I have a Geeetec Prusa I3 X and am very happy with it. Just don't get enough time to play with it.

The latest is a multi head version but a dual head version is available using 2 different filements. You could use 2 colours but it also alows you to use water soluble filement for supporting overhangs and simply wash them away after printing.

Paul.

Or you could think big….

I also have a Geeteech Prusa i3 Pro B printer and am very pleased with it for the price. The build from kit was very easy as there is a whole suite of videos at their website. The build should be no problem for people subscribing to this forum. I bought extra printing head assemblies (Heater/stepper motor unit – so that I could use more than 1 type of filament easily. I use OpenSCAD (as I'm an open-source person but there is a version for Windows and Mac) within Linux as my preferred design application. OpenSCAD, as a constructive geometry and extrusion program, rather than an artistic program, is geared towards creating machine parts with defined dimensions and shapes, unlike applications like Blender or Inkscape OpenSCAD output files in .STL format then go straight into the Repetier Host application on a dedicated Windows 7 laptop as I haven't got Repetier Host to work in Linux yet THere is also a Mac version as well). The alternative is to write the STL file to microSD card and insert that into the Geeetech controller directly. All 3D printing at this price/size level takes a long time. The ventilated cover box for a LED voltage supply unit shown (body + Lid) is 80mm x 60mm x 25mm and took nearly 2 hours total time.

Just managed to catch the last one from 3D Factory

Rod

I have a CEL Robox – the reviews just don't do it justice.

It comes with proprietary software "Automaker" which is ultra ultra polished – smooth as a babies bum and super easy and intuitive to use. The interface is so simple its basically fool proof but behind it, it is just as configurable as any 3D printer and uses standard slicers to write the machine instruction which are a modified form of gcode (Cura is the default slicer). This software is just a simple installation, no setup required – take the printer out ofthe box, install the software (before you….) plug in the printer, load the fillament (poke it in a hole, and it detects it, and takes it off you, and feeds itself) – and then find a 3D model, and press print – wait, enjoy.

It also uses proprietary fillament spools, which come with the material data written on it (print speed, temps, bed temps, layer cooldown, everything – absolutely everything) – HOWEVER it's totally open, you can use whatever material you like, and Automaker even includes a module that lets you write and re-write the spools EEPROM and they give you their complete library of material print properties which they've researched and fine tuned.

The bed doesn't require any sort of preparation, you don't even have to clean it (although I give it a wipe with alcohol between ABS prints as it leaves a residue), parts stick first time, every time, I've only ever had 1 or 2 parts come unstuck. This applies to PLA, ABS, Polycabonate, all sorts.

The print heads are quick release, dual nozzle units with needle valves to control flow. The heads are either "quick fill" or "Dual Material" the quick fill has a fine 0.3 nozzle, and a wide 0.8mm, it does the outer detail in 0.3, and then quickly fills out the inner with the big 0.8 – saving time, which is the biggest enemy – a single large part can take a day or more, easily!!!

The hot end can hit 240c in just 1 minute from cold, and the heated bed will hit 130 in 4 minutes – this is roughly 1/3rd of the time of anything else ive seen. Further more, the nozzle will reach 280c max, and the bed will hit 150c which would actually melt most parts back down – however, its future proof!

Print quality exceeds that of the £30,000 professional solutions.

It's a very, very, very neat piece of kit – and the customer support is unbelievable, UK born machine, UK based customer support – I have a pre-production beta 3+ years old and it's just about to go back for a standard £100 full service, which will include any and all updates – even though it doesn't need anything it will get an new updated extruder and other tweaks and enhancements, plus anything it needs.

I could keep going on, if it exploded into a thousand pieces tomorrow – I'd go straight out, and buy another!

Edited By Russ B on 24/10/2017 20:52:34

Anyone wanting an improved spool holder for their Prusa i3 can download my tried and tested set of STLs here.

You will also need four 608 bearings (cheap as chips) and a pair of 110mm coach bolts.

You can get the bearings three at a time in cheap fidget spinners!

Edited By Neil Wyatt on 25/10/2017 11:58:37

Yes…. they're quite a few quid, but better than an Ultimaker or the likes (which are £3k upwards!)

If you just want to 3D print very accurate models, without needing any skill or knowledge of 3D printing or computers, it's basically ideal, quick, reliable, easy – and if you want to tweak it, go for it, it's completely configurable via "expert" tick box in settings which opens up a wealth of menus and settings if you feel like killing a few hours.

I still have an i3

Thought I had better add a photo to explain the above!

I added the orange filament guide as I found the roll of PETG I have is very prone to the filament falling off the edge of the reel, it seems to be a lot springier than PLA. The guide helps to keep the filament in line with the reel even if the print head is well over to one side.

Hi Russell, I'm running Mageia 5 64-bit. To be fair, I didn't try very hard as I had a spare laptop sitting around and thought I'd dedicate that to controlling the 3D printer. Subsequently I've found that the printing often comes to a halt if there are more than one USB device plugged into the laptop – typically the USB to the printer and a Memory stick with the STL file on it. But I think this is a MIcrosoft (oh how I hate to say that word) problem where it merrily and randomly changes the USB Communication number. But knowing that – I just copy the STL file to the desktop and remove the memory stick – then no problem. Yes I could convert the laptop to Linux – but I still have some programs that only run on Windows.

Thought I'd add my pennyworth to the Prusa i3 filament support options. Here's mine – I £D printed a supply plate and stuck that to the top of the Controller Unit. Then drilled 2 holes in the side plates and used a length of polypipe to support up to 3 different reels of filament across the back. It's not quite so obstructive to my computer monitors behind and probably a little bit more stable – although that wasn't a design consideration. You might also notice that I have put the heater/stepper motor power and control wires onto plugs/sockets so that I can easily switch between different units. The heater power unit has large XT-60 plug/socket pair to take the higher power. I use these on my quadcopter large LI-ON batteries.

A little note to Iain Downs – I didn't buy the dual head unit – just 2 separate head units which I swap over.

Mine has a big ATX psu.

To stop the print head movement I put a bit of card between stepper and frame before tightening up I will add an M5 hole to the frame for a securing screw, one day…

I've updated the pic to show the guide loop.