Is anyone NOT having problems with their Replicator 2/2x ?

[Jay]

Man, you get on here and it seems like all the REP2/2X's that are being received have missing parts, won't print, and, apparently, come with a parrot !!

Is there anyone out there who opened their 2/2X and....it works? And just keeps on working?

As I sit with almost $3k invested waiting for the printer....well...seems like I see more reports not less. There are also some 'heavy' guys on here who know 3D printing but do NOT like the Rep 2's. Their recommendations, however, aren't what I want either.

I do have my Cube back (finally). After several parts swaps, and a trip to the repair depot, it's back and printing well. While it does have a more polished appearance than most, I find the dumbed down software really handicaps me. It takes several extra steps and holding my lip just right to get it to print anything that's not been produced by 3D Systems. It prints PLA well....ABS? Not so much.

Just looking to see if anyone has anything GOOD to say about the printer is all...

Jay

[AKron]

We're not having any problems with our 2X because we're still waiting
for it to arrive...

[Jay]

I meant, anyone who HAS received theirs...

[Olivier Couston]

 I'm with Jay here: I have not ordered a replicator yet, I'm looking forward to, but I must admit that all the things I have been reading on this board kinda hold me back. I know that the "3d printing at home" thing is still in its early stage and that it requires some knowledge and practice. But like he said, when you spend nearly $3000 in hardware, you expect it to work. Same on youtube, when I search for replicator, beside makerbot official videos, I find mostly videos about printers not working or how to fix them...

[Eighty]

My Replicator2 is printing like a champ. Granted, I've made a few mods and repaired/replaced a few bad parts.

I'm not going to bore you with all the details, but overall I'm very happy with my machine.

I really responded to point this out: You're in the operator's forum, where people come with problems. I'm sure there are some users who have never experienced issues (yeah, right). But don't take what you read here as gospel.

Let's not make this another flaming session against MBI, and let's not go down another discussion about numbers that no one can verify 

[ddurant]

> But like he said, when you spend nearly $3000 in hardware, you expect it to work.

 

So spend $2000 (or less) and get something that does work.. Why look forward to a machine with a proven bad record when you can look forward to a machine with a proven good one??

[Chris Pittman]

My Rep2 is printing consistently now ... after replacing one thermocouple wire and upgrading the extruder .. and replacing the build plate with a glass plate.  Overall I'm happy with it.

[TobyCWoods]

Wait a minute!! I did NOT get a Parrot!!  What the? Should I call MBI? I feel really ripped off!

Regardless... My Rep2 is hummin away! It prints stunning, jaw droppin, awesome things. 

When you buy one brand new you cannot expect it to be in it's fully tuned, and optimal state until after your have had serious brain surgery which fixes your perceptions enough for you to realize you have to make it optimal.

[Olivier Couston]

I was just quoting Jay on that one. I'm interested in getting a replicator 2, not a 2X, so yeah, it would be more around $2000. But still, for this cost I think you should not have to replace the plate and extruder to be able to use it properly. I'm not trying to troll, I'm not coming here to say other printers are better, I'm seriously considering getting a replicator, it's on top of my list. I just want to be sure I will be able to use it before committing. I'm ok with printing a couple of upgrades, it's part of the whole idea, but I don't want to have to rebuild the whole thing from scratch

On 20 March 2013 17:15, ddurant <ddur...@gmail.com> wrote

[Stan Velijev]

Mine is running well for the last 100 hours or so, however to get there I had to:

• Replace build plate.
• Replace hot end assembly, re-wire theormocouple.
• Install whpthomas' MK8 upgrade, burn the Delrin plunger in a fire.
• Replace the XYZ motor wiring harness.
• Re-align my gantry a few times (partially my fault for running sailfish too fast)

I also made custom spool holders for the various PLA roll sizes one may receive and make a custom depth gauge holder to ease the pain of leveling.

After all that, it feels like the machine I should have gotten and one that I can leave alone without worrying that it'll start eating bars of soap without my supervision.

The build plate is still garbage, but It's working for most of my small prints. Will likely need to replace it with glass in the future.

If you have patience and enough know-how to be able to build your own PC, you'll get there. But it's not the care free works out of the box experience they claim it is.

[AKron]

Well, that's part of the problem though!

[ddurant]

> I'm not coming here to say other printers are better

 

Why not?? Other printers ARE better. They're more reliable. They're less expensive.

 

I just don't get why some people think MakerBots are so great even after seeing all the evidence that they're poorly designed, unreliable and over priced.

 
On Wednesday, March 20, 2013 12:38:08 PM UTC-4, Olivier Couston wrote:

I was just quoting Jay on that one. I'm interested in getting a replicator 2, not a 2X, so yeah, it would be more around $2000. But still, for this cost I think you should not have to replace the plate and extruder to be able to use it properly. I'm not trying to troll, I'm not coming here to say other printers are better, I'm seriously considering getting a replicator, it's on top of my list. I just want to be sure I will be able to use it before committing. I'm ok with printing a couple of upgrades, it's part of the whole idea, but I don't want to have to rebuild the whole thing from scratch

On 20 March 2013 17:15, ddurant wrote

[David Celento]

Fix the feed mechanism and get a glass plate. For $20 -$30 extra bucks and some sweat equity you'll LOVE the results.

(Assuming all other components work properly -- which MBI is generally pretty good about addressing if you contact them. All support people have been good that I've worked with -- and Josh, is GREAT!)

Better arms seem like a good idea (definitely for enclosed units), essential only if you're pursuing precision.

Can you get a less expensive printer with fewer "issues"? Sure. Is there another user group this active? Don't know of one.

[David Celento]

....and, you will have challenges and a learning curve with ALL printers -- especially if you seek high quality prints.

Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) is inherently
a VERY complex operation. Effort = Reward, you will quickly find -- especially since software tuning is a large part of the equation.

[ddurant]

> Is there another user group this active? Don't know of one.

 

Uh.. Wouldn't this group be less active if the machines had fewer problems?

 

Near as I can tell, the answer to the OP is still 100% "no". Nobody has gotten a machine that worked out of the box..

[TobyCWoods]

Isin't it obvious?! It's all black and looks soooo cool with the internal, multicolored LED lighting!
I love my Rep2... would buy another (only because NOW I KNOW how to make it work right...) but if I was a total noob as I was last Dec... M2 or TAM would be bumping it down the short list. Sorry... that just my opinion...

