Righto so this is a short article just to share some recent developments.
I've now been 3d printing long enough to be comfortable with any FDM printer, & I actually own 4 3d printers now. 2 FDM & 2 are resin printers.
We'll talk about Resin printers next but lets talk FDM first.
So I want talk about my newer 3d printer the FlashForge Creator 3.
I bought it because it has a few newer cooler features, like dual Independant Extruders - meaning its 2 heads run simultaneously side by side.
It also has webcam & wifi connection. A removable magnetic flex build plate, & the head still gets to 320C with a high speed heating option.
For a machine thats only $4000 this is impressive.
The best commercial grade, robust, high end printer that you can use on a desk is still the Creatbot F430, but I'm really impressed with how much I do with my newer FlashForge Creator 3 IDEX.
The Creatbot F430 doesnt have all these newer things.
I use my Creator 3 a lot now a days because I actually find the print setup easier, & working with the slicer a lot nicer. Its called FlashPrint, which may sound proprietary but its not.
The machine is quite open you can use whatever you want, but I really like their bundled program.
The built in settings & profiles are really well tuned, you can basically press print & walk away it is that good.
The way I now work is for things that dont need a heated chamber (large ABS or polycarbonate enclosures or high temperature materials like PEI) then I use the Creator 3 straight up.
And when I need the heat chamber, or want to make something particularly strong out of high strength Carbon Fiber Nylon, thats when I use the Creatbot F430 - it still has the edge there around higher flow rate.
But the Creator 3 is awesome. Please dont compare this with the Creator 2, or Creator Pro 2 or any such sounding name. They are good printers but no where near this Creatbor 3 Pro. Get the 3 pro not the 3 v2 or older version.
This machine took 10 mins to setup after unpacking. Heck I spent more time unpacking than I did setting it up. I treally is that good. The guided setup with the wizards & auto levelling & extruder calibration & everything is really good.
This machine actually offers a dual head extruder clibration as part of the initial setup. So it is the best printer I have for dual colour 3d printing. Even for soluble supports, or for using 2 different grades of TPU, this is the best choice.
Multi material printing with 2 TPUs is really cool. Making objects that are soft & bendy is really cool.
Obviously, yes it is for my speaker cases. I'm making functional gaskets & covers to put inside on the electronics & also as dampeners - again, I know I have to write a lot on that topic, I will get to it.
Thank you for your patience.
Yes I dd buy this from 3D Printer Store in Auckland, the same business that I bought the F430 from. And its the same guy who I have had a good relationship over the last couple of years now.
Everything very smooth, no dramas.
So if anyone want sto do any product design with a broad ange of materials (beyond just PLA) & you want to not buy a toy & tinker but rather a tool that works from day 1, then you definitely want to look at this printer.
You very rarely find a printer that has all this capability, & yet so easy to use that a newbie can buy it as their first 3d printer & can continue growing into it.
I wouldnt recommend the F430 for a noob, but this one, yea, go for it..
