With more and more people trying to explore the amazing technology of 3D printing, there has been a tremendous demand for the 3D printers. One major reason behind the popularity of the printers has been the affordable price at which these are available nowadays. This has enabled a lot of people to experience the technology.
However, before you begin the process of buying a 3D printer for yourself, there are quite a few essential things that you need to consider.
Category of Printers
3D printing in itself is a vast term which includes all the technologies that are needed for
generating the physical materials. Out of all the 3D printing technologies, the popular one out of them is the Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM).
• Under the Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM), a model is built by extruding and heating
plastic which are assembled with each other layer by layer. A large number of 3D printers
function on FDM. A reason for this is their wide availability. The whole process is nothing
but collecting the plastic, melting it and then depositing it in the form of successive layers,
one over the other.
• Just like the FDM, Stereolithography is also an additive process. However, in this, the
plastic is not forced out. The process will make use of the ultraviolet light for hardening a
model from the pool of photosensitive liquid. This will result in a printout which is of a
very high-quality.
• The Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) process is quite similar to that of Stereolithography
but instead of the UV light beams and the liquid, the process includes lasers and
powders. A laser is implemented for melting the powder which will create a layer of the
material that is to be printed. This will enable a few of the models to print the metal
objects that is not quite possible in the above-mentioned processes.
Size of the Print Bed
The size of the print bed will have an impact on the size of the prints. The more will be the size of the bed, the cost of the machine will also be more. A bigger bed will enable you to print more at a particular time. This will prove to be quite beneficial as setting up the whole process for a print run will be a time-consuming job. The more print output which can be taken up at a specific time will always be better.
Price of the Printer
One of the biggest reasons behind the popularity of the 3D printers is the price at which they are sold. The price of a 3D printer will completely depend on the quality of the print output. Due to this, the ones which produce high-quality will naturally be more expensive. A few of the professional 3D printers will cost you pretty high. However, for getting a feel of 3D printing you can even opt for the cheaper models that are available for only a few dollars. With the rise in the popularity and the competition among the different 3D printers, it is quite obvious that their price will come down in the coming few years. The materials which are required for printing the products will cost you additional.
Calibration or Auto Level
A few of the users will be required to calibrate the printer bed. This will the user to put a piece of paper on top of the print bed and utilize the software for moving the print bed close to the nozzle until it makes a contact with it. The complete process will take up to 10 minutes. Most of the machines feature automatic calibration which and it is always recommended to spend a few of the extra dollars on it. With 3D printing, there are a number of things you can learn and make yourselves aware about.
In The End
A few of the points which are mentioned in this article are among the essential things which you should be aware of before buying a 3D printer. These will ensure that the choice of the printer you will make will be the right one. As buying a 3D printer will demand a significant investment from your end it is always advised that you make this choice right.
Author Bio: Lance Clemons is the blogger by profession with 7 years of experience. He is
associated with a Printzone an Online store for cheap printer ink in Australia. He is an admirer of sharing his innovative ideas with others on the technology trends.
