Hi,
I am a newbie regarding 3D printing, but have about 10 years 3D design experience in mechanical engineering so I am keen to purchase a 3D printer for my company but I need some assistance on choosing the right machine for the job.
We need to make jigs and fixtures that are used by the workshop guys when assembling our products.
They don't need to be super tough so I think PLA should be fine, but I need the printer to be reliable and have a good surface finish.
I have been looking at the Ultimaker 2 Extended (build height might be useful in the future) from these guys because they also do training and someone referred us to them: http://www.desktop3dprinter.com/3d-printers/ultimaker-2-extended.html
However, I have also seen parts with a good surface finish on the UP Box which is supposed to be great at ABS - http://www.desktop3dprinter.com/3d-printers/up-box.html
Finally there is the MakerBot 5th Gen which an ex-colleague has used and absolutely loves: http://www.desktop3dprinter.com/3d-printers/makerbot-replicator-5th-generation.html
I know this is the Ultimaker forum so people will no doubt be biased towards the Ultimaker 2, but I wondered what people's real world experiences were and if anyone has used the others to compare.
There are loads of stats available from everywhere which can caused a bit of snow blindness, but some sound advice would help us decide I think.
Cheers!