ALDI 3D Printer for $499

[glend]

Just received the latest ALDI Special Buys flyer, and noticed they are offering 3D Printers for $499 on the 13th of May. All the PLA strand colours are offered as well on 1kg spools ($35).

The printer seems constrainted by base plate size (200×200mm), but the base is heated to ensure flat base layer. As i don't know much about them i can't comment further. Maybe orhers can.

[garymck]

Glen,

it is a rebranded version of the Wanhao Duplicator I3 Plus.

Review here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoEApsA7pAk

I have the older cheaper model Wanahao I3 that Aldi rebranded as a Cocoon Create, and Kogan rebranded as a Balco. Review here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bd5EvrnQC5Q

Have had a lot of fun, and printed some fun telescope stuff. Good value for money.

Would happily buy this printer.

cheers
Gary

[bojan]

Yes, $500 is pretty good price: I build 3D printer myself (~175mm cube) and spend ~$250 for parts & materials... and lot of time - but I don't regret it, it was a great fun (still is..).
200mm is OK.. if you need anything larger, you can always print it in couple of bits.

[04Stefan07]

Very good price!

No need to think about this purchase at all.

I already have 2 3D Printers so don't need this one.

For those who are curious and are starting out it's worth it!

[netwolf]

Seriously considering it but last timr these came out they were sold out same day. Is there something better with an enclosure for ABS work? Also with enclosure woud be safer from kids messing with it or getting burned by the hot plate

[04Stefan07]

Maybe not enclosed for ABS at the price point. My Up Mini cost $900 which is a fully enclosed system and after about $200 worth of upgrades it's a great little printer.

I also have a CTC printer which you can pickup on eBay for around $500 which is fantastic value. Again you will need to pump a few hundred bucks into it for an enclosure and some upgrades.

[netwolf]

Thx Stefan was also looking at the Creality Cr-10 which for 500usd gives quiet a large print area. Again enclosure would be a challenge. In your experience can you still print ABS without an enclosure? Will look at the CTC.

Maybe a diy would work out cheaper fot enclosed unit. Are there other filiment types that are as durable as ABS without the need for enclosed space? I am thinking for teledcope parts you dont want them to brittle or to melt with exposure to sun.

[04Stefan07]

You defs need an enclosure if you want to have successful prints with ABS and a very hot heat bed. I personally haven't tried ABS with an open printer as it's never recommended.

I have some TPU which is meant to be flexible but strong as well which I need to experiment with but I mainly print with ABS due to having issues with PLA jamming my nozzle (with the Up Mini).

I am conducting a test print now with some PLA with the CTC which isn't enclosed and so far it looks ok.

If you do end up buying an open source printer I highly recommend purchasing Simplify3D. The best slicing software you can buy and you can change so many settings of the printer and prints. A bit pricey at $200 but it is so worth it!

[bojan]

ABS and open printer are quite OK.
Bed has to be set at 100°C, nozzle at 220°C, and if part is small, fan cooling is necessary.

[luka]

ABS is actually not UV proof and will degrade in direct sunlight. Special additives can give it UV protection but, as far as I know, the standard printer filaments do not have them.
You may be able to coat the parts with something that is UV proof, not sure.

[netwolf]

Any recommendations on easy to do DIY enclosure kits or else cheap prebuilt enclosed units. Is simplify3d a CAD also or just for slicing? I wish I still worked for Autodesk Fusion looks like a good CAD option for 3D printing.

[luka]

Simplify3D is just for slicing. Not sure about your other questions.

[glend]

What sort of astro gear is suitable for 3D printing? I could see maybe guide scope or finder lens or EP caps, but what else is it suitable for?

[04Stefan07]

I use Fusion. Free and powerful enough for what I need to create.

[AussieBill]

I havent got a clue about 3d printers or telescopes but I was wondering if 3d printing any of the following might be possible ?

