[Proposal] Fund 3 refurbished Elegoo Centauri Carbon FDM Printers (*Potential for up to 6 working units total, or up to 3 parts units for future repairs)
Cprossu
This is a proposal to fund the installation of 3 new 3D printers for us to be 3D printering with.
Since my proposals are long winded, we shall first start this off by utilizing AI to summarize it! (Thanks Moheeb!)
Background:
• Five years ago, we built two Ender 5 printers as a cost-effective alternative to a refurbished Ultimaker 3. The experiment was successful, but modernization costs have since outpaced their value.
• Technology has advanced significantly, and the current fleet is slow, finicky, and maintenance-heavy.
• The community would benefit from faster, easier-to-use, more reliable machines.
Plan:
Printer Model: Elegoo Centauri Carbon (CoreXY, enclosed, triple Z-axis leadscrews, supports high-temp/abrasive filaments, larger build volume).
Acquisition Method:
• Access to returned units from Elegoo’s warehouse at steep discounts.
• Each pair costs $200–$250. A local contact will combine them into one functional printer, with spare parts from donor units or add parts to the remaining printer to make it functional.
• Potential outcome: 3–6 working printers (minimum 3 guaranteed).
• Estimated total cost (printers + parts): ≤ $1,100.
Transition Plan:
• Retain the Ender Dragon (Ender 5 Plus) for large-volume printing.
• Sell off older units to offset costs.
• Host a giveaway of still-serviceable printers to community members who cannot afford one, as-is and without warranty, but with ongoing support.
Logistics:
• Printers will be picked up in person after a planned trip to Hackaday Supercon (avoiding shipping costs).
• Build plates and minor upgrades(3d printed/replacement parts as needed) are included in the budget.
Risk Mitigation:
• Initial purchase will be funded personally to shield the Lab from risk.
• If the plan fails, personal funds will absorb the loss, and printers will be repurposed to recoup costs.
• Only reimbursement for actual lab benefit (≤ $1,100) will be requested.
Benefits:
• Acquire up to 6 next-generation printers for less than the cost of two semi-custom printers from 5 years ago.
• Faster, more reliable, less fiddly printing experience for members.
• Stronger fleet strategy: all FDM printers will be standardized for easier maintenance and parts-swapping.
• Direct community benefit through printer giveaways.
Now on to my long winded proposal!
The proposal is to fund qty 3 3D printers not exceeding $1100 total (for both printers and needed upgrades/modifications/replacement parts). 5 Years ago I proposed and built a pair of Ender 5 3D printers as an experiment to see if they could hold muster to one refurbished Ultimaker 3 printer (Which the cost to us as a nonprofit would have been around $2,000 or $400 more than the proposal for both printers asked for). I consider the experiment a success, however the costs with modernizing these printers has greatly exceeded not only their value, but also has exceeded what a much more capable printer would cost us. Technology moves fast and as much as I love those printers and have sentimental value towards them, it's time to retire them and put something easier, faster, better, and stronger in their place.
Our community would really benefit from 3D printers that are easier to use, don’t require as much set up or fussing around with, and also print much faster.
The premise is that all of our FDM printers should be identical in case one needs to be robbed for parts to help ensure another one is always operational.
The plan we have as a station to be able to afford a new fleet of 3D printers is to sell off as much of our current fleet as is possible to make up for the funds. We would like to keep the Ender Dragon (Ender 5 Plus) in use as it is able to handle bigger build volumes and is new/advanced enough to be a part of our fleet. We also wish to give back to the community by doing a give-a-way of some of the older but still workable/serviceable (but not financially viable to sell off) printers to people in our 3D printing night group who want their own printer but might not be able to afford one. Such a printer would be given away as is and without warranty, however we will still obviously gladly assist them in the same capacity as any other person bringing in their own personal printer! Specifics of the proposed 3D printer give-a-way and/or its entry requirements and execution is out of scope of this proposal and should be discussed separately, however we wished to express the intention to do so as a part of this proposal for machines that function yet are not viable to sell or part out, and an awesome way to give back to our community!
