jimdrew

My company develops flight control systems for UAVs and other "things", so I have a vast knowledge of what servos are available and their accuracy. We are starting to move more towards stepper motors with index sensors (like linear actuators) for these applications because they are more accurate and can provide faster response times over the high-end servos that we have used in the past.

Most servos do not have 360 degree rotational capabilities, and their positioning accuracy is nowhere near what a stepper motor can provide.

There are a few dozen companies that sell these exact same parts, linking to the open source project. Should all of these companies stop selling parts just because one company has bundled all of the parts together? Is that one company solely responsible for all of the open-source development of the machines that existed prior to the Ultimaker, where is technology evolved from? When you make something open-source, you are knowingly giving anyone access to your technology, and at least in the U.S., that is considered public domain and open for free use. If a company wants to be compensated for all of 'their' hard work, then they should not make the information freely available to the public. The 'spirit' of open source is to provide a means where anyone and everyone can build it, not to limit it to certain individuals or one company. What is your opinion about the Stratasys and other printers where patents clearly exist that the Ultimaker is violating (at least in the U.S.)?? An open source project would be difficult to go after since afterall, it is a non-profit venture. A for-profit venture would clearly put the owners of the patent infringing device at risk for legal action. The only action that should take place with these "knock off" companies is changing the name to something that does not imply "Ultimaker". I have seen a few that do just that, saying that their machine is "reprag" compatible, with no mention of the Ultimaker name at all - even though the box is 100% identical (minus the robot and Ultimaker logo).

This company isn't using Fedex, they use EMS to the United States. Tracking info has been provided. The unit should arrive here on 25th.

This link is broken. Is there a current link?

It seems that since the Ultimaker is all open source that we (the people) are just needing to locate all of the misc. parts. Clearly, these parts cost far less than $1400, and nothing is hard to find. This Chinese source just made it easier for us by putting together a complete kit of the required pieces (just like what Ultimaker has done), but with no lead time. If the name is trademarked, then they should at very least not use it and possibly come up with their own wood design. I have lasered my own wood kit which I have changed (cosmetically) from the Ultimaker design and will use that instead. I added mounts for LED lighting and some other small changes. I will report back when I get the kit with its contents.

I took the plung, but only because it is fully backed by Paypal's guaranteed refund within 45 days. I got an email already from the company asking how I wanted the customs handled and i was told the kit will ship on Monday (China time) via EMS. I have ordered thousands of dollars worth of stuff from China via eBay with zero issues. Maybe this will be the first, perhaps not. i will let everyone know.

I just saw these: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ultimaker-3D-pr ... 2319f6530d Feedback is positive so far, and there is a 7 day return policy, you can pay via Paypal, etc. so it seems pretty safe. I can't imagine them screwing up things that you can actually buy and get for free. Any thoughts?