Hi New to this forum and new to 3D printing. I have been looking for 3D printer some years but never came to the decission of buying one. Now my son who is 13 has shown some interest in it and I also have a need of printing a model which is (WxHxL) 250x100x1000mm, lead me to wanting to buy one. Once I look into which model to buy, I see that most ones print almost cubical volumes. My need is normally rather small volumes (200x200x200mm). If I would go for a new DIY printer which can print 1000mm it will cost over €1500 which is way over my budget. Therefore, since I now have a real project with a long need (dont want to joint multiple prints into one body) I wonder if its possible to buy a used printer which is well working with all needed parts that can print 250x250x250mm. Then simply modify the length axis into 1000mm I work as a mechanical engineer and develop high precision machinery with servo motor positioning so the mechanical modification itself is not a big deal, but I dont know how different softwares are build (is there a hardcoded maximum length connected to each printer or can I set up the different min/max positions myself. Are there other things to consider (special brands/models to look for which are easy to modify / has the right software etc.). Also, since I noticed alot has developed over the years, are there models/brands/techniques I should avoid? Looking on the used market, its easy to find complete working machines with some extras for below €50. Can someone point me in the right direction what to look for and if its possible to rebuild a length axis until 1000mm (or more).
Yes, it is possible... I have recently finished upgrading/ rebuilding a Creality CR-10S with new main board, TFT touch screen, new direct-drive extruder, & new hot end. You can modify any printer, since there is Marlin (open source 3d printer firmware) readily available, well supported, and capable of much. As a possible alternative to buying a printer and basically having to rebuild it to raise the X gantry enough for you to achieve 1000 mm build height, you might think about simply building your own CoreXY printer; this might be a better alternative to a regular printer since the top is the same no matter what build height you choose to make it. Here is a link to the printer I am in the process of building -- a CoreXY design similar to the Voron; mine has a build volume of 300mm X 300mm X 600mm, but with the substitution of 4 1200mm 2020 extrusions and a longer linear actuator, I can easily increase that to 300x300x1000mm. John
