Reddit reviews [New Arrival] HICTOP Filament Monitor Desktop 3D Printer Kits Reprap Prusa I3 MK8 DIY Self-Assembly Printing Size 10.6" x 8.3" x 7.0"

Looks identical to a Hictop acrylic. 200x270mm build plate.

Edit: earlier version of this model.

I was in the same position around three months ago.... Previous to purchasing my first 3d printer, I was exposed to the world of 3D printing through my school's 3D printing lab. Due to my exposure to higher end printers ($3,500 +), previous to buying my own cheapish 3D printer, I was able to have a sense as to what a good, ok, and bad print looks and feels like. After doing some reserch on some higher and lower end 3d printer kits, I quickly learned that when it comes to purchasing a 3D printer, you can only buy a printer with 2 out of these three qualities: economical, large build volume, high quality. I decided that I wanted a printer with a largish 3d printing volume that was on the economical side (less than $450). When I made this decision I understood that I since I was getting an economical 3D printer with a largish build plate I was sacrificing not having a quality 3D printer.
I ended up purchasing a Prusa clone; the "Hictop Prusa i3" to be exact. Price: $319. https://www.amazon.com/Arrival-HICTOP-Filament-Self-assembly-Printing/dp/B01ERDWSFU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1483904107&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=hictop+prusa+i3&psc=1

After buying the printer, I told myself that worst case scenario I'd easily be able to get rid of it (and make a small profit) by selling it on "Craigslist" or "Let Go" for a slightly higher price than what I bought it for since I would've sold the printer pre-assembled. (The assembly process is actually not that hard at all... Took me less than 5 hours)
After the printer kit arrived, I spent a few hours a day over a weekend building it. After two days, and some youtube help, the printer was up and running near flawlessly. To my surprise, I was getting incredible prints on both PLA and ABS(the printer has a hot bed). After about a week of printing and tuning the printer (which is not hard at all), I was getting better prints than what my school's top printer was producing. All in all, I am now extremely satisfied with my purchase. I understand that I don't have the best 3D printer on the market, but I know that I have a printer that is worth a lot more than what I paid for it. (With some DIY upgrades like a printing enclosure you can step up the build quality even more.)
Looking back, the only thing I would have maybe done differently would have been spending like $30 more and buying the aluminum version. I doubt that the quality would be any better than the acrylic version I have, but it would've been easier and less scary to build/ carry around. (the acrylic frame can break if you way over tighten a part during the assembly process). Also, if you end up buying this printer, or another clone like it, I would strongly suggest buying it off a trusted website like Amazon. The seller of my printer was extremely responsive and sent me a few parts I thought were slightly damaged (but still totally still usable).

Looks like the HICTOP Prusa i3, just over $300. Prints plastic in 3D shapes. However, as with all 3D printers, it requires a lot of troubleshooting and calibrating.

Right-o, sorry about that. It's a Prusa I3 Mk8 I believe and I've been using 1.75mm PLA with it. I have the bed set at 60C, the extruder at 220C. I was having some problems with prints not sticking to the base before, but that bed temperature seems to work. The motors were also skipping and "stepping" the prints before, but I tightened up the belts which took care of that. The printer will shudder a bit when filling in skinny bits, but for the outside layer it seems to be perfectly smooth to me. The extruder has two fans attached to it, one with a heat sink above the nozzle where the feed motor is and another blowing air across the nozzle itself. I'll update if I think of any more information.

Oops, I just realized the text for my post didn't work. Basically, when printing one of the 4 faces (along the x axis) ends up rougher than the other 3. I'm not sure what would be causing it because the face directly opposite of it is nice and smooth like the two on the y-axis. I would think if it was a problem with belts, the motor, etc. that I would see the same effect on the opposite side as well. I've tried different speeds with it to mitigate the issue, but I end up with a similar pattern no matter the speed setting. I also saw it with a different filament (although also PLA) that came with the printer originally. Any help or suggestions you can provide would be awesome, thanks!


Printer:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01ERDWSFU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Filament:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ZBGDR1W/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I am using an Hictop i3 Style 3D Printer Exact Printer for those who are interested

I am printing with Amazon Basics PETG

The problem is that no matter what setting I use my print always fails around this spot.

My temperatures are 235c 245c and 255c with no luck

My print Speeds are 60mm/s, 50mm/s, and 30mm/s

I am using Cura to create the slice.

The print almost feels random. Even with the same settings it might fail sooner or later and it always starts at the bed.

Edit here are some more pictures in better quality plus the other failed benchys https://imgur.com/a/OH7pT6r

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01ERDWSFU/ref=yo_ii_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01ERDWSFU/ref=mp_s_a_1_7?qid=1463321527&sr=8-7&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=i3+3d+printer+kit&dpPl=1&dpID=51Usk0-9JVL&ref=plSrch

I'm thinking of getting this one. Is it any good. The specs and reviews looked good to me, but I'm kind of a noob in this sector

prusa https://www.amazon.com/Arrival-HICTOP-Filament-Self-assembly-Printing/dp/B01ERDWSFU

Slic3r-master.2017.09.12.1377.1a2df5e.64bit

PLA

Marlin-1.1.5

The top layers seems like they are sometimes underextruded (the inside of the first image). but the top layers on the top of the print have too much plastic, especially around the edges.

I was looking at this one... which appears to have a larger printer volume with the negative of having to build it yourself...

It's the HICTOP Prusa i3

[New Arrival] HICTOP Filament Monitor Desktop 3D Printer Kits Reprap Prusa I3 MK8 DIY Self-assembly Printing size 10.6" x 8.3" x 7.0" https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01ERDWSFU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apap_WVQQojJZMjL8X

I am very interested in a build log! I just purchased this kit :

"[New Arrival] HICTOP Filament Monitor Desktop 3D Printer Kits Reprap Prusa I3 MK8 DIY Self-assembly Printing size 10.6" x 8.3" x 7.7" https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01ERDWSFU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_aFrLxb63N8RYF"

I don't know if I should return it and get the auto leveling version. I just received the package today and I am super eager to start the build, but I don't know if I made the right choice for the kit. I emailed tech support to see if they offer any self leveling equipment that I could integrate.

What do you think?