SainSmart x Creality Ender-3 3D Printer

Love this printer! I have (2) of them… This is a great price! If you are looking for non-browser based CAD, BricsCAD Shape is free and can output to STL… or download the full version free for 30 days…

BricsCAD free trial here: Log in to Bricsys Account

For tons of free items, go to: Thingiverse.com

This does take some setup, but once done, has some great output! Use PLA only, as ABS requires more heat and controlled environment. Also, I would recommend the SainSmart Pro PLA… great stuff!

@RebelTaz, you need to read @schorert’s whole post and less of your own press. In my completely useless opinion. :smirk:

@bowlingb, thanks for the info on Lithophanes - I had not heard of that and I am putting one together now!

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I am an elementary school CompSci teacher and plan to have a coding and 3D printing club in the fall. I ordered one of these and the first project the kids will have when the club starts in October is to assemble it. No better way for them to learn. The week before club starts, I’ll post the links to some assembly videos on YouTube for them to watch so they don’t come in totally clueless.

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??

Yeah… I missed the “in for one” part. Intent and tone are impossible to determine based on text alone and since I didn’t notice those three little words set apart from the rest of the text, I replied to what I saw in a respectful manner with what was meant to be a helpful reply. M’eh… Sue me.

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I wish this stuff was safe for pet parrots. My parrot could totally use body armor. Good deal Woot! I am impressed!

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Avoid ABS & HIPS, as they both release styrene when heated. To my understanding, this could be very dangerous to any bird.
Also avoid anything that requires printing over ~240C (to be safe) as the PTFE bowden tube goes all the way to the nozzle in this model (stock) see my other post for an upgrade to make it safer.

PLA (the most common and easiest to print filament these days) is supposed to be very low in VoCs and nothing is lower than PETG when it comes to micro/nano-particulates. I would avoid anything more exotic than those two (eg: nylons, polycarbonate, etc) with a bird around.
Don’t take my word for it, Google 3D printing filament VoC particulate comparisons, there are quite a few studies out there on the topic.

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To anyone still on the fence: I got one of these from woot a few months back and I love it! This is not my first printer either. This is a phenomenal deal, best I’ve seen.

The SainSmart version’s origin is explained in this reddit post (not mine, just a very handy source of information):
https://www.reddit.com/r/ender3/comments/beefxu/what_i_learned_from_sainsmart_about_ender_3_brands/
This has a removable bed, but it’s not magnetic. While this may sound like a disadvantage, it means you don’t have to worry about weakening the magnetic sheet by overheating it (some print materials require more heat than the magnet can take, permanently demagnetizing it).
Note that if you want to print any filaments requiring over ~245C, you should upgrade the heatbreak to an “all metal” one, as the PTFE (teflon) bowden tube (filament guide) goes all the way to the nozzle in the stock hot-end (PTFE releases dangerous gasses when overheated). An example is TH3D’s “Tough Titanium Heatbreak”… I bought a pack, but have not yet installed one as I’m still using only PLA & PETG with melt points around 205C max.

Many upgrades can be printed with models available for free on sites like thingiverse. The ender3 subreddit is very helpful… check out the wiki and new users guide on that page for a wealth of information.

If you’re interested in CAD, among those listed above and in the wiki, my favorite is FreeCAD (cross-platform, runs on Linux, MacOS, and even Windows).
One of the great parts about this printer is that Creality has open-sourced the physical design. You can download the 3D models of the printer’s parts, and even full assembly models (STEP, IGES, etc.) of the entire printer on their github page! This is super handy for creating modifications and customizations for the printer.

Note that this is not a tinker-free machine, but it is dramatically more reliable than my Monoprice Mini V2.

@beebles, this is a really cool plan!!! My daughter-in-law is a 6th grade school teacher and would love that program.
We have an excellent library system in our area, and one of the newer branches has a Maker Lab with a couple of printers, but the interest has fallen off sharply since they initially were put into service. I think that so many people view 3D printing as having too a steep learning curve. I wish I could afford to plant myself there all day to help people get past that initial apprehension and take home some cool items. It’s still a geek-level activity, but so is using MS Excel for the very first time.
Good luck and have fun!

