Balco 3D Printer – From Aldi for £299 All In

Balco 3D Printer – From ALDI for £299 All In

So after reading about a month ago that ALDI was going to be selling a 3d printer in the UK I was keen to find out more, after all I need a Christmas gift and I have been really good this year :P. I set a reminder so that could get a chance to pre-order on their website and before I knew it I had pre-order the printer and then had to wait 3 weeks. Before this I has managed to find out some more info on the printer, from what I found on-line is it is very similar (I think re branded) to the Wanhao i3Plus Duplicator which is currently selling on Amazon for £339.99. The reviews of the Wanhao i3Plus Duplicator unit were good and the fact it is about £40 cheaper makes it very promising. I also read online that Balco had sold a until like this (I think a slightly older version with external power supply) in Australia which was an instant hit because if its low price and quality that you would find on higher priced units AND it sold in a super market 😀
Check out the Images below…
So The Balco Features Are…
  • Print Technology: Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF)
  • Build volume – 200 x 200 x 180mm
  • Layer resolution: 0.1-0.4mm
  • Positioning accuracy – X 0.012mm, Y 0.012mm, Z 0.004mm
  • Single 0.4mm extruder
  • Print Speed – 10-70mm/s
  • Travel Speed – 10-70mm/s
  • Supported Print Materials: PLA, ABS, PVA, HIPS, PLA Wood, PLA Flex, Conductive
  • Ambient Operating Temperature: 15°C – 30°C
  • Operational Extruder Temperature: 170°C – 260°C
  • Operational Print Bed Temperature: 30°C – 110°C
  • Slicer Software: Cura
  • Cura Input Formats: STL, OBJ, DAE, AMF
  • Cura Output Format: GCODE
  • Connectivity: SD Card (Expert users only)
  • Input Rating: 100-240V AC, 50/60Hz, 3.5A, 350W
  • Minimal assembly and setup
  • Intuitive touchscreen controls and step by step wizards to guide you through setup
  • Sturdy steel frame prevents wobbling
  • Heated bed and extruder work in unison to ensure your prints are as clean and sharp as possible
  • New Levelling Wizard steps you through levelling the bed
  • Fully enclosed power supply built into the base
  • Large build area to print models up to 20 x 20 x 18cm
  • Print directly from SD cards
  • Works with common 3D model files

The printer arrived on my door step the 1st day of starting my new job 🙁 And so the best I could do was make sure it was in good condition from transit and wait for the weekend to arrive so I could have a play, I must be getting old. Many months ago I was seriously looking at 3d printer kits and had my heart set on a Delta style printer, but this was a kit from china which would need a lots of time to build, more to get working and was metal/plastic. This printer promises a simpler build, with all mental frame, concealed power supply, UK support and no hidden charges……SOLD! Well in actual fact the printer sold out in no time at all which make me feel worse having kept it in the box this long

I’ve created a short unboxing video which I will post soon and will follow up with a build post and a final thoughts post.

Stay tuned

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