I see a Creality Ender 3 V3 (not SE or KE) for $130 refurbished, and also a Creality CR-10 SE for $103 refurbished on ebay. Are either or these a good choice to get into the hobby, or am I making a mistake? Should I rather buy a Bambu? My budget is around $100-$200 max. Please advise.
It depends on the type of person you are. Those machines you reference are in a class of machine where you are likely to have to put a lot of work into them to get them running reliably and probably more money than if you just bought a better printer from the get go. They are machines to recommend people who want the 3D Printer to be their hobby rather than designing and printing stuff.
If that doesn’t sound like you, just buy a used Bambu or Prusa even if you need to delay the purchase to save up longer.
Thanks for the advice. I do know that I am sort of the kind who picks the flavor of the month to get obsessed over, then throw it away for the next shiny thing, so I am a bit of both of your usecases.
If that’s the case I’d encourage you to just research everything and then park it for a while. If you’re still interested down the track then pull the trigger. There’s a fair bit to learn re: printer setup, slicing, CAD (if that’s your thing). Yes you can plug and play some things, but if your interest wanes it’s likely going to become an expensive paper weight.
Thank you, I think I’ll play with my library printer for a while and figure out if I can make good use of it if I purchase one for myself.
That’s a great idea!
I got an Ender 3 V3 KE. I am long past obsessing with 3D printing but it bleeds into my other hobbies or fixing things around the house.
“I need a plastic thing that is this-this-and-this dimensions…” I model it in FreeCAD, do a few test prints, adjust my design and re-print until satisfied.
A 3D printer became a tool that I use a couple of times per month.