@glabifrons, how practical is it to print an entire Ender 3? My wife said “You already have a 3D printer” when I told her how awesome this deal was, so I won’t be hitting that Buy Now (crap, I mean I Want One - wrong site) button (maybe it will sell out to save me from myself). My printer can only print stuff up to 4.7", and only in PLA. Thanks.

Unfortunately (for the sake of printing one), most of the Ender 3 is actually metal. The parts where you see the wheels attach are aluminum plate, and the main frame is aluminum extrusion. This is great for stability and rigidity (great for 3D printers), but makes reproducing one difficult (at least with another 3D printer).

4.7", sounds like you’ve got the Monoprice Mini. :slight_smile: (me too)
Comparison between the two:

  • The Ender 3 is much easier to mod/upgrade (due to the availability of the models).
  • The Ender 3 is significantly faster (slowest speeds I print PLA on my Ender 3 is the same as the fastest my Mini can handle)
  • The Ender 3 has dramatically larger print volume (220x220x250mm vs 120mm^3).
  • The Ender 3 uses common 2040 (20mm x 40mm) and 4040 V-slot extrusions, so adding to it (outside of normal mods you’d print) is easy.
  • Unfortunately, the Ender 3 is dramatically louder than the Monoprice Mini, at least in stock form. There are many things you can do to quiet it down. The fans are horrible.
  • The Ender 3 uses a board with open-source firmware which is easy to upgrade.

That last one is important, as both printers do not have thermal-runaway protection from the factory. There’s no way to fix this on the Mini, but it’s easy on the Ender 3 with a reflash. You can even use an alternate firmware without switching boards (I’m experimenting with Klipper and loving it!).

As far as only printing in PLA… check out the specs on different brands of PETG and just avoid those that have temperature requirements hotter than what your current hot-end is (safely) capable of. I print PETG all the time at 205C-215C. I have one brand that likes 220C, but I’ve not needed to go hotter (except on temperature towers, when testing the filaments). I typically use 60C bed temperature for both printers for PETG. I printed loads of PETG in my mini before buying the Ender 3.

Edit: Also, gathering the frame bits, electronics, wheels, leadscrew, steppers, power supply, etc. may be difficult for this price unless you’re very patient. Plus, you’d have to cut, mill, drill, and tap aluminum extrusions and plates to attempt to reproduce it.

Edit2: Worst case, Woot seems to have these about every couple months… so you should have time to talk her into it. :slight_smile:

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Just after I knock woot for not having any deals since the mothership took over they break this out. Well every time I’ve seen any 3D printer deal on other slick sites or seen talk about 3D printers the Ender-3 is mentioned as the best in class. At this price I can’t much pass it up. I’ve held firm that I have no idea what I’d ever use a 3D printer for, but I guess all of my friends will get penis ornaments for christmas and my kids can make some stuff too. Looking forward to getting this and now I need to go find all of the recommended upgrades to get…

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Sold out?? No! I wanted one so bad but couldn’t get to it quick enough. Do you have any more lying around, Woot??

Guess elementary has changed in the 45ish years since I’ve been there.

I missed this deal. What’s the likelihood that we’ll see this deal again?

The odds are looking good. I can’t confirm when/if we’ll sell it again, however, we’ve sold it several times in the last three months.

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The “In the box” specs don’t mention filament? Does this come with some sample filament?

Any recommendations for filament? Brands?

It comes with a ridiculous sample of white filament… not even enough to print the on-board file. Some people have managed to print the whole thing, but most people end up with half a dog.

So yeah, buy some filament on Amazon. Hatchbox is best.

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Please please pleeeeeeeease do this deal again!! If you do, is there a way I can get notified? I check Woot most days but sometimes I miss it. Unfortunately in this case I missed it until they were sold out :frowning:

You can subscribe to our Daily Digest email and we’ll send you an email that includes all the new things that we are selling each day. Just go to your Woot Account settings and click on “Email Subscriptions & Notifications” to subscribe!

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