So I'm in high school, and I have really got into using Solid Works and designing some cool things; so I was wondering if you guys would know what a good 3D printer would be for me to learn on. Thanks!
Learn to use OpenSCAD first, the world of 3D printing really likes openscad... I have a Prusa iteration 3 and I really like it, and for the price it's a really good one. Start to print with PLA, it's a lot easier, grab some Painter's mate green (or blue) tape and have fun!
I used Sketchup for a number of years and really got into Inventor later on. Never looked back. I built a gMax for $700, half its retail cost, and I'm currently working on a Cohesive 3D Printer (one that can print electronics inside of plastic) to put on Kickstarter in a month or two. As far as cheap printers, you can get a Micro or a Cobblebot, each for $300. The micro is smaller and easier to use while the Cobblebot actually uses OpenBuilds parts and is almost the same build plate size as mine. I learned on a Printrbot but the other two I mentioned are a much better value proposition. Keep in mind that it'll take a while to get either one of them, as they are very new Kickstarter successes. Seconded that PLA is the way to go!
Don't go with a kickstarter printer unless the company has already shipped out previous things on time and the products worked as expected. If you can save up and buy a kit with a good track record like the makerfarm i3v with 1.75mm jhead you'll have a much better time and have parts that you can use to make another design later if you chose. If you want a delta printer type design you could get the vslot kossel mini from ultibots http://www.ultibots.com/mini-kossel-v-slot-3d-printer/ or get a rostock max v2. That all depends on your budget. A few people I've talked to move away from the mini kossel's micro extruder. Cartesian style printers are much easier to calibrate. If you have some good help locally with people who already have printers you can choose more risky designs like the ingentis, but something like that is not necessarily very good for a first printer. If you go with something that's not common or a proven design, you'll most likely have a bad time and waste a lot of money.