On Wednesday, March 20, 2013 9:46:11 AM UTC-7, ddurant wrote:

> I'm not coming here to say other printers are better

snip

 

I just don't get why some people think MakerBots are so great even after seeing all the evidence that they're poorly designed, unreliable and over priced.

 
snip

[kent faulring]

For me, all I had to do was upgrade the extruder and get the BP replaced. I can start a print, walk away and have no problem with just letting it do it's thing, I offen let it work through the night and wake to a nice finished

project. I love my Rep 2 and NO, I'm not a fanboy......

On Wednesday, March 20, 2013 7:51:34 AM UTC-7, Jay wrote:

[Olivier Couston]

On 20 March 2013 17:56, TobyCWoods <andyc...@gmail.com> wrote:

M2 or TAM would be bumping it down the short list. Sorry... that just my opinion...

Sorry for asking, but while I know the M2, what does TAM stands for? Type A Machine? those are on my list too with the ultimaker and the solidoodle

[Ken Hoven]

I canceled my 2x order after getting scared from reading.

I invested $1300 less for a makergear that seems to have less issues out of the box. PLA and "proven" ABS printing. Well I am still waiting on my MG to arrive but I have less worries about having to invest more $ and time to get the first few prints.

[TobyCWoods]

Yeah... Series 1.

However, wood is more susceptible to ambient conditions then is metal... and we have now seen how slight variations with all aspects of the devices components can effect things in a significant way... but the M2 is not enclosed and the bed moves in 2 axes rather then 1... which to me seemed dodgy... probably not...

[Stan Velijev]

There is a learning curve and some issues that need to be addressed. If you're not willing to do troubleshooting, then you're probably better off staying away.

I've had a frustrating time, but I would totally buy a 2nd one, and likely will when I need it because I've learned how to work with it and how to get around issues quickly.

My Rep2 lets me do prints at 160mm/sec if that's what I need and at the other end I can go down to details as fine as 10 microns.

The machine is very flexible, frankly I think MBI was just a bit sloppy and rushed with a few aspects due to very high demand, but the community has done an excellent job compensating for their shortcomings.

[ddurant]

> However, wood is more susceptible to ambient conditions then is metal

 

Interesting point.. How much do the ambient conditions change where you have your machine?

 

Got any evidence that this effect is in ANY way large enough to impact a print?

[Ken Hoven]

I agree and its not the lack of willing to do the troubleshooting for me, it was the lack of time to do the experimenting and troubleshooting. I plan on adding a second printer and when that time comes, I will look serious at the MB 2x.

[Olivier Couston]

On 20 March 2013 18:12, Stan Velijev <void...@gmail.com> wrote:

If you're not willing to do troubleshooting, then you're probably better off staying away

 

I guess I would not might troubleshooting a $400 kit, advertised as DIY from the beginning, but I do when I have to do it from day 1 on a $2000 piece of hardware sold as a finished product, that's my point. And yes, I know that technically, $2000 is not that much in the 3d printing industry, but it is in my bank account.

[TobyCWoods]

It has not impacted me at all... but I have a Rep2... no idea if all wood would be impacted or not. Probably not or nobody would have ever used wood in the first place.

I guess my point is... things which seem to be really important decision points to new buyers even with an Engineering background are actually irrelevant when you actually use the device. Things such as a steel frame. The things which are REAL important usually do not get exposed until later when you are actually using the device in practice... such as the resistance of the stepper motors, the type of linear bearings, design and integration of the gantry cabling, the thermocoupling device, the extruder design, the quality of the FW and most important of all... the support both from the producer of the device as well as the device's community of users.... note some of this forums most knowledagble posters are on other bot's forums.

Also... pone very important thing to note...

if a 3D printer buyer is having no problems whatsoever... and is printing flawlessly... What do you think the probability would be that they would be coming here and posting???

[Stan Velijev]

Technically, it worked just fine for me on day1, and a few days after that. Things took about a week to start going wrong and in the month following that more stuff started bugging out.

[ddurant]

>  no idea if all wood would be impacted or not.

 

Er.. Then you probably shouldn't have raised the issue..

 

> if a 3D printer buyer is having no problems whatsoever... and is

> printing flawlessly... What do you think the probability would be

> that they would be coming here and posting???

 

That's a bogus argument.. If MBI was capable of making quality machines (and there's yet to be a post here from somebody with a MBI machine that worked as-advertised, out of the box) then people would be talking about other things - how to push the limits, how to print other materials, stuff like that.

 

Instead, it's posts about electronics burning out or platforms that aren't level or extruders that don't work or "experimental" materials like ABS & PLA. Stuff that other companies solved ages ago.

[David Celento]

If one can't believe marketing hype, what CAN one believe? ;-)

[kyo]

I have a 2x and I've had no problems that prevented me from printing.

My only real problem is an un-flat build plate, but the center section works just fine.. the corners drop off a bit.

Everything else has worked from the moment I turned it on. There will be a learning curve for anybody new to 3d printing, since you'll need to make sure your designs lend themselves to printing, and there is always some calibration to do.

Kyle

[xenogea...@gmail.com]

"...then people would be talking about other things - how to push the limits, how to print other materials, stuff like that."

I would argue that this is being done, what with the discussions about fast print speeds utilizing Sailfish and taulman nylon on garolite plates being just a couple examples.  Another couple of examples I just thought of are discussions I've seen about users' experiences with the various slicing engines out there and profiles to get the best prints (elimination of zippers, zits and stringing).  I've seen one or two discussions about printing at 50u which I think is also pushing the limits, so to speak.  I don't think it's fair to say that all of the discussions here have only been complaints and not about getting the most out of their machines.

[kyo]

That was me.

I'm not saying I'm happy about it, it's a horribly stupid problem to have. I'm just stating it hasn't actually prevented me from using the machine right out of the box.

On Wednesday, March 20, 2013 1:27:57 PM UTC-5, James Spencer wrote:

Actually that is a big issue. $3000 should buy you a machine that was at least tested with a print that exercises the machine. You are very limited now and need to get that replaced. Was it you or someone else that mentioned they would now be inconvenienced for at least week?

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[mathisyo...@yahoo.com]

Check the other boards (M2 and Ultimaker especially, I can't speak for Type 1).  The questions are almost all about improvements not fixes, pushing limits can't be done while you're replacing/fixing parts/issues.  

Also, I think transparency is important.  Again, read this board then the Makergear and Ultimaker ones.  See who is answering questions and how.  Owners of these 2 manufacturers answer questions directly and don't make excuses.  

[Stan Velijev]

One my issues were fixed I could print down to 10 microns.

Once I installed Sailfish I could print at 120-180mm/sec.

What limits should I be pushing at this point? The hardware is excellent once you get past MBI's rushed assembly.

