I would buy the biggest that the budget will allow to eliminate buying the one in the middle. You have come to use 3D and now you want to take the next step. I would never tell someone to spend $1,300 as a first printer just to see if it's for them. I have a friend that bought 3 different ones and still gave up learning. Sounds like you're past that point. Good luck.

Rod,

Here is one listed on Amazon for 389.00...  it's the Kelant S400s which is supposed to supersede the S400.  There are 24 questions by users, 61 reviews and it gets 3.4 out of 5 stars and there are free returns (until Jan 31, 2021). Double check the return policy to make sure it is handled directly by/through Amazon... if yes, it's probably worth a trigger pull.

https://www.amazon.com/KELANT-...606380424&sr=8-3

dennis

Lots of negative reviews about poor quality of the printer, I think I'd consider spending a bit more money for a better model.  I normally discard one or two bad reviews, but a lot of bad reviews start to get my attention.

Elegoo will be releasing their Saturn printer.  It is a larger version of the Mars 2 Pro Mono.

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B0...ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

It keeps the same features as the Mars but uses a 4K screen which gives it a build area of 7.55" W by 4.72" D x 7.87" H.  The expected price is over $500 which is what they sold the early buy units at.  Lost of reviews on YouTube.  I think Anycubic Photon has a similar unit fro $900.

If you want a 11+" build area then the Formlabs 3L is the only choice but it is $10K.

Jan

The Saturn sure looks like a winner to me. I am going to buy one as soon as it is readily available.

Beyond the larger build plate, is is something like 4x faster, due to the use of a monochrome LED panel. The $500 price is list, so I suspect it will be frequently discounted the same way the Mars is. Elegoo seems like a class act--I plan to stick with them, at least for the next round.

Anycubic Photon Mono X  Build Volume: 192mm(L) *120mm(W)  *245mm(H）

$699 on eBay with free shipping.

Also, direct from Anycubic    https://www.anycubic.com/colle...mono-x-resin-printer

FWIW, I think I'd vastly prefer to deal through a place like Amazon that has very generous return policies rather than eBay.  Once you get an item, eBay pretty much washes their hands of their involvement, if it's a major disappointment, you own it.

@gunrunnerjohn posted:

FWIW, I think I'd vastly prefer to deal through a place like Amazon that has very generous return policies rather than eBay.  Once you get an item, eBay pretty much washes their hands of their involvement, if it's a major disappointment, you own it.

Yup,  I'm with you on that.  Fortunately, you can get them from Anycubic for the same 699. price... although I'm not sure about the free shipping.

Thanks for all the  input; some good suggestions here.

I found a newer Kelant unit on the web, the S500. It has the same size build plate 192 x 120 mm as the S400, but more UV wattage and is apparently faster; up to 60mm/hr. Another nice thing is the Kelant uses the same slicer software as the Elegoo; chitubox. So there would be no need to get used to another slicer package. This is a plus for transitioning Elegoo users.

I see the Anycubic Photon Mono X (mentioned by Dennis) also has 192 x 120 mm plate size, and looks pretty comparable to the Kelant in most features. What looks better is the cover lifts completely off (same as the Elegoo) instead of a door with hinges like the Kelant, so you get full access to the inner workings when you want. And a better vapor seal most likely. Also one common complaint about the Kelant is that the resin vat is much bigger than it needs to be. Not so with the Anycubic; it looks just about right for the size of the build plate, at least from the pictures. Price is around $700.

Another common complaint about the Kelant I read is that the top of the build plate is flat, and resin tends to pool on it. I think this is just a function of inexperienced users adding too much resin. There is no need for anything more than about 1/8" to 3/16" of resin in the vat at any time, since printing occurs right at the surface of the FEP film on the bottom of the vat. Big depth of resin adds nothing to the process. With a bigger print project you may need to add some resin to the vat partway though printing for sure, but this is no big deal and can be done on the fly. Same would apply to the Anycubic as it also uses a flat build plate.

Elegoo printers all use a build plate with top surfaces that are sloped away from the center mount, so it tends to self drain instead of pool resin on top. Also the Elegoo includes a handy plate draining attachment that sets the plate at a 45 degree angle after printing. This greatly assists easy draining of resin before alcohol washing. It doesn't look like either the Kelant or the Anycubic have a similar gadget.

So for my money right now I would lean towards the Anycubic Photon Mono X in the large build plate class. Same MSRP as the Kelant, but a couple of nicer features. It's too bad Elegoo don't yet offer a large build plate model. Maybe something is in the works, but I have not seen it yet.

Rod

@Rod Stewart posted:

It's too bad Elegoo don't yet offer a large build plate model. Maybe something is in the works, but I have not seen it yet.

Rod

Not sure what you mean here. Bigger than the Saturn?

They shipped the first batch of Saturns several months ago. Shouldn't be much longer until they are readily available. More than "in the works".

All things being equal... the 22+% gain in height would probably push me to the Photon...

Build Volumes

@Avanti posted:

Not sure what you mean here. Bigger than the Saturn?

They shipped the first batch of Saturns several months ago. Shouldn't be much longer until they are readily available. More than "in the works".

Good point Pete. The Saturn does sound pretty good. Maybe the next batch will have the Z dimension upped to match that of the Anycubic's 245 mm? I guess we will know soon enough.

Rod

I sent Elegoo an email to ask about Saturn availability. The response was that they should be back in stock at Amazon by mid to late December. So they may well be on the high seas as of now.

Rod

For what it's worth, there are three guys I watch on Youtube as I am also considering a second printer. 3DPrintingNerd, MakersMuse, and TeachingTech. There's a lot of know how between the three of them and I don't get bored watching them usually.

On that note, if resin works for you, I would stick with it. My FDM doesn't care for some details and supports can often leave ugly artifacts behind. I just didn't want to deal with resin printers when I was getting started. Maybe it's easier than I think but FDM was better suited to me at the time. I've learned that sometimes I have to print items in sub-assembly pieces and then use super glue to get the final product.

Let us know what you get! I'm interested in a resin printer as my second printer for highly detailed parts.