I have wanted a 3D Printer for a while… but kept finding excuses not to buy one, but now I could really use one to help solve some design issues that arise from time to time.
I don’t really have time to build one, even though I would probably enjoy it, so it needs to come ready in a box.
please give me some ideas, thanks
Ultimaker, Robo 3D
Are you looking for a big print bed?
big as possible print bed under 3kUSD
Well, the ones above have some of the biggest print beds I’ve seen. Ultimaker is probably the best.
was looking at the ultimaker 2
Iv got one that performs pretty well, however PLA only and its build area is approx 20x20x18cm
But feel free to message me if you need something printed that will work with that, happy to help out, especially as I’m close by. 
I use the Prussian I3 it’s $800 ready to go and they have great customer support if u have any problems. Printbed is 12’12’ I think… it’s a great printer for the price. I am getting the x3d duo from kickstarter and will let u know if it’s any good if u don’t have a printer by then… let me know if u have any questions… I built my own prusa and have loved it for 1 year
ultimaker 2 extended for sure. you get all the reliability of the ultimaker series, but an extended print bed.
Makerbot is trash- they are over priced and jam 24/7… haha that’s what my school bought, and I swear they’ve replaced the extruder more than a dozen times.
I personally wouldn’t go with the smaller name brands simply because of part reliability and service: ultimaker is known for some seriously good customer service, in addition to making probably the best consumer 3D printer right now. Especially since you have a larger budget, I wouldn’t even venture lower to try to save a buck or two.
What he said, very reliable
Take a look at the Lulzbot Taz 5. I have 3 of them.
Big parts tend to warp though so having an enclosure helps a lot.
@cmatson We’ve got a Maker Bot too. It’s terrible. The print bed is way too small for my liking. Don’t know if they’ve had any problems with the extruder yet.
I would very much look into the poliprinter. They have a 9 by 9 by 9 print bed and print just has fast the the ultimaker. I have come to like them very much. They are the printer at the dallas makerspace. They are very heavily used and run with minor issues. If you want a really big bed they have a more expensive model for that. POLYPRINTER 229 and POLYPRINTER 508. Dual extruders are coming soon. ; )
I know you want to buy a prebuilt but consider building it on your own! It can be done on a weekend if you have a kit.
Here’s mine I printed my flywheel gear with it. Roughly $350 USD and can print any 1.75 filament that I throw at it.
I use the Ultimaker 2+ Extended in my university lab. The thing is pretty amazing. The only thing is that it takes ad odd filament size (2.85mm vs 3.0mm) so you might not have as much selection in filament.
I heard you can use 1.75mm filament for Ultimaker2.
Yeah I suppose you can use lower size filament, however 3.0 is definitely one of the most common types and will lead to a lot of jamming. You can also see some of the edges are a little rough on their prints using 1.75 because the printer really does 100% performance with 2.85.
I recently saw the new Glowforge… Thing looks awesome for the price. You get a good deal for preordering it seems. Lots of versatlity.
