3D printers have been used to build excellent object such building designs, music instruments and fossil designs. AS professional 3D printing advances, it comes with a few limitations. You have to consider going through the limitations before thinking of buying a 3D printer. These may include:
- The size and cost
- Maintenance
- Availability of material and design problems
How is the size and cost of a 3D Printer?
IF you want to buy a 3D printer, either a commercial 3D printer of any other, you need to consider both the price and size. With improving technologies, prices of electronics including printers are reducing. It is good for you to buy a 3D printer if you want to come up with custom-made action figures and start printing and selling. On the other side, it will be a disadvantage if you are just purchasing it and you are not going to use it regularly. Apart from buying a 3D printer, you will need to also buy a filament in which you will use when creating objects. You will also need a pair of nutcrackers and a plastic vase. With this, you can understand that you will need a bit more money than you had planned for the 3D printer.
When it comes to the size, some 3D printers print objects that are very small. But for someone who needs to create something big, they will need a bigger machine and therefore a higher cost.
How is the maintenance of a 3D Printer?
With the advancement in technology, 3D printers are improving each and every day. This means that you may buy a 3D printer today and in some time it will be outdated. A 3D printer has rods that have to be oiled. The firmware and software also have to be updated regularly and the plastruder needs to be cleaned. Industrial 3D printers that print plastic may get clogged. The element used for heating in the extruder may also self-destruct. An advantage of buying a 3D Printer is that when a part breaks, you can print a repair but this is never guaranteed.
Are there problems when it comes to designing?
You always need to print an object that supports the weight of the 3D printer. A lot of 3D printers including commercial 3D printers cannot offer the level of detail that one needs. Very few 3D printers can print in different colors. 3D printing of the designs will need a lot of time. Most of the 3D printers use plastic filament when creating objects. Using metal as a printing material has been very common though it needs only high-performance printers to use them. 3D printers which are able to print complex pieces of plastic such as circuit board have not yet been developed. For now you can just look on the web on how to use printers that are able to extrude ice cream or chocolate. In the coming future, it will be possible to replace a broken ceramic mug within some few minutes.
