CRyan
December 18, 2017, 7:05am
1
Hello, I am currently interested in buying my first 3D printer and I am unsure whether or not to get the Original Prusa i3 mk2s or the CraftBot plus. I have seen that he Prusa has got a better rating and is cheaper however the CraftBot has been said to have a solid feel that the Prusa doesn’t and also has some other features. I have had some previous experience with 3d printing however it is quite limited and any help deciding which printer to buy would be helpful.
1 Like
I have no experience with the CraftBot but I do have a MK2 and have no regrets with it. The MK3 is out now so consider that one.
I just picked up a 2nd hand Prusa MK2. I totally see what people say about it missing a “solid feel”. on the other hand, i have zero experience 3d printing and i got it to fire right up and printing a part in Nylon. There may be a few extras that come with the Craftbot, but a multi material kit for the new Prusa MK3 is $350, which will let you print in 4 different colors/materials, and you can do that upgrade later. (They have a pretty nice shipping deal on the MK3 at the moment as well.)
It’s too soon for me to say if i regret anythign, but so far I am pretty happy.
If you are buying your first 3D printer, I would suggest you to buy Prusa i3 MK 2s which is better suited for the beginners. The MK2s 3D printer is capable of printing with hoards of printing materials and has an easy operation in comparison to its counterpart.
cobnut
December 21, 2017, 1:26pm
6
Hi @CRyan while the feel of a product can be persuasive (who doesn’t like something that feels solid and well made?), at the end of the day it’s print quality and reliability that matters the most. I’m not familiar with the CraftBot, but I’ve had a Prusa i3 Mk2 for over a year (now upgraded to 2S), printing probably 5 days out of 7 and it’s a good value machine capable of producing very high-quality prints. I’ve had no mechanical or electrical problems at all.
The biggest factor in favour of the CraftBot is probably its enclosed build. The Prusa, being “open” as purchased really doesn’t work as well for materials prone to warping like ABS or Nylon. Even PLA can sometimes warp if met with an unexpected cold draught. That said, it’s not a huge undertaking to construct an enclosure for the Prusa, so it’s not a “high value” contribution.
The new Prusa has some features that appear to make it a good step up from the Mk2, so it’s an attractive option.
It’s a tough choice, to be honest. I wouldn’t turn down either of them if you offered. One thing worth thinking about is the Prusa’s ability to print with multiple materials (with the upgrade option). I’ve not had much (any, really) call for printing with two colours , but I have orders fairly regularly that would work well with soluble supports. Unless I’m mistaken, the CraftBot is a single extruder, period, with no upgrade option. If you’re going to be printing things that might need supports, then it’s worth considering a printer that can handle printing with two materials, one of which being the soluble support material.
CRyan
December 22, 2017, 4:07am
7
Thanks, I’ve been looking at the mk3 a fair bit and there aren’t many reviews yet, however it looks like it should be just as good as the mk2, but with better sensors.
cobnut
December 22, 2017, 5:03pm
8
Don’t forget that flexible magnetic bed. It may seem like a fancy feature but removing parts from the bed can be a real pain, at worst resulting in a damaged (and therefore wasted) print, a damaged PEI surface (which means replacement, which is a pain itself) and quite possibly personal injury (I can’t count how many times I’ve stabbed/sliced myself trying to remove a stubbon print). There’s also the stiffer axes, a better extruder and some other stuff.
Jon
