Why I bought a Cube 3D Printer from 3D Systems

Last night I bought my very first 3D printer – the 2nd generation Cube by 3D Systems. Although I’ve been doing 3D for over a decade and as you can see on CNCKing.com – know my way around electrons – 3D printers was the next evolution in my journey towards self-CNC-education. Please note that I focus heavily on the desktop models that I know – it isn’t meant to say anything bad or to belittle other companies in the 3D printing arena – I just don’t know much about them YET to give my opinion.

I had several reasons why I chose the Cube over their competitors and I’ve outlined my reasoning behind each but probably the biggest question I’m going to get is why didn’t I buy a MakerBot for roughly the same price? Answers below.

PRICE

Although I really like the high-end 3D printing solutions offered by mCor, Stratasys/Objet and even 3D Systems itself, I just don’t have the funds right now to buy one. Sure, you might say that an entry level zPrinter is only 18K BUT you have to realize I’m in Australia and those are American prices… double them and you have the OZ price. Sucks big time! By the time all is said and one, the Cube alone will be around 2K+ by the time you factor in GST, import duties and the list goes on. My ShopBot Desktop CNC table router that I had shipped from the USA to Canada alone cost 2K to ship and another 2K+ in “import services” that I neither requested or wanted.

I think all the high-end 3D printers are of incredible value but my goal with these machines but they neither fit on a desktop (Mojo does but it’s 10KUS) or affordable for the average consumer which is the demographic I’m going to be designing for. No point in releasing a billion models for SL if everybody who’s a potential customer only has a FDM.

ROI

I have a fundamental philosophical disagreement with Makerbot – they are a good company making a great product but whole “buy a printer from us and then spend money designing and testing your model to share with the community” on Thingiverse really rubs me the wrong way. There isn’t anything wrong with this but my goal with CNCKing.com is to generate revenues for designers who value their time and invest in their talents… not give it away for others to copy and go nuts over.

The ROI with a Makerbot in my opinion is -0- so what’s the point of investing time and money in a company that promotes 0 ROI. I don’t see one. Other 3D printing manufacturers develop systems and brands around ROI of their machines so that’s where I’m going to invest my money, time and energy in promoting. I plan on doing A LOT of video of my designs and those of others so I want to showcase a system that supports ROI.

RELATIONSHIPS

I was invited to 3D Systems a while back and was lucky enough to spend two days there being shown this technology first hand by Paul and Cathy – wonderful people and I learned a lot from them and their associates. If there is one trait I believe in is that you give back more than you take… they didn’t owe me anything but their kindness left a mark. Besides, how could you possibly say NO to the company that invented the .STL file format and has been an innovator for decades in the 3D printing industry?

3D Systems isn’t the only company out there that I look forward to building business relationships with but they were the first to approach me.

VERSION 1

Although the 3D Systems Cube has a small print volume of 140mm cube, which is rather small, the Stereolithography (SL) FormLab 3D printer which I really love as well has roughly the same print volume but at a higher quality but my major concern with the FormLab is that it’s the first version. When I first saw the Cube in the showrooms at 3D Systems, I dismissed them pretty quickly for this reason alone. Technology comes out so fast but you don’t want to buy the first version of anything in my opinion regardless of what it is or how cool. The 2nd generation 3D Systems Cube offers almost 2x the accuracy and speed of the first version so to me, the kinks have been worked-out of it based on feedback from the first row of beta testers. NOW is the time to buy in my book!

PRESS PRINT AND GO

I’m not a technical guy, I don’t want to assemble and tweek my own 3D printer – I want it to work right out of the box and start working for me. This was another reason why I didn’t go the Makerbot route even if they do have a passionate support community willing to help you – yes, I know the Replicator2 is “press print and go” but as mentioned before, I don’t agree with the philosophy behind the business.

This means that I was left with either the FormLab or Cube – as mentioned previously, the FormLab is an amazing machine but it’s a version 1… regardless of how easy it is to use, it’s still version 1. That leaves me with the Cube! There are other 3D printers out there, the Doodle etc… but they require either technical skills to assemble and maintain or just don’t have the community behind them that’s large enough. Many of the smaller companies are also one-trick ponies… they are alive today, will sell a few machines and close tomorrow. Sad but true! I don’t want to invest my time or money in such a company nor get people visiting CNCKing.com hyped for a machine that will end-up screwing them in the future.

MARKETING

I’m continually amazed at how Bre (CEO and founder of Makerbot) has managed to turn his company into the Apple of 3D printers… it’s astonishing how much press he keeps getting for his products and I solute him fully for this amazing accomplishment. He has built-up an amazing team, curated an incredibly enthusiastic community and to be honest, single-handedly brought 3D printers to the surface in the general consciousness of the masses. I might not agree with his beliefs, but I respect him and his company greatly for what they have accomplished.

The smaller 3D printing companies aren’t succeeding in the 3D printing world because they don’t have their Bre, if I look at 3D Systems, Cathy is the closest they have to a Bre and she is fantastic at her job marketing 3D Systems, if you look at Statasys/Objet, they don’t have their Bre and nor does FormLabs or any other manufacturer yet. The 3D printing world needs more Bre… not less to fuel the imagination of the masses! I see an opportunity in this arena so I’m going to give it a go myself. I’ve already managed to make a name for myself in the laser and table router world… time to expand my horizons into the 3d printing world!

BOOK

Yes, my newest book is still very much a work in progress but it has one glaring thing missing any real design content, the 3D printing section – I really need to boost that section up as it might be a few more years before I write another book! The CNC table router section is massive, I’m bringing-up the laser version (but had three other volumes before focused on it) and the 3D printing section is looking sad in comparison. With a 3D Systems Cube, I can teach myself through trial and error and share this knowledge with readers both on my site and those who purchase my book. I really need this experience and exposure and the Cube is the best one for me to do this with at this point and time.

FDM ISN’T THE FUTURE…

I firmly believe that once the higher-end 3D printers are offered at affordable rates (see the FormLabs of the world), then FDM is a dead-end at the consumer level. The CubeX and Replicator2 offer supporting material as does the Mojo by Stratasys/Objet but you will always be limited by melting ABS/PLA resolution wise, you will hit a wall that just isn’t an issue when dealing with liquids and powders. I know that FDM PLA does become a liquid when heated and hardens into a solid but just go with me on this one. I want to design models with moving parts in ONE print without requiring any assembly – FDM isn’t the right technology for this (low end machine wise).

I think in 5 years, most consumer friendly desktop 3D printers will be using SL or one of the other technologies out there unless some revolution comes about in the FDM world that’s affordable. The zPrinters are amazing, they recycle material, can be hardened etc… but as mentioned, entry level start at the same price as a new car.