This proposal is limited to the Elegoo Centauri Carbon FDM Printer.
I have the rare opportunity to acquire returned printers from the Elegoo warehouse/outlet at a steep discount. Each pair of printers will cost around $200-$250 and Elegoo will warranty it just long enough for my friend who happens to be local to that place to build one working printer out of 2 returned ones. If we are missing any specific parts on both units or parts are bad on both units enough parts will be furnished to make the proper repairs to one of the units. My friend will make those repairs and modifications due to the time restraints involved as soon as he obtains the printers, otherwise I would bring them back to HSL for us to work on. Worst case scenario we get 3 printers and 3 carcases, best case scenario perhaps with a little more than the initial investment of the printers themselves and paying for some spare parts (included in my price estimate of not more than $1,100) we get 6 working machines. We won't be sad either way because we'll either have parts for days or we will have fully functional swappable backup units.
We as of this proposal listing have started to procure and repair the printers.
I will be making a trip to Hackaday Supercon in late October to be a presenter, so my plan is to detour to my friend’s place and pick the printers up before going home thus saving us a substantial amount of shipping compared to if we ordered these online. (Since I am getting the Supercon ticket for free and a part of my Hotel room comped, this means I have some extra funding I would not have had otherwise, which is why I am able to do this for the lab!)
These printers offer an amazing amount of quality for their price and have a Z axis with 3 leadscrews for leveling unlike the Ender 5 with its cantilever single screw design. They are also enclosed and are a true corexy design unlike the Ender 5 printers we built before. In theory and on paper they should be much more stable, able to print better with specialty filaments (higher temp and more abrasive materials), and should complete jobs much faster than our older generation machines.
They are currently $300 from here brand spanking new for reference (not including shipping or taxes):
https://us.elegoo.com/products/centauri-carbon
They will all likely need updated/not wrecked build plates, so that is a part of the cost of the proposal.
Due to how unconventional this proposal is, and the fact the design of this printer is so new (they just started shipping them late February of this year (2025)) I will be initially funding the printers with my personal money in case this deal falls through or there are problems with the machines we are not expecting. I cannot have the Lab be financially responsible if a decision I make in my member capacity backfires, so I will take the hit if this idea does not work as planned. Furthermore if this proposal should fail I have a plan on what to do with the printers to recoup my investment. If we end up spending less money than the proposal’s $1,100 total, we will adjust accordingly and only ask that amount of compensation.
Waiting for things to line up and for the newer models of printers to start showing up in this form is 5 months in the making, and I did not want to put any sort of proposal up to vote on before I knew the machines were real and could make some guarantees on being able to deliver on the promise while also shielding the lab from any financial issues that could cause problems for a proposal of this magnitude. The planets have aligned in our favor and we now are looking at getting anywhere from 3-6 working current gen 3d printers for less than the cost of building 2 semi-custom units 5 years ago. These have a bigger buildplate X and Y than those older printers, print faster, have an enclosure built in with a chamber fan, and have all of the features to make printing less fiddly! What a wild time to be alive!
Chris McLaughlin
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mib....@gmail.com
Cprossu
Also I wish everyone to know I do not wish to delve into HSL's operating funds to make this happen, so the goal is to take the financial burden of these personally until it is feasible to get that money back via sales of our old 3d printers, monetary donations to the 3D printing station, or otherwise to recoup those funds. I am hoping we come way below the $1100 I am proposing, but since I go by Murphy's law, that is my worst case scenario number. We will know if we got our 3 printers in under a week, we already have 2 working as of this post. I intend not to take a dime personally until the printers are in situ and functional.
I welcome everyone's opinions, concerns, and if you need anything clarified or wish to assist please post here publicly or hit me up in slack!
Brett Neese
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Rick Blake
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