Could you print the parts to make a simple red dot finder ? Or even more primitive "gunsights"

The one I just bought is simply a plastic skeleton with a cavity to sit the laser in and it gets pushed around by two screws

Although on the other hand it only cost $10 on ebay

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Red-Dot-Finder-Scope-for-Telescopes-w-Standard-Finder-Bases-Black-21mm-Track-ES-/282263237841

Racks and Gears for a focussing system ?

Can you 3d print a matching wormscrew and gear ? Or somehow use a rack and gear to make a telescope follow a star ?

[Jooster]

I made a camera mount for my GoPro that sits in my focuser. Works a treat.

[pluto]

Yes but I'm not sure you'd get the accuracy you're after. Have a look on Thingiverse (https://www.thingiverse.com/tag:gears/page:1), there's heaps of gears and worms etc.
I test printed a couple of gears from Thingiverse and a couple I generated myself using geargenerator.com (http://geargenerator.com) - they seemed to be good enough to make a barndoor tracker, which is what I was planning but never got any further than testing.


Also, I'm not sure why a PLA printer needs a heated floor? I thought that was just for ABS?

[Merlin66]

There are guys in Europe working with 3D printers to build spectrograph housings!
Could be an interesting solution.....

[bojan]

You can always spry it with paint....

[bojan]

Anything that doesn't require precision below 0.2mm.

http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=145306&highlight=life+easier

[garymck]

Go to:
http://www.thingiverse.com/
and do a search - lots of astro stuff....

I've done finder mounts for green lasers, finder mounts for a C11. also printed timing pulleys, and even an RC plane from here:
https://3dlabprint.com/

Lots of goodies
cheers
Gary

[netwolf]

Bojan Gary are you using ABS?
Is there a wat to protect PLA from deforming with heat. I have looked at Polymax seems to offer more flexibility and strength but still has similar issues with heat. With astro gear i am thinking ABS is best still. Maybe better to get a small enclosed printer to start with.

Does the Aldi one have a hotbed?

[bojan]

Yes, I am using ABS... and Aldi printer has heated bed.
It also has fan for cooling the filament after deposition.

Look, do not expect your first printout will look flawless... you have to tweak the settings a bit, in my case the filament flow rate was particularly tricky (especially for high percentage of fill).
Also filament cooling - which depends on the size of the printout (if size is small, the printout doesn't have enough time to cool down after depositing the new layer, so cooling is essential, but only after couple of first layers were deposited... because they have to stick properly to the bed, so cooling is not good at that time.

As for closed printer... it is easy enough to add enclosure (for example plywood from Bunnings or perspex..) but based on my experience I don't think this is really necessary (and the internal climate control complicates the things considerably, which means price for such printers go up).
A good thing may be fume exhaust fan and tube to expel them out of the room, they may be unpleasant and potentially harmful (especially from ABS)

[sil]

+1 to Bojan's post.

my aldi printer has dont a stellar job and while many people complain the build area is too small, I cant say I've seen many complainers actually owning a 3d printer. Printer accuracy doesn't translate into "accurate replacement parts" either. My cube tests showed variances just from nozzle temperature changes. Plus finish is nowhere near as good as injection moulding or cnc machining so expect some finishing if thats important and certainly if mating to other parts is important. You also need some understanding of the strength of a 3d print, they are weak along the plane they are printed on, so you may need to orient models if they are expected to stand up to loading. Also because layer adhesion depends on temperature settings and humidity some prints can split apart easy and provide crevices for germs to live so keep in mind if you want to use 3d printing for food storage/serving even though the plastic itself is foodsafe the print itself really isnt. UV breakdown? huh, what uv breakdown? people demanding to use abs because pla will biodegrade, well i only use pla and I put a bunch of critters in my garden last year when I got the first aldi printer and they are still there, unbroken, undissolved.

