RepRap 3drag

Out of the box, my K8200 presented a substantial challenge. As a 'build it yourself' project, it suits those with some experience in mechanical assembly and knowledge of electronics basics. The build instructions were available online to read in advance and were adequately detailed. Of great value was the forum (http://forum.velleman.eu/viewf... ) where many existing users have shared their problems and solutions.

My (and many others') main concerns with the stock machine were as follows: print bed not flat (solved by adding a glass bed plate), very long heat-up time for the bed (a separate 24v power supply is almost universally adopted by users wishing to reduce the heat-up time), variation in the nozzle position in the xy plane with changes in height - commonly referred to as "z wobble" (solved by upgrading the z lead-screw).

On my machine, one of the toothed pulleys ran eccentrically. A word at the place of purchase resulted in it's replacement (thank you Jaycar). There are some who claim that replacing the pulleys and belts with alternatives results in better print quality. Whilst I do not doubt this, it is not something that I have tried.

If you want out of the box reliability and high quality prints, there are better options if you are prepared to pay a higher price. For those who are on a tight budget and think they may enjoy the learning process (build, research, improve), spend some time on the forum before making your choice. Good luck and happy printing.

It is very expensive for what you get. Hotend is useless. Z a is terribly designed and the x axis is super heavy. It makes a lot of noise. The controller from the kit eventually just died on me after a year or so. It uses a terrible wiring system. However if you like fiddling like a true RepRapper and are fond of modding and making it your own then this printer is for you. I wish I got myself a prusa or something

I built my 3Drag from a kit, robust frame,economic wiring but it's work. I use Repetier Host that work fine except some old release that had some issue. Heated bed have not too much power so, reaching 45-50°C for PLA need some times, I never try ABS so I don't know if can reach temperature for such a filament type. Temperature of environment is important for a better working of the bed because, the printer is open and there is important heat dispersion. I suggest to work in a warm environment or, try to close the printer with just 3 wall of isolation material around. Printing result is of good quality, obviously this depend on printing parameter but, the kind of material is equally important. Doing some measurement on printed pieces, show high fidelity of orginal drawing, even for small tecnical parts. This is not granted on all the 3D printer on the market. 3Drag use 3mm diameter filament, unfortunally I buyed lot of material from the same vendor so, I have still several kg of filament that is not so sturdy. What appen is that, after you finish to print and leave the printer, after some hour, filament break so, next time I have to use it, I need to thread the filament again, this is very annoying. One day, after used all the 3mm filament in my house, i will change extrusor for a 1.75mm, sure to improve performance and solve the issue.