Low cost ($3K) SLS printer announced

[mikeselectricstuff]

 

[coppercone2]

not to excited about dealing with powders. I feel like I will be trolled by that process.

[Jackster]

If they can deliver, that is a nice price for what you are getting even with only a build volume of "145 x 145 x 200 mm".

[Psi]

I wonder what the print time is like

[mikeselectricstuff]

I wonder what the print time is like

Probably quite slow for single parts, but can print a lot of parts in one go, so maybe better for small-run use than prototyping.
 

[Mechatrommer]

I wonder what the print time is like

Probably quite slow for single parts, but can print a lot of parts in one go, so maybe better for small-run use than prototyping.

for each layer lead time is filling new powder material, and then actual printing time. since its scanning type, like normal extruding 3d printer, it will depend on how large area need to be fused, the larger the longer. but how long depend on how fast the scanning is done. for msla, lead time is retracting print from the bed and putting it again slightly higher and then printing time is constant since exposure is lcd display at one go, the time is only how long needed to cure the resin, big or small area need the same constant amount of time, much more suitable imho for mass printing, but small area and limited material selection is its drawback, that if you can tolerate dealing with resin mess (for me its worth it to get smooth surface finish, soap and IPA cleaning, ultrasonic bath and final curing steps).. and for slow curing resin it will still need hours to complete. total time will depend on print height, regardless sls, plastic extrusion or msla.

otoh i wonder why surface finish in OP video are grainy, cant we make it more glossy and smooth out of printer? polishing will be challenging for curvy surfaces and if it involves complex internal surfaces like "organic spheres", it will be impossible without fancy chemical process i guess. and he showed printing/slicing with web or honeycomb fill? to save material? that will be nonsensical (similar to resin printing) since uncured powder will be trapped inside unless holes are provided to let them out. and $3K is still too much for my taste (since bigger msla like my elegoo saturn is about 5x cheaper), if it can print metal or provide other unique benefits compared to other existing printer tech, then maybe its not. ymmv.

[Kean]

That is pretty cool, but I wonder if they can really achieve that price point.  Maybe they are banking on continuing cashflow from accessories and materials, or some subscription model.

Personally, I've been getting lots of MJF Nylon parts from JLC and I've been really happy with the results.  I generally only need relatively small black parts, so MJF suits my needs.
The SLS parts I've dealt with previously have always had a powdery surface finish, whereas the MJF parts have a great solid finish (textured, not glossy - but also not powdery).

[wraper]

They were acquired by FormLabs (that makes expensive SLS printers), Micron cancelled, no cheap SLS for you. What a piece of shit company.

[coppercone2]

Lol what the hell is it with printer companies being thug²

HP send people to your house and the other one behaves like its 1882


the standard printer company


Its kinda sad when kick starter turns into a "spend my time to help advertise some company for sale". Press the thumbs up button to like and increase my subscriber count. It was supposed to actually get you a product lol 


It seems like its some bullshit business thermometer. I kinda wanna be paid for doing business surveys

[BradTech94]

Although I'm not a professional in this field, $3,000 doesn't seem very budget-friendly to me

[coppercone2]

if you wanna get some serious mechanical parts out of plastic, that thing might actually be on the map for 3d printers... for making boutique products.

You can machine it from nylon, or try to fool your customers that string printing is strong enough.. this could be something in between

[luma]

Although I'm not a professional in this field, $3,000 doesn't seem very budget-friendly to me

The alternatives were 10x the price.  Then the alternative bought these two dudes out and sank the entire project because doing that was cheaper for them than allowing a $3k printer to show up on the market.

FormLabs are the absolute worst.

[abeyer]

The alternatives were 10x the price.  Then the alternative bought these two dudes out and sank the entire project because doing that was cheaper for them than allowing a $3k printer to show up on the market.

FormLabs are the absolute worst.

There's another contender coming along, still not quite at that price point, but getting closer: https://sls4all.com/

I suspect they won't be able to stop it in the long run (though they certainly will try)

[Psi]

I wonder if the creators were hoping to eventually be bought out and make millions or if the creators were hoping to revolutionize cheap SLA 3D printing and never considered selling until they had a large offer in front of them.

Not that I blame them for selling, but I would be interested to know if being acquired was one of their goals from the start.


It takes a huge amount of willpower to turn down a huge offer. Like when Linus was offered 100 million to buy LinusTechTips.

[coppercone2]

does anyone predict that this machine gets reallllllllyyyyyyyyyy dirty?

I vacuumed my bed frame the other day and there was dust in places I would not have thought possible. like ALOT

[jduncan]

Formlabs is already the bargain basement of SLS printing.

I reallly doubt they were purchased to "lock up the market", probably they had some nice bits of tech but realized they would never be able to sustain that price point, so an acquihire benefitted all parties.

[ejeffrey]

Although I'm not a professional in this field, $3,000 doesn't seem very budget-friendly to me

For perspective, $3000 is a handful of simple parts made at a quick turn conventional machine shop.  It's a bit expensive for a hobbyist, but for a small business that would get regular use out of it, it's a very affordable price.  It's in the same price range as inexpensive  resin printers and mid range FDM printers, but a different set of capabilities.   

[Mr. Scram]

Formlabs is already the bargain basement of SLS printing.

I reallly doubt they were purchased to "lock up the market", probably they had some nice bits of tech but realized they would never be able to sustain that price point, so an acquihire benefitted all parties.

Apparently Micronics ran out of money, and this was probably an easy out for them.

They had a lot of community interest, so I'm not so sure Formlabs wasn't worried about it. It wouldn't be the first company to get a grassroots start, only to become a real competitor. By doing this they made sure that would never happen, for probably not a massive amount of money.

The only one who lost out is the market. We need less consolidation.

[ejeffrey]

Apparently Micronics ran out of money, and this was probably an easy out for them.

They had a lot of community interest, so I'm not so sure Formlabs wasn't worried about it.

Unless they ran out of money because they realized they couldn't actually hit their promised price point.

[usagi]

if you watched their videos and what they were doing, it was pretty obvious they were in wayyyyyyyyy over their heads.

no way they were going to be able to actually hit that price point the way they were operating. also the kickstarter money wasn't nearly enough to get it done.

the formlabs buyout saved the micronics folks from completely losing their shirts and all the backers losing all their money. formlabs didn't buy micronics because they're some evil corporation that wanted to prevent a consumer sls printer from reaching the market - that was never going to happen with this project, micronics was doomed.