been researching the original printers and insist the aldi ones need too many upgrades?? bah, the cocoon create was a base wanhao i3 but it came already installed with a good nozzle, nonstick bed surface etc so no upgrades needed an I expect this new one will be similar. claiming pla deforms with heat? no thats abs, not pla. insist you need a glass plate? no you dont. insist you need abs because its better than pla? depends, a lot of people think pla is weak because is "softer" than abs but its not like comparing a brick and a tissue, more a freshly kilned brick verses one that been in the garden bed for years. PLA is plenty strong and stiff for load bearing uses, comparing snapfit models with others pla has enough "give" to allow a good snap fit where abs proved brittle enough to snap. pla can also be too brittle for some tasks too of course, point is the difference between them is small, not the chasm people make it out to be. and from downloading models used in reviews and seeing how they were built without strengthening in mind and badly oriented for printing its no wonder they broke. Then the ignorance filters down into requirement demands from people looking to buy a 3d printer. if you dont comprehend it, the its probably not for you.

no 3d printer at any price is idiot proof, they all require careful setting up and maintenance. This is about as good a printer in working practice as you could hope for at this time development of 3d printers. If you are thinking its as easy as an inkjet printer you are in for a shock. they also take a long time to print, I've had 3 days for a single part and you'll get to know about wasted filament when you are 2 days into a great print and wake up the next day to a half great print covered in spaghetti hair extrusions.

I highly recommend Simplify3D as a slicer, not saying its the best, but at the time I got my CC printer it was miles ahead of the free options I tried. Even if you use another slicer the Simplify3d site has an awesome troubleshooting guide that'll help you understand WHY you're prints are failing, which is essential knowledge for any printer/slicer. Keep in mind 3D printing is still a very very new industry and it hasn't even reached the stage of Model T Ford yet, let alone Rolls Royce.

I also recommend TinkerCAD which does some things better than my Lightwave 3D does which is a couple of versions old so wasnt written with 3d printing in mind. But I can move models between Tinkercad and Lightwave easily to do what I need.

I have my printer in the garage and fumes never a problem, the temperature in there is pretty stable too around the clock so prints are pretty consistent once setting dialed in.

[netwolf]

thx Bojan and sil looks like il have to queue up at Aldi on Saturday. I wonder if I can convince mum this a a great Mother's Day gift!

[billdan]

I have a Mendel-90 printer that is designed for ABS (no fans on the printhead), and its not enclosed. I use a portable floor heater with a blower, I sit the heater on a bar stool and blow hot air onto the part that's being printed.

Before doing this, sometimes I was getting de-lamination and the parts had shrunk way out of spec. The heater solved both problems.

[sil]

if the aldi printer is partly assembled like the previous one the box should be large enough to open top and bottom and use it as a sleeve to enclose the printer better if you use it in a room with airflow or quick temperature changes. Years ago factory work I did included heat shrinking and every time a truck arrived and the loading dock doors at the other end of the building opened it was enough of a subtle change for the heatshrink plastic to not shrink properly (when door open) or burn (when door closed). its a balancing act at times and if you have pets fur will cause problems too.

Undecided? how about this instead (https://www.indiegogo.com/products/pancakebot) :) I'm betting even failed prints dont go to waste.

[LostInSp_ce]

I've been looking at getting one of these for years but have always put it off due to the tech still being in the early stages of the product life cycle. However the seem to be getting better and this looks like a steal. So just how sensitive are these to temperature? I'm wondering if it will be OK to print in a garage that has its doors open during the day or would it best to wait and print overnight when they're closed?

[glend]

Might be too late, they went on sale at Aldi at 8:30am today and may be gone already.

[LostInSp_ce]

Yeah they certainly flew out the doors. I was lucky to snag the second last one and within seconds another guy took the last one. As for the filament the only colour left was grey.

[netwolf]

missed out on the Aldi one, bad flu (Going around) and had to prioritize mothers day gift.
Also need to clear an area to put a printer and work out how big i can go. I would like the CR-10 or CR-10S4 but just now sure I have the room for it yet.
Else might have to consider the Kit DIY ones Anet A6 or A8. Anyone used these?

Also how does PET compare to ABS?