The lack of accountability and transparency is unfortunate, but again, the community makes up for MBI's shortcomings.

[AKron]

"all I had to do was upgrade the extruder and get the BP replaced"

When I bought my car I just drove it away, and it's still running. No
piston upgrades, no flatter tires, no need to buy 3rd party windows to
keep the breeze out...
I'm just having fun here, my Rep1 is great, even though it's broken
and stripped down right now, and we're getting a Rep2X at work based
on the Rep1 performance, which is broken and stripped down right now.
-Andy

[mathisyo...@yahoo.com]

Thanks Akron. I really can't tell if Stan's post is sarcasm or not.  And yes we understand that a printer is not a car (reliability wise).

[Stan Velijev]

Not sure what's to be confused with sarcasm.

You were claiming other forums discuss pushing limits much more than discussing fixes, which are more prevalent on Makerbot Operators.

I'm pointing out that I feel once the fixes are in place, the limits don't take much effort to reach with my Rep2.

Hence, from my point of view, the effort put in was worth it and I feel the community's going to push the performance of the Rep2 even further.

[Jay]

Well...judging from the tenor of replies...12% spoke well of the machine. The rest said anything from "you have to fix it first" to ddurants..er...rant about how crappy it is.

I understand this is an 'operators' forum but to be honest I have never seen one so negative...Ok...some of the gun forums I am a member of are very polarized...but you atleast have a few 'fanbois' that bring some positives to the discussion. Maybe that's it...there isn't any super positive people on here. Several said they're rocking their R2's..but...that was after they had to do "x". (anyone know of another MB forum? I found a few general 3D ones..but nothing like this one).

My requirements aren't just for a 3D printer. I also need one that I can use with customers. Before you say it...no, the type I deal with would laugh at your wooden, threaded rod, or garishly colored acrylic printers...really...not saying that to be mean.

So? Why not get a Mojo, Dimension, Objet..etc..?? Have you seen the operating costs? It's not the initial costs...under $30k? Pffft...I have purchased equipment that was 7x that. What I don't want to pay for is the maintenance (req) and consumable costs. I have a part that took 3 hours and maybe $2 to print on my 3D printer...I had the local agent price the same part from each machine he wanted to sell. It averaged $50. I could machine it for $50. So? It's for the geometries you can't machine right? I got 4 and 5(semi) axis machines...only a few things I can't machine. I also do injection molding so if the volume is high enough I can just mold it. So? Net effect is it's not a viable purchase right now. Those machines aren't a good fit. A Rep 2/2x would cover all my bases AND allow us to get our feet wet. We routinely work in Solidworks and Autocad Inventor. We already program in those for our 4 and 5 axis machines. Getting it formatted for a 3D printer is the skill set we're looking to improve. Having "rapid prototyping' on our social media and web page is a bonus (and yes, I know it's kind of not true...but it's one I hope to progress to). We already have several prototyping jobs for Siemens and Plasser that might be done on the MB. I actually fabbed a half ass adapter fitting on the Cube (within .008" which was VERY surprising).


Sorry...felt I had to rebuttal a few comments...

Jay

[mathisyo...@yahoo.com]

Exactly what are you rebutting? If you're going to choose a Rep2/2x over an Ultimaker or M2 then state why.  This "rebuttal" bordered on Hunter S. Thompson on a bad day.

[ddurant]

My read was more like 100% either had to fix it before it would work or had it fail after some short amount of time. This is close to what I'd expect, having been in this forum for a few years now. Thus, bit of a rant from me since people are STILL falling for their marketing BS.

 

> My requirements aren't just for a 3D printer. I also need one that I can use with

> customers. Before you say it...no, the type I deal with would laugh at your wooden,

> threaded rod, or garishly colored acrylic printers...really...not saying that to be mean.

 

So get a laser-less Ultimaker and have some AL or non-garish acrylic panels cut for it. People have done this and it's exactly why Ultimaker sells a laser-less kit.

 

> What I don't want to pay for is the maintenance (req) . ....

> A Rep 2/2x would cover all my bases AND allow us to get our feet wet.

 

These 2 lines look mutually exclusive to me.

 

On Wednesday, March 20, 2013 5:05:00 PM UTC-4, Jay wrote:

[David Mytchak]

I received my Rep2 in late October.  Printed great then had a 6 week period of air prints.  The printer almost became airborne several times.  I am happy to report that it's a wonderful asset to my little arsenal of tools.   It was however a very rough road to get to this point.  I hate to admit this but Makerbot is not manufacturing a 'prosumer' product with the Rep2.    I would recommend it for people who are not afraid of taking things apart, modifying it, and putting it back together.   You need to be technical by nature to run one of these things reliably in my opinion.   Since you have it sitting there with 3K invested, I recommend the following (at least, this is what I did):

1 - Build plate: Make sure it's level - if not, get it replaced.  You need a level plate otherwise you're in for nothing but trouble and stress.

2 - Tear that God forsaken delrine plunger away and burn it with fire!    

3 - Replace it with Henry's 'WingCommander Thomas' upgrade.   IT WILL MAKE A HUGE DIFFERENCE!!!!

4 - Canola oil! - Some may argue this but it has been a life saver for me.   A little (just a dab) of canola oil on the filament (just on the tip) seems to do wonders IMHO.  Again, this is up for debate.

5 - Sacrificial fowl.   Parrots do seem to be a favorite around here.   Personally, I prefer the Aflac Duck.  ;)

Just my two cents.  

[AKron]

Matt - I should come clean and say my Rep1 has worked out of the box
since I got it almost a year ago until I bricked it upgrading to the
newest Sailfish a couple days ago. It's stripped apart now so I can
install the aluminum platform arms while I wait for the programmer to
arrive. Everything I did to it were improvements, not fixes.
Here's what happened when I pulled the Replicator out of the box,
plugged it in, and chose something from the SD card without knowing
the first thing about 3D printing:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/thesannio/7178727834/in/set-72157629684625314/

[mathisyo...@yahoo.com]

I still use my ToM from June 2011 with few problems and am giving it to my nephew when my M2 comes in.  I've had good luck with MBI products. I almost got a Rep1 but these boards and the countdown clock on the MBI site saved me (lol).   What bothers me is the over promising (Ex: "It just works.") and lack of responsiveness while the problems and lack of accountability continually repeat themselves.

[James Spencer]

That dog print looks so amazing! What's the layer height on that?
:)

[Kobus du Toit]

Makerbot said they will send me a new build plate and I ordered new nozzles from a third party guy so hoping I will be printing in the next month

[Jay]

 

Ok..I don't want a kit.That's why I wighed in with the whole 'out of the box' and office friendly discussion...You insinuated I would be better off pissing the money away...smart thing was a laser-less Ultimaker...

