Home 3D printing goes on a budget with the New Matter MOD-t

[Shawn Knight]

There’s a new 3D printer vying for your support on Indiegogo and while it doesn’t push the bounds of what is currently available in terms of technology or specifications, it could have a tremendous impact on the market based on price point alone.

Built in partnership with Frog Design, the MOD-t will be available in black or white and uses a 2-axis motion system that simultaneously moves and supports the build plate with very few components. This means that it prints more consistently and makes the printer much cheaper to build.

The machine will use fused filament fabrication and non-proprietary PLA filament to print at a minimum layer height of 0.02mm. It’ll be capable of printing objects up to 6 inches by 4 inches by 5 inches and will use Wi-Fi connectivity.

The MOD-t is expected to ship in about a year to early backers. You’ll need to donate at least $199 to get in on the action (sorry, the $149 early bird special is all gone) but even still, that’s much cheaper than some other 3D printers already on the market. Unfortunately, shipping isn’t included in this price so you’ll need to spring an extra $40 to cover transit.

With a sub-$200 price point, it is one of the first truly affordable devices of its kind that could help take home 3D printing mainstream. A similar offering from Makibox and the build-your-own RepRap also fit into the budget category.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/56913-home-3d-printing-goes-on-a-budget-with-the-new-matter-mod-t.html

 

[Jad Chaar]

The library idea isnt that new. MakerBot Thingiverse is very similar to this concept. This idea seems a lot more open and less commercial though. The printer for <$200 sounds interesting also.

 

[Guest]

With 3D printing becoming affordable, someone should be working on making 3D scanning devices affordable too. That would really push 3D printing into more homes.

 

[tonylukac]

The library I used to work at has a 3D printer for public use. I'll tell you about it when I use it, if you want to know.

 

[cliffordcooley]

The library I used to work at has a 3D printer for public use. I'll tell you about it when I use it, if you want to know.

Perhaps a new thread and then posting a link here. I wouldn't mind reading about your experience with them.

 

[Emexrulsier]

Whats the strength of the finished product with 3d printers. Say I was a skrew short for a project or a bolt and these were normally made from iron or steel. Could I print a bold and it would more then suffice or would it just crack?

 

[ET3D]

It's nice to see a low cost 3D printer that doesn't look like **** and means to be consistent. $250 is a decent price, and if this turns out well I might buy one.

As for the news item, I dislike that publications put the crowdfunding price as the price ("$199 printer"). I've seen that before, and while it's fine to say that you can get it for now for this price, it's much better IMO to mention what the retail price will be.

 

[wastedkill]

Ohh I would get one but that $40 transit would be a lot more due to import duty, if I had a 3D printer I would print my own PC Case and an iron man suit! Then I would print myself a gf because I have no life

 

[Guest]

I don't even use a regular printer! no need.

 

[cliffordcooley]

I don't even use a regular printer! no need.

Are you claiming there is no use for 3D printers, because you haven't been using a paper printer?

 

[avioza]

I would like a 3D printer for printing tabletop miniatures. I would need to teach myself some 3d modeling though...

Is .02mm small enough layers for fine detail I wonder? I know makerbots replicator mini does 100 micron layers.

 

[Technochicken]

Off by an order of magnitude in minimum layer thickness. It's .2mm, not .02mm.

 

[cliffordcooley]

The machine will use fused filament fabrication and non-proprietary PLA filament to print at a minimum layer height of 0.02mm.

Off by an order of magnitude in minimum layer thickness. It's .2mm, not .02mm.

Where are you reading 0.2mm?

Edit:
OK I found it in the faqs.

What is the resolution quality of the MOD-t?
The resolution is determined by both layer thickness and nozzle diameter. In the horizontal plane, the nozzle diameter (0.4 mm) limits the resolution to approximately 0.5 mm. In the vertical axis, the minimum supported layer thickness is 0.2 mm.