[netwolf]

Bojan I am sure I saw a post by you with some Bathinov masks for Camaera Lenses, if so did you print those Bathinov masks with the 3d Printer?

[bojan]

Yes I did, they turned out beautifully.
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=145306

[LostInSp_ce]

Sorry to hear that Wolf. I spoke to one of the Aldi employees when I got mine and he said that they will be getting some more in at a later date, but I'm not sure how true this is.

[LostInSp_ce]

They look fantastic! :thumbsup:

[netwolf]

Bojan what DIY printer did you get.

Lostinspace, I called Aldi customer service and they are sold out in NSW, also said no plans to restock as this is not there business model its a one off. Who knows they may have more stock to push out lets see. Early reports on Whirlpool indicate print quality out of box is very good.

Maybe Kogan/DS like last time will again bring out some rebranded ones.

[bojan]

It is my design (do as you go...), frame was based on Qubelok (https://www.aluminiumtc.com.au/store/category/browse/qubelok/) system (400mm cube with diagonal reinforcments on 3 sides to prevent twisting - not shown in attached image, BTW, because the whole thing is on-going project), other parts (shafts, threaded rods, bearings, couplers, heater for bed (http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/attachment_browse.php?a=187741), printing head) I bought on ebay or found in my drawers (timing belts and pulleys were from old printer/scanner, motors were leftovers from EQ6 mod) ..
Electronics is arduino Mega + Ramps 1.4 (also ebay), firmware and software are from Repetier. (https://www.repetier.com/)

A bit more about it you can find here (http://www.zvjezdarnica.com/forum/index.php?topic=10487.0) (not sure you can read the posts... but picture is worth a thousand words)

Prior to this I put together Rep-Rap Prusa kit for my friend (~$400.. and that exercise gave me idea of making my own, cheaper and better one)... was not happy with it because there was no heating for bed, bed plate was bent (not flat, 1mm error in the middle) and the extruder was all plastic, mechanically not very reliable, also no filament cooling.
There were also couple of malfunctions later (heater).

BTW, if I were doing it now, I would go with that Chinese kit (Anet A6 or A8) you mentioned in your earlier post.
You can't possibly buy all parts for the money they want for the whole kit.. and all those parts (and complete printers) are coming from China anyway.

[garymck]

Not using ABS, using Esun PLA+:

https://www.cubictech.com.au/products/pla-filament-1-75

way better than standard PLA and cheap at $24.95/k

Since using this, never found the need to use ABS

cheers
Gary

[bojan]

This looks like the same material used for packing pellets (they look like styrofoam but they are not) .. it is also edible.
How does it behave in humid environment?

[bojan]

Looking at Cubic Technology website...
Their printer (https://www.cubictech.com.au/products/colido-diy-personal-3d-printer)looks OK as well, ~$300... a bit too much for a kit.

My point is, they are all more or less the same... The only, and most important difference is price.... so go for the lowest.
There is always the way to repair/replace/improve, it needed.

[Terry B]

I was in Tamworth on Saturday at a sporting event for my daughter so went to ALDI to try to buy one. They told me they sold out in 5 minutes.
I came home to Armidale late Sat night so didn't hold out much hope of getting one at our local store. Went there Sunday morning and they still had 2 left so I got one. :D:D
Tried last night to print a simple object and it worked beautifully.:P

[netwolf]

Very lucky Terry. I am sure there will be some around the place.

Bojan very cool with the masks and other bits and that's a really nice solid design , I have been watching some YouTube video by Tech21 Aussie bloke who has designed a system very similar to that called the Hypercube quite a few people have replicated it and or scaled it up. Seems to run quiet well and fairly silent. He has done some redesign with the x axis roads and movement. I think he is now going to use carbon fibre rods, as the coating on his aluminium roads was being worn down by the brass (not really brass) bushings. There is also the Voron design few people at over lockers have built both and they have similarities in the cube shape. i guess it's more ridigid as a cube design.

What is your slide mechanism for the x axis? Are your running 8bit?

