their version. You could always go with the offical kit: [shop.prusa3d.com]

Its a littlee more than twice as expensive, but... everything is genuine. It uses a steel frame, though.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/12/2015 05:19PM by Qdeathstar.

Thanks! I too hadn't looked carefully at the original Prusa - there is a good deal of information overload as one gets used to this stuff!
I guess that raises another question: how does that kit compare to other higher cost kits, like the NWRepRap kit and the RepRap Universe kit?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/13/2015 09:49AM by prispin.

Hi,

Quote
prispin
J-Max, I think a lot of us would like to use a proper tool but also have budgets that aren't unlimited. If I read you right, the Replikeo is a lower-end or basic kit with two better features - the extruder and the frame. Is it possible to buy a kit that has ACME threaded shaft Nema17 motors, better cable management, a screen, etc? Or would we be more likely to get a quality product by sourcing the parts individually? I'm new, and I'm sketching out a set of ideal features for the Prusa....

Well, Qdeathstar is right.
To me, there's no perfect kit.
There's good and bad in anyone.
The best you can do is to compose your own kit.
If you can benefit of the help of skilled guys from your closest fablab, it's cool !
I've posted my dream bill of materials here.

++JM

As I linked on the other post, I like the steel Createc because of the steel X axis, and the built-in LCD frame. The replikeo has bolts for a frame, which by default don't "lock" into place like the laser cut steel frame does. Also the Createc has the very-rigid triangle supported Z

[forums.reprap.org]

My thanks to everyone for your advice and assistance. Much appreciated.

After several changes of mind, today I ordered a fully assembled Wanhao Duplicator I3(steel frame).

No doubt I will have some tuning and modifying to do, so this is probably not the last you'll hear from me.

- Bill