 

I went to the Ultimaker site.

Assembled kits are 3-4 weeks out. They cost $2149 without shipping and in the 'birch furniture' which was not what I wanted. So let's just say it's $2200 with out acrylic upgrade (and again...that's not out of the box). It doesn't have a heated build plate? Everyone says you need one for ABS (ok..not everyone but I mean the general consensus). Same with the open sides. Oh..wait it says ABS(supported). So that means it's optomized for PLA? Where have I heard that before? I get it's fast but some of the guys on here are getting really fast speeds using sailfish. It has the 8" cubed build area...thats almost as big as the 3D Systems Cubex. If you get it assembled you get their new controller, which had some cool features..and it comes in matching birch...that's awesome!

So...I got on the official forums http://umforum.ultimaker.com/index.php?/forum/2-current-google-groups/ and there are not many posts but several talk about the new Martin firmware having a bug.

So...I looking further down I noticed "hacks and improvments - 187 posts" and right below that "Troubleshooting - 335 posts" Wait...that can't be right. You implied it was 3 to 1 for modding over problems.

So...I went searching for some unofficial forums...Hey! they have a google group too! 2147 posts...and just about the same mix as on here. Upgrades, hacks, problems, questions, and general pissyness. The reason there is a more genial humor is that Ultimaker (the company) isn't taken to task like Makerbot. Why? Because they still say "open source" and promote it? (while selling you the kits, repair parts, and upgrades for a nice bit of nick). Also, I am not sure about this so if I am wrong feel free to correct me...but...no where on the assembled kit page or support does it state it has a warranty. The only mention about warranty is that they were not responsible if you built the kit wrong. How do you know, unless you're a scotch drinking God king of engineering, would you know you did or didn't burn out that board or motor during assembly?

 

So...I think I'll just keep the 2X on order. By the time I get mine there'll be more in the field. Hopefully they'll have the BP sorted not to mention shipping hoods with the units. Until then I'll see if my Cube is really fixed and lay out a 7 or 8 hour print to greet in the morning...

 

and on a personal note...

 

Mathisyo... :)

Hunter S. Thompson? Kinda...both in military, both really like firearms....but he died before I was born. He seemed to be a non-comformist anti-authority figure with substance abuse problems. Anything but me...I don't drink or do drugs. 

[Luis E. Rodriguez]

Cancel your order and get an Ultimaker. Period. Don't fall for marketing hype. Your Cube was a copy of the UP!/Affinia. You should have gotten one of those instead. But its too late for that. You;ll get it working after trashing the firmware for Sailfish and some other mods but yes you spent too much. I'm sorry.

[Luis E. Rodriguez]

Baaa, Baaaa, baaaaa, baaaa, baaaaa, baaaaaaaaa

Welcome to closed source. Congrats to supporting a company that screws its customers and employees.

Come back with a retort when you can print 24-36-48 hours straight.

Weekly I sit and print while my brothers curse every make and model of printer.

Ultimaker was born in a FabLab by Makers for makers, period. RepRap from the beginning and never turned its back for  $$.

Now I remember why I turned off email notifications for this group...it's lame. Good for a laugh though, thanks!

[actionsport...@gmail.com]

[actionsport...@gmail.com]

My Rep 2 worked OK out of the box. Started printing the included models 10 minutes after unpacking.  Bought white filament, never used the supplied clear. I run some simple parts with Makerware, have RepG also for others - I could not get .1mm working with Makerware but even with layman's knowledge can get .1mm with Rep G. Have not installed sailfish or the extruder feed upgrade. Have had a few large models quit but most smaller things print fine and my biggest problem is larger things that peel up off the plate with solid or heavy infill. Seem to work OK with less fill - this was a revelation to me and changed my opinion drastically - everything was fu^$%ing up before I figured that out because I was printing everything with solid infill (for strength)

My build plate is pretty flat - not perfect but I think my problems relate more to my lack of knowledge than the machine.

That said I am going to mod my machine to make it better - I like to tweak and mod by nature. I think an unheated build plate is a drawback - but was a total noob when I got my machine.

It does work but I think that life would be simpler with a heated build plate helping keep the base attached

My guess is that this survey is going to get more complaints than complements - I have about 100 hours on mine so I cannot say any real long term remarks other than to say my more or less stock machine works pretty well

[mathisyo...@yahoo.com]

Thompson died 7/8 years ago.  You are very advanced for your age.

[Laird Popkin]

My Replicator 1 worked "out of the box" - I was printing a half hour after opening the box, and printed hundreds of things using the stock firmware, extruder, heated build platform, etc., using both ABS and PLA, including some very long prints (including some that took over a day).

 

Not to take anything away from Ultimaker, etc. - if I only wanted to print in PLA, I'd seriously consider them. But given that the Rep 1 works great for me, I'm more interested in technologies I don't already own, like CNC milling (I have an RPM on order) and a DPL/resin printer (still too expensive, but hoping that the resin prices drop as the market grows).

The interesting discussions are about pushing the limits, such as Sailfish (better in every way), Taulman 618 Nylon (indestructible and flexible), HIPS, pypy (3-4x slicing speedup), the minimalistic extruder (lets me use cheap filament, yay), etc. But those are all improvements over a machine that worked out of the box.

 

- LP

[ddurant]

> The reason there is a more genial humor is that Ultimaker (the company) isn't taken to task like Makerbot. Why?

 

Because Ultimaker doesn't have the long, long history of being full of it like MakerBot does?

 

Honestly, I don't care which machine you get and at this point, it sounds like you're just looking for reasons to justify the decision you've already made. I hope your customers appreciate the pains you took to get the nicest looking machine.

 
On Wednesday, March 20, 2013 11:03:58 PM UTC-4, Jay wrote:

[Jay]

Ok...There's been a couple of alternates suggested. I don't understand except for price. Both the Ultimaker and Mbot are open designs with no heated build plate. The vast majority on here and several other forums all say you need both of those to extrude ABS successfully. The Ultimaker is almost the same cost (without these two items). The Mbot is roughtly half.

As I posted earlier I have been on their forums and no one is claiming that when they turn them on gold coins and unicorns come out. They have complaints about problems just like we do. They do have a few cool features but from what I can read, they're not even close to 'out of box' either. They seem to print PLA well but can find few video's or examples of their ABS ability.

The only other 'desktop' type unit that is enclosed is the Solidoodle (the new 3rd version is really banging on price vs. features) and the Up! Mini (which has a small build area). I thought the Cubex was enclosed but I talked to 3D yesterday and it has open sides (and no heated build plate)..