The unit you linked I also saw at hobbyking site but seems a a bit overpriced.

[garymck]

Bojan,
haven't had any issues as yet - have a couple of telescope bits made from it that have lived in a tin shed obs for 6 months with no issues. It gives a better finish than standard PLA, but is printed 10-15deg c hotter than standard PLA.
Appears much stronger, with better layer bonds. I have even done some RC airplane stuff with it...Only reason I can see to use ABS would be if you needed to do a super finish in an acetone fog....

chers
Gary

[bojan]

Aha, does it mean it can't be glued with acetone?
I am always doing more complicated designs in separate farts, which I glue with acetone to assemble them.

[aprilstorm]

The ALDI printers are ok, nothing flash, but for those who miss out on these or just dont trust electronic equipment from ALDI. I can highly recommend others which in my opinion are significantly better machines for the same price or even cheaper.

There is a printer listed on ALIExpress as a Prusa i4 by Sunhokey. its not in fact a prusa, but it is pretty good for the money. Uses Hiwin rails as apposed to rods so the prints are very smooth at high speeds and comes with a 24v heatbed. I have 4 of them I use for my 3d printing business. you can usually get them shipped for less than $500.

If your after a really good Australian made and supported 3D printer. You cant go past the new Wombot 3D printers, I have a few of those too. Highly recommended. www.wombot.com.au

April

[netwolf]

Thanks April

Is this the one you meant
http://www.gearbest.com/3d-printers-3d-printer-kits/pp_365443.html

Also what material do you print in on these printers?

[netwolf]

BTW the Wombot Exilis frame looks like the CR-10 , I like the external power pack 24v and the small footprint LCD screen is really good. But wonder how much better this is than the CR-10 am waiting for 3d Nerd to review the CR-10 as he has done the Wombot. All other reviews of this CR-10 are very good but the big question is longer term reliability , looks like Tiny Machines in US are also buying them in bulk and selling spares for these also which is good.

Found this also on the Prussa I4 Gearbest is out of stock and the only other place selling it seems to have a bad wrap on this linked forum. Its the same price as the CR-10.
http://forums.reprap.org/read.php?1,666165

[aprilstorm]

yeah thats the one, but you can get it direct from the manufacturer around the same price on aliexpress. There is also a facebook group of "fans" who support each other and many people mod their machines (as do i)

my only complaint has been the 24v power supply is comes with is a bit naff, I have blown up a few, but thats mainly because I run then 24/7 driving the heatbed at 110c because i mainly print in ABS. However for a small additional fee you can ask for a "meanwell" power supply to be installed (these are much more reliable)

Although i have started using PETG for some things as it has less shrinkage and still pretty strong as long as you dont overcook it.

ABS was designed to shrink which is why its not really a great material for a 3d printer but is cheap and common so many people including myself use it. I go through 20 kilos of the stuff a week so price is important.

The big thing with the wombot is local support. If your a pro you probably dont need this. If your a beginner and need support, being able to pick up the phone and ring someone who can help is really important.

Also the wombot CETO which is his new model looks really good. I have two of those on the way to replace some of my older printers which are getting close to 4 years and a bit worn out.

Hope that helps

April

[netwolf]

Thanks April yes joined the FB group for this one. Did you asssemble yours ? Or buy it assembled? I assume for ABS you have some kind of enclosure for it. From FB and AE seems very popular with the Russians market.

[dannat]

just checked gumtree, 1 guy in VIC has the aldi printer for $650 [in hot demand he says] & a guy in SA has it for $750..nice markups

[bojan]

That is.... market? I don't want to be rude :mad2:...

Luckily, and thanks to China, it is still possible to assemble contraption like this for reasonable price, for amateur use (one only have to put some additional effort into it and learn something at the same time)

[netwolf]

If You really want one Amazon has them under a different name , u can even get a used unit for about 330usd shipped. I think new is only slightly more.

