Does anybody own a Solidoodle 4?
If so, what do you think? Does it print well with PLA? I’m thinking about getting one and I want to make sure it’s a good printer.
@Jascha_Wilcox has some problems with his Solidoodle, but I think others have said good things over on e-NABLE. Maybe he can expand on his issues with it.
The Solidoodle machines look like cubes, but they cut so many corners that they will roll off the table. Seriously, I’ve worked on a couple of 3s, and they were some of the shoddiest 3d printer designs I’ve seen (and that’s really saying something). The 4 is the same thing with a plastic case, the proverbial lipstick on the pig. Steer clear.
@Whosa_whatsis The website says that the case is metal?
@Whosa_whatsis Can you elaborate?
The frame is metal, and the sides might be too, but I’m pretty sure the front is plastic. My point was that the guts inside are the same craptastic dreck they’ve been using since version 1. Oh, they also finally moved the controller board inside rather than leaving it hanging off the back, but I bet it’s still the same outdated-when-it-was-new 644P-based sanguinololu the ones I worked on had. I had to practically hop into a time machine to get it’s firmware to compile and upload because nothing even supports that chip anymore.
@Whosa_whatsis Was there anything wrong with the prints?
Its the reliability of the machine. A good friend has a 3 and has basically replaced the whole machine besides the bearing rails and belts and frame. Save your money and get a higher end machine or get a bukobot or printrbot.
More of my observations here: https://plus.google.com/+AnthonyMorris/posts/78VnXtNYHLC
I didn’t see prints from the ones I worked on (they weren’t working when they came to me), though I have seen horribly Z wobble in some of their own PR photos. The printed parts of the machine (which were presumably printed by other solidoodles, owned and operated by the company, and the people who should know how to get the best results out of them) looked like crap.
An experienced and dedicated user can get good quality out of the worst machines (I own a CupcakeCNC that prints a lot better than most of the printers on the market today, though very few of the components it uses to do so actually came from Makerbot), but you should not expect to get acceptable quality from a Solidoodle.
Thanks @Joe_Spanier
Thank you so much! @Whosa_whatsis
But do you have any suggestions of what printer I SHOULD look into?
Well, @Joe_Spanier already mentioned the Bukobot, and at the risk of self-promotion, I’d also mention the Bukito (which I designed). The Ultimaker 2 is also a beautiful machine, but probably outside your price range if you were considering a Solidoodle. The Tinkerine machines are similar, and though I don’t have any experience with them or know anyone who has one, if I was in the market for an FDM printer that I wasn’t personally involved in designing (well, the extruder mechanism is based on my design, if that counts) I would definitely be doing my research on them.
Thanks! @Whosa_whatsis
Just watched your Kickstarter @Whosa_whatsis Are you selling them yet? I haven’t seen any.
I have bought four printers from three companies. The one the I got up and running first was the Bukito kit. I have been printing acceptable prints with it and I’m exploring its envelop with joy. Aside from the darned Bowden tube, it has been great fun. The printer kit that arrived first was a QU-BD OneUp. Sort of easy to build, but design issues right out of the chute kept me from getting up and running so far. I also purchased a TwoUp, because I’m a gluten for punishment I guess. It still hasn’t arrived. Then there is my BIG! Investment. It is up and running and I have had better results then most others in the Rigidbot G+ community, but not without travail. The Rigidbot from Invent-A-Part is not quite ready yet. Perhaps in a year they may be a force to contend with,not yet.
Personally, if you want quick results, I recommend the Bukito. The metal Simple by @Brook_Drumm might be a good kit as well, but I haven’t used it yet.
Seconding the Bukobot/Bukito; I always hesitate to promote it because I don’t know what @Whosa_whatsis ’ workload is, and the website still has “preorder now!” stuff all over it.
Also, @Whosa_whatsis you’re more than welcome to let people know about the Bukobot/Bukito here. They’re amazing machines, and we give too much credit to other printers like the Printrbot, Ultimaker, etc.
I don’t know how to tell you this…but you’re kind of a big deal. People KNOW you…
@ThantiK Heh. Well, the Bukobot leadtime is down to <1 week… meaning we don’t always have them sitting around in boxes yet, but if you walk into the shop, we can usually have one ready for you to walk out with.
There are still Bukito kickstarter orders to ship, but we’re getting through them much faster and it shouldn’t be too long.
Where can I see the different printers and prices? @Whosa_whatsis