Why are these suggested? I get they print PLA well but they seem to contradict what everyone says about printing ABS. They're also, in standard form, are single extruders.

Which brings us full circle to my original question of "Are the new 2 and 2x working on receipt?"

Looks like the answer I'm getting is....maybe..?

Jay

[ddurant]

> They have complaints about problems just like we do.

 

No. They don't.

 

Pretty much nobody complains about the extruder/drive on an Ultimaker nowdays because Ultimaker saw that there was a problem and fixed it. New machines come with all the latest parts, upgrades were offered to people with older machines.

 

Ultimaker software actually works.

 

Nobody complains about Ultimaker electronics burning out because it doesn't happen.

 

Ultimaker doesn't pretend to be something it's not.

 

> they're not even close to 'out of box' either. They seem to print PLA well but can find few video's or examples of their ABS ability.

 

Do they claim to be "out of box" like MBI does?

 

If you want ABS on an Ultimaker, you'll need to add a HBP - a bunch of people have done this and there are a number of threads that discuss the best way to do it. Personally, I'm never going to back to ABS unless I'm forced to - PLA is a much nicer material.

[mathisyo...@yahoo.com]

looking for reasons to justify the decision you've already made

It's called cognitive dissonance.  You want something to be true so badly that when it isn't you change what you want/believe.  Ex: I want the Replicator to work out of the box and print cool stuff.  It doesn't do so.  That's ok, I love to tinker so the Rep is perfect for me.

[ddurant]

> It's called cognitive dissonance.

 

See also: selection bias and confirmation bias.

 

What bugs me is that people are paying a hefty premium for something that doesn't exist. This is really nothing new when it comes to MBI marketing, though..

 

If I were to total up what my Cupcake cost 4 years ago (including the extra bits I needed to make the damned thing work), it would be pretty close to what I paid for my Ultimaker about 2 years ago. There was no big hardware tech change or big economies of scale that caused prices to drop - the difference is that I was a total sap 4 years ago and far less of one 2 years ago.

[kyo]

The whining is getting tiresome.. if you have no interest in MBI or it's machines, and are only here to complain, just leave. If you're just here trolling threads (which some of you clearly are), feel free to see yourself out as well. And guys, stop feeding the trolls :)

Kyle

[ddurant]

It's not whining, Kyle. It's people with years of experience speaking up..

 

See also, again: confirmation bias.

[mathisyo...@yahoo.com]

It's not trolling to tell the truth. There is a clear difference between this board and the Ultimaker/Makergear groups and it's not the people. It's the product/service.   Some of the people posting these concerns (not me though) are among the most knowledgeable people around.   I even said I'm happy with my ToM from june 2011 and have had good luck with their ABS too.

Complaining about a lack of transparency/deleted posts on this group/total disregard for longtime users who've made their products useable,etc. is not whining.

On Thursday, March 21, 2013 12:29:47 PM UTC-4, kyo wrote:

[Justin Leone]

Everything you say about Ultimaker could be completely true, but it still wouldn't change the fact that it's not offering what the OP is looking for.  The Ultimaker needs to be assembled, doesn't support ABS without heavy modification, doesn't look as professional as the Rep 2X without heavy modification, doesn't include a warranty, and isn't 100% foolproof.  These limitations might not matter to you, but they are deal breakers for him.

Clearly, he is not going with MBI because he's a sheep and believes everything their marketing hype wants him to, and the insinuation that he's just mindlessly grabbing the machine with the most advertising is really asinine and sort've offensive.  He's going with MBI because, open source or not, they happen to be offering a machine that fits his particular needs, even though they differ from yours.

[ddurant]

> ... doesn't include a warranty, and isn't 100% foolproof.

 

Were those requirements?? If so, he's definitely not going to find them at makerbot either.. Or did you think makerbots came with warranties or are anywhere close to foolproof?

 

I think Luis brought up Ultimaker because they're one example of a company that's in this business to make kick ass machines instead of just chanting about how awesome they are, like MBI does.

 

If ABS is really a requirement, an assembled MakerGear M2 would be far better than any makerbot. It would also be cheaper.

 

> Clearly, he is not going with MBI because he's a sheep and believes everything their marketing hype wants him to

 

That wasn't clear to me at all but then I think anybody who buys a makerbot nowdays is a bit of a sheep, almost by definition.

[James Spencer]

I want to point out that the Ultimaker warranty is only 2 weeks
shorter than the Makerbot warranty.
:)

> >> So...I got on the official forumshttp://umforum.ultimaker.com/index.php?/forum/2-current-google-groups/

> >> don't drink or do drugs.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

[ddurant]

> I want to point out that the Ultimaker warranty is only 2 weeks
> shorter than the Makerbot warranty.

 

Warranties are usually thought of as an assurance that something will work as-advertised.

 

Since the makerbot "warranty" only covers items that are unused, it's not really much of a warranty. Maybe a lawyer could argue that it technically is one but it's not what real people think of, when they think of the word..

 

So.. No. They don't have a warranty longer than Ultimaker. Neither company has one. AFAIK, nobody in this space has one.

[Jay]

On Thursday, March 21, 2013 1:20:48 PM UTC-4, ddurant wrote:

It's not whining, Kyle. It's people with years of experience speaking up..

 

But...you're answers amount to saying "chocolate" when I ask what time is it.

I get it...MB isn't your first choice. No, I'm not trying to justify...if I was, I wouldn't have asked. I just question your answer because it doesn't address my needs...only that I'm foolish for buying anything made by Makerbot. I get enough of that from a lot of engineers because I use a Mac....I get tired of their "mines an hacked overclocked i7 with 16 gigs of ram..ect" I don't want to keep this argument going because you just don't like the brand.

If I want an ABS machine, and the vast majority of operators say you need a enclosure and a HBP to do that, how is your reccomendation of a unit that lacks these constructive? That's all I'm saying.

Is there a machine that reliably does ABS that meets my needs? That's all that has been asked....

Jay

[Jay]

+1

On Thursday, March 21, 2013 12:29:47 PM UTC-4, kyo wrote:

[ddurant]

> If I want an ABS machine, and the vast majority of operators say you need a

> enclosure and a HBP to do that, how is your reccomendation of a unit that

> lacks these constructive?

 

Who says it needs to be enclosed?? People here? People here also say that putting butter or hairspray on your build platform is a good idea.

 

Where else do you see people saying that it needs to be enclosed? Is this one of those things like needing a makerbot because you want to print 100 micron layers??

