I’m thinking about buying a small 3D printer for the odd project once in a while.
Problem is, I will not use it very often and I don’t have much desk space for it to sit around.
Ideally (and I know this is utopia), I would like a device that I can pull out of a closet, fasten four screws, plug it in and be ready to go.
Is there something even remotely like that available? Every review I’ve seen just seems to assume that printers are basically static.
I own an Ender 3 V2 that I use around 10 times a year. It is one of the less sophisticated printers and still it does not require that much maintenance. You have to remove the dust, level the bed and sometimes clean or exchange the nozzle. More sophisticated printers can also do some stuff automatically (e.g. the bed leveling part).
However, the initial assembly and fine tuning took some time (approx. 1-2 hours), so I wouldn’t recommend to dis- and reassemble it all the time. If you don’t have that much space, maybe check for a small printer.
When I did my research 2 years ago the Prusa Mini was quite popular for small printer. But if you want to print big parts a lot, it might be a bit annoying as you always have to cut them into smaller chunks, print separate and finally glue them together.
