My First 3D Printer
Additive manufacturing has seen tremendous leaps in the last decade, both in technical capabilities and consumer availability. On top of that- 3D printers are just really cool. I grew up watching the rise of Prusa Research through YouTube videos and Make magazine articles. As Josef Prusa worked to bring the wonder of rapid prototyping to the average consumer, the entry price of an excellent fused-deposition modelling machine dropped from tens of thousands of dollars to just $800USD for a kit.
A starry-eyed 17-year old (me) drooled over the idea of making complex components in my bedroom, but the $800USD price tag was still way out of my league- especially as a Canadian (about $1000CAD). Instead, another essential feature of the Prusa i3 came to my rescue- it was entirely open-source, build guide and all. In 2016, sourcing the parts was still an issue- these speciality parts would be ordered in bulk from China and shipped to Canada, along the way passing through many hands. Instead of paying a premium on individual components, it was cheaper to purchase a minimally viable kit from third-party manufacturers on websites like AliExpress or Gear Best.
In character with the broke 17-year old nerd, I checked these websites daily to purchase the cheapest possible kit. Finally, in July 2017, I found a listing for an Anet A6 (Prusa i3 clone) for a mere $190USD! I pulled the trigger, and just like that, three months later, a brown box was dropped at my front door. Little did I know the kit came with no instructions and basically no support or online resources- shocking for a kit made at a quarter of the cost of the original, I know!
What do you do when you meet a brick wall? Precisely. I called the nerd cavalry! A few days later, I met two of my friends in one of their basement’s, and we went to work aiming all twelve of our eyes on the pile of parts in front of us. Hour after hour, pizza after pizza, and one sketchy blog after the other (with some help from Google Translate), we got some semblance of a 3D printer pieced together. In a quick build session, around 9 pm - 6 am, we had the structure pieced together and about half of the wiring done. To avoid my friend’s family realizing we had stayed up all night, we snuck the parts into my car, and I bought them some breakfast to go. At this point, we were all starting to think there was something to the whole $800 price tag for a proper kit. Oh well!
Adrenaline is a hormone produced in the adrenal glands above the kidneys, and within some neurons in the lower parts of the brainstem. This hormone, also known as epinephrine, is best known for its function in the “fight or flight response”, causing bronchodilation (breathing tubes getting bigger) and vasoconstriction (blood vessels tightening) to optimize the body for a short burst of strength. I was going to finish this build before I went to sleep, come Hell or high water. I planted the whole setup on the dining table and got to work undoing the rushed wiring job we did- after all, there was little point in building this thing if I’d have to take it apart again soon.
About an hour later, I woke up with the imprint of a wire on my face, turns out the whole “short burst” part of the adrenaline was an important feature to mention. About an entire hour of sleep later, some lovely bags under my eyes, and a Rambo-looking imprint on my face- I was ready to get back to work. It only took about two hours of focused effort to get the wiring redone and boot up the printer. To the surprise of everyone involved- there was a machine in that pile of parts we were staring at yesterday. Not a pretty machine, not efficient, not even robust in any sense of the word- but it turned on!
The next few days involved learning how to set up a RepRap printer for regular use and making minor adjustments to the structure to make up for manufacturing and building mistakes (the main structural frame snapped in half). At last, Alfred was up and running- my sidekick behind the scenes who generally seemed displeased by my requests, but followed through all the same. All that I had to do now was learn how to 3D model and actually have a reason to use a 3D printer.
Alfred lasted about two years with semi-regular use; the final nail in his coffin was when the contacts for his heated bed shorted while I was asleep. I woke up the morning after and found black soot on his build plate and quite a few fried components. Thankfully I had the printer placed on a raised table in the middle of my room, away from any walls or furniture, otherwise this could have been a very different type of story!
Three years later, I have him parted out and use his components in small projects. I actually rebuilt Alfred in early 2020 to produce ear-savers which we donated to local hospitals- and, as that project grew, I ended up purchasing a genuine Prusa i3 MK3S+ for the same $800USD price tag I shied away from three years prior. With this purchase, however, I had an authentic understanding and respect for the machine- and that went on to help me work with it constantly for months to come.