[Stan Velijev]

I feel like you're just here to troll at this point. Why are you on this forum anyways if you hate and don't own a makerbot?

You're angry and you want people to know about it, alright cool, I'm actually quite happy with my Rep2 even if you think it's garbage. Guess I'm a huge tool, can we move on?

[mathisyo...@yahoo.com]

"You were claiming other forums discuss pushing limits much more than discussing fixes, which are more prevalent on Makerbot Operators.

I'm pointing out that I feel once the fixes are in place, the limits don't take much effort to reach with my Rep2."

That part was sarcasm for sure.

I look forward to your reasoning for MBI's not admitting any responsibility for these problems that require your fixes.

On Wednesday, March 20, 2013 5:02:31 PM UTC-4, Stan Velijev wrote:

Not sure what's to be confused with sarcasm.

You were claiming other forums discuss pushing limits much more than discussing fixes, which are more prevalent on Makerbot Operators.

I'm pointing out that I feel once the fixes are in place, the limits don't take much effort to reach with my Rep2.

Hence, from my point of view, the effort put in was worth it and I feel the community's going to push the performance of the Rep2 even further.

On Wednesday, 20 March 2013 16:38:40 UTC-4, mathisyo...@yahoo.com wrote:

Thanks Akron. I really can't tell if Stan's post is sarcasm or not.  And yes we understand that a printer is not a car (reliability wise).

On Wednesday, March 20, 2013 3:24:32 PM UTC-4, AKron wrote:

"all I had to do was upgrade the extruder and get the BP replaced"

When I bought my car I just drove it away, and it's still running. No
piston upgrades, no flatter tires, no need to buy 3rd party windows to
keep the breeze out...
I'm just having fun here, my Rep1 is great, even though it's broken
and stripped down right now, and we're getting a Rep2X at work based
on the Rep1 performance, which is broken and stripped down right now.
-Andy

[ddurant]

> Actually people here say they like to put  canola oil in their extruder and hairspray on their heated bed

 

Are you sure? I thought I saw something about butter..

 

> I guess we will be seeing Axe to get rid of the Abs smell next.

 

I've heard that putting Axe on your steppers motors attracts women. YMMV.

 

> I never needed an enclosure to print Abs.

 

I don't run ABS through my Ultimaker but that was all I used on the old makerbot.. Neither machine was ever enclosed.

 
On Thursday, March 21, 2013 3:48:22 PM UTC-4, James Spencer wrote:

Actually people here say they like to put canola oil in their extruder and hairspray on their heated bed. I guess we will be seeing Axe to get rid of the Abs smell next. I never needed an enclosure to print Abs.

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[Dan Newman]

On 21 Mar 2013 , at 11:38 AM, Aaron Anderson wrote:

> Guess I'll add my name to the losers column. Got my 2X on Tuesday, and have
> spent the last 48hrs tearing my hair out over the thing. It (thus far at
> least) has the following issues:
>
> - Warped (~1/32" along the x-axis) and pitted build platform
> - *Significantly *offset (z-axis) extruder nozzles. The left is still
> too high to adhere reliably while the right is trenching through the capton
> tape.
> - Cross-threaded, unseated structural screws (3 places)
> - DOA cooling fan on the right extruder (spins slowly and buzzes
> incessantly).
> - Filament tubes are too short by at least an inch. When the gantry
> zeroes to x0,y0, they pull out of the extruder bodies

At (x,y)=(0,0)? I sort of expected to hear the front left, but (0,0) is
the center of the build plate. And if they are popping out there, then
it must be even worse when moving to the front left (or front right
for that matter).

> - Most damning of all, the cursed thing doesn't extrude reliably. It's
> 50/50 whether both heads will extrude on a given print. I've loaded /
> unloaded, tightened and loosened 'til my fingers are raw. The drive left
> shipped too tight, and the right too loose, but no amount of subsequent
> adjustment seems to result in consistency.

If the tubes are so short that they are pulling out at (0,0), then
could it be that they are putting friction on the ABS filament making
it harder to be drawn in? At any rate, add to your support discussion
list a request for longer guide tubes.

Dan

[Stan Velijev]

"That part was sarcasm for sure."

I don't know what the fuck you're talking about or why you feel the need to put words in my mouth when I've already stated nothing I said was sarcasm.

MBI's reasoning is irrelevant to me at this point because my machine hasn't had any problems and is printing perfectly.

MBI might not be admitting anything publicly, but all the replacement parts I got were free. That's enough for me.

Perhaps if I was more incompetent I'd be more compelled to whine on forums about how bad everything is instead of simply fixing my problems. 

[tunell]

I've had my Rep2 since October and I have had to get the wrench in there much more than I expected. I was a TOM owner as well, so I was familiar with all the parts. So it hasn't been a huge problem. There is definitely more maintenance/fiddling necessary than Makerbot is letting on.

BUT!

The majority of the time it works great, makes beautiful prints, and saves LOTS of money in tooling costs. I would definitely buy it again.

On Wednesday, March 20, 2013 7:51:34 AM UTC-7, Jay wrote:

Man, you get on here and it seems like all the REP2/2X's that are being received have missing parts, won't print, and, apparently, come with a parrot !!

Is there anyone out there who opened their 2/2X and....it works? And just keeps on working?

As I sit with almost $3k invested waiting for the printer....well...seems like I see more reports not less. There are also some 'heavy' guys on here who know 3D printing but do NOT like the Rep 2's. Their recommendations, however, aren't what I want either.

I do have my Cube back (finally). After several parts swaps, and a trip to the repair depot, it's back and printing well. While it does have a more polished appearance than most, I find the dumbed down software really handicaps me. It takes several extra steps and holding my lip just right to get it to print anything that's not been produced by 3D Systems. It prints PLA well....ABS? Not so much.

Just looking to see if anyone has anything GOOD to say about the printer is all...

Jay

[Jay]

Stan since you get the meat of the matter...Do you have experience printing ABS? What do you feel are the requirements? If I wanted to later print Nylon which machine (any machine) would be best for that? One set up (optimized) for PLA or ABS? Or would one with a HBP do both or all three? My current printer doesn't have a HBP and prints PLA good but ABS is 50/50. I know it will not work with nylon (not available in cartridge form for a 3D Systems unit).

Jay

[Stan Velijev]

I only have a Rep2 and haven't tried printing with ABS or nylon as everything I've read says it won't work out too well, so any info I give is unfortunately isn't first hand.

A heated build plate is considered a requirement for ABS because the plastic tends to expand and contract based on heat. PLA is considered a lot more stable in this sense and expands a lot less due to changes in heat.

