Nov.24, 2014

It seems like a new and promising 3D printing start-up business is being started somewhere around the world every week. It a clear sign that the potential of 3D printing technology is being recognised everywhere, and that it's here to stay. All of these start-ups have interesting and unique ideas, products or services, and most of them have clever business plans as well. But, as in every industry, not all of them make it; while Kickstarter and Indiegogo are wonderful tools for gathering investments, there's just so much money to invest, and not every promising idea can be realized.

Those that are successful are typically following the path laid out for them by Brook Drumm, who was a complete unknown when he started his business in 2011, but has since almost conquered the world of 3D printing with his Printrbot. Launching a Kickstarter campaign at the right time with the right business plan, he was capable of surpassing his goal by 3323% for a total of $830,827: numbers every entrepreneur dreams of.

Since then, Printrbot has been an absolute success story and its hardly surprising that Drumm's decent and affordable printers have been doing so well. As he explained on his Google Plus page, design has been crucial in achieving his success: 'We are trying to hide as much of the mechanics as possible while still making those hidden parts elegant and beautiful. As designers know, simple is actually really really hard. In our case, keeping it as simple as possible also has the benefit of saving cost by reducing part count. What we are most proud of is the fact that we are making it in metal here in America- not plastic in China - and it's still quite affordable.'

He had been working on numerous (open-source) projects, add-ons and improvements since his successful launch, but the time is now finally here to start an entirely new chapter: the all-metal Printrbot Plus 3D printer.

Drumm already released his first metal-framed 3D printer last year, which was both efficient and affordable. His new all-metal Printrbot Plus is a complete improvement of that model; it's sturdy, solid, efficiently designed and compact. You could call it the industrial version of the Printrbot.

As Drumm unveiled, a single extruder model can be purchased for just $999 (without heated bed), though a larger, dual-extruder model with a heated bed is also forthcoming, with an asking price of $1299. The larger version will include 24V power supply for plenty of power and faster heat on heated (no more ATX PSU). However the basic model, which will be released this Friday (Black), also has some decent specifications. It features a build area of 10 x 10 x 10 inches (254 x 254 x 254 mm) on a Mic6 aluminum print bed (unheated, though you can add one yourself).

It also features a brand-new, all metal Ubus hotend, that will doubtlessly result in perfectly detailed models. The X&Y axes are linear rails, and it uses GT2 belts for X and Y axes, an acme rod for the Z axis. The company states that this is a 'super low profile design — significantly smaller than previous version of the Plus.'

Finally, this all-metal 3D printer is capable of working with any type of filament, but various printing materials obviously require a heated printbed to be properly made, so do your research first.

As Brook rightly said, 'We are really proud of this design and think it's our best work and best design yet. It goes on sale Black Friday and will be available in kit or fully assembled.' The heated printbed and dual extruder upgrades will also be offered as options on Friday, though you'll have to wait a few extra weeks before these can be shipped to you.

Check out the all-metal Printrbot in action here:








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saviour wrote at 11/27/2014 7:25:14 AM:

One reason to buy nice looking FFF printers is that they actually retain some resale value because they don't look like a pile of wires and screws on Ebay or Craigslist. The prusa i3 is a capable but nightmarisly ugly machine, as with most of the "hardware store" repraps. Fill in the rest with your favorite car analogy. Both cars get you to the same destination... etc.

3dbleh wrote at 11/26/2014 5:22:32 AM:

All metal just for the sake of being metal. The attraction to Printrbot was it's simple materials and ultra low price. You have to ask yourself why even build these elaborate cases and designs when FFF looks just as good on a Prusa i3.

Opertum wrote at 11/25/2014 2:54:35 PM:

Look again. That hotend looks like aluminum, perhaps it come with a new all metal ubi? At the very least its very silver and shiny for PEEK.

AMnerd wrote at 11/24/2014 5:17:44 PM:

All-metal? Wow! Oh, just a metal chassis. Pass



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