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I have recently been looking for a DIY printer kit within the $200-$330 range. I am not new to 3d printing in the sense that I have been heavily involved in it for many years at school now. Looking through some of these kits my main concerns have been if the printer is reliable and if it is relatively easy to find replacement/upgraded parts. I would like to be able to improve the printer over time and eventually end up with a product considerably better than the one I started with.

Overall, I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions on a particular kit. I am not worried about the skills it will take to assemble and calibrate the printer as I am very familiar with things of this nature. I’m sure I will encounter some issues, but not anything I shouldn’t be able to solve.

Here are a few kits that I have found.

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Overall, the 3 you listed are pretty similar. I would avoid the Folgertech one, mostly because the frame has very little in the way of bracing for the vertical frame. I prefer the wood frames myself, but acrylic is ok I suppose. Of the 3 you listed, the Alunar m508 looks like the best choice. It has the print cooling fan, which is a must for PLA.

One thing about all these, they say they will print all types of materials, but anything that requires over say 240 deg C extruder temp is probably not gonna work. Mine said 5 materials, but over 240, the ptfe insert in the hot end tube breaks down.

There are a ton of generic kits that can work well too. Mine is a Geeetech i3 Pro B clone, and with a couple updates works like a champ.

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Following your Geeetech recommendation, I found the Prusa I3 pro C dual extruder. If you don’t mind telling me, what were the updates that you made to your printer?

Is a dual extruder printer even worth the trouble at this low level of printing; will it actually work?

http://www.geeetech.com/geeetech-unassembled-prusa-i3-pro-c-dual-extruder-3d-printer-diy-p-927.html

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The second one looks cool. The machine appearance is really elegant and if it works in silence this aggregate is ideal!