From what I understand, ABS cooling on the lower layers causes it to warp and curl, the heated bed allows the heat to stay consistent.

This is also the reason an enclosure is recommended, because drafts of cool air will cause inconsistencies in the cooling of the ABS which will make it warp/curl as it contracts.

This will likely be less severe with smaller prints, I wouldn't be surprised if a normal Rep2 could print items that are 1-2 inches cubed with ABS.

Nylon is in the same boat as ABS, except it requires considerably higher temperatures during extrusion (250-300+ depending on speed), so the negative effects of the rapid cooling of lower layers would be more troublesome.

Again, this isn't first hand, but everything I've read (other then from ddurant) seems to indicate the above.

[Aaron Anderson]

My apologies, dnewman, for providing bad information. The tubes pull free when the extruders move to the far front, left corner (0,0 on my CNC machine...). Unfortunately, however, they traverse that location at the beginning of every single print.

[Kobus du Toit]

I thought I just attached mine wrong. I was putting them back in the extruder constanly.  So I need to tell them that also in the ticket I opened.

[Stan Velijev]

Mine would pop off the little slots made for them at the back constantly, I just clipped back in and used a zip-tie to bind it snugly to the wiring, all good now.

[and...@ncable.net.au]

I have done about 500hrs print time with my rep2 without much issue . Have tried and had success with ABS, PLA am about to try nylon and the wood filament

[Bottleworks]

The negativeness from folks is really only from a group of about 5 people. Sometimes they change their usernames, but its the same 5. There are some problems with these machines. That can be said for any new car, or any new product... Some issues, IMO, Never should have occurred. The fact that 2X users are getting warped plates... I don't consider that acceptable this far in the MBI timeline. There are QC issues with their suppliers. It seems that they don't understand that they have to continually watch their suppliers for QC problems, and correct it prior to it getting to a customer. With that said, people don't come here to checkin and say "all is well". They come here if there is a problem.

[Kris Weber]

I haven't got to print a whole lot since I got my Rep 2 (Stupid overtime!), but the 150 hours or so that I've put in to it so far have gone pretty well. The build plate I got was hopelessly warped, and though they sent me a new one quickly to replace it, it is still warped (I've got a glass plate on the way). Other than that, I've really had no issues. All of my prints print exactly how I design them in Solidworks at 120mm/s using Sailfish. They printed quite well using the default firmware as well, but Sailfish just added some speed and made it quieter.

I'd say that a LOT of the issues seen in this forum are caused by this forum. People get worked up easily when they have trouble printing, and turn to drastic changes in their machine without really understanding what they're doing. I've run in to a number of issues that other people have seen here, and the solution (for me anyway) is generally quite simple. People seem to jump to conclusions much too easily and try all sorts of changes when they're really unnecessary 95% of the time. I've found that through understanding the repg, and by slightly modifying settings there, all my problems have been solved without fuss. 

I'm not saying that my machine is flawless, but for $2K, I'm quite happy. My biggest problem is just finding the time to print.

[David Celento]

Good thoughts, Kris. Now that my machine is properly setup, it seems to be working beautifully. The main problem is that it took me about 3.5 months to get to this point! 

More than half the battle, from my own experience, was getting odd results and intermittent failures with a new Rep2—but was unsure if this was 'normal' or not. (It's not, I now know). Without any properly functioning machines or veteran users nearby, I was left wondering was it me or the machine? Did I just get scammed by MakerBot and this thing really doesn't work? Maybe it was the filament diameter changing? Warped build-plate? Humidity swelling the filament? Clogged head? Temp not matching the display? The plunger not adjusted correctly? Uhhh, what the heck is the correct plunger adjustment anyway? Need canola oil for the feed tube? Cold drafts? The phase of the moon? Dead parrots? I've run across all of these theories (and more!) here.  Some of you may be identifying with me at this point?

A SUGGESTION: What might help folks is a method to "blueprint" their new machine right after unboxing it—prior to them banging their head against the wall for days/weeks/months chasing myriad suggestions.This seems especially crucial given MBI's known struggles with QC. For those not familiar with the concept of "blueprinting", this is essentially going over the machine VERY CAREFULLY to make sure the entire OEM setup is within design spec. A good "blueprinting" guide would define means and methods to determine such things as: build plate flatness; best leveling process; adjusting the (ahem...horrific!) delrin plunger; proper belt tensioning; a couple agreed upon test files with MakerWare settings (not RepG for newbies!) and pictures of good results for easy comparison. I would also recommend that only one filament be decided upon for tests, and best to purchase it from MakerBot (even if slightly more expensive) so the order can be placed with the machine order (White PLA for Rep2's seems to print nicely and is a versatile color. Not sure about ABS recommendations. Heck, if MBI is listening, why not stop providing the clear PLA with the REp2 and give people a solid color to ensure more successful newbie prints AND improve diagnostics for all?)

Perhaps a good WIKI topic?

[Shawn]

A "new user setup guide" would be a helpful addition, I think. Some
elements of that now exist on the new
wiki(http://makerbot.wikia.com/wiki/Makerbot_3D_Printers_Wiki). Feel
free to start an appropriate page.. :)

On 13-03-22 01:27 AM, David Celento wrote:
> Good thoughts, Kris. Now that my machine is properly setup, it seems to
> be working beautifully. The main problem is that it took me about 3.5
> months to get to this point!
>
> More than half the battle, from my own experience, was getting odd

> results and intermittent failures with a new Rep2�but was unsure if this

> was 'normal' or not. (It's not, I now know). Without any properly
> functioning machines or veteran users nearby, I was left wondering was
> it me or the machine? Did I just get scammed by MakerBot and this thing
> really doesn't work? Maybe it was the filament diameter changing? Warped
> build-plate? Humidity swelling the filament? Clogged head? Temp not
> matching the display? The plunger not adjusted correctly? Uhhh, what the
> heck is the correct plunger adjustment anyway? Need canola oil for the
> feed tube? Cold drafts? The phase of the moon? Dead parrots? I've run
> across all of these theories (and more!) here. Some of you may be
> identifying with me at this point?
>
> A SUGGESTION: What might help folks is a method to "blueprint" their new

> machine right after unboxing it�prior to them banging their head against

> the wall for days/weeks/months chasing myriad suggestions.This seems
> especially crucial given MBI's known struggles with QC. For those not
> familiar with the concept of "blueprinting", this is essentially going
> over the machine VERY CAREFULLY to make sure the entire OEM setup is
> within design spec. A good "blueprinting" guide would define means and
> methods to determine such things as: build plate flatness; best leveling
> process; adjusting the (ahem...horrific!) delrin plunger; proper belt
> tensioning; a couple agreed upon test files with MakerWare settings (not
> RepG for newbies!) and pictures of good results for easy comparison. I
> would also recommend that only one filament be decided upon for tests,
> and best to purchase it from MakerBot (even if slightly more expensive)
> so the order can be placed with the machine order (White PLA for Rep2's
> seems to print nicely and is a versatile color. Not sure about ABS
> recommendations. Heck, if MBI is listening, why not stop providing the
> clear PLA with the REp2 and give people a solid color to ensure more
> successful newbie prints AND improve diagnostics for all?)
>
> Perhaps a good WIKI topic?
>

[tunell]

We're trying to create a wiki at makerbot.wikia.com where we can get this information all together to make it easier on new users. I'm an experienced makerbot user, but some of the issues I've had really left me scratching my head until I found the "right" solution to each problem, which was usually much simpler than some of the "overengineered" solutions in this forum.

