Is 3D Printer Worth It? – Know Before Invest!

The 3D printer is very important as a hobby as well as an industrial machine. Whatever you use this you must know to gain its maximum usability for the model making. So buying a 3D printer is an investment of time and money. So do you know is it really essential and worth it for you?

3D printer is really worth it for making 3D models using filaments. 3D models such as toys, objects, characters, engineering models can be print high precisely using a 3D printer. This is used as a hobby as well as a business. It will cost about $500-$600 for small size 3d printer use for the hobby and more than $1000 for the small business.

When you buy 3d printer, you should buy a relevant 3D printer that will match your budget, projects, and capacity. So let see in detail about buying a 3D printer is really important for you.

Buying a 3D Printer Worth it?

Before you buy a 3D printer, you should evaluate the whole process. You have to invest $300-$800 for a better quality 3D printer if you use it for a hobby. So it is an additional cost. More than that you have to invest in the filaments also. So let’s see, is it suitable for investing?

What is Your Purpose of 3D Printing?

Before you investing a 3D printer, you should know what is your purpose for 3D printing? Normally you can start 3D printing as a hobby as well as a business. If you start 3D printing as a hobby, you should think twice before investing in a 3D printer because your hobby will end within a few weeks or months. Under this situation, your investment will be useless. So you must know, is it alright for the investing a 3D printer as a hobby.

If you are going to start 3D printing as your new business, it is a great idea. You can do it with a medium-budget 3D printing machine. For a 3D printing business, you have to dedicate $1000 at least for the medium size 3D printer. If your business expands more than that, you will need more size and high-quality 3D printer.

My opinion is you must not invest much money in the hobby, and you had better invest more money in your business.

Pros and Cons of 3D Printing

Pros and cons of 3D printing.

How Much You Should Invest for a 3D printer?

According to your necessity, it depends on your budget. What is your purpose? is it a hobby or business? You can invest $500-$800 for your hobby. Some 3D printers are available for less than $200. If you start as a business, you can invest more than $1000 for it.

Is Learning 3D Printing Worth it?

When you need to learn 3D printing, you should pay attention to these 05 facts. Those are;

3D Modeling software

3D modeling software is essential for model designing. So much 3D modeling software is available in the market. Before you use it, you should have a proper understanding about angle views, scaling, planning, drawing, and file output knowledge. Normally we use CAD software for 3d design. First, we draw it and then make the 3D, then export the .stl file to the 3D printing software.

Read More About – What 3D Modeling Software Should I Use?

Learning the Slicer

Exported 3D modeling software is imported to the slicer. Slicer is code-making software that is compatible with the 3D printer. Slicer generates all coordinates where the nozzle move and what are the parameters it should have. Slicer is very easy to learn. You can realize the infill patterns, supports, and many more in your output.

Read More About – Best 3D Printer Slicer Software in 2021 | All3DP

3D Printing Material and Operations

3D printing materials are called filaments. These filaments are made with synthetic materials or biodegradable materials. Each filament has a different melting temperature. When the filament is heated, it can lay on the previous layer. The final output will be the object. It will generate supports if needed. All are decided by the slicer.

Post Production

Your printed model is very rough and is with many unnecessary parts such as supports. Sometimes you need to combine the object for the final products. So you should need the post-production. Using tools and chemical liquids such as Acetone, you can do this well.

Learning 3D Modeling Worth It for 3D Printing?

Learning 3D printing will take 2-3 months. If you spend full time on any software. It is not able to do in a hustle. There is so much 3D modeling software. According to your purpose, you should understand which one to learn. Because some software is specialized for mechanical design, some are sculpting.

If you wish to 3D print characters, you should learn Maya, 3D Max, Cinema 4D, and Blender. If you wish to print mechanical parts such as high accuracy, you should learn Solidworks, CATIA, Autocad, Fusion 360, AutoCAD inventor. These are the most recommended 3D modeling software.

If you do not have a sculpting skill, do not try for that. Mechanical is easy to understand. I can highly be recommended start from the AutoCAD. That will give you an amazing 3D modeling experience.

Read More About – How to Learn 3D Printing? – Start From the Beginning

Downloading 3D Models Worth it For 3D Printing?

If you have no time to make 3D models, you can download them online. There are many websites that you can use for downloading 3D models. Before you download the model, make sure it is the correct file type that you need because some 3D printers require specified file types for the 3D printing process.

You can hire a 3D designer as an optional way. It will be a little bit cost. But it is the best option. Because you can make any modifications and file types as you wish, you can find 3D designers on Fiverr.com, UpWork.com, and many freelancing websites. You had better go and check for the experienced 3D designer full-time. That is really worth rather than downloading the models online.

Should You Buy Or Build 3D Printer?

If you are willing to do DIY, it is a really interesting job. But if you do not have prior knowledge of that, do not engage with that. Because it will need electrical and mechanical knowledge for 3D printing making, it will waste your time and money. Anyway, if you can have instructions from experienced ones, try it.

There are many resources to make the 3D printer yourself at home. You can buy the necessary things online easily. Roughly it will cost $100- 200$. There are both pros and cons of Making a 3D printer at home

These are the pros and cons of building 3D printing your own. So It is better to invest money in the 3D printer rather than build yourself if you do not have technical knowledge.

Read More About – How to Build a DIY 3D Printer step by step at Home

Do you need Technical Knowledge for 3D Printing?

You will no need any special technical knowledge for the 3D printing process. You should know about file types, slicer software operations especially. There is no special technical knowledge. But if you have them, it is great for troubleshooting.

After you import the model to the slicer software, it will show all detail visually. By changing the required options, you can start the 3d printing task. Sometimes you will need the knowledge to assemble the 3D printer. Because many are delivered by portions, and there is a guide to assembling it.

Troubleshooting can occur at any time. So there are many solutions available online relevant to each 3D printing problem. So don’t worry when you are investing in that.

Hiring a 3D Printer Worth It?

We can hire a 3D printing service. It is really worth it if the rates are reasonable. But rates are a bit high. Normally 0.28kg can be print per hour, and it will cost about $17.08. The filaments amount can be changed according to the printed model. If you wish to hire service you have to pay for the filaments, man-hour, power and 3D printer.

If you own a 3D printer, you can hire a3d printing expert from a freelancing website. It is a great solution rather than hire all the above.