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New to the 3d printing. Intro & basic questions. Please help

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    New to the 3d printing. Intro & basic questions. Please help

    My name is John and I am a disabled veteran. I want to start an in-home 3d printing business. I want to focus on very high quality and detailed 54mm & 70mm American Civil War toy soldiers, buildings, livestock, etc… Museum quality miniatures.

    I would like to know what printer might be best, what filament to use, and so on.

    I plan top take a few 3d classes at the community college too. CAD design, 3d modelling & rendering, etc… But is there a 3d printing specific class or program I should focus on?

    Should I register as a business, or just sell on ebay?

    How many printers should I buy?

    Lastly, what kind of profit margin or percentage do you see in your business? If it costs me $5 to make each mini, that seems high, I’d need/want to sell them for $12-15 each for example…

    Any info you can give for someone just starting out?

    Thanks,
    John

    #2
    Hi John, I just pinged you a PM. I assumed you were in the UK, but no matter... USA is good, I can assist your project easily via internet, and maybe we can skype to assist your new project. contacts supplied, looking fwd to hearing from you Sir. Regards Grant B

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      #3
      Hi John, nice to hear! For CAD, try Fusion 360 from Autodesk. There are plenty of courses online, has lots of output formats and a user friendly interface.
      Modelling material; stick to PLA. It is less prone to deform (warp) and has lots of different material mixes, like woods, ceramics and metals. Plus it is cheaper in use.
      High detail, but limited to material choice would be DLP or SLA 3D printers. These are more expensive to use, but the level of detail is impossible to achieve on FDM systems (the 'mainstream' 3D printers).
      As for finances... small scale; stick to ebay and local shops and businesses.
      Large scale: register a business. Not just for taxes but also for different advantages businesses get ( I do not know how this works for U.S.A., but in the Netherlands and Germany it is more profitable to operate as a business).

      If you have any questions about design, printers or anything, let me know!

      regards,
      AMR Europe

      Comment


        #4
        Hi John,
        I can suggest you a great place to buy the highest-quality 3D printers at the cheapest prices. Visit ‘3D Printers Bay’ and check out the ratings and prices of the 3D printer.
        If you are just a beginner, you can get home-use 3D printers too. However, for commercial uses, there are lots of commercial 3D printers. Have a look at the prices and buy them according to your budget.
        Buy Cheap & Best DIY 3D Printer Kit at Discounted Price now. We have a great collection of 3D printers available for sale. Check our small & large 3D printers, Check prices, Vendors & Reviews.

        Comment


          #5
          Hi John,

          For your purposes you might want to research laser 3D printing polymerised resin. Getting the resolution for fine models by melting plastic could be the Achilles heel of your business.

          The good news is it doesn't affect your choice of design software as far as I know.

          Comment


            #6
            Hey!
            am new and haven't actually printed anything yet but if you want to use FFF (Fused Filament Fabrication)
            i have heard great things about the Prusa i3 either mk2s or mk3.
            also they are in the process of developing an sla printer (https://www.prusa3d.com/original-prusa-sl1/) which will be available soon
            and has amazing quality.
            Resins are much more expensive than filament but quality is way better and only 6 seconds per layer!!!

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