Please forgive the basic question, and I did some scroll to see if this was asked I really didn’t see much.
I am looking to buy my 1st 3D printer and right now P2S is on the top of the list, just saving up.
Overall I would be a home user not a print farm, not a prototype business, not looking to make money. More or less printing brackets for walls, desk organizers, nick-knacks for the kids, in car brackets, garage stuff, tool stuff, outdoor garden signs for pants etc…. hope you get the idea.
The questions is overall how imported is it to be able to print in different types of filament?
Some printers can print ABS others can’t, some can print PA, TPU, Carbon Fiber blends, other can’t. From what I see / read a lot of people seem to get by using a A1 which seems to be limited due to its open design thus I am looking at the P2S but am I over thinking this and something like the A1 is more then fine for my use or am I better off getting some a little more future proof?
A1 Key supported filaments include: PLA, PETG, and TPU
P2S Key supported filaments include: PLA, PETG, ABS, ASA, TPU, PVA, PET, and PA (Nylon
You will not regret having an enclosure. You expect to print functional items, so sooner or later, strength, UV resistance, and high-temperature resistance will be important, requiring filaments that need a warm chamber.
Add repair parts to your list of intended uses. Some of my most satisfying prints have been replacements for parts that are no longer available (or never were).
I’ll 2nd @lkraus and say that your use case would be better served with an enclosed printer like the P2S. An A1 will serve well for most prints you’d need for indoor use, but the moment you want to expand for printing/designing outdoor or car things, you’ll more than likely want to start using higher temp filaments which almost all need an enclosure to print with.
If you can swing it now, I’d also recommend getting the P2S combo, which comes with an AMS2 Pro. It’s a big quality of life upgrade and you’ll really want it for filament drying and for keeping the more hygroscopic filaments dry while printing.
Ditto @lkraus and @RandomKhaos , I print exactly the same way you are describing. I have an H2C, not my first printer, and enclosure is essential. Also agree on the AMS, makes life so much better. Do not underestimate the amount of space you will need for printing, filament storage, etc. You also forgot to mention, you will initially be printing accessories for your printer itself, some of which function much better with higher temp filaments. That means you will advance beyond PLA rapidly and anything outdoors obviously requires minimum PETG.
In agreement with all comments prior
With PETG already, you’ll appreciate a chamber. And for car parts, you’ll want to have the option to go beyond that.
And that PETG/PLA incompatibility is very useful for many prints, so an AMS to go with it would be also very sensible.
But keep in mind that 3d Printing has a few extra cost:
Space for filaments!!!
A plastic scraper to get brims of a build plate
A filament dryer. You can just start off with the AMS 2. But you will frequently just want to dry a single (fresh) roll.
Diswashing liquid & a fingernail brush to clean the build plate
A brass brush and a pair of long nosed pliers for nozzle maintenance
… the list get’s longer the more suited the hobby is for you
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PS: Disclaimer: All posters here have all been doing it for quite some time and/or invested in the higher end. We may be a bit biased
Sorry if this bores people, I think it may help support the input already provided and be useful to the OP.
I got my P1S as a Christmas gift from my son-in-law. I had mentioned now that I am retired I was thinking of getting a 3D printer to putz with since I have free time. My intent was to get something like an Ender that I would assemble myself. He surprised me with the P1S which I had never heard of and I am so thankful he took the time to research and buy this for me. I mostly print with PLA, PETG, and TPU since it is most things for the grandkids and gagets around the house. I have had a need to print ABS/ASA for some things that need the higher temperature and UV resistance. I have been amazed at the things I can make/repair now that I have a 3D printer. Being able to print some of the ‘engineering’ filaments has been a huge help.
As I was always told as a kid, “It is better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it”.
Like most of these other people have said, it depends on what purpose you are needing it for. You said that it would be more random stuff. I would think that you would end up using probably only PLA or PETG for that, so if that’s all your doing, don’t worry about getting an enclosed printer. If you are going to print other filaments like ABS, I would have to reccomend the P1S or P2S if you want to be on the low side of enclosed printers. If you have a large budget and expect to do a lot of multicolor prints, you can always get one of the H series, because those will gave you more in filament changes.
I am a first timer as well and purchased the P1S with AMS. I can print everything so far. The AMS2 has the dryer but I was able to purchase a third party dryer that fit on my AMS. You can find it on Amazon. You will need lots of space for dryer containers for filament depending on how manyndiffering filaments you purchase. Good luck with your printing. There are many great models out there to print. Working now on having the confidence to design my own projects.
One other thing to consider is that XY printers don’t fling the print around constantly. I’ve seen some examples where peoples’ prints lose adherence on an A1, but stay put on the bed of an XY printer…
As far as materials, if you - even once - want to print one thing out of one of these materials, then you’re sunk unless you have an enclosure.
All good posts above. My experience: I bought a P1S with 4 regular AMS. Don’t do that. Then I got a second P1S and moved my AMS’s around to two each. Makes way more sense. Then I bought an A1 and AMS Lite for prototyping and simple PLA prints. Ordered an H2C last night with AMS Pro. So I’ve been through this. Depending on your budget I would say go with a P-series (enclosed) and an AMS pro (for drying). You can do anything with that setup. IF you need another printer in the future you can choose based on use case, because by then you’ll have one. I don’t see the H2C I just ordered to be my workhorse. It will be my multicolor (niche) and large bed printer.
Like you I have recently started 3D printing, as a hobby not a future business. Got my A1 in Feb, It prints great, not had an issue. Im already fore warning my wife im going to need more space in the spare room to fit my next printer
Besides an enclosed printer making it easier to print other filaments, it also can help contain fumes. Some engineering filaments produce pretty noxious fumes when printing and an enclosure makes it easier to collect and vent those besides allowing better temperature control.
Especially if you have family members who would use the printer room while printing, it can be a good idea. There isn’t great guidance on health risks to breathing fumes but if children are involved it’s something to consider. Some plastics stink hard and those fumes can have all sorts of chemicals in them.
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