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Re: 3D Printers

From Martin Brown <'''newspam'''@nonad.co.uk>
Newsgroups sci.electronics.design
Subject Re: 3D Printers
Date 2025-10-17 09:45 +0100
Organization A noiseless patient Spider
Message-ID <10csvmo$vird$1@dont-email.me> (permalink)
References <10cs7i9$pvtg$1@dont-email.me>

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On 17/10/2025 02:53, Don Y wrote:
> I see lots of these at local auctions -- especially at the local
> university.  Typically small units (18" cubes).
> 
> Many things, there, are "discarded" in perfectly working order;
> some grant is finished and they dispose of the kit they bought
> FOR the grant.
> 
> It is hard to imagine all of these printers being discarded
> due to mechanism/controller failures.  Or, is it?

If you can get a matched pair there is a very good chance of being able 
to make at least one good one out of them. Some models are tetchy about 
setup and print reliability so it is worth doing some homework first.

There are plenty of cheap lemons that jam part way through a print (and 
with monotonous regularity). Educational ones tend to be able to 
tolerate a bit more abuse than the cheapest home print ones.

People find them harder to use than expected and so give up...
Find one that suffered that fate and you are onto a winner.

A 3D printer is nowhere near as simple to use as an inkjet printer 
(although it is getting better).

> Is it worth playing with any of these?  Or, are they different
> enough that the effort to get to "up and running" would be better
> served using a commercial supplier (beyond the curiosity factor)?

We keep a couple running for the local library. Most of the problems 
stem from user error allowing things to clog up or get out of alignment 
or simply failure to set it up right at the start of a print. If you 
have any engineering aptitude they are mostly not too hard to fix, but 
it does take time and patience.

If you want one to use for a specific task then you might be better off 
buying one from new so that you know it hasn't been dropped.

-- 
Martin Brown

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Thread

3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-16 18:53 -0700
  Re: 3D Printers Martin Brown <'''newspam'''@nonad.co.uk> - 2025-10-17 09:45 +0100
    Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-17 02:05 -0700
      Re: 3D Printers Martin Brown <'''newspam'''@nonad.co.uk> - 2025-10-17 12:11 +0100
        Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-17 04:53 -0700
  Re: 3D Printers Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> - 2025-10-17 13:20 +0100
    Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-17 08:22 -0700
      Re: 3D Printers Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> - 2025-10-17 19:24 +0100
        Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-17 13:27 -0700
          Re: 3D Printers Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> - 2025-10-18 11:02 +0100
            Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-18 06:20 -0700
              Re: 3D Printers Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> - 2025-10-18 15:36 +0100
                Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-18 07:58 -0700
              Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-18 18:01 -0700
                Re: 3D Printers Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> - 2025-10-19 08:37 +0100
                Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-19 01:04 -0700
                Re: 3D Printers Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> - 2025-10-19 11:11 +0100
                Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-19 04:26 -0700
                Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-19 04:52 -0700
                Re: 3D Printers Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> - 2025-10-19 16:46 +0100
                Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-19 13:22 -0700
                Re: 3D Printers DJ Delorie <dj@delorie.com> - 2025-10-20 01:33 -0400
                Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-19 23:44 -0700
                Re: 3D Printers DJ Delorie <dj@delorie.com> - 2025-10-20 14:04 -0400
                Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-20 16:15 -0700
                Re: 3D Printers DJ Delorie <dj@delorie.com> - 2025-10-20 21:07 -0400
                Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-20 18:38 -0700
                Re: 3D Printers DJ Delorie <dj@delorie.com> - 2025-10-21 11:58 -0400
                Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-21 09:47 -0700
                Re: 3D Printers DJ Delorie <dj@delorie.com> - 2025-10-21 13:28 -0400
                Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-22 01:22 -0700
                Re: 3D Printers Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> - 2025-10-20 15:19 +0100
                Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-20 07:50 -0700
        Re: 3D Printers albert@spenarnc.xs4all.nl - 2025-10-18 09:17 +0200
      Re: 3D Printers Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> - 2025-10-17 20:22 +0100
        Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-17 13:42 -0700
          Re: 3D Printers Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> - 2025-10-18 11:25 +0100
            Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-18 07:39 -0700
              Re: 3D Printers Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> - 2025-10-18 17:17 +0100
                Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-18 09:41 -0700
          Re: 3D Printers antispam@fricas.org (Waldek Hebisch) - 2025-10-18 12:36 +0000
            Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-18 06:52 -0700
              Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-19 02:03 -0700
      Re: 3D Printers albert@spenarnc.xs4all.nl - 2025-10-18 09:12 +0200
      Re: 3D Printers DJ Delorie <dj@delorie.com> - 2025-10-19 00:44 -0400
        Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-18 22:04 -0700
          Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-18 22:08 -0700
            Re: 3D Printers liz@poppyrecords.invalid.invalid (Liz Tuddenham) - 2025-10-19 10:34 +0100
              Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-19 03:44 -0700
          Re: 3D Printers DJ Delorie <dj@delorie.com> - 2025-10-20 00:53 -0400
            Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-19 22:08 -0700
              Re: 3D Printers DJ Delorie <dj@delorie.com> - 2025-10-20 01:50 -0400
                Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-19 23:59 -0700
                Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-20 00:01 -0700
    Re: 3D Printers john larkin <jl@glen--canyon.com> - 2025-10-17 08:32 -0700
      Re: 3D Printers Bill Sloman <bill.sloman@ieee.org> - 2025-10-19 02:10 +1100
        Re: 3D Printers john larkin <jl@glen--canyon.com> - 2025-10-18 09:09 -0700
          Re: 3D Printers Lasse Langwadt <llc@fonz.dk> - 2025-10-19 03:46 +0200
            Re: 3D Printers john larkin <jl@glen--canyon.com> - 2025-10-18 20:11 -0700
            Re: 3D Printers liz@poppyrecords.invalid.invalid (Liz Tuddenham) - 2025-10-19 10:34 +0100
              Re: 3D Printers Lasse Langwadt <llc@fonz.dk> - 2025-10-19 14:41 +0200
                Re: 3D Printers liz@poppyrecords.invalid.invalid (Liz Tuddenham) - 2025-10-19 15:29 +0100
                Re: 3D Printers Lasse Langwadt <llc@fonz.dk> - 2025-10-20 17:35 +0200
                Re: 3D Printers liz@poppyrecords.invalid.invalid (Liz Tuddenham) - 2025-10-20 17:22 +0100
                Re: 3D Printers Lasse Langwadt <llc@fonz.dk> - 2025-10-21 01:17 +0200
          Re: 3D Printers Bill Sloman <bill.sloman@ieee.org> - 2025-10-19 16:32 +1100
      Re: 3D Printers Lasse Langwadt <llc@fonz.dk> - 2025-10-19 03:41 +0200
        Re: 3D Printers Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> - 2025-10-18 20:38 -0700

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