[aprilstorm]

to be honest, the aldi and the Sunhokey i4 are small enough you dont really need an enclosure for printing ABS as long as you know what your doing and have the correct settings. I have never had any issues printing ABS on a 20x20x20cm printer. Just use a raft, over extrude, and set a higher temp than normal and you remove many of the issues

[dannat]

can i ask for the DIY units -what upgrades do users usually install?

[garymck]

I use cyano without issues

cheers
Gary

[garymck]

I have made a couple of mods to mine:

Z braces:
http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1549403

Micros Swiss hot end (gets rid of ptfe tube, prints hotter/better:
https://store.micro-swiss.com/products/micro-swiss-mk10-all-metal-hotend-kit

Replaced 3 bearings under the build plate with better quality/longer versions

cheers
Gary

[dannat]

sweet thanks gary

[netwolf]

Gary what brand PLA+ Are you using and can u share a source?

[garymck]

https://www.cubictech.com.au/products/pla-filament-1-75

cheers
Gary

[iborg]

Hi Netwolf
Thanks for asking that question.

Hi Gary
Thanks for answering.

I have just started modifying a chemistry synthesiser to be a 3D printer.

If I can it up and running, build area should be something like 1100 x 250 x 200mm.

Philip

[netwolf]

Phillip thats huge what do u plan to print.

on a good note my wife found me a Aldi printet at castle hill. was about to get a used ctc when i told here she said she had already reserved one for me as a suprise.

cant wait to try it out.

[bojan]

It pays off to be good to SWMBO :thumbsup:

[iborg]

Hi Netwolf
Possible print size is long, but, as it has two independent arms, I may set it up as two printers.

First make it work!


Hi Bojan
Another fan of H. Rider Haggard, or did you acquire SWMBO from Rumpole?



Philip

[bojan]

Neither... just personal experience :P

[netwolf]

First I printed the sample horse head file, which came out nicely and had good adhesion to the bed, came away with spatula after cooling. Next I tried a Rocket from thingiverse, sliced in S3D scaled down 50% 0.2 layer height and enabled Vase mode , took 24minutes to print. Even though i set no raft or supports, there was some extra filament printed around the base which came away easily. During the first layer i noted one of the legs was being printed hollow while the other two were solid, not sure why this occurred.

https://www.thingiverse.com/make:339952

Looks OK but how do i make it more smooth? Is it increase the layer height or decrease?

[Terry B]

I've now printed a few things. The best so far is a bahtinov mask for my VC200L.
Made in 2 pieces to fit on the printer base as it is only 200x200mm.
I'm very happy with it. Currently I'm printing one for my C11 but in 4 pieces. At about 4 hours/ part it takes some time.

[netwolf]

Wow Terry nice mask. Are yoy using PLA or ABS ?
i have one concern with the leveling ans the forces being applied to the y carriage. it took me 3 4 itterations to get leveled at the four corners. but each time ur pushing or pulling at the under carriage which does not look very strong to me and might warp.

tried to order esun pla plus but its out of stock

[Terry B]

Just PLA at 200deg
It took me only 2 goes to level. I note that when you turn the leveling knobs it will sometimes move the entire plate a little laterally on the top of the spring. This worried me but when I check it doesn't seem to affect the leveling.

[netwolf]

I really dont like this method of leveling, i am not sure why but it pesters me. Like there must be a better way, i dont mean full automation but i am sure it will come to me one day as i tinker on.

On my unit i am seeing the Extruder starts pushing filament out as soon as you get near to 190, when the rating is 195. So am just wondering for prints that work at 205 or yours 200 how does that work?

[LostInSp_ce]

Firstly congrats on getting your printer. I've only printed a couple of sample files and nothing of my own design yet but have found that printing between 190-195 with the supplied PLA is enough. Both of my prints have been very good. In regards to smoothing, what printer profile are you using?

I found that reducing the bottom layer speed helps. I think I made another couple of tweaks but can't remember what they were (it was very late) so I've attached the profile settings.

P.S. I forgot to mention that this profile is for Cura and can be downloaded from their site.