[Rob Griesbeck]

Just got my 2x, have printed everything on the SD card, works awesome! Looks amazing. Haven't hooked up to PC yet, as I'm on spring break and PC is at school/work.

I have noticed that my HBP is pretty flat, maybe a bit low on the far corners, haven't printed anything HUGE yet, will see soon.

Hope you have good luck with yours when u get it

[Aaron Anderson]

I'm definitely identifying with you. I've not yet come across any dead parrots, but just about everything else you've mentioned I've questioned and experimented with on my 2X to try to achieve satisfactory results. After the first couple days I came to the same consensus: that there wasn't just one thing wrong, but many working (or rather not working) in concert to thwart me. There are a lot of variables and changing one thing and expecting satisfactory result just led to frustration. I finally got a little more scientific, looked at the unit holistically, and started taking notes. My machine's shortcomings are documented elsewhere in this thread, but suffice to say that I agree with your assessment that MBI needs to focus additional resources on QC, and that the basic MBI setup documentation that already exists (especially light for the new 2X) could certainly be improved upon / augmented by the wiki topic suggested.

[Bryon Miller]

I bought a Rep2 and feared the same thing you are right now.  I saw all the negative posts and thought "Great".

But my printer worked out of the box just fine.  It failed on me on a very long print I tried doing overnight due to the delrin plunger, but you can buy the upgrade on ebay if you don't want to find all the parts yourself at the hardware store, or you can print it yourself and get the parts.  You will want to install the extruder upgrade if you have a rep2.  Since then, mine has worked great.

[Bryon Miller]

Mine did.

On Wednesday, March 20, 2013 9:55:13 AM UTC-7, ddurant wrote:

> Is there another user group this active? Don't know of one.

 

Uh.. Wouldn't this group be less active if the machines had fewer problems?

 

Near as I can tell, the answer to the OP is still 100% "no". Nobody has gotten a machine that worked out of the box..

 
On Wednesday, March 20, 2013 12:50:39 PM UTC-4, David Celento wrote:

Fix the feed mechanism and get a glass plate. For $20 -$30 extra bucks and some sweat equity you'll LOVE the results.

(Assuming all other components work properly -- which MBI is generally pretty good about addressing if you contact them.  All support people have been good that I've worked with -- and Josh, is GREAT!)

Better arms seem like a good idea (definitely for enclosed units), essential only if you're pursuing precision.

Can you get a less expensive printer with fewer "issues"? Sure. Is there another user group this active? Don't know of one.

[Steven Harvey]

For what it's worth (and I realise this thread pertains to Rep2) after about 6 months of experimentation and minor modification my Rep1 is now printing beautifully. More importantly it is printing reliably and repeatedly, unattended. There is no way that I could have reached this point without the valuable advice from members of this forum. So a heartfelt THANKS guys. IMHO the Rep1 was definitely a beta release that was rushed onto the market. It sounds as if MBI did not learn from the exercise and made the same mistakes with the Rep2. That said my experience with MBI support and their Australian distributor has been positive.

[David Celento]

"After the first couple days I came to the same consensus: that there wasn't just one thing wrong, but many working (or rather not working) in concert to thwart me."

Indeed!  As an experienced commercial 3D printer operator (but not with MBI products), I (naively) thought, "How hard could it be to get this little guy working?" Bwahahahaaaaaa.  As it turned out, when received from MBI my Rep2 had: a thermocouple wire that was damaged, a heater core wire with a small slit in it -- both of which caused intermittent failures -- my fan sucked out, rather than blew in, the delrin plunger would stay in adjustment for only one print at a time, warped acrylic build plate, and my X drive belt motor was slipping under load because it was held in place with screws that I could turn with my finger. Three months (and many swear words) later, I've fixed all these issues and now REALLY LIKE the Rep2. 

Most of these issues are REALLY STUPID assembly issues—as easy to correct as they are absurd to persist.I relied on MBI for "assistance" for the first month or so, then found this group. THANKFULLY!!!

Knowing what I know now, and to put my money where my mouth is, I just got off the phone with MBI to place my order for a Rep2X. Let the next adventure begin!

[James Spencer]

I think this explains it:
http://www.brepettis.com/blog/2009/3/3/the-cult-of-done-manifesto.html


On Mar 22, 5:39 pm, GBR1 <will.how...@virgin.net> wrote:
> Hi All,
>
> I have been looking at getting a 3D printer, the replicator was/is top of
> my list.  I had one on order and cancelled, primarily because of threads
> like this..  I live in the UK and was waiting on a shipment to arrive..  I
> had a call from a UK dealer saying that the Rep2 was being shipped from the
> US this week, I asked if it had the update Mk8, they called Makerbot and
> they said NO.  So after all the issues and with a known fix yet they still
> refuse to ship with it!
>
> This doesnt mean that I wont buy one in the near future but what really
> gripes me is that I would be buying into a company that does not appear to
> acknowledge any of these issues.. I understand that these printers are
> still in a relatively developmental stage but when you have this many
> people complaints and owners using their own time to help develop the
> product you would think they would be big enough to make the changes so
> that future customers are happy..
>
> It amazes me that they still ship with warped build plates etc, this is
> simple quality control!  If they cant get this right then what else are
> they getting wrong?
>
> As I said I want to buy one of these, if they put their hand up, had a blog
> which ran you through the necessary changes and shipped new Rep2 with the
> working updates then I would buy now..  Until this happens I will keep
> looking at all the options!
>
> GBR1

[Eighty]

Wow. Just pretend you know what you're doing, because its almost the same as actually knowing what you're doing? Good thing NASA doesn't subscribe to that theory. Or